A Shepherd Looks At Psalm 23 By W. Phillip Keller – Chapter 9 Reflection:
What does it mean that Jesus has prepared a table for us in the presence of our enemies?
This was easily one of my favorite chapters in this book. Likewise, one of my favorite reflection questions. Phillip Keller paints an awesome picture of what it means for the Good Shepherd to go before me, to prepare a table for me, and all in the presence of my enemies.
In a previous chapter, Keller talks about how sheep are the only livestock that is lead. All other livestock are driven, that is all other livestock are forced to go where the herdsman make them go. But sheep willingly follow the shepherd as he leads. As we see in this chapter, the shepherd goes before the sheep. Despite high cost and hardship to himself, he prepares the way he prepares the table for his sheep. He does this for their safety, and for their benefit. So I think the questions we must ask ourselves here are; What does it mean that The Good Shepherd goes before me? And what kind of table has he prepared for me?
What does it mean that The Good Shepherd goes before me?
What sticks out to me when considering the phrase ‘in the presence of our enemies’ is the temptations that Jesus faced. Now obviously, the story of his temptation in the desert immediately comes to mind, but I think it’s silly to think that this was the only temptation he faced in his 30+ years on earth. Jesus was both fully God and fully man. So it is ridiculous to think that he wasn’t tempted just as much as the rest of us. I don’t believe that it’s going too far as to assume that the enemy, who tempts us all, likely would have turned up the dial on the Son of Man, seeing as he knew just what was at stake.
In the same way, I also consider the tremendous amount of pain and suffering that the Good Shepherd endured on behalf of us, his sheep. Christ was beaten, mocked, ridiculed, publicly humiliated, and ultimately put to death on the cross. When considering the types of suffering that we endure today, they pale in comparison to what he went through.
He picked up his cross and died so that I could pick up mine and follow him.
In light of all this, I find great comfort in knowing that the Good Shepherd has gone before me. There is nothing this world can throw at me that he himself has not already endured. He knows exactly how to handle it. He knows exactly how to lead me through it. And most importantly, he has prepared a table for me on the other side.
What kind of table has he prepared for me?
Given the language used here, I picture a table, and I imagine a feast fit for a king. Like something out of the movies, I picture a long table where you can’t even see from one end to the other, and every food imaginable spread over the entire thing. It’s a feast prepared for me, for you, and all of the children of God. Of course, it is so much more than that. The “table” the Good Shepherd is preparing for us is so much more than a feast as our minds might imagine it. As I type, I struggle to find words to describe all the thoughts in my head. I suppose I could try to list them, but would the list ever end? Could it ever be complete? Instead, I think I’ll simply end with the words of the Good Shepherd himself; “I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.” (Jn. 10:10)