The Majesty of Jesus

Psalm 8: “The Majesty of Jesus”

Read Psalm 8

Dear friends, we have been for 5 weeks in lament psalms. I hope you saw God and his grace throughout all 5 psalms. It’s almost like we have been below deck on the ship of the Christian life. It is time to come up to get some fresh air.

Psalms 1-2 are psalms of order: everything is right in the world. Psalms 3-7 are psalms of disorder: things are not right in the world. Now we come upon Psalm 8, which is a psalm of praise. Creation is now ordered as God would have it. As you can probably imagine, things do not stay ordered. The next section of psalms speak of the folly and sin of humanity. Those psalms are yet to come. But this evening we are going to enjoy Psalm 8 together.

This evening, I will make application from this psalm as we go, instead of all at the end. The first point of application I want to make is based on Psalms 1-8. At this point in the book of Psalms, the first expression of praise is found at the end of psalm 7. Up to 7:18, we find expressions of trust, but not thanksgiving and praise. I’m 99% sure of this. If you can find praise and thanksgiving in the book of Psalms before 7:18, I will get you a gift card for coffee or something. This sets us up for the praise psalm- psalm 8.

Praise is the proper response to God’s deliverance in our lives. Whether it is enemies, depression, or grief that God rescues us from, praise should be the way we respond to our Savior. This praise is actually singing songs and giving thanks to him for what he has done.

As we look as Psalm 8 in its broad context, praise to God is also a remedy to the grief and anguish we saw in Psalms 3-7. God heals us from pain in different ways, and one of those is praising him. I hope you have experienced this before. Have a time in prayer when all you do is thank God for what he has done. Or as a family, go around the table at dinner and give thanks to God for specific blessings. This can repair our souls. Also, singing (that’s what Psalm 7 says) individually or as a group can lift our spirits as well. Music is a big part of our daily routine at our house, whether it be listening to music as we go about our chores or singing around our piano as a family. There are many times when music has lifted up my soul.

For those in deep grief, as expressed in Psalm 6, giving thanks or singing may sound grating. But for others, praise is one way that God heals our hearts. Psalm 8 isn’t here by accident. It has much to say about what goes before and what goes after.

The theme of Psalm 8 is clearly God’s majesty or glory. The psalm begins and ends with praising God’s majesty. It is common for Hebrew poetry to bracket a psalm with repeated words or stanzas.

This evening, I want you to see God’s majesty. God’s majesty is the brightness of his character. The radiance of his holiness. His glory. If God were the sun, his majesty would be sun beams. God’s majesty is seen 6 ways in this psalm.

1. God’s majesty is everywhere

The praise in Psalm 8 is addressed to the LORD our Lord. The first Lord is the Hebrew Yahweh, God’s personal name. The one who IS. The second Lord is the Hebrew Adonai, which is a term referring to God as a ruler.

God’s majesty is seen in ALL the earth. His glory is seen in heaven as one who reigns above the universe. Every nook and cranny of the universe displays the majesty of God. You can’t hide from it. From the dandelion growing in the sidewalk to the moon rising at night, God has painted his majesty on every square inch of this canvas we call the universe. Spring time is a perfect time to preach this Psalm. God’s glory is almost deafening when you walk outside.

2. God’s majesty is seen in the little things
God’s majesty is even seen in tiny little babies. As having survived 2 years with an infant turned toddler, I guess I have some credibility when I speak about babies. It’s not just babies that display God’s majesty, it’s what they say…babbling, laughing, crying.

There are times that caring for a baby is hard, and the burden often falls the heaviest on mom. But even the baby has been crabby all day, and the parents are sleep-deprived and exhausted from wrangling the toddler, there is one sound that will make that all fade for a moment. Baby laughter. For that moment you forget the dark circles under your eyes and the dirty dishes in the sink.

God reveals himself in the smallest things and the tiniest of ways. From a baby’s laugh to a snowy mountain peak, all creation speaks of God. I don’t know if you have had this happen to you. You are discouraged or you are questioning what God is doing in your life. Then you see an ant carrying a crumb…the wind rustling the autumn leaves…the sun peeking out of the clouds, and you see GLORY. You remember God is majestic. He is glorious. Everything is going to be OK.

3. God’s majesty stops his enemies
The smallest glimpse of God’s glory is able to stop his enemies in their tracks. The text says the sound from a baby’s mouth has ordained strength. The word means “to establish,” as in “to set up a foundation.” A baby’s laugh establishes God’s strength. That’s a weird picture. Think of a medieval castle set on a granite mountain. Foes can’t touch it. Then think of a baby. I remember when Zachariah was first born, him fitting in the palms of my hands. God is so great that a baby’s cry can stop his enemies.

