- Joe Steenholdt
Psalm 8 - The Way It’s Supposed to Be
What did God make you for?
Read / Listen
Read Psalm 8
To the choirmaster: according to The Gittith. A Psalm of David.
1 O Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory above the heavens.
2 Out of the mouth of babies and infants,
you have established strength because of your foes,
to still the enemy and the avenger.
3 When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,
4 what is man that you are mindful of him,
and the son of man that you care for him?
5 Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
and crowned him with glory and honor.
6 You have given him dominion over the works of your hands;
you have put all things under his feet,
7 all sheep and oxen,
and also the beasts of the field,
8 the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea,
whatever passes along the paths of the seas.
9 O Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
Listen to passage & devotional:
Heidelberg Catechism Q&A 6
Q. Did God create people so wicked and perverse?
A. No.
God created them good and in his own image,
that is, in true righteousness and holiness,
so that they might
truly know God their creator,
love him with all their heart,
and live with him in eternal happiness
for his praise and glory.
Summary
In the movie Apollo 13, astronaut Jim Lovell, played by Tom Hanks, is seen gazing at the moon and moving his thumb back and forth to cover it up from view with his finger. Later he is seen doing the same thing from space, only this time with the earth in view. With some distance, something massive can even look small.
Space exploration has shown how our planet is just a speck in a vast universe of many stars, planets, and solar systems way beyond our galaxy. Looking up at the stars at night is an excellent way to remember how small we are compared to an expansive universe. We may ask the same question as the Psalmist in verse 4, “what is man that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?”
Psalm 8 reflects on Genesis 1 and calls us to praise God for his glory revealed in His good creation of heaven and earth and how he also gave human beings an honorable place within that creation. “You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor” (Ps. 8:5). God made the universe to reveal his power and glory, but He also made human beings in His image so that they might know the Creator and love him.
Psalm 8 gives us a picture of how things are supposed to be between God and man and man and creation. Human beings were made to praise and worship. We enjoy being in awe of things that are bigger than us. Whether that is in being struck by the beauty of the Northern Lights, watching a crane hoist up a windmill in a matter of minutes, or cheering on the best athletes competing in a championship game.
Above all, we are to praise the God who made the great features of this earth and created the humans who rule above other earthly creatures in their own creative feats and talents.
Dig Deeper
Heidelberg Q&A 6 reminds us that being created in God’s image comes with a great purpose: to “know God our creator, love him with all our heart, and live with him in eternal happiness for his praise and glory.” This answer is very similar to another Reformed catechism, the Westminster Catechism’s first question and answer, which says, “What is the chief end of man? Man’s chief end is to glorify God, and to enjoy him forever.”
Adam and Eve’s close communion with God in the garden of Eden and proper rule over the earth was a picture of the way humans were created to live—glorifying God and living with him in eternal happiness.
When you read the Bible and pray, keep these things in mind. Time with God is not a box to check off for the day but an opportunity to grow in love and knowledge of the Almighty God of this marvelous universe.
ACKNOWLEDGE WHO GOD IS: Our Almighty Creator and Majestic Lord
ALIGN YOUR LIFE WITH GOD'S WILL: Pray for the focus and awe to praise God for who he is and what he has done in creation and in your life
ASK GOD FOR WHAT YOU NEED:
Read the New Testament in a year, a chapter a day - Mark 13
