God of the Cosmos

Scripture:  Psalm 8

               In sixth grade science class I had to give a report on a scientific field.   The teacher provided a list of different scientific disciplines.  Each field could only be reported once, and he drew names at random for people to select what they wanted.  My first choice was astronomy, because I wanted to do a report on space.  However, that topic went early.  When it was my turn, knowing that I had wanted to focus on space, the teacher directed me towards cosmology.  Astronomy is the study of stars, but cosmology is the study of the universe.   It is a discipline that seeks to discover how the universe works.   As I began to do the research I began to discover just how expansive the field was.   Feeling overwhelmed, my parents helped me make an outline to cover what I thought were the basics of cosmology, and I then worked fervently to fill in all the information I was finding to complete my report. 

               The assignment was to create a poster and then present a report that lasted at least five minutes.  This report had a reputation of being a big deal because for a sixth grader talking in front