You anoint my head with oil…..

You anoint my head with oil…..

Continued study of A Shepherd Looks at Psalm 23 – by Phillip Keller

We are nearing the end of this Psalm and I have learned so much.  I will never again see a sheep grazing in a field and not think of this Psalm.

Last week we looked at how the shepherd went ahead of the flock into the high “table land” or mesa’s to prepare the pasture for the sheep and likened it to how our Great Shepherd has gone on before us and prepared every area of our lives for us.  We call this prevenient grace.  God has gone before us.

This week we continue on and see what the shepherd David may have meant by anointing our heads with oil and our cup running over.

We have in studying this psalm basically covered a year in the life of a sheep.  We’ve seen them move from the home ranch where the shepherd has supplied their every need, out into green pastures, along the still waters, up through the mountain valleys to the high tablelands of summer.

So one would think that now everything is fine with the sheep. The shepherd went ahead of them, prepared the pasture so they should just be frolicking away!!  But now comes the “fly in the ointment”.  Keller points out that insects come out in hordes to torment the sheep in the summer.  He names several different types of flies that can turn the sheep’s lives torturous and can drive them almost to distraction.  One especially troublesome fly is the nose fly.  They buzz about a sheep’s head attempting to deposit their eggs on the damp, mucous membranes of the sheep’s nose.  If successful the eggs will hatch in a few days to form small, slender wormlike larvae. They work their way up the nasal passages into the sheep’s head’ they burrow into the flesh and there set up an intense irritation accompanied by severe inflammation.

For relief from their agonizing annoyance the sheep will beat their heads against trees, rocks, posts or brush, They will rub in the soil and thrash around in wood growth.  In extreme cases of infestation a sheep may kill itself in a frenzied endeavor to gain relief from the aggravation.  Advanced stages of infection from these flies will lead to blindness.

At the very first sign of “fly time” the shepherd will apply an antidote to their heads.  Keller stated that he always used a homemade remedy composed of linseed oil, sulphur and tar that was smeared over the sheep’s nose and head as a protection again the flies.  He stated that this made an incredible transformation in the sheep.  Once the oil had been applied, gone was the aggravation; gone the frenzy; irritability and the restlessness.  The sheep would start to feed quietly again, then soon lie down in peaceful contentment.

Wow, what a picture of us!!  Okay, maybe not you.  But me!  That is the exact picture of irritations that come into our lives.  We butt our heads against the wall (not literally , I hope!), get irritated and run around in circles!

So just as with sheep, we need the continuous and renewed application of the oil of the Holy Spirit applied to our lives.  We must have Gods Holy Spirit to counteract the ever-present aggravation of things in our lives.  One application was not enough for the sheep.  It had to be repeated.  So it is with us.  Luke 11:13, Christ himself urges us to ask for the Holy Spirit to be given to us by the Father.  Only God alone can form in us the “mind of Christ” John 16:13 – tells us that He is the Spirit of Truth.  With a daily anointing of his Holy Spirit it will produce in us fruit of the spirit; love, joy, contentment, patience, gentleness and peace.  What a contrast this is to tempers, frustration and irritableness which mars our daily lives . But if we but say “Lord I can’t deal with these petty problems.  Please apply the oil of your spirit to these problems” and he will!

Keller also pointed out another problem of summer.  That is “scab-time”.  He stated that scab is an irritating and highly contagious disease common among sheep the world over.   It’s caused by a microscopic parasite that is prolific in warm weather, It spreads throughout a flock by direct contact between infected and non-infected animals. Scab is often found most commonly around the head.  Sheep love to rub their heads together and thus infect one another with scab.

Again, the only effective antidote is to apply the same mixture of linseed oil, sulphur and other chemicals that can control this disease.  In many sheep rearing countries dips are built and the entire flock is put through the dip.  Each animal is submerged into the solution until its entire body is soaked.  The most difficult part to do is the head.  It has to be plunged under repeatedly to insure that scab there will be controlled.

The parallel that we can draw here is that in the Christians life most of our contamination by the world, by sin that would defile us comes through the mind.  How about when people “put their heads together”?  Many times we come away with thoughts and ideas that aren’t pleasing to the Lord or are actually sinful.

Our thoughts, our ideas, our choices, our impulses, drives and desires are all shaped and molded through the exposure of our minds to other people’s minds.  In this era of mass communication the danger is very grave.  We must “guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus”.  We cannot become be exposed to some of these contacts without coming away “contaminated”. Philippians 4: 8 instructs us in this matter. “Whatsoever things are true, etc. think on these things”

So just as we accept Christ into our lives as Savior, so one invites the Holy Spirit to come into one’s conscious and subconscious mind to monitor our thought-life.  By faith we believe and know and accept and thank Christ for coming into our lives, so by simple faith and confidence in the same Christ, we believe and know and accept with thanks the coming (or anointing) of His gracious Spirit upon our minds.  Then having done this we simply proceed to live and act and think as He directs us.

When the Holy Spirit enters a life and is in control of the personality, attributes of peace, joy and longsuffering and generosity become apparent. Contentment is the hallmark of those who call Christ their master.

In that way, our cup is overflowing.

There is another cup though that I want to address and that is the cup of suffering.  Keller talks about while tending his sheep he would carry a bottle in his pocket containing brandy and water and when a ewe or lamb was chilled from undue exposure to wet , cold weather he would put a few spoonfuls down its throat.  In just a few minutes the lamb would be back on its feet and full of energy.

In Jesus day, the shepherds of Palestine would most likely share wine with a lamb that had been caught out in a storm and suffering from exposure.

So also do we have a Shepherd who shared the wine, the cup of suffering, his very life blood of his own suffering from his over flowing cup poured out at Calvary for us.  He is there with us in every storm; He is alert to every approaching disaster that threatens His people.  And no matter what storms we may face, His very life and strength and vitality is poured into us.  It overflows so the cup of my life runs over with his life..Often with great blessing and benefit to others who see us stand in the midst of trials and suffering.

So as we go to communion this morning, let us remember the poured out life given for us.  We receive his grace so that we may share it with others.