“You Prepare a table before me…you anoint my head with oil.” Psalm 23:5
Week 9 - Psalm 23:5: “You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows.”
YOU PREPARE A TABLE BEFORE ME
In the opening of his chapter on Psalm 23:5 in A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23, Phillip Keller ties the connection between a table and sheep by explaining that the mountain country of the summer ranges are known as tablelands and “the high plateaus of the sheep ranges are always referred to as ‘mesas’ – the Spanish word for tables” (emphasis added).
A shepherd yearly leads the sheep to the tablelands he’s prepared before them. He distributes salt and minerals over the range, carefully decides where his sheep will have the best place to bed, determines if there are poisonous weeds appearing anywhere, removes debris from the water sources, and more.
You prepare a table before me.
We can all close our eyes and envision moments we’ve had preparing our home dinner table for a meal. It’s prepared in a certain fashion with utensils, napkins, plates, cups and condiments in accordance with the menu. The host strategically sets the table in advance of the guests.
On a much more personal note, our Heavenly Father is our host in life.
God is referenced as Jehovah Sabaoth, the Lord of Hosts, numerous times in the Bible – pointing to the power and authority of God. In His sovereign power and authority, He goes before us – strategically preparing in advance what we need for each day just as a dinner host prepares a table.
Keller declares, “Our great Good Shepherd is going ahead of us in every situation, anticipating what danger we may encounter, and praying for us that in it we might not succumb.” Because God paves the way for us, we understand Moses’ trust in the Lord as he declares in Deuteronomy 31:8, “It is the Lord who goes before you. He will be with you; he will not leave you or forsake you. Do not fear or be dismayed.”
In the Lord’s almighty power and authority, we can declare that truth to a situation of any kind. We don’t know all the details in advance, but He does. In fact, He has gone ahead of us into that situation. He promises He will not leave you when trouble comes; His promise is that He will actually be sitting with you in it.
Notice I said when trouble comes, as we pointed out in John 16:33 last week. We will have trouble. But He has overcome. He has prepared the way for you in that trouble, as a gracious Host.
Keller reminds us that “Just because the shepherd has gone ahead and made every possible provision for the safety and welfare of his sheep while they are on the summer range does not mean they will not have problems there.” Moments of panic and attacks from predators are bound to happen – for us just as much as for sheep! But when they do, where lies your trust?
In the One who has prepared the table in the presence of your enemies.
In a podcast about Louie Giglio’s book, Don’t Give the Enemy a Seat at Your Table, he describes Psalm 23 as a promise to us from God where He is saying, “You and I…are going to have a fellowship of a meal together, called life, in the middle of the cancer, in the middle of the circumstance, in the middle of the depression, the anxiety, the relationship that’s fallen apart…” (emphasis added).
It’s in those storms that we find rest at His table in the midst of ______ because we can collapse and know He is holding the pieces of our life together.
We can fellowship with Him during our storms because He is sitting with us in it.
Giglio then goes on to say, “I believe He puts the table in front of our enemies so that our enemies get a front row seat at watching us discover that Jesus is enough for us no matter what the situation…and nothing gives God glory more than your enemies watching you be satisfied in Him in the middle of the battle.”
Wow.
Jesus knows firsthand the troubles of this world. Keller reminds us that our great Shepherd understands on a human level what it feels like to experience trouble: “[As Jesus has] entered fully and completely and very intimately into the life of men upon our planet. He has known our sufferings, experienced our sorrows, and endured our struggles in this life; He was a Man of Sorrows and acquainted with grief.” As He lived fully human in this world, He fully understands every emotion and situation we encounter.
Psalm 46:1 promises, “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Verse 2 then gives reasons why we will not fear as it says, “Therefore we will not fear though the earth gives way, though the mountains be moved into the heart of the sea, though its waters roar and foam, though the mountains tremble at its swelling.”
Why do we fear not? Because He is our present host of refuge.
Because His presence is so powerful, “Even the demons believe—and shudder!” (James 2:19)
When is a moment the Lord has met you/is meeting you in the midst of your enemies? Fill in the blank for yourself with David’s prayer: “Therefore, I will not fear, though _________________.”
After writing your answer, consider the repetition in verses 7 and 11: “The Lord of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.” Preach to yourself, “Jehovah Sabaoth is with me. He is my fortress.”
Do your actions reflect an awareness that the Lord goes before us everyday?
As God prepares paths of righteousness for us to walk, Keller reminds us that “He is so pleased when I walk in the ways of holiness, of selflessness, of serene contentment in His care, aware of His presence and enjoying the intimacy of His companionship.”
God’s companionship provides peace and rest in the midst of our enemies. We can rest at His table knowing that He is in control of the details we are walking.
Remember that our personal Shepherd knows our coming and our going. He is present with you in the in-between moments and in His mighty power has also already gone ahead of you on your behalf.
