Psalm eight, to the choir master, according to the Katif, a Psalm of David. Oh Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth. You have set your glory above the heavens. Out of the mouth of babies and infants, you have established strength because of your foes to still the enemy and the avenger. When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, those things 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. Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings. You have crowned him with glory and honor. You have given him dominion over the works of your hands, and you have put all things under his feet. all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, the birds of the heavens, the fish of the sea, and whatever passes along the paths of the seas. O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth. And now reading briefly from the greatest commentary on Psalm ever eight to ever come forth found in Hebrews chapter two. For it was not to the angels that God subjected the world to come, that world of which we are now speaking. As it has been testified somewhere, speaking of Psalm 8, what is man that you are mindful of him, or the son of man that you care for him? You have made him for a little while lower than the angels, and you have crowned him with glory and honor, putting everything in subjection under his feet. Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside of his control. And at present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him, but we do see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus. By the way, this is the first time the name of Jesus pops up in the book of Hebrews. Christ who is crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone. The grass withers, the flowers of the field fade, but the Lord of our God will stand forever. Please be seated. I remember a number of years ago, I was living in Oregon, about four years ago, and it was Thanksgiving time, and I had never been to the Redwoods, and my dad had come out to visit me, and so we decided that we would drive down the Oregon coast, make our way down to Brookings, Oregon, and spend Thanksgiving there, just about an hour north of the Redwoods. We got up that Thursday morning from our hotel and made our way to the Redwoods. We've seen pictures before. We've heard it described. I think like every child of the 80s, I've seen Harry and Anderson, so I know what the redwoods look like in pictorial format. But as we're driving down US 101, we're going along as the coast is curving in and out. And we're looking at these trees, and the trees keep getting bigger and bigger. And as we turn every corner, we're like, are these the redwoods? They seem big. I thought that they would be bigger. And we came to this massive bend in the road, and then we saw the redwoods. There could be no mistake. We go, oh, these are the redwoods, not the things that we've been seeing for the past half hour. You turn a corner and there they are. Once you see it, there is no mistaking. Any doubt that you may have had has been dispelled. There is no longer any second guessing. And we come to these mountains or to these trees that are so large. One tree is so large, you can actually drive your car through it. They've carved an archway into it. As you stand before the real deal, you find that these things take your breath away. I think it's one thing to be told about something that is wonderful, but it is another thing altogether to be confronted with the wonder itself. There is no picture, there is no descriptor that can replace the actual experience of standing before the greatness of the redwoods. I think the same is true of the Rockies. My first time going to the Rockies was about 10 years ago. I went on a hiking trip. It was about 30 pounds ago. I'd never been, but I find myself staring into the night sky. And you're just left breathless, and not just because of the altitude sickness, but because of the majesty of the mountains that stand before you. There's something about standing before the redwoods or the Rockies or surveying the stars on a cloudless night that seems to put everything into perspective and makes you feel so small. You're overwhelmed with a sense of wonder. It's not just a subjective response. But there is something objectively majestic about the thing that you have just seen in such a way that it takes your very breath away. C.S. Lewis, in his book, The Abolition of Manus, a word that, in our English vocabulary, that's used to describe such majestic, objective features of the natural world. That word, of course, for him is sublimity. the things that are sublime. We find a word in the Bible that echoes that same objective character, a word that characterizes something that is stately. It's this picture of strength and power, dignity, and beauty. The word that we find replete throughout the Scriptures to connote this same objective power is that of majesty. It's something that takes your breath away. In this particular psalm, David contemplates one thing that is majestic in nature. The most majestic thing of all is the name of God. That name as it is displayed in both creation and in redemption. O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name. This morning I'd like us to consider the majesty of God's name from two particular vantage points. First, we'll consider the matter of rebellion. We'll see that here in verses 1 and 2, and then secondly, the matter of redemption in verses 3 to 9. The majesty of God's name in the face of our rebellion, and the majesty of His name in the redemption that comes to sinners. Well, psalm 8 is often called a creation hymn, and rightly so. It's this litany of terms we find in this psalm that draw our attention back to the dawning of creation. It's words and phrases that describe the divine artistry of the one who made the sun, the moon, and the stars. It describes the creation of the heavens and the earth and all that exists in between. This picture of man as he has been divinely commissioned and endowed with authority and power on that sixth day of creation to rule the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the beasts of the field. This creation imagery is so repeated, it's so resplendent in this particular psalm that it leads one particular commentator to say this, that Psalm 8 is Genesis 1 turned into a prayer. And here as David contemplates God's majesty, here he begins and he ends on the same note. You see it both in verse one and verse nine. Oh, Yahweh, our Adonai, how majestic is your name in all the earth. It's the very thing that he both begins and ends on. It is an envelope of praise so that everything in between is intended to direct our gaze to the one who though invisible has left an indelible fingerprint on His creation in such a way that declares His power and His majesty irrefutable. It's the very thing that Paul says in Romans 1, isn't it? That the works of God are seen in all creation in such a way that it leaves all mankind without excuse. Psalm 19, the heavens declare the glory of God, the sky proclaims His majesty, there's no place where its voice is not heard, either to the furthest extents of the earth or during time, day after day, night after night, it utters speech, it goes forth like a bridegroom on his wedding night, shouting with joy the divine artistry of the maker of heaven and earth. And here we find in the Psalm, David draws attention to the very name of God. And the majesty which God's name elicits. It's the very thing that brings us to the heart of worship, isn't it? It's the very reason for which we have come this morning. And perhaps we might be left thinking, what does it mean to consider the majesty of God's name? Consider Moses as he stands alone on the crest of Sinai in Exodus chapter 33. He prays, he says, O Lord, I have but one request. Show me your glory. How does the Lord respond? No man can see my face and live. Sorry, Moses, can't do it. Not in the way in which you have asked. But there is this thing that I will do. I'm going to hide you in the cleft of the rock, and I will cause My goodness to pass before you, and I will proclaim to you My name." And he covers Moses' eyes, and the majesty of God's name is declared, that He is the The Lord, Yahweh, Yahweh, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness. Moses could not see the Lord, but the proclamation of the name of the Lord here signifies all that the Lord truly is in his character and in his conduct. And it evokes His majesty in all of its objective stateliness, dignity, and power. So much so that when David here in this psalm exalts the name of the Lord, he praises the invisible God and all that that name signifies. That this God who alone is a spirit infinite, eternal, and unchangeable is the same God who is most wise. most powerful, that God who alone is most holy, the God who is justice itself, goodness embodied, the criterion of all truth, and that in all these things, the one who was, the one who is, and the one who is to come, He cannot and will not change. Like standing before the California Redwoods or the Colorado Rockies, there is something objectively majestic here that staggers the mind and takes our breath away. As David proclaims, how majestic is this name. O Yahweh, our Adonai. Most English translations will then say this, you have set your glory above the heavens. I was reading a particular Hebrew commentator this week, this guy by the name of David Alter. It's a really wonderful translation of the Psalms, which includes a number of footnotes for the reasons why he translates it the way he does. And he comes to this particular Psalm, and he notes this, that here is a sentence that is given not in the indicative mood, but in the imperative. And David says, David Alter, not David the Psalmist, David Alter says, this commentary says, it doesn't make any sense for this sentence to be in the imperative. So he continues to translate it like you see most other modern translations in the indicative. But here in the Hebrew, it's not said in the indicative. David gives a request, he gives a particular petition in the imperative. We put it something like this, quite literally, O Yahweh our Adonai, how majestic is your name in all the earth. Concerning this name, establish your majesty above the heavens. That is David's prayer. A petition to see the name of God restored to its rightful place in the face of the adversary and the avenger. We might call this the original MAGA doctrine, make Adonai's name great again. Not that the Lord's name has failed to be great, but David longs to see the Lord's majesty reasserted in the face of his foes. And so David ponders his own petition. Lord, make your name great again. Notice in the face of what? To still the foe, the enemy, and the adversary, and the avenger. And then he begins to ponder, how will the maker of all make his great name known in the heavens? And here in verse two, we find that the Lord reasserts his majesty, his majestic name through the most unlikely of instruments. Even though the most magnificent features of all the created order caused David to consider his own smallness, the sun, the moon, the stars, the mountains, the depths of the seas, we find that it's not through the resplendent redwoods or the purple mountain majesties that the Lord reasserts his majesty. No, we find