Ps. 8: "How Majestic of You to Care"

Intro:

Review from last week:

Ps. 6: Grace for the Groan

I am greatly troubled!

Ps. 7: An Honest Look: Dealing with Injured Character

Integrity to look comes from a position that cannot be shook

Ps. 8: ranks in the top 10 of beloved Psalms, a hymn of praise!

Limburg- “A psalm for stargazers”

When the Apollo 11 spacecraft journeyed to the moon in 1969, “The leaders of the nations of earth weree each invited to copse a message to be included on a small disk that was to be left on that heavenly body. Pope Paul VI” sent Psalm 8 on that mission.

Chiasm around the question in verse 4.

Outline:

O LORD: “Majesty, Glory, and Strength of God” (vs. 1-2)

Man: “What is Man” (vs. 3-4)

O LORD: “Glory, Honour, and Dominion Given” (vs. 5-9)

Summary: God’s most magestic creation is you and I.

Illustration: a Baby in the room,

Prayer:

O LORD: “Majesty, Glory, and Strength of God” (vs. 1-2)

Pre-Script (vs.)

To the Choirmaster- conductor

According to the Gittith- Ps. 81 and 84

Does Gittith refer to:

Gath- a song commonly sung there, or an instrument from there

Obededom the Gittite- the ark rested in his house

Victory over Goliath-

a song for the winepress a joyful hymn for the treaders of grapes- according to the root of the word

A Psalm of David- time in David’s life? Could be the earlier times when David was out in the field watching sheep at night, or in the early years as he was fulfilling Saul’s military orders.

1 Sam. 21- Maybe when David flees to Gath after Jonathan warns him that his father Saul wants to kill David. He hid himself in the field during the new moon.

Your Name (v. 1)

O LORD (YHWH), our Lord (“adoni”)- our master, the one that has dominion over His creation. This is an important way to open this Psalm, no other Psalm starts like this.

How “majestic” or excellent- “ad-dir” mighty, inspiring awe or reverence in the beholder; can be related to size, strength, power, or authority.

is your name- reputation, the essence of who someone is.

in all the earth

You have set your “glory”- “ho-dka” weight, power, a state of high honour.

above the heavens

Your Strength (vs. 2)

Out of the mouth of

babies

and infants- what sound comes out of babies and infants?

Matthew 21:16 “and they said to him, “Do you hear what these are saying?” And Jesus said to them, “Yes; have you never read, “ ‘Out of the mouth of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise’?””

You have established strength

because of your foes

to still

the enemy

and avenger

The weakest confront the strong!

What has God chosen to use as his defence against enemies in proclaiming his glory and showing his strength, babies and infants. Wow!

Application/Implications:

Renew the Mind (the Scriptures):

What caught your attention in this section?

Which verses or words would you like to study a little more this week?

Engage the Heart (humility vs. pride):

Where does the soundtrack of your life have you today? Would you define these days by a location, an emotion, an event, or relationship? What is the predominant emotion that you are feeling?

After the last couple of Psalms of Lament, we have a Psalm of praise! Wherever you are today, there is reason to priase the LORD!

What are you thankful for about God that never changes, shout it out.

Enlist the Body (Words, actions, emotions):

The next time you hear a baby in the church service or somewhere else, remember, that is the witness that God has chosen to establish His strength.

Transitional phrase: David proclaims that Majestic glory and strength of God. With that as a the intro, David is preplexed by a rather large question...

Man: “What is Man?” (vs. 3-4)

A work of the fingers: Heavens (v. 3)

When I look at your heavens- David had a lot of opportunities to sit out underneath the stars.

the work of your fingers- run your thumb along your fingers like this…how many things touch your fingertips on a daily basis? Do all of those things captivate you mind and touch your heart?

the moon

and the stars

which you have set in place- this has been going on for a while, it is not a NASA or space x thing.

Webb telescope pictures

“Finding Our Someday”

A work of the heart and mind: Mankind (v. 4)

What is man- “enos” humankind, all human beings, people.

that you are mindful of him- “to remember, to keep in mind for attention or consideration”. Imperfect

and the son of man- “u-ben-a-dam” man, person, a human being

that you care for him?- “visit, inspect, look at, see, to feel concern or interest”. Imperfect

Application/Implications:

Renew the Mind (the Scriptures):

What caught your attention in this section?

Which verses or words would you like to study a little more this week?

