For His Name’s Sake

Psalm 23:1The LORD is
my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He maketh me to lie down
in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. 3
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his
name's sake. 4 Yea, though I walk through the valley of
the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art
with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me. 5 Thou
preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my
head with oil; my cup runneth over. 6
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will
dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.

The Psalm is very instructive. Even
though it is beautiful poetry, it has tremendous truths and gives a picture of
life. Yet right here in the middle of it, David writes the words “for his name’s
sake.”

The Lord is my Shepherd is the
beginning then it goes into detail about the shepherd taking care of the sheep.
They are inseparably joined together. Then verse 3 is ended with those words.
Yes, the shepherd takes care of us for our own good, but the supreme reason for
us to live right is for His name’s sake.

The shepherd knows sheep
need to be taken care of. Sheep can’t handle responsibility. Here is what’s
important. Sheep may not be able to handle responsibility, but the shepherd can.
The sheep belong to him; they know his voice and bear his name. The
foundational consideration of the shepherd’s name is our responsibility. Jesus
said that we can ask anything in his name and it shall be done. His name is important
to Him. He’s concerned about the integrity of His name. If we claim to be a
Christian, we name Him, for being a Christian identifies the name of Christ. We
handle and have the responsibility to honor it. The Bible says a good name means
more than riches. One’s name is about reputation and integrity. It makes us what
we are. We are to be mindful that we bear the name of the Shepherd. This should be the motivation to live right.
He doesn’t need us to protect Him, but we are not to betray Him.

The Lord leads us. He has
chosen us. We choose Him as our Shepherd and give the leadership of our life
over to Him. He leads us to specific places—green pastures and still waters. We
may live in a spiritually drought world, but the Shepherd can lead us to the
tender grass of green pastures. Even in arid country a shepherd knows where the
water is and leads his sheep there. The Lord does the same for us. Green
pastures are the place to eat to fullness with ease. There is plenty; He doesn’t
dangle His blessings in front of us. The problem these days is that some
Christians don’t want the green pastures.

He leads us beside still
waters. Here there is no danger; there is safety and peace. In peace one can think clearly and thereby see things clearly. This is why
people fall for the tricks of the devil. The Lord gives us the still waters
leading us to clean water, not muddy. We can be clean; we can have fun being a
Christian; we don’t have to be in the muddy water. The Lord leads us to still,
clean water.

Verse 4 leads us from green
pastures and still waters to the valley of shadows. How many times have we been
down and out; it’s hard to see and feel the Lord. We don’t know where to go. We
don’t have to fear evil because the Lord is with us even when we can’t see Him.
Sometimes we ask him why, and He replies that His rod and staff comforts and
protects. We may live in danger; we may feel we’re losing our sanity; we may
feel our bubble is busted. But the Lord protects us. We’re here and we’re not
busted. The shape of the staff fits right around the neck and fits our every
need. We carry nothing to beat the devil with, but Jesus does. He says “through
the valley.” We will get through it. Stick with Him.

Do you see the picture
here? We are going from place to place—the green pastures, the still waters,
and the valley. There is a pathway. Why is it for His name’s sake?

Study the rest of the chapter. Find passages
in the Bible where God refers to His name’s sake and look at it in conjunction
with this Psalm. Why is God so concerned about, so careful about His name?