We can also see Jehovah as the Triune God in this psalm. Verse 2 says, "He makes me lie down in green pastures." The color green signifies the riches of life. When we see the green trees and pastures, we see the riches of life. If the trees are yellow and dried up and the grass is brown, this indicates death.

The green pastures signify the Lord Jesus. The Lord Jesus spoke concerning this in John 10. He said that His sheep would hear His voice and follow Him out of the fold to enjoy the green pastures as the flock (vv. 9, 16). In John 10, Christ is the door (v. 9), the Shepherd (v. 11), and the pasture (v. 9). Christ Himself is our pasture, our nourishment. He is the feeding place for all the sheep. In John 6 Christ said that He is the bread of life (v. 35) to nourish us (v. 57). The "bread" for the sheep is the green pasture, so the green pasture is Christ. Christ can be our green pasture through His incarnation, death, and resurrection. After His incarnation, death, and resurrection, He is growing here as the green pasture for our nourishment.

Psalm 23:2b says that Christ as our Shepherd leads us to waters of rest. The waters of rest are the Spirit. The Spirit is the water, and Christ is the pasture. Verse 5 says, "You anoint my head with oil." Hebrews 1:9 refers to the oil of exultant joy. This oil signifies the Spirit. John 7:39 says that before Christ's resurrection, the Spirit was not yet. This means that the Spirit was not yet consummated. The Spirit of God has been consummated through Christ's incarnation, crucifixion, and resurrection. In Christ's resurrection, the Spirit of God became the life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45b). Now He is available to us because He has been consummated. In Psalm 23, the Spirit as typified by the waters and the oil signifies the consummated Spirit after Christ's resurrection.

This psalm also tells us that Christ's shepherding of us is in five stages. The first stage is of the pastures and the waters of rest (v. 2). Pasture and waters are for our nourishment, including cherishing and enjoyment. The second stage is the stage of the paths of righteousness (v. 3). The paths of righteousness indicate our walk. After we enjoy Christ, are filled up with Christ, and are nourished by Christ, we walk on the paths of righteousness. The third stage is the valley of the shadow of death (v. 4). The valley, the shadow, and death are not pleasant. Christ's shepherding leads us through the valley of the shadow of death. The fourth stage is the battlefield (v. 5), where we are fighting against the adversaries. At the battlefield a table, a feast, is spread for us. Finally, the last stage is to dwell in the house of God all the days of our life (v. 6).

I would like us to consider what stage we are in among these five stages of Christ's shepherding. The first stage is the initial stage of enjoyment. This is just like elementary school. In our educational system there are five stages—elementary, junior high, high school, college, and graduate school. This is comparable to the five stages of Christ's shepherding in Psalm 23. Many of us are in "elementary school" while others are in "high school" in their experience of Christ. A brother who is more mature in the Lord and who has been a seeking Christian for many years may have passed through all five stages of Christ's shepherding. Now in his present experience, he may say that he experiences all five stages at various times.