A Little Lower than the Angels
A Sermon on Psalm 8:4
Originally preached Dec. 1, 1957
Scripture
4What is man, that thou art mindful of him? and the son of man, that thou visitest him?
Sermon Description
The Bible tells that creation is evidence for the Creator. It shows His majesty and power. However, people have failed to see His majesty in His creation. People should be able to appreciate the beauty of creation, but instead miss seeing God’s glory in it by only seeing facts. In this sermon “A Little Lower than the Angels,” from Psalm 8:4, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones speaks on the failure to see God in His creation, specifically His creation of humanity. He begins with the question “What is man?” to show how humanity has learned to answer this question apart from the creation of God. Some overestimate humanity, putting people above God. Others underestimate humanity, thinking of the human race as nothing of importance at all. He then moves on the biblical and right view of humanity: that it has been created in God’s image. People were made to glorify God and be in communion with Him. However, humanity turned its back on God by becoming slaves to sin, causing a distorted view of who they are. The good news is that Jesus came to save them from sin and help them become the people God created them to be in His image. He concludes by encouraging the Christian to see this truth and glorify God for it.
Sermon Breakdown
- The psalmist is describing man's insignificance in light of God's creation. He asks "What is man?" in view of the grandeur of the heavens.
- There are two mistaken views of man today:
- Man is overestimated. He is seen as a "colossus" who needs no God.
- Man is underestimated. He is seen as insignificant and determined by forces outside his control.
- The Bible presents three views of man:
- Man as he was originally created: made in God's image, with dignity and dominion over creation.
- Man as he is now: fallen, sinful, and contradictory. Though still bearing God's image, he is dominated by sin.
- Man as he can be: redeemed and restored through Christ.
- Man was originally created perfect, in God's image, with a spiritual nature, intellect, will, and moral uprightness.
- Man's fall into sin corrupted but did not destroy the image of God in him. Man is now weak, frail, and sinful, though still great.
- The world is in its present state because of man's sin. Man has brought God's curse upon himself and upon creation.
- God sent His Son to redeem man and restore him to his original state. Christ, though divine, became man so that man could be remade through Him.
- Christ came to forgive our sins, give us new life, make us God's children, and make us heirs of the new creation.
- Those who receive Christ's work will inherit the new creation. Those who reject Him will perish with this present world under God's judgment.
- We must ask ourselves whether we know God's care, whether Christ has visited us, and whether we have received new life in Him. Our eternal destiny hangs on our answer.
Old Testament
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.