Why Are You Here?
When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; [4] What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him? (Psalms 8:3-4)
When I read the 8th Psalm, I am always struck by David’s humility as he observed the handiwork of God in the creation of the universe. This Psalm was written nearly 3000 years ago when there were no devices to explore the far reaches of the universe. There was no such thing as purchasing a small telescope from a local hobby store much less to think of the Hubble Telescope that was launched into space on top of a giant rocket.
As David looked at the stars, he observed with what we would call a primitive mind unable to fathom how vast the size of the universe. With his limited ability, what he could see was so overwhelming that he sunk at his puny insignificance. He regarded the intricate work of creation as the skillful activity of the finger of God. Like a fine craftsman that pays attention to the smallest detail, David saw God as the master architect of all things animate and inanimate. In his insignificance, David asked, “What is man that thou art mindful of him?” With what he could see he was overwhelmed and felt as lowly as a speck of dust.
We would think with David’s reaction that further revelation and exploration of the vastness of the universe would only lead us to greater amazement at what God has done. How much more our insignificance is intensified when we know the distance between stars and galaxies must be measured in light years which is impossible for us to comprehend. David did not know that each of the stars is comparable to the sun in size with many being much larger. He did not know the observable portion of the universe with the stars he could see was only a minute fraction of the entire creation.
Now these thousands of years later, we know these things but instead of being overwhelmed at the magnitude of it all and reaching superlative levels of amazement at the power of God, scientists tell us there was no intelligent design. Stephen Hawking the brilliant (?) theoretical physicist proposed the universe actually was self-created. Was David really the one with the primitive mind? With what little he knew, he was wise enough to understand the universe could not just simply happen. The puzzle of the moon and the stars was just a beginning point for him. What about the intricacies of the human body (Psalm 139:14)? A self-created universe means all living things are also self-created. Is it possible intelligence could lead to such conclusions?
God has given us the ability to see more and know more. We would think the increase of knowledge would lead to one conclusion—God did more far more than first imagined. How foolish we must be to ever have discounted His sovereign control over all affairs in the creation. David correctly assessed his self-worth with his limited knowledge. But the knowledge he had of the true living God was not innate. God revealed Himself to David as his Saviour and Redeemer. This is the great missing link to the universe the scientists do not have. They miss the handiwork of God because they have not been given special revelation of the redeeming work of Christ. These scriptures present not only the greatness of God, but also the powerful deceptive abilities of Satan. When scientists also miss the natural revelation of God, it only further accentuates the helplessness of man. We are utterly incapable of finding God on our own.
Take a moment to consider the divine providence of God in your life. Why are you here today while there are hundreds that pass this church without thinking of the majesty of God? Why did God allow you to receive the special revelation of His marvelous grace? Are you wiser than others? Do you possess intelligence beyond that of Stephen Hawking and were able to figure it out? You know better. His intelligence led him to deeper darkness and so would yours. Utter foolishness says we hear and believe because we have greater insight. We hear and believe because God made it so. His sovereign plan is His choice of you not your choice of Him. Why are you here? Only because of the grace of God and don’t ever forget it.
Pastor V. Mark Smith