As we think back over the lament psalms and David’s struggle with his enemies, one aspect of faith we noted was the ability to see God as bigger than our enemies. As we grow in seeing God’s majesty, we see that his enemies are puny compared to him. They are stopped by just a glimpse of his majesty.

4. God’s majesty is seen in his work
We have said that God’s majesty is seen everywhere. The psalmist now examines the details of God’s workmanship. He says: the work of your fingers. Think of creation as God’s cross stich work. Fine needle work. Or think of it as a carefully-soldered circuit board. Cross stich and soldering both take careful, concentrated use of your finders. The moon and the stars are God’s careful creation, put together, as it were, by his fingertips.

When you think of how the human body works, or the ecosystem, or the orbits of the planets, we see a carefully-created universe. Be careful, stepping outside or looking down at your hand may lead to worship. Every facet of creation speaks to us of God. Let’s not miss it. Let’s not worship it either. Let us look and worship our Creator.

One morning I was sitting in our living room reading my Bible, and I looked down at our oak floors. Each board has a unique grain pattern. There are even several pieces of flooring that are ¼ sawn, so they have these flecks that almost sparkle in the light. I thought- God did not have to make oak trees this way. He could have made them a uniform grain and texture. Instead he shows forth his majesty in the unique grain in each oak tree.

When the psalmist considers all of creation, he wonders why God would even care about humans. The moon is one stitch on a cross stitch and we are minute compared to that. What is man that God remembers us? The word for man in verse 4 speaks of man’s frailty. The term “son of man” sets humans in contrast to God. We are nothing compared to him. But God remembers us. God cares for us. Because he has chosen to.

5. God’s majesty is given to man
As part of creation, God gave man a special place in creation. When I say “man” I mean “humanity.” In Genesis 1, God creates man “male and female.” When man is used this way, it is the term for humanity. Man has a special place in God’s creation: below the angels, but given glory and honor. We are made in God’s image and radiate some of God’s glory. The term “under his feet” is an expression that means “to rule.” God gave man a task: we have rule and responsibility for the earth. The earth that God made, that radiates his glory. What an awesome privilege! All the animals and all of God’s creation on earth belong to us to manage.

6. God’s majesty is seen in Christ
Psalm 8 presents man as the crowning achievement of God’s creation. But Psalms 9-14 present mankind as sinful and foolish. Here are two quotes: “the faithful have vanished” and “the fool has said in his heart, there is no God.” But what about Psalm 8?! The glory and privilege that God has given to humans have been trashed by sinful humans. We long for a man to come who will exhibit humanity as it was originally made. That person is Jesus.
Let’s look at Hebrews 2 together…starting at verse 5. In chapter 2, the author is setting forth Jesus Christ as superior to the angels. Read verses 5-9. Even though God has put everything under man’s feet—given him rule—the creation is not under his control. This points to Jesus, who perfectly fulfills God’s plan for humanity. Jesus was made for a little while lower than the angels. In the OT, the Hebrew can either mean a little lower in position or little lower in time. That’s how the author to the Hebrews take it. Jesus humbled himself for a time so that he could redeem us. Jesus receives glory and honor from the Father because he endured the cross for us.

Because Jesus took on our nature, Jesus redeems us. Jesus had to assume what he was to redeem. He had to assume our nature, so he could redeem us. Look at vs 14-15. Jesus not only perfectly fulfills God’s plan for humanity, but he rescues us who have tramped the glory he has given us. Jesus did not stay on earth in humility. He rose from the dead, he ascended on high, and sits at his Father’s right hand, crowned with glory and honor.

Psalm 8 is chock full of God’s majesty, from the laughter of babies to the victory of Jesus for us. It is also full of God’s care for his children. God did not have to create us or the world. He was completely happy without use. But as an overflow of his love, he created a world where his glory could be seen. He pieced together the stars and planets to show his handiwork. He didn’t stop there, but he made mankind to inhabit this beautiful world. He made us to radiate his glory and rule the planet. Even though he crowned us with glory and honor, we trashed that glory, and turned his honor into shame. We sinned against him.

But God had a plan to win us back…to reclaim his glory and honor. And the plan began with a baby. Jesus Christ was made a little lower than the angels. He lived a perfect life, died a cruel death in our place, and rose from the dead. He was crowned with glory and honor and is worshiped as Lord. He is in the process of restoring all who believe in him, crowning them with glory and honor as his brothers and sisters. And soon…one day…all redeemed humanity will serve the Lord in a new heavens and new earth where everything and everyone will perfectly display the majesty of Jesus. That’s the story of the Bible…and Psalm 8 is one piece of that story.