A psalm of
David, to the chief Musician.
"When I
consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which
you have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him?” (vv.3-4)
This psalm
is believed to have been be written by David when he was a shepherd,
recognizing the glory of God in creation. As a shepherd, David had many
opportunities to lay back in the fields, look up into the heavens, gaze at the
stars above, and consider the greatness of God, and the awesomeness of His
handy work (v.3). This brought him to the realization of his own insignificance
and to ask the question, “What is man?" - in respect to a God who could create a
universe like this (v.4).
David went on to answer his own question: “You made him a little lower than
the angels and crowned him with glory and honor” (Psalm 8:5). According to the
Bible, God made man in his own image (Genesis 1:27), lower than the angles (to live here
on earth), but giving him glory and honor by placing him higher than all other living things (Genesis 1:26). Man then became the creature nearest to God, for God Himself was to live in man to be the glory (the light, the truth), of man's life.
God created
human beings to be fully alive in union with Him. Therefore, as heavens tell
the heavenly glory of God, we (who have His Spirit within us) need the risen
Christ to be fully alive in and through us to express His glory while here on
earth.
The Truth: “Let your light so shine
before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your
Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16)
