Psalm 119:176 The Shepherd

I have strayed like a lost sheep.
 Seek your servant,
  for I have not forgotten your commands

Psalm 119:176

I've often pictured myself as a gallant knight on a great journey, striving to do great things for the Lord. With my wife, a true soldier princess, by my side, we're ready for whatever he throws our way.

But, if I'm to be honest, I'm more often like a stupid sheep.  I stray...daily. I've been completely lost a few times, clueless about where I was and where he wanted me to go next.

Except I always seem to want to make it all about me. If I only could grasp hold of my special role in the Lord's grand plan, I tell myself, then I'd finally make it.  I'd arrive at the pinnacle of life.

Every time I think I'm getting in step with the Lord on this road of life, I stumble and fall flat on my foolish face.

I think it's no coincidence that on the same week I finally sat down to write this final blogpost about the final verse on Psalm 119, I was also preparing to lead our Life Group in a conversation about Romans 7.

As someone who has loved Psalm 119 all my life, I've resisted and wrestled with some of Paul's comments about the Law.

What shall we say, then? Is the law sinful? Certainly not! Nevertheless, I would not have known what sin was had it not been for the law. For I would not have known what coveting really was if the law had not said, “You shall not covet.” But sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, produced in me every kind of coveting. For apart from the law, sin was dead.Once I was alive apart from the law; but when the commandment came, sin sprang to life and I died. I found that the very commandment that was intended to bring life actually brought death. For sin, seizing the opportunity afforded by the commandment, deceived me, and through the commandment put me to death.

Romans 7:7-11

Some preachers and writers today are interpreting verses like that to say we should at all costs avoid preaching and teaching people to follow rules. It's all grace, all the time, because the laws were never any good.

The truth is, the flaw in the law has always been interconnected with the flaw in us. As Paul says, the sin in us seizes the opportunity presented by the law and turns us into even worse sinners.

And  yet Paul spends a large portion of his epistles teaching the early Christians how to be transformed from unrighteous rule-breakers to righteous rule-keepers.

The law - both the capital-L Law of Moses and the numerous rules and commandments of the New Testament - represents the heart of God about how He intends for His people to live. Under the New covenant, He has given believers the Holy Spirit and written His laws on our hearts.

If we put our main focus on trying to obey the rules, we'll fail as badly as Paul describes his own efforts in Romans 7. If instead we focus on praising the Lord (Psalm 119:175) and rely on Him to seek us and guide us as our Shepherd (v. 176), then we'll be fulfilling His best intention for His Word.

On the one road of life, I'm no one special. I'm a stupid sheep, just like everyone else walking alongside me.

What makes me different is this: I know the Shepherd. And the Shepherd knows the way.

And most of the other sheep on this path not only don't know the way, they don't know the Shepherd.

Stupid sheep.

Who will point them to the Shepherd?

I will. Because I have not forgotten His commands.