LIVING WORD DEVOTIONAL
By Pastor Mensa Otabil
Monday 6th December 2021
GOD’S NAME AND GLORY
Scripture Reading: Psalm 8
O Lord, our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth, Who have set Your glory above the heavens! Psalm 8:1
Psalm 8 is a celebratory Psalm. It is the first Psalm that introduces us to the sounds of joyful praise and adoration. Psalms 3 to 7 walk us through the valleys of lamentation and pleas for deliverance till we arrive at this Psalm that honours the place of man in God’s creation.
We cannot know for sure when David wrote the words of this Psalm. However, some scholars suggest that David wrote this Psalm after he had slain Goliath. When we look at this Psalm from that perspective, we can see a youthful David overwhelmed by what the Lord had accomplished through him.
David begins the Psalm on an intimate and corporate note. He called the Lord, ‘our Lord’. Though he was expressing his personal appreciation to the Lord, he was also speaking on behalf of the nation of Israel.
After declaring his relationship with the Lord, the Psalmist pays attention to God’s place in both heaven and earth.
• God’s name is excellent in all the earth. David begins the Psalm by extoling the name of the Lord. David defeated Goliath in the name of the Lord. He declares that God’s name is exalted above everything on our planet — the land, waters, atmosphere, people and the might of giants. The name of the Lord is higher than everything that rises against us.
• God’s glory is set above the heavens. The ‘heavens’ in this verse refers to both the observable creation and the unobserved creation – the entire span of the universe. God’s glory extends beyond the universe. David praised the Lord for the extent and reach of His glory.
The name of the Lord gives us victory. When God gives us victory, we must give Him the glory that is His alone.
Prayer: Heavenly Father, your glory fills all of creation. I declare that your name excels all thrones, dominions, and powers. In Jesus’ name, Amen.