God's Glory

Good morning.

My name is Matthew Capone, and I'm the pastor here at Cheyenne Mountain Presbyterian Church,

and it's my joy to bring God's word to you today.

If you are new or visiting with us, welcome.

We're glad that you're here.

And we're glad that you're here not because we're trying to fill seats,

but because we are following after Jesus together as one community.

And as we follow after Jesus, we've become convinced that there's no one so good that they don't need God's grace,

and no one so bad that they can't have it.

And it's for that reason that we come every Sunday to look at God's word,

because we believe that God has something to say to us.

And that's what we're doing now.

If you have been with us, you know that we're in the book of Psalms.

And as I told you last Sunday, we will not be in the book of Psalms for the next three years.

We're in the book of Psalms through the end of the summer.

And then we're going to start a series on 1 Peter.

So don't be afraid, even when you see these early number of Psalms.

And if you know, there's 150 Psalms.

So fear not.

I've given you a lot of different categories to think about the Psalms.

One of them is that they're the standard operating procedure for the Christian life.

They give us the way to act when we encounter all sorts of situations and circumstances.

I've told you that they're poems.

They make complicated things simple.

They take things that maybe are hard to understand and they boil them down.

I told you recently that they're also a guide to prayer.

The Psalms teach us how to pray.

And we've seen all sorts of varieties of Psalms.

We've seen Psalms of Lament.

Those were some of the first Psalms that we looked at this summer.

We looked at an imprecatory Psalm, a Psalm that prays for God's justice in Psalm 5.

We looked most recently, last week, at a penitential Psalm, a Psalm praying for God's grace and His forgiveness.

And we're going to come to a new category of Psalm today.

New for the summer.

We actually looked at it in December when we looked at the Psalms during Advent.

And this is a Psalm of praise.

And Psalms of praise introduce another category for us of what the Psalms do.

So if you are a parent, one of the things that you want for your child is you want them to love and celebrate certain things.

And you want them to grieve and mourn and hate other things.

And one of the things that's most heartbreaking is if you have a child and they love and celebrate things that you grieve.

And they grieve things that you celebrate.

So what you want to do as you're raising them and nurturing them and training them is you want them to grow in their emotions.

You want them to understand what's good and beautiful in the world.

And you want them to love that.

And you also want them to understand what's dangerous and terrible in the world.

And you want them to grieve and stay away from that.

And what the Psalms do for us, besides all these other things that we've looked at, is the Psalms shape our emotions.

The Psalms teach us what it is that God wants us to love and celebrate.

And what it is he wants us to grieve and mourn.

And that's what happens when we look at a psalm of praise, which is this Psalm 8 before us.

Psalms of praise are ones that talk to us about how it is and why it is that we love and celebrate God and what he's done.

Now, praise is a difficult concept, I think, to wrap our heads around.

Because it's not a word that I hear used outside of the church very often.

And so sometimes it can feel like something that's maybe a little corny or cheesy when people talk about praise.

But I'm going to submit to you today that praise is an essential part of being human, number one.

And second, it's something that we do all the time.

So if you're anything like me, anytime you buy something or purchase something,

and it used to be when you purchased something online, but now it could even be when you purchase something in person,

you're almost certainly going to receive an email.

And this email says,

Sing praises to us.

It doesn't actually say that.

What it does say is,

Would you please write us a review?

And so every time someone sends you asking you for a review,

what they're asking for is your praise.

And if you're like me,

most of the time you ignore it because you don't have time to praise people's products online.

You have more important things to do.

But if it's someone or something that you really care about,

someone that you have a personal relationship with,

you do.

You want to praise them.

So many of you know that I recently bought a house,

and my realtor asked for my review.

And of course, there was nothing I'd want to do more, right?

Because I loved my realtor.

And I thought she had done such a fantastic job and helped me in so many ways.

And so the first thing I did was go and immediately write a song of praise.

I wrote a review telling everyone how great my realtor is.

And so praise is not something that's just for those inside of the church.

It's not just for Christians.

Praise is something that's part of our lives.

It's part of what it means to be human.

C.S. Lewis, I mentioned this in December.

When he first became a Christian, he struggled with praise.

But then he came to realize, what we're talking about now,

that this is something that's essential.

And he realized that people who do not praise,

and he says this,

are like people who've never been in love.

They're like people who can't hear music.

And they're like people who have never read a good book.

In other words, praise is what we do for anything that we care about.

And so when God asks for our praise,

he's commanding us to do what we would do for anything else.

And yet he's much more worthy of our praise.

Now me explaining all of these things to you,

and explaining how praise is part of our lives,

does not make praise any easier.

Praise is still a challenging and difficult concept.

If you're like me, you don't necessarily wake up every Sunday morning,

and your first thought when your alarm goes off is,

I just can't wait until I can begin praising God.

Now if you are one of those people,

I'm glad for you.

That's what God wants for all of us,

and yet it's not something that's natural.

We don't always find ourselves walking around in this world

moved by praise for God.

And so that's why God's given us these psalms.

All the psalms of praise are answering the question of why God is so great.

And they're also helping us understand how it is that we can stir up our hearts

that we're filled with love and praise for God.

I've talked a lot recently in previous psalms

about having hope and trust and faith and confidence in God.

These psalms certainly have that,

but they're more about how we have love and celebration of God.

How do we stir up praise for God

so we appreciate Him and understand His greatness more than anything else?

That's what this psalm is going to present to us.

I've talked also in the past,

it's been a while,

but about the importance of bookends in the Bible.

If you're reading a passage of Scripture

and you see the same thing appear

at the beginning and the end,

Jesus does this in His parables sometimes,

this is a way of saying this is the point of this passage.

So I'm not going to bury the lead in Psalm 8.

There's one point,

it shows up in verses 1 and verse 9,

very beginning and the very end,

and it says,

O Lord, our Lord,

how majestic is Your name in all the earth.

That's the bread to the sandwich of the psalm.

And everything else is going to help us understand

why God's name is majestic.

This is like,

if we come across psalms of praise,

because there's many of them,

it's like different reviews of the same product.

If you go and look at something online,

you might read many reviews,

some of them are going to say the same thing over and over,

so you understand this is very important about this product.

Some of them are going to say different things.

You might have one review that gives you a special insight.

Same is true with the psalms of praise.

Same is true with Psalm 8.

It's going to tell us some of the things we saw in December,

and it's going to tell us new things as well.

It's going to help us understand why God is worth our praise.

And what we can do,

even when we don't feel like praising God,

to stir up our love and our celebration of Him.

And so it's with that question that we come to this psalm,

and this psalm is going to answer it.

It's going to tell us how it is,

why it is that we praise God.

And so with that introduction,

we're going to read Psalm 8.

I'm going to read it.

You're welcome to follow along in your worship guide.

This is printed near the end of your worship guide.

You'll also find it in your Bible.

You might be able to find it on your phone.

And remember,

as we come to this portion of God's Word,

that God tells us that His Word is

more precious than gold,

even the finest gold.

And He tells us that it is sweeter than honey,

even honey that comes straight from the honeycomb.

And so that is why we come week after week

to hear what God has to say.

That's why we're going to start now in verse 1.

Verse 3.

Verse 3.

Verse 9.

I invite you to pray with me

as we come to this portion of God's Word.

Father in heaven,

we thank you again

that you have given us your Word.

You haven't left us to try to figure out

what is good and right

and what is evil and bad in this world on our own.

You haven't left us to

walk by ourselves,

but instead you have

given us your Word.

You've spoken to us

so that we would understand and know.

You're like a good Father

who wants to shape us

and teach us

what to celebrate

and also teach us what to grieve.

We ask that you would

do that now

as we look at Psalm 8,

that you would help us,

that you'd send your Spirit,

that we would be able to see

and understand

and believe

everything that you've written for us

in your Word.

We ask this

not because we deserve it

or have earned it,

but because Jesus

deserves it

and has earned it for us.

And so we ask it in His name.