YOU ANOINT MY HEAD WITH OIL
In this chapter of A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23, I learned about a routine enemy the shepherd encounters: insects. As the Shepherd goes before us, we will learn, it is the oil He has prepared for us that He uses for our protection.
Keller explains how through Psalm 23, David is recounting the important events and routines of the full year of a sheep's life. So as the flock has routinely been led to the tablelands for summer, he describes the “hordes of insects that emerge with the advent of warm weather…”.
Though the following quote is frankly gross to read, it’s important for us to understand the depth of distraction and danger little bugs cause sheep. Keller writes, “Sheep are especially troubled by the nose fly, or nasal fly, as it is sometimes called. These little flies buzz about the sheep’s head, attempting to deposit their eggs on the damp mucous membranes of the sheep’s nose. If they are successful, the eggs will hatch in a few days to form small, slender, worm-like larvae. They work their way up the nasal passages in to the sheep’s head; they burrow into the flesh and there set up an intense irritation accompanied by severe inflammation.” Due to the irritation, sheep become frantic with fear and panic, desperately trying to elude the flies.
Then comes the oil.
Keller outlines how “At the very first sign of flies among the flock, [the shepherd] will apply an antidote to their heads…smeared over the sheep’s nose and head as a protection against nose flies.”
A protection from the enemy.
He prepares a table before us in the presence of our enemies and protects us in their midst.
Keller then explains how, “Once the oil had been applied to the sheep’s head, there was an immediate change in behavior. Gone was the aggravation, gone the frenzy, gone the irritability and the restlessness. Instead, the sheep would start to feed quietly again, then soon lie down in peaceful contentment” (emphasis added).
Oh, the cycle I see here. We need the Shepherd’s oil of protection for peace all the time, don’t we?
Keller encourages us, “Just as with the sheep, there must be continuous and renewed application of oil to [prevent] the ‘flies’ in my life; there must be a continuous anointing of God’s gracious Spirit” to counteract attacks that come our way.
God’s spirit gives us continuous and renewed peace that surpasses understanding in situations because we know God has been there before. God’s peace allows us to say, “It is well” in the midst of life's greatest storms because we know the anchor of our souls.
It’s important to recognize the process has to be repeated. Keller emphasizes, “The fresh application was the effective antidote” (emphasis added). That quote points to the renewing of our minds daily as we consume God’s Word. Colossians 3:10 talks about “[putting] on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator.” We are called to consume God’s Word and also to consistently renew our knowledge about the Shepherd – pushing us towards holiness in His image.
What impact do you see of fresh application of God’s Word in your life?
Keller reminds us we can cry out, “Please apply the oil of Your Spirit to my mind.”
A second enemy of the sheep Keller describes is called Scab. “‘Scab’ is an irritating and highly contagious disease common among sheep around the world…it spreads throughout a flock by direct contact between infected and noninfected animals.” I learned it is easily spread when sheep rub their heads together.
Keller mentions the distortion that can happen in our minds when he writes, “In the Christian life, most of our contamination by the world, by sin, by that which would defile and disease us spiritually comes through our minds. It is a case of mind meeting mind to transmit ideas, concepts, and attitudes that may be damaging… Often it is when we ‘get our heads together’ with someone else who may not necessarily have the mind of Christ that we come away [inspired by] concepts that are not Christian.”
Think of the people you are in closest conversations with and the opportunities you have to exemplify salt in your speech. Maybe it looks like speaking up. Always it looks like praying for guidance in the midst of conversations that put a pit in your stomach. With our neighbors, cashiers, friends, family members, coworkers, strangers in public, may we seek to transmit our fruit of the Spirit in our day-to-day interactions. May we pursue a posture of peace in controversial conversations. May we listen and ask meaningful questions as Jesus did, redirecting conversations with His lens. In moments that try to pull us down, may we seek to have an immediate change in behavior reflecting we are tethered to His Word.
What if we had the same contagious ripple effect on other sheep by “rubbing our heads together” and spreading Jesus’ love, peace, contentment – spreading the balm of truth from our Savior?
I point back to the marks of a true Christian exemplified in Romans 12 that we can only live out through the strength of God as 1 Peter 4:11 says, “whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one who serves by the strength that God supplies—in order that in everything God may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him belong glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen.”
Psalm 23:5 ends with, “my cup overflows.” As we reflect on the beautiful truth that God prepares a table before us in the presence of our enemies and anoints our heads with oil to protect us, we are led to overflowing thanks. Our hearts overflow with a desire to follow our Shepherd and tell others about Him. We spread the word, inviting other people to receive the tenderness our Heavenly Father prepares and promises us with His oil and at His table. He is with us.
REFERENCES
Don’t Give the Enemy a Seat at Your Table by Louie Giglio
A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23 by Phillip Keller
