“What We Believe…” About Man Psalms 8
Have you ever stopped and asked yourself just who you are? What is my place in this world? What do I matter? The answer to that is not always an easy one, is it?
Today we continue our series “What We Believe…” –and today it is what we believe, and what the bible teaches us concerning ourselves… mankind, humans.
Most people do not have a healthy perspective of themselves in relation to God…
Some people think to little of themselves – that is self-loathing.
Then some people think to highly of themselves – that is called narcisism– an over inflated ego.
But when you stop to truly think about who we are as humans it can be staggering. In all of creation we seem to be little tiny specks in the great expanse of the awe inspiring cosmos. Many of us have stared into space, or been on a mountain top and asked the question, “In all of this – what am I…”
In Psalms 8 that is what David is doing, he asks the question of “who are we” but then he gives the God perspective answer to it. Listen to what David asks - (READ PSALMS 8:3-6a)
We, like David, need to understand who we are in God’s eyes. We need to consider our standing, our position before God and what He created us for… first -
We are created in God’s image –
We need to look at where we started. Turn in your Bibles to Genesis 1:27 – (READ)
Mankind was created by a special act of God, in His own image…
Humans are unlike any other species… we are not from the primordial ooze – we are not from lower primates, we did not climb out of the ocean or down from the trees – we were created, male and female, in Gods image .
In all of the creation account animals, fish, plants were spoken into existence… but humans were God breathed into existence. (Genesis 2:7)
That is what David recognizes and understands when he says – “you have made man a little lower than God…” (Some translations read angels but it is correctly translated GOD!)
Not only are we created in God’s image. - We are created as God’s crowning glory –
Psalms 8:5 is says – “And You (God) have crowned him with glory and honor.”
We have an image, a position and a place far above anything else, including the angels. That is hard for us little humans to fathom… that while God does love all His creation - we are made in such a way that only as humans do we have the capacity for a relationship with the Creator.
This isn’t given so that we can think to highly of ourselves but for the realization that humans, more than plants, animals and the environment are infinitely more important to God than all other creation…
In our society we have tried to place mankind at the level of animal life. Some would want little barn owls to be treated better than little children; some would want to save a tree before they would save a life… Yes it does say in Psalms 8:6-8 that we are to take care of and be good stewards of the land and the animals that God created but it does not say that they are to be given a higher place than man…
This realization as David understands our human position above all other creation and before God causes his outburst of – “O Lord, our Lord, How majestic is Thy name in all the earth!”
It should our response too!
Unfortunately we missed the mark and We distorted our image and created our own fatal flaw –
God made us in His image, He made us to be the crowning achievement of His glory and He gave us freedom to choose or refuse - a real love relationship…
By our free choice man sinned against God and brought sin into the human race. That privilege and responsibility was misused and it resulted in what Paul would say in -
Romans 3:10 - “There is no one who is righteous, not even one;” and in
Romans 3:23 - “For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;”
Sin is the issue that separated us from God and distorted our standing with Him. And without even thinking about it our reasoning has become “I by my sin got into this mess; therefore I by my sin I will get out of it.”
We have come to believe that our distorted lives can be fixed by the same distorted behavior…
But once we truly consider our place before God and who we are in all His creation…
We are gain a new and proper perspective –
A person should have two stone and keep them in their pocket… one should have written on it “I am but dust and ashes” and the other, “for my sake Jesus died” and they should refer to each stone as needed.
We are not to think to high or to low of ourselves. The perspective is this… we were made as God’s crowning achievement yet we distorted this position and we are placed back in the right position by Jesus… because of that we need to remember our position… that we are infinitely valuable to Go, that He loved us so much that He died for us - thus -
We are to praise God - Just like David we too should say;
“O Lord, our Lord, How majestic is Thy name in all the earth!”
And in the Living Bible says Psalms 8:2 -
“You have taught the little children to praise you perfectly. May their example shame and silence your enemies!”
But because of a distorted perspective of our position we spend too much time praising ourselves and our achievements and forget that we are made “lower” than God. We have stopped praising God for His work in our lives and decided we would take credit for it all.
But the psalmist says; “Like little children our praise should be a constant response to our Creator. We were made to praise God for all He did and all He is doing.”
Finally we are to respond properly to God –
Since we are by virtue of Adam in a distorted, sinful position and once we realize a proper perspective of “who” we are, we praise God and respond in a way that will put us back where He had intended. By virtue of Adam we ended up in a sinful nature but by virtue of Jesus that set us back in the right position.
Listen to how the Simple English translation says it in Romans 4:24 - 25
“…it was also written for us. We are going to be accepted, too. We believe in the One who raised our Lord Jesus from death.” Jesus was handed over for our sins. He was raised from death to make us right with God.”
And listen to this promise - Romans 5:2 “For because of our faith, He has brought us into this place of highest privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to actually becoming all that God has had in mind for us to be.”
God created you for a special place of honor in His creation and in His Kingdom… Man distorted it through sin… Jesus restored it by taking it on Himself…
So - Because of Jesus Christ we can be put back into that position of being crowned with glory for God’s plan…
Who are you? You are God’s special creation. Someone He loves that He feels is worth saving and healing…
You may say to yourself “I am not worthy.” Well that is your perspective –
God’s perspective is that you are worth loving and saving, because that is why He made you.
What is it you are made for? A relationship to love and give glory to God
How do you do that? By responding to His plan that His Son Jesus restores for you.