Amen.

I have mentioned before

that I had not been ever

into the state of Colorado

until 2016

and that was just on the way

on a road trip out to Utah

to see the national parks out there,

especially Zion National Park.

What I have not told you about that trip

is that we made a detour

on the way back

and the detour was to be able

to visit the Grand Canyon.

We didn't have much time,

but everyone on the trip

thought we would be

making a serious and grave error

if we did not at least stop by

for a couple hours.

We're within striking distance

of the Grand Canyon.

We've never seen it.

We have to make sure we're there.

So we just dropped by

for a little bit.

We showed up on the south rim

and if you've been there,

you know you go out

and you look across layers

and layers of rock

and there's many things going on

when you look at these layers.

Some people are looking with you.

Some people are taking selfies.

Some people are on their phones.

But as I stood there

and I looked out across

the expanse of the south rim

and I saw layers and layers of rock

that went down for miles,

there was only one thing

that I could think

and it's that I felt

very, very, very small.

I did not feel like

a great or significant person

in the world.

I didn't feel like

I had tremendous influence

or power.

Instead, I realized

I am a small little ant

on the side of this great canyon.

That's exactly what the psalmist

is telling us

in verses 3 and 4.

Why is God's name

so majestic

in all the earth?

By the way,

this word about majestic,

this glory

that we're told about

in verses 1 and 2,

this strength,

is saying what we've seen before,

that God is a great king.

It's easy to have

a truncated theology

where we just think

of God as our redeemer

and he certainly is that.

God brings salvation.

He redeems us from sin.

The psalms also remind us

that he is not just our redeemer

but our king

and our creator.

And so as we're looking

at how and why

we praise the king,

the first thing the psalmist does

is he looks up

at the heavens.

Verse 3,

he's not looking

at the Grand Canyon.

More likely,

he's sitting out

in a night sky

looking up

at all the stars

that God's created

and as he looks

at the creation,

he's not touched

by light pollution

in the way that we are.

All he can do

is feel very,

very small.

Verse 4,

what is man

that you are mindful of him

and the son of man

that you care for him?

God is the great creator.

He is so great

and so powerful

that he can make things

like the Grand Canyon

and that is nothing

compared to making

the constellations

and the stars

and the universe.

And yet this great God,

verse 4,

still is mindful

and cares for small,

little humans.

This great God

still cares

and is mindful

for small,

little humans.

God's greatness

shows us

how great his love is.

It's one thing

for another person

in this world

to love us

and care for us.

That's glorious

in and of itself.

It's even more amazing

that someone

so powerful as God

would also care for us

and love us.

One of the moments

of praise

that the Psalms

hold out over and over again

is God's creation.

That God uses his world,

the world around us

that he's made

to stir up our love

and our appreciation

for him.

Because it reminds us

of two things

as it reminds the psalmist here.

First,

that God is so great.

He's so great

that he can make

the heavens and the earth.

And second,

he's so loving.

Despite our smallness,

God still delights

to care for us

and provide for us.

Despite our smallness,

God still delights

to care for us

and provide for us.

The creator of the universe

cares intimately for us.

God still does not.

God still does not.

God still does not.

I had a professor

in seminary

who did what many people do,

which is come out

to Colorado on vacation.

In fact,

when I moved out

to Colorado

and I started telling people

this is where I'm going,

I had so many folks

tell me,

I'm incredibly jealous.

That's where I go

for vacation.

You're going to get to live

where I only get to spend

a week or two every year.

And so this professor

had been out in Colorado

in the Rockies

over the summer

and he came back

to St. Louis,

hot and muggy and flat.

And he said that he and his wife

would go out hiking

in the mountains.

And there came one point

as he looked out

at the Rockies,

he began to cry.

And as he began to cry,

he thought,

the God who made

these mountains

also knows my name.

The God who made

these mountains

also knows my name.

And he was out at

the beauty that we take

for granted here.

He was moved to tears.

Why is God's name majestic

in all the earth?

His name is majestic

in all the earth

because he not only

made the mountains,

but he also knows our name.

And so if you're struggling,

like many of us,

if not all of us,

to praise God,

to be filled with a sense

of God's power

and his wonder,

one of the things

God asks us

and commands us

and tells us to do

is to look at

his creation.

Let the natural world

remind you of God's power

and his care.

As you drive west

and look at

the front range,

you can remember

that the God

who made those mountains

knows your name.

If you're struggling

to remember God's greatness

and his power

and his love,

go outside.

God's creation

for the Christian,

God's creation

is important

for our spiritual lives.

It is spiritual

to go out

into nature

and recognize

everything that God

has done

and made.

If you think

you are somebody

or something,

God's creation

will quickly put that

into perspective

for you.

If you think

you are big,

go to the south rim

of the Grand Canyon

and then you can

feel small.

Memorize Psalm 8.

When you're outside,

repeat it to yourself.

Repeat it with your family.

When you're driving

and you look

at everything

that God's made,

remember,

when I look

at 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

and the son of man

that you care for him.

The psalmist here

is literally looking

at literal stars

and it helps him

get in touch

with reality,

what's most true

in the world.

There's many times

in the afternoon,

you know,

we are about

a mile away

from Cheyenne Meadows Park

and the walk

from here

to Cheyenne Meadows Park

is a walk

from the south

to the north.

And so there are

many times

in the afternoon

where if I need a break

I'll walk out of the church

and I'll walk to the park

and I'll walk back.

And now I live

in a house

that's close to the park

as well

and so sometimes

I'll do that too.

I'll walk from there

to the park

and I'll walk back.

And I can remember

that whatever

the reality

of my emotions are

in that moment

and whatever

the reality

of my circumstances are,

whatever's going on

that day,

I look up

in the mountains

and I realize

that despite

the reality

of my emotions

or my circumstances,

the world

has not fundamentally

changed.

the mountains

are still there.

God is still

in control

and He still

cares for me

and He is still

mindful of me.

That is why

His name is majestic

in all the earth.

Now some of you

might be thinking

I don't need

to believe in God

to enjoy the creation.

And if you're thinking

that you would be

correct.

There are many people

who do not worship

God

who enjoy

His creation.

And so you might be

thinking

why is it that

I need to praise God

I can enjoy

this without Him.

Well first of all

yes you can

certainly enjoy

someone's work

without giving them

credit.

However

it's borderline

theft.

There's been a

scandal recently

with Amazon.com

where there have

been people

putting fake books

online,

counterfeit books

that look exactly

like the originals.

People order them

they read them

they enjoy them

they get content

out of them

and no money

goes to the author.

The money goes

to someone else.

Don't give God's

money

His praise

to someone else.

Second

Jesus tells us

in Matthew chapter 5

Matthew 5 · chapter mention

that the sun rises

on the evil

and the good

and the rain

falls on the just

and the unjust.

everyone enjoys

the goodness

of God's creation.

However

not everyone

will enjoy

the goodness

of God's creation

forever.

Not everyone

will enjoy

the goodness

of God's creation

forever.

But only those

who have faith

in Christ.

Part of what

we long for

and look forward

to

in our eternal

life

life.

Some people

think that it

will be

something boring.

But it in fact

will be

what C.S. Lewis

tells us about

in the last battle

the last book

of the Narnia series.

It will be

like this earth

but even better.

Like this creation

but even more glorious.

The phrase

of the characters

used in that book

is that they keep

going further in

and further up.

If you think

God's creation

is glorious now

just wait.

If you think

God's creation

is glorious now

just wait.

Now we don't

just praise God

because of his creation

because he cares for us.

That's verses

three and four.

But we also have

verses five

through eight.

We don't just

praise God

for his glory.

We praise God

because he's

allowed us

to participate

in it.

The psalmist

here is

hearkening back

to Genesis

one and two

when God

gave mankind

all of mankind

the job

of caring

for the earth.

He gave

everyone a job

which was to

fill the earth

and subdue it.

He gave

real authority

to mankind.

