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Michael T Longson
in
Broad Ridge Baptist Church
9 years ago

In John 1:1-3, John draws our attention to the eternal nature of Christ, in His existence as the eternal incarnate Word of God. In his discourse, John places Christ postitionally, relationally, and experientially in the Godhead, as the person of God orchestrating the creative work of God, through whom everything was created. Psalm 8 can be said to be a dual purpose declaration. On the one hand, it highlights that man's dignity is a result of God's sovereign decision to elevate man above all other creation, "a little lower than God" (some translations say angels or heavenly beings, but this is not an accurate translation of Elohim), based solely on God's graciousness election rather than man's merit. On the other hand, as several NT writers have pointed out, this pslam also serves as a prophetic utterance concerning the authority God has granted Christ, placing ALL things under His dominion, excluding nothing (1 Cor. 15:27; Eph. 1:22; Heb. 2:5-8). In Psalm 104, the psalmist focuses his reflection and praise on the sovereign authority and power of God. Thorugh His creative work, God has established the "natural" order that we see in the world around us. The seas have God-ordained boundaries, all creatures have natural rythems that govern thier lives, and every aspect of Creation responds to His slightest whim. The result this understanding produced in the pslamist was a desire to praise the Lord and see anything that was not in harmony with God's Creation to be removed from it completely (sinners). All of this should provide in us the same desire to praise Him for whom He is, rather than only for what He does or did on our behalf, and to see that which defies His sovereign will removed from His Creation, beginning with our own stubborn will. This does not condon the destruction of all those who do not beleive, but instead should motivate us to pursue the Great Commission, as we truly pray, "Your will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven."