Together in Christ: 'Don't Devalue Yourself!' — Psalm 8:1, 3-5

Monday, November 25, 2024

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O Lord, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth! Your glory is higher than the heavens.
. . .

When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers — the moon and the stars you set in place — what are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them? Yet you made them only a little lower than God and crowned them with glory and honor.

— Psalm 8:1, 3-5 NLT

Key Thought

God's greatness is beyond the power of our words to adequately describe. Even our best words fall short of giving YHWH, our God, [1] the praise He deserves. While many of the psalms in the Bible are full of praise for God, today's psalm moves from the praise of God for His work in creation to thanksgiving for how marvelously He made us. God is so great He doesn't need to spend a second thought on us, yet we are the ones He values and considers precious — people for whom He sacrificed to win our hearts back to Himself. [2]

When God created people, He made us precious and powerful, male and female, carefully designed to work together, created in the image of our Lord God. [3] As our verse says, He made us with "glory and honor," only "a little lower than God."

The words David gave us to say aloud in worship proclaim God's care for us and artistry in creating us:

You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body and knit me together in my mother's womb. Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex! Your workmanship is marvelous — how well I know it. [4]

The apostle Paul echoes God's artistry in us when he emphasized God's grace that saved us, re-creating us in Christ as His "masterpiece."  [5]

I don't know how much or how little you value yourself. We all make our share of mistakes, stumble into sin, and embarrass ourselves by doing things we shouldn't have done. We get down on ourselves; many don't need Satan to beat us up and make us feel unworthy because we take our failures and beat ourselves senseless. So, here is my two-fold plea with you, dear friend in Jesus:

  1. Do not devalue yourself but see your worth through the eyes of God. You were made to be a little lower than God, full of glory and honor, handmade with a purpose and plan for your life. Don't devalue yourself no matter what you may have done. When you FEEL you are not worth saving and life is not worth living, go back and read Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John — the four Gospels that tell the story of Jesus' life. Notice the people Jesus loved, touched, healed, forgave, and chose as meal-time partners. That means that you belong at Jesus' table, too. God longs to create you new and fresh in Jesus, giving you a clean new start. [6] Believe God when He says you're good stuff even if your heart, helped by Satan's lies, screams you are worthless. Believe God's estimation of you and not Satan's or even your own!
     
  2. Treat others, no matter their circumstances and messes, as people God carefully made and loves dearly. They may have gone far off the track of good living, but God wants them home to enjoy life in Jesus. [7]
[1] YHWH — sometimes called Yahweh or Jehovah — is the covenant name for God to be used forever. He gave Moses that name to identify Himself as the God Who is and was and is to come, the Almighty — Exodus 3:1-15; Revelation 1:4, 8, 4:8. The Hebrew word for YHWH is sometimes translated as "the Lord" with small capital letters (e.g., Genesis 2:4).
[2] John 3:16-17; Romans 5:6-11; Ephesians 2:1-9.
[3] Genesis 1:26-27, 9:6.
[4] Psalm 139:13-14.
[5] Ephesians 2:10.
[6] Romans 5:6-11; 2 Corinthians 5:17-21.
[7] Luke 15:11-32.

Today's Prayer

Loving Father, the almighty and holy God and Creator, thank You for making me and fashioning me by Your creative artistry and thank You for Your plan to share Your grace. On some of my bad days or when I succumb to the temptation to sin, I can be very hard on myself and doubt my worth. Open my eyes to Your gracious work in forming me and in using me to be a blessing. I ask for this help in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Related Scripture Readings

  • Ephesians 2:1-10
  • Romans 5:6-11

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Illustration

Illustration of Psalm 8:1, 3-5 NLT — O Lord, our Lord, your majestic name fills the earth! Your glory is higher than the heavens. . . . When I look at the night sky and see the work of your fingers — the moon and the stars you set in place — what are mere mortals that you should think about them, human beings that you should care for them? Yet you made them only a little lower than God and crowned them with glory and honor.

About This Devotional

Together in Christ is a daily devotional that focuses on what Scripture teaches about godly living in relationships.

'Together in Christ' is written by Phil Ware.

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright ©1996, 2004, 2007, 2013, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

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