So when we

do our job

well

the earth

flourishes.

creation

flourishes

the world

flourishes

civilization

flourishes.

When we do it

poorly

civilization

and creation

suffer.

And God

holds us

accountable

for how we

do this

how well

we take

care

of his

creation.

Yet this

is also

a moment

of praise

for the psalmist.

He praises

God

because God

allows human

beings

these small

tiny people

who are nothing

in comparison

with God

and his

creation

to actually

be small

kings.

You notice

in verse 1

God is majestic

and he has

glory.

Verse 5

This same

God

has given

man glory.

You have

made him

a little

lower than

the heavenly

beings

and crowned

him with

glory and

honor.

In other

words this

great king

has allowed

mankind

to operate

as a lesser

king

as a regent.

In the

ancient world

often what

always happens

is you

would have

an emperor

who was

over a

great

civilization

and he

would have

provinces

or areas

that would

be far

far away

from where

his throne

was.

And so

he would

send a

representative

sometimes

you might

call this

person a

vice

regent

and this

representative

would represent

the name

of the

emperor

in that

place.

He would

represent

the emperor

to the

people who

were under

him

and he

would

represent

those

people who

were under

him

back to

the

emperor.

The

psalmist

praises God

because God

has allowed

us as

mankind to

represent God

to this

world.

When we

build and

create civilization

we are

representing God

to the

creation.

And then he

has also

allowed us to

represent the

creation back

to him.

And so when

we praise God

we are praising

him ourselves

we are also

praising him on

behalf of this

entire world.

And the

psalmist is

moved by the

fact that

God has

made it

wonderful and

glorious to

be human.

He's given

us the

wonder and

the glory of

building

civilization.

He's giving

us the

wonder and

the glory that

comes from

being able to

raise children

in the next

generation.

He's given

us the

wonder and

glory of

building cities.

He's given

us the

wonder and

the glory of

creating

institutions.

He's given

us the

wonder and

the glory of

exploring his

world and

discovering new

things.

He's given

us the

wonder and

the glory of

taking things

that are

chaotic and

bringing order

to them.

The

psalmist

praises God

because God

has crowned

us, he's

crowned humanity

with glory and

honor.

He has made

it wonderful and

amazing to be

human.

And so as

the psalmist goes

about enjoying

his work,

everything good

that God has

made in this

world but also

everything good

that God has

given him to

do, he

realizes that

the joy that

comes from

work, the

joy that

comes from

building and

creating things

whether it's

families or

institutions or

societies is a

joy that God

has given.

It's a privilege

that we do not

deserve.

God does not

need us to run

this world.

And so we

praise him because

he's chosen to

give us that

responsibility.

God does not

need us to run

this world and

so we praise him

because he's

chosen to give us

that responsibility.

That is why the

psalmist can say,

O Lord, our

Lord, how

majestic is your

name in all the

earth.

We praise God

because he's

glorious.

Part of his

glory is revealed

in his care for

us.

verses 3 and 4

and the dignity

that he gives

us.

Verses 5 through

8.

His glory is

revealed in the

care he has for

us.

Verses 3 and 4

and the dignity

he gives us.

Verses 5 through

8.

Now this psalm,

like all the rest

of the psalter,

continues from

God's people in

the Old Testament,

Israel, to God's

people in the New

Testament, the

church.

I mentioned when

we looked at

Psalm 1 that it

was quoted or

alluded to more

than any other

psalm.

Psalm 8 is also

high on the list

of psalms quoted

in the New

Testament.

And what the

New Testament

authors do over

and over again

is they apply

this psalm to

Jesus.

And they apply

it to Jesus in

several ways.

First,

O Lord, our

Lord, how

majestic is your

name in all the

earth.

that name,

that praise,

also belongs to

Jesus.

We don't just

praise the

Father, but we

also praise the

Son.

Second, it's

through Jesus

that God shows

his care for us

ultimately and

finally and fully.

So we saw in

verse 4, God is

mindful of us and

he cares for us.

He's mindful of

us and he cares

for us.

Even before sin

entered the world,

he was mindful and

cared for mankind

in Genesis 1, but

he showed his

kindness and his

care how much

and how great it

was by continuing

to care for

mankind and be

mindful of him

even after he

failed in the job

that God had

given him, even

after he rebelled.

God's care is

revealed for us by

the fact that he

sent his Son to

die for us and

pay the penalty

for our sins to

take the punishment

that we deserved

so that we could

continue to enjoy

God and praise

his name and

live in the world

that he created.

And so God's

care and his

mindfulness is

shown most of

all in Jesus.

Jesus reveals

God's care.

But Jesus also

fulfills and

completes and

accomplishes the

job that God

gave us.

He didn't just

take the penalty

for our sins,

but he did what

we were not

supposed to do,

what we were

supposed to do,

but failed in

doing.

We read

Hebrews chapter

Hebrews 2 · chapter mention

2 as our

New Testament

reading.

If you were

paying attention,

you know that

that Hebrews

Hebrews 2 · chapter mention

chapter 2,

it's in your

worship guide,

directly quotes

this psalm.

And it tells us

a couple things

after it quotes

them, quotes

it.

It says in

verse 8,

In other words,

Psalm 8 is

idealistic.

It is not

true that the

entire world is

under subjection

to us.

We still have

verse 2,

there are still

foes.

And there are

still things that

we cannot control

and subdue in

this world.

Part of that's

because of our

own sin and

failings.

We've chosen to

destroy the world

that God gave us

rather than care

for it.

Part of it is

because of our

lack of power

and ability.

We are not

able, we have

not yet subdued

every animal in

the world.

We do not have

control over the

fish of the sea.

And the author

of Hebrews tells

us then in the

next verse,

verse 9,

okay, so verse

8, not everything

is in subjection

to us.

This is idealistic.

Verse 9,

But we see him

who for a little

while was made

lower than the

angels, namely

Jesus, crowned

with what?

Glory and honor

because of the

suffering of death

so that by the

grace of God

he might taste

death for everyone.

In other words,

we don't see

everything in

Psalm 8 being

true right now,

but we do

see Jesus.

Jesus.

We don't see

everything in

Psalm 8 as

being true

right now,

but we do

see Jesus.

And so the

hope that is

put forward in

Psalm 8,

the reasons that

we praise God

are incomplete

now, but

complete in

Christ.

In other words,

we don't see all

things under

subjection, but

when Jesus comes

back in his

second coming,

we will.

And in his

first coming,

he has already

put all things

under subjection.

Death has been

conquered.

That's part of

what we saw in

our preparation

for worship in

1 Corinthians.

It's been put

under his feet.

It's the same

language that

comes from

Psalm 8.

And so we

praise God,

we tell him

that his name

is majestic

in all the

earth, and we

do it because

of his care

for us.

His care is

shown for the

fact that he

thinks of us

and moves

towards us,

even though he's

the great

creator.

We also

praise him for

the dignity

that he gives

us.

He doesn't

need us to

be his

representatives in

this world,

and yet he's

chosen us to

do it.

And we can

have love and

celebration of

God because we

know all of

these things are

true.

We know they're

true because of

Jesus, that he

reveals and

demonstrates and

seals God's

care for us.

And even as

we fail to

achieve the

dignity that

God has set

out for us,

Jesus achieves

it for us.

And so we

look to him

and hope in

him.

We love him

and we

celebrate him.

And most of

all we say,

oh Lord,

our Lord,

how majestic

is your name

in all the

earth.

Please pray

with me.

dear Father in

heaven, we

confess that

your name is

majestic, that

you are worthy

of our glory and

honor.

We also

confess that we

struggle sometimes

to have love

and praise for

you.

And so we ask

that you would

remind us of

your care for

us, and you

remind us of the

dignity that you've

given us, and

that you would use

it to stir up

love and

affection for

you as we

follow you with

faith.

We ask these

things not because

we have earned

them, but because

Jesus has glory

and honor in the

name above all

names because he's

earned them for us.

And so we ask it

in his name.

Amen.