Engage the Heart (humility vs. pride):

What captivates your imagination? What when you look at it mesmorizes you? (At this point men, you can look at your wife and say, “you”.)

Listen to what David is saying here, as great as the heavens, moon and starts are, there is something closer to his mind and heart! We are going to see this in a couple of weeks, what did God send to showcase his glory, majesty, and strength from the heavens? A ha! Trick question right?! God did send a star yes, but what did the star mark? The location of a baby boy! His Son, Jesus, sent in the likeness of man

Pastor Jeremy, are you saying that we should ignore the heavens, the moon, and stars just becasue they are the works of God’s fingertips? Well no, we should not ignore them, but we have to be carful that we do not look to these created things more than the creator for answers in life, our worth and identity. If you are a Christian and you spend more time reading your zokiak or sign or horoscope… than the Word of God or spending time talking to the one that created you through prayer, than we need to have a conversation.

Enlist the Body (Words, actions, emotions):

Turn to the person next to you and tell them, you are on the mind of God and He cares for you!

If you struggle with beradding yourself when you get something wrong or don’t do as well as you thought you should, I want you to write out verse 4 in 3 locations that you will see it often to remind you that your are on the mind of God and He cares for you more than the heavens, moon, and stars.

If you can’t sleep and you feel that the only ones that are awake too are the moon and stars, why not recite verse 4 and thank God that He cares.

Transitional phrase: David exposes God’s mindfulness and care for mankind in this section, even more than the heavens, the moon, and the stars. So what separates mankind from everything else in creation? Well, let’s see...

O LORD: “Glory, Honour, and Dominion Given” (vs. 5-9)

You have made him: Position (vs.5)

Yet you have made him- Here is the answer to the question before…Why is God mindful of man and cares for him...

a little lower than the heavenly beings- “elohim” god, deity, the supernatural being who originated and rules over the universe.

The Septuagint/KJV, “than the angels”, but “elohim” is not commonly translated as “angels”.

Man is elevated above the mere works of God’s fingers.

and crowned him- royal term

with glory- “ka-bod”

and honour- “ha-dar” majesty, as God’s representative on earth

You have given him dominion: Purpose (vs. 6-8)

You have given him dominion- Gen 1:26, 28. this is the last of the three things that God has done for mankind: made him, crowned him, and given him dominion. None of these things are a result of man’s effort.

over the works of your hands- Wait, what are the works of God’s hands…the heavens, moon, stars.

you have put all things under his feet- a phrase used of authority given to a king.

There has been a progression from the vertical to the horizontal: above the heavens (v. 1), heavens…moon and stars (v. 3), but a little lower than heavenly beings (v. 5), crowned them (a reference to the head, v. 5), hands (v. 6), feet (v. 6) (The New International Commentary on the OT, 125).

all sheep

and oxen-

and also the beasts of the field- and yet it was under the deception of a snake, a subordinate, that everything fell apart.

Domestic animals that share the space with humanity

the birds of the heavens

and the fish of the sea

Whatever passes along the paths of the seas

God doesn’t just tell us, he shows us how he cares for us by giving us responsability. Like a child, “I want to do it myself”.

We are to care and have domionon over what God has created.

Your Name (v. 9)

O LORD, our Lord

how majestic is your name

in all the earth!

Application/Implications:

Renew the Mind (the Scriptures):

What caught your attention in this section?

Which verses or words would you like to study a little more this week?

Engage the Heart (humility vs. pride):

Has your eye gaze been lowered to mere things on the earth these days? What I mean by that is, look at what God has done:

Made him- yet how much time do I spend seeking to make a name for myself, be a self-made individual by my choices and accomplishments?

Crowned him- yet how much time do I spend seeking to crown myself with the accolades of others, promotions, financial achievements, personal records and goals,

Given him dominion- yet how much time do I spend seeking dominion over others, myself, this world

This is why we care about people more than things! This is why we as a church support ministries like the pregnancy and family resource centre. Why? Because God has created humanity with position and purpose!

Discussion Starters:

What is one attribute of God that I can praise Him for today?

How would I answer, “What is man that you are mindful of him”?

In what ways does Psalm 8 challenge the way I view my position and purpose before God?

Summary: God’s most magestic creation is you and I.

Song: Indescribable

Benediction/Looking ahead: INVITE PEOPLE TO THE CAFE