that the Lord reasserts the majesty of his name through the songs of children. Out of the mouths of babies, and infants, you have established strength." A word here for strength is a citadel. It's a fortress. I want you to imagine this particular scenario that David is evoking. The enemies of the Lord have assembled and surrounded the heights of Zion. They've taken counsel together against the Lord and his anointed to overthrow the maker of heaven and earth. It's an image that we see all throughout the Psalms, even as early as Psalm chapter two. And what we find depicted here are not simply the Lord's earthly foes, but dark malevolent forces of darkness. Look down at verse eight, for instance. David speaks of all those things that pass along the paths of the sea. He doesn't simply mean the sea bass here. He's already talked about the fish of the sea, but he talks about the things that swim in the deep. It's language here that is used throughout the rest of the Psalter to include the sea monsters, including the great Leviathan of Psalm 104 in the book of Job. A creature which Isaiah the prophet identifies as nothing less than that great serpent, the dragon, Satan himself. Even Calvin in his commentary notes that the old Latin translation of this psalm, here when it speaks of the enemy and the avenger, it uses the Latin word cyclops. It's the monsters. What David is saying here is that the Lord establishes His fortress, His mighty fortress against the monsters through children's ditties. Here the great sea monsters of the deep have allied themselves in a cosmic battle with the hordes of hell against Israel and Israel's God to make war against the Lord and so drag His name into disrepute. And in the face of such ferocious power, the question is, will the Lord of heaven and earth be able to withstand the attack? Will he make his name great again in the face of his foes? David here says that the Lord demonstrates his power by making children's songs his mighty fortress. Calvin puts it like this in his commentary, that God in mockery brings into the field of battle against His foes the mouths of babies. Imagine an army of infants taking on the monsters of the deep, mouths which have sufficient strength to lay God's enemies to the dust. Here God manifests his power and weakness to shame the strong. Here God displays his wisdom through foolishness to shame the wise. It's a pattern we see all throughout the scriptures, culminating, of course, in the folly of the cross. To demonstrate to a watching world that God's folly stumps human ingenuity, that God's weakness subverts human power so great is the majesty of God's name. Satan is rendered powerless in the face of the praises of the children's songs that flow from Zion. What majesty! Oh, the depths of the wisdom and the knowledge of God. How unsearchable are His judgments, how inscrutable are His ways. Such are the heights of David's thoughts. How would the Lord reassert His majestic name in the midst of rebellious creation? Through weakness and frailty. To show how majestic He really is. And yet more than that, we see here that the Lord reestablishes, reasserts, as it will, His dominion through the humiliation of the Son of Adam in the work of redemption. We'll see that here in verses three to nine. Here the psalmist contemplates the majesty of God, and as he does so, he considers God's handiwork in creation. Again, he begins to describe and continues to describe the Lord as a divine artist who sets the sun, the moon, and the stars in their place, much as a father hangs a mobile in a baby crib. From the Lord's perspective, it's simple. Something he does with the work of his fingers. It is a light thing for the Lord to call the worlds into being, to set the stars in their place. Yet these are things that when we look at, they're so big, they're so majestic, that the nations around Israel will worship the sun, moon, and stars as if they are gods themselves. And yet from the biblical vantage point, it's a painting. Certainly the Genesis 1 will speak of the sun, moon, and stars as the governors of the day and the night. These are powerful pieces of creation that evoke a sense of wonder in their rightful place, but they're not the source of glory. The visible things of creation are intended to direct man's thoughts not to creation itself, but to the One who has made all things in heaven and on earth. Here we find that the created order is a reflection of the divine artistry of One who is in fact greater. You see that here in verse 3 where David says, they are your heavens. They're the work of your fingers. What a great disservice it is to look at the sky and to devote one's entire attention, for instance, to the field of astronomy, and yet to deny that this is the divine handiwork of the Lord God Almighty. To view the stars in any other way is to view it poorly. David describes this as a beautiful finger painting, majestic in its own right, but it pales in comparison to the maker of the painting. Nevertheless, David says, even when I contemplate the works of yours, you whom heaven and earth cannot contain, it makes me feel so small. If the created world makes him feel small, how much more the one who made the worlds. You know, if the foothills of the Smokies make you feel small, just wait till you get to the Rockies. And if you feel small then, just wait till you consider the name of the one who made the Rockies. And it leads David to ask properly, who am I? It's a question that we all wrestle with, even teenagers. What is my place in this world? What is man that you would care for him? Here we find the language of the tender concern of a shepherd for a weak and frail sheep, a lamb that has strayed from the path. David begins to contemplate this God who, like a good shepherd, tends for and cares for His creation even in spite of man's own rebellion. of a God who gives food and rain to both the just and to the unjust alike. In other words, what we find is David is not simply contemplating creation in its original state of integrity, rather he is contemplating creation even after the fall of man. The psalmist has already talked about God's adversaries and foes which were not present at the dawning of creation, and now he begins to talk about God's concern both for man and the son of man, not just for Adam himself and his original state of integrity, but God's continued care and concern for the host of the human race as it descends from generation to generation to generation. as it extends into that what we would call the post-fall order. David asks, why would you show such tender concern for those who spit in your face? What majesty? So we're considering here not simply God as creator, but also as the provider of the one who continues even as we hear the rainfall now. causes the rain to fall and the grass to grow, the fields to drink up and bear fruit that we might eat and drink and rejoice in the God who has made these things for our good. And we find that God cares for man. even in His fallenness, even as man has allied himself with the Lord's adversaries." Again, over and over again, the language here in the psalm evokes the echoes of the first creation in Genesis 1. You remember Genesis chapter one, we're on the pinnacle day, on day six, where the Lord himself says reflectively, let us make mankind in our image and our likeness. Let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, the birds, the heavens, the livestock, and all the earth. And David, of course, is reflecting on this great truth. And yet for those of us who know the story, we know that this is not the end because Adam, it does not end with Adam asserting his dominance over creation, but just the opposite. The Lord commanded Adam and Eve to fill the earth and subdue it. And Adam, as God's right-hand man, as God's vice-regent, was given a divine commission to exercise dominion in all of its comprehensive nature, in all of its scope, as he is to put all things under his feet. So that even as a rebellious serpent enters the garden, it was Adam's duty to crush the head of the serpent underfoot. Does Adam do that? No. Despite the great commission, Adam fails in his duty and he rebels. He does not crush the serpent under his feet. Rather, he capitulates to the serpent's schemes with eyes wide open. And just as he rebels against his creator, so he finds that the created order rebels against him. Rather than man exerting dominance over the earth, now the earth exerts its dominance over man, bearing not fruit but thorns and thistles. And the man made from the dust returns to the dust. Adam has forfeited his dominion. Paradise is lost. Man is exiled from the garden. Now the briar and the bramble prevail. Now the man of dust returns to it, and death exercises its grisly reign over the whole cosmic order." Perhaps now we understand why David gives this petition at the beginning of the psalm, O Lord, our Lord, make Your name great again in the face of Your foes. As David sets his gaze on the stars, reflecting on the scope of human history, he asks, what is man that you would care for one who is so fragile and so frail? Who is man that you would care for him in all of his dignity and in all of his terror? Dignity is one created to bear God's image, and yet terror, because now in his treachery, man bears that name in vain. He treats it as a light thing. He drags God's name through the mud. David says, O Lord, make your name great again. Establish your majesty above the heavens, restore order to what has been lost through Adam. And I think it is from this perspective that we can finally begin to make proper sense of why he begins to reflect and under the Spirit's prophetic energy, speak of the work of redemption that comes in verses five and six. where David says, you have made and given him dominion. Big burning question we have then is this, who is this him? And with it comes a second, as he has made him a little lower. Whoever this him is than the heavenly beings. Quite literally, you have made him a little lower than the Elohim. So we have two questions, each contingent upon how you answer the other question. The first question is, who is this him? Who is this son of man that God cares for? And secondly, who or what is this Elohim who has been made lower? That's Him who has been made lower than the Elohim. We find that to answer the first question, who is Him, we must answer the second. And to answer the second, we must answer the first. At this point, I think beginning to recognize we're running into deep waters. What on the surface sounds like such a simplistic psalm is actually quite, quite deep. Here the Hebrew word for Elohim can be translated in a number of different ways depending upon the context. For instance, in Genesis chapter 1 verse 1, in the beginning God, Elohim, made the heavens and the earth. It's one of the names of God. It speaks to His creative power in all of its fullness and all of its plentitude. But it's a word that can also be translated as gods. It can be translated into the plural such as in Genesis 31 where Rachel is said to be hiding and worshiping her own household Elohim. It can be also translated as angels or any other of the host of heavenly beings we see throughout the scriptures. This is why, depending upon your translation that you're reading, you'll find that word translated in a number of