10. The Steps of Righteousness: "He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness" (23:3b)

Psalm 23:3b

¹ The Lord is my shepherd;
I shall not want.
² He makes me to lie down in green pastures;
He leads me beside the still waters.
³ He restores my soul;
He leads me in the paths of righteousness
For His name’s sake.

Baptist pastor and professor F.B. Meyer referred to Psalm 23 as the psalm of psalms, and that “This psalm speaks in language that the universal heart of man can comprehend. It exercises a spell that can charm away the griefs that bid a bold defiance to philosophy and mirth… It is an oasis in the desert…it is one of the most holy places in the temple of Scripture.” 

The Shepherd leads beside the still waters for my soul’s restoration and by the paths of righteousness are for His Name’s sake.

I am born in sin, walking in paths of unrighteousness. Like sheep, I am prone to wander by my very nature. Isaiah 53:6 says, “All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned everyone to his own way; and the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all.” 

I am born again to walk in paths of righteousness. The Lord who is my shepherd searched for me and when He found me, He bore me on His shoulders and carried me home. Luke 15:6 says, “And when the shepherd came home, he called together his friends and neighbors, and said them, ‘Rejoice with me; for I have found my sheep which was lost.’” 

A New Path. I am born again to walk on new paths. “Trust in the LORD with all your heart; and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6). I am born again by faith to walk by faith, based on God’s word. “As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him” “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which lives and abides forever.” (Colossians 2:6 with 1 Peter 1:23). Being born again is not just about a new life, it is also about a new way of life; it is a walk on a new path. It is called “the washing of regeneration” and “the renewal of the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:5).  

As a result of my restored soul, my paths have changed. True sheep put their faith in the Shepherd, placing their trust so deeply that their actions naturally follow what they truly believe. That’s why Jesus said unbelief shown by not following is a sign of not being His sheep. “But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you.” (John 10:26).  

A new produce. True sheep follow in the path of the Shepherd. A shepherd who has a wandering sheep may have to break its leg so that it will stay close to the shepherd and to the flock. Adversities bring me closer to the shepherd and also to the right paths. “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.” (John 10:27). 

Using a different analogy in John 15, Jesus said “I am the true vine, and My Father is the Vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away (lifts up); and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit.” A branch on the ground will not bear fruit and must be taken or lifted up. Even fruit bearing branches must be pruned so to bring forth fruits of righteousness, a new produce. 

A new people. True sheep hear his voice with a tender heart. We are now His people and I am a new person, no longer with a hardened heart but a hearing heart.  “For he is our God; and we are the people of His pasture, and the sheep of His hand. Today if you hear his voice, do not harden your heart…” (Psalm 95:7-8)

“Dear Lord, make a walk on new paths of righteousness. I’ve been down the other road and I don’t like where it leads. Bear new fruit in me and help me live my new life hearing your voice ringing in my ears. Amen.”