On this sentence hangs every blessing in Psalm 23, and they are many. But notice, it is not, “The Lord is the Shepherd,” but “The Lord is my Shepherd”; it is a personal matter, deeply and exclusively personal. A young man said to me one day, “I don’t like the personal way you put things.” “And that is the reason you are not saved,” was my answer. If you cannot say, “The Lord is my Shepherd,” you are not saved. You do not know Him, and you are not a disciple of His. How can you come into this?

A girl was very ill, and greatly troubled about her soul’s salvation. Somebody sent her a scripture text card by post. It ran, Jesus said, “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand” (Jn. 10:27–28). She read those wonderful words, and said to herself, “If only I could say that I was one of His sheep, I should be happy.” But she could not say it and threw the card down with a sigh. As the card dropped onto the bedspread, it turned over, and she saw through her tears that there were words on the other side that she had not noticed: “This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners” (1 Tim. 1:15). As she read these words, the light broke in to her soul, and she exclaimed, “If I’m not a sheep, I’m a sinner, and Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, and so He came to save me!” Then she understood that the sinners whom Jesus our Lord saves are the sheep that shall never perish.

How wonderfully safe are all you lambs of Christ’s flock. He died to save you; He lives to keep you. The hand that smashed the power of death holds you in everlasting security. Eternal love and omnipotence combine in the Good Shepherd who laid down His life for you. You are forever safe.