different ways. For instance, the King James, He has made Him a little lower than the angels. Or the New American Standard, He has made Him a little lower than God. Or the ESV has made Him a little lower than the heavenly beings. All of these are conservative translations. And all of these are good, responsible translations. The question is, how are we to take this? What is the psalmist talking about here? Well, first we have to recognize that David cannot simply be talking about the first Adam. Because Genesis has already made it clear that Adam has forfeited that dominion. It's why he was exiled from Eden. It's why death reigns. It's the whole story of creation or the fall that comes after the creation. Secondly, the Psalms cannot simply be talking about mankind as a whole, generically or abstractly speaking. Because even as Paul reminds us in Romans chapter 5, and as you might have recited growing up in kindergarten, in Adam's fall, so sinned all. That dominion has been forfeit through the sin of Adam and our own sins and transgressions. Yet what we do see in verse four is that David does identify a particular individual, a descendant of Adam, a son of Adam, one of Adam's offspring, that the Lord has made this particular son of Adam to be a little lower than the Elohim. Well, what is the Elohim? I don't know if you recall in high school you would have these math textbooks. You all know what math is, right? I wasn't the best at it, but you remember when you do the math and you go home and you do those math homework exercises at the back of the book, the odd numbers Or in the back of the book, they give you the answers to that so you can learn how to practice and get the answers right. Doesn't help you with even numbers, but at least gives you a certain training so you can start learning how these mathematical equations work. Well, in a similar way, the New Testament is given to aid us to read the Old Testament aright, because the New Testament always reads the Old Testament in its proper intended context, because it's written by the same author. The same divine author being God Himself, God who spoke through His servants the prophets by the Spirit of Christ, as 1 Peter tells us. Speaking of the person and work of Christ, so much so that even the prophets of old would utter something under inspiration of the Spirit and go, I don't know what it means. And Peter says in 1 Peter 1 that they would search and inquire diligently those very things that they had spoken as the mouthpiece of God. Those very things in which angels long to look. Well, you notice here Hebrews 2, that's why I read it at the beginning of the service, quotes this particular passage and comments on it, explaining the original intent and purpose of this particular psalm. Hebrews 2 helps us out. It says, you have made him to be a little lower than the angels. Read that in Hebrews 2 verses 5 to 9. Yeah, Hebrews also adds an important qualifier that the Son of Man was made a little lower than the angels, but only for a little while. So the preacher of Hebrews is keying us into a mystery that's already embedded in this particular psalm. Pastor Joel began talking about this, or has continued talking about this, last week in his sermon. That word mystery is chock full of meaning when we come across it in the scriptures. You see it replete throughout Daniel, which by the way, continues to give a number of visions regarding the, what? The son of man. It's a figure that is foretold and prophesied about over and over again, not just in the Psalms, but also in the prophets. And that word there, mystery, means something like this, that those things which have been hidden from before have now been revealed. That when Christ comes, it is as if the curtain has been pulled back. and Christ is made known. How striking it is, that's the very name of the final book of the Bible, isn't it? Revelation, the Greek word being apocalypse and unveiling. It's disclosing that mystery that has been hid before all ages. And here the preacher of Hebrews is keying us into a mystery that we see both in the Psalms and in the prophets. Consider for instance, Daniel chapter seven, we have this picture of the son of man, Ascending to heaven, riding upon a cloud to receive an everlasting dominion as all of creation is put under his feet. Even as he subjugates the kingdoms of the earth. And how are those kingdoms described? They are described as beasts and monsters. Hear this mystery hidden before all ages like a curtain is pulled back in the fullness of time as the identity of the Son of Man is unveiled that it is the Lord Jesus Christ. It's Christ's favorite self-designations, his favorite way that he describes himself in the Gospels that he is himself the Son of Man as he discloses his own purpose and mission for this reason the Son of Man has come to put to nothing the deeds of the serpent. to crush the beast under his feet. That what we find here is not an angel, but one who for a time was made lower than the angels. Here we find one who has come to save not the angels, but who has come to save Adam's helpless race. What's the implication? Well, if this son of man, if he was made for a time lower than the angels, then this own individual predates creation, the creation of the angelic race. And thus he stands superior to him. Yet at the same time, this one who predates the angels is also descended from Adam, born of the woman. How is this possible? Here we're standing upon and entering upon a mystery that leaves the saints of old scratching their head going, what does this mean? It's the very reason why Jesus asked the Pharisees the week of his betrayal. Hey, when Jesus talks about his son, why does he call him his Lord? We find something similar here. The one who is made for a little while lower than the angels is one who is in fact far superior to them. Here the unnamed preacher of Hebrews comments on Psalm 8 and notes in compact form that David here speaks under inspiration of the spirit of the humiliation that the son of man, the descendant of Adam, had to undergo to regain what the first Adam had lost. And as we play Psalm 8 within the broader matrix of all the promises of God, the puzzle pieces begin to fit. The mystery begins to be unveiled. What the Lord had promised to Adam, that the son of the woman would reclaim dominion over the beasts and crush the serpent's head, that fast-forwarding to Abraham, that this son would triumph over the gates of his enemies and would be a kingly figure. to David that the son would inherit a throne of which he would reign not for 10, 20, 30, or 40 years, but that he would reign forever, even as the prophets themselves said, of the expanse of his kingdom and dominion, there will be no end. And so here, that for a little while, God subjected this son, his son, to utter humiliation for a season. That though greater than the angels, for a time would be made lower than them, so that when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth this son born of a woman, being born under the laws that by his humiliation we, though children by nature of wrath, would receive the adoption as sons by grace. that our adoption would be secured through the humiliation and exaltation of the Son of Man. And what a humiliation it was to be the maker of heaven and earth, yet born in a cattle stall, to be perfectly righteous and yet bear the curse of sin, to be slandered, prosecuted, and persecuted, to suffer maliciously at the hands of a puppet king named Herod, and to be mistreated by a know-nothing Roman governor of Judea. that the one who made the angels for a time would be made lower than the angels and enter into a period of abject humiliation and suffer the gross death of a common criminal. That is what David is considering here under inspiration of the Spirit and Psalm 8. And the humiliation of the Son of Man in verse five gets way to his exaltation and glory. that his humiliation be but the path to the crown and dominion he receives as he ascends to receive his everlasting inheritance from the majesty on high, and so be crowned with honor as all authority and power and dominion is given to him on account of his obedience unto death. So much so now that the last Adam ascends to heaven to take his seat of prominence as the incarnate Lord of heaven and earth, thus reconciling all things together in Himself. Things in heaven, things in earth, and things under. So order is finally restored. The answer to David's petition, O Lord, make your name great again, reassert the majesty of your name, finds its answer in the work of the Lord Jesus Christ. And order is restored not through mankind asserting dominance, but through the folly of the cross. So the majesty of God's name is reasserted through the heavens, through the dominion that is given to the Lord Jesus Christ. Isn't that what our Savior says at his resurrection? Matthew chapter 28, as he stands before his disciples, having conquered death itself, he says, what all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. thus bringing Daniel's vision of the Son of Man to its intended telos, to its projected conclusion. that the Son of Man has fulfilled the mandate of Genesis 1, having remained obedient unto death in a way that the first Adam had not. Here, the last Adam has subdued the beasts, not simply the natural forces, but the supernatural order, and have trampled them underfoot. That's what Paul declares to the Church of Colossae in Colossians chapter two, that at the cross, he has triumphed over his adversaries, over the demons, leading them in a triumphal procession, having disarmed the principalities and powers of the cross. And having ascended on high, He has given gifts to men to proclaim the majesty and exaltation and the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. And so Christ, having been given dominion over all things, even the sea monsters, gives a charge to His people. to make God's name great throughout the earth. Go into all the world and proclaim the name of this triune God, Father, Son, and Spirit. And he adds this promise, the gates of hell itself will not prevail against the advancement of the kingdom of Christ, as it is Christ's kingdom that goes on the offense, and hell is now put in defensive mode. Make God's name great throughout all the world. Proclaim His name among the nations. Why? Because as Hebrews 2 reminds us, it is Christ, it is to Christ that God has subjected, not simply this world, but as Psalm 8 attests, the world to come. Did you notice that when we had Hebrews 2 read earlier? That's exactly how the author of Hebrews begins this discussion of Psalm chapter 8. He said it is not to this world that, it's not to the angels that God has, subjected the world to Christ. Which world is he speaking of? It's the world to come. Hebrews is saying that Saul made a speaking not simply of the original creation, but of the new world order to be established, that is established by Christ's ascension into heaven as he opens up that new and living way for sinners to draw near to the throne of grace. In other words, according to Hebrews chapter two, Psalm eight regards not so much the original creation, though that is true, as much as the focus is on the new creation. A new creation that has been ushered in through the suffering and glory of the Son of Man. In his commentary on the Psalms, 19th century Scottish Presbyterian Andrew Bonar says this. Psalm 8 might be called Genesis 1 and turned into a prayer, but it is more truly the Genesis 1 of the new earth. Psalm 8 is the Genesis 1 of the new creation, understood on its own terms and confirmed by the author of Hebrews. It seems like such a simple sermon, not sermon, a psalm but it packs a punch if we but slow down and contemplate the works of God as they have been revealed to us in His holy Word. Great are the works of the Lord, studied by all who delight in Him. I want to suggest that we are reaching the apex and pinnacle of inspired poetry. As David brings us to the heights of revelation, here he traverses the landscape of God's mysterious and wonderful work of redemption and the means by which salvation has come. We think about this in Matthew chapter 1, as our Savior makes His way into Jerusalem, days before His betrayal, He enters the temple and He turns the tables. He expels the thieves and the bandits from His house of prayer. He heals the blind, the lame, and the mute, all themselves symbols according to Isaiah of the inbreaking, the dawning of a new creation. You read Isaiah chapter 35, it's exactly what's going on. But then what did the children begin to do as Jesus tosses the tables and expels the moneylenders, as He defeats His foes? The children begin to sing. Hosanna to the son of David. The scribes and the Pharisees are enraged. They turn to Jesus. They say, do you hear what these children are singing? And they're enraged. They think that the children are committing blasphemy. They're convinced that Jesus is leading them into apostasy. It's Matthew chapter 21, verse 16. How does Jesus respond? Haven't you read Psalm 8? Out of the mouths of infants and nursing babies you have prepared praise. That the Lord has established a citadel through the songs of children. That proclaim the majesty of God's name exhibited through the death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. That salvation in fact has come to Zion through the folly of the cross. And here the songs of school kids surpass the scorn of the sages. Here the folly of the cross has triumphed over the wisdom of the age and has inaugurated a new age to come. Oh Lord, our Lord, establish your majesty above the heavens. It was David's prayer, may it be ours as well. Our Savior himself prayed a similar prayer. In John 17, his so-called high priestly prayer, he says, oh Father, glorify your name. And the Father responds as a voice from heaven booms. where the Father says, I have glorified my name, and I will do it again. David calls us to consider the majesty of God's name, as we trace His fingerprints, as it were, through the host of creation, and we see God's character imprinted in the handiwork of creation, these vestibule, vestibule, that's not a word, these visible vestiges of Him who is invisible, Five times the Scriptures speak of the fingerprint of God. It does not mean that God Himself has fingers. It's what we call an anthropomorphism. It's an image, it's a metaphor used to describe something that is said truly about God's character and conduct. The first of God's fingerprints seen are demonstrated here in Psalm 8. As David contemplates God's fingerprints, the finger work that He has in the work of creation. These visible vestiges are seen not only in creation but in redemption. Exodus tells us of this as God ushers 10 judgments on Pharaoh's household and the warlocks cry out, the finger of God has come upon us. We see it Pharaoh, why don't you? The God of Israel has come in judgment against us to save Israel from her foes. He's come to put down the serpent. The third time comes in Scripture when God is said to inscribe His holy character on two tablets of stone at the heights of Sinai, that the nation might know Him who has delivered them from slavery. The fourth time when Christ spoke, saying, that it is by the finger of God I cast out the demonic cords, that Christ's exorcisms when we read the gospels ought to be seen as signifying judgment against Satan, who has kept his people in bondage, and that the mighty works of God seen in the miracles of Christ hearken the work of a new creation and are compared to that of a new exodus. The last time the fingerprints of God are characterized, described in Scriptures in John chapter 8, when a woman caught in adultery is brought before the Son of Man. The Pharisees want her put to death. John says this, that Jesus stoops on the ground, begins to write with his fingers, him who is the great I am. And in an act that only God himself can do, He blots out her sin, and He dispels her accusers in shame. My hope this morning is this, that we be re-endowed with that word majestic, that we restore to that word, that it be given the sense of wonder that it properly belongs, that God's name be re-endowed with the sense of majesty that it deserves. That God's name would be made majestic in our midst and that would leave us staggering at the thought. The word majesty is used so much in scripture to speak of the mountains, the cedars, the trees, even the nobleman decked to the guild in battle array, but here it speaks of the majesty of God's name and shows the gravity that God's name deserves, that we would not bear his name in vain. And as we consider the finger of God and the work of creation and redemption, that all of these futures should leave us breathless, much as we would as we were to stand before the redwoods or the Rockies. As we consider what it means that God has created the heaven and the earth, or simply to consider what it means that God has given us His law, or that God has triumphed over Satan, that He has reestablished order and dominion in heaven and on earth through the death and resurrection of the Son of Man. So the forgiveness, the forgiveness of sins could be lavished on His people. It should lead us to sing with the psalmist, O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is Your name in all the earth. Let us pray. Our gracious God and Heavenly Father, how grateful we are for Your Word, that You have displayed to Your people the glory of Your name, that You have caused Your name to pass by and remind us that You are the Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, who with Your outstretched hand and mighty power, the very finger of God has brought to nothing the work of Satan, the redemption that is found in Your Son. We ask that you would lead us to honor and magnify the name of Christ who died for us and was raised that we might live. We ask these things in Christ's name, amen. While they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and after a blessing, he broke it and gave it to his disciples and said, take and eat, this is my body. And when he had taken a cup and had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, drink from it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant. just poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins. Here Christ feeds us with His very body. What symbols has He given to assure our hearts that He does, in fact, forgive sin, an act which nobody but God can do? Well, here He gives us a meal, not just any meal. Two elements are found in this meal, and these two elements are said to preach. So Paul says, here you, when we participate in this meal, you proclaim the death of Christ till He comes. I love Mexican food, but I've never had a taco that can preach. This meal preaches, proclaims the significance of the death of Christ to remind us why it is that Christ died. To remind us that He died. that we might benefit from His death. The bread and the cup signify the body and the blood of Christ shed for your sake that you might taste and see that the Lord is good." This is a meal for Christ's church. So I have to give this really somber warning. If you're not a member of Christ's church, I'm asking you not to partake. Paul himself gives this warning and says that to eat and partake unworthily. To do so, you're eating and drinking judgment and condemnation upon yourself for this very reason. Some have gotten sick, some have even died. This is a meal that we do not approach haphazardly. This is not a meal that we come to flippantly. But this is also not a meal that we come to flippantly or fearfully. Over and over again, we're reminded in the Scriptures to draw near with confidence before the throne of grace. And we're left with this particular question, how can I, knowing I'm a sinner, come and participate when I am told to be careful because my own sin could render and invoke God's judgment and condemnation? We need to remember this, that the only thing that you bring to this meal is your own sin. There is no, you go to a restaurant and you have to pay the bill, there is no paycheck here. Christ has fully, he's foot the bill. His own death has secured a meal that is free for his people. So that if you mourn your sin, you say, I hate the fact that I fell into this again. Then you have a savior who says to you, come and taste and see that I am still your goodness. that I am still your redemption. But if you're just treating this as a lucky rabbit's foot so you could go back to your sin tonight or tomorrow morning, that is the person that Paul says, stop, don't. This is a meal that's supposed to rouse us from our slumber and recognize that We're still so very sinful and we are still, even down to old age, in need of Christ's cleansing blood. Taste and see that the Lord is good. If you've not been baptized, if you're not a member of a church, if you're under discipline, if you're living in secret and scandalous sin, as Pastor Joel always says, please let the elements pass you by, but don't let Christ pass you by. Consider what it would be like to have your sins finally forgiven. You would no longer have to hide or try to hide from the Lord. To know that we have a God who is holy, but here's a God who says, you know how I'm going to assert the majesty of my name? I'm going to do it through the folly of the cross. so that through the kingship of Christ, he'll exercise his kingship and dominion by subjugating the hearts of sinners to himself through the proclamation of the word. And that's what he does here. If you've not yet trusted in Christ, you wanna know what it means to put your hope in Christ, please come speak to me or one of the elders after the church will be happy to talk with you about those things. But if you've put your hope in Christ, you've been baptized, you're a member of a church, and you're just heartbroken of your sin, You have a Savior who says, come, eat, and drink. This meal is for you. Taste and see that the Lord is good. Let us pray. Our gracious God and Heavenly Father, how grateful we are for the meal you've given your people to feed us, to strengthen our faith which is so weak, and yet, as we lay hold of Christ, we're reminded it is not our faith that saves, but it is the object of our faith, and even a weak faith lays hold of a strong Savior. We pray that you would show and exercise your strength to us once again by comforting our hearts and working in us a renewed obedience as we long to see sin put to death and mortified in our own hearts. We ask that you would revivify our hearts as we long to pursue Christ above all, seeking that heavenly destination, the world to come. We ask these things in Christ's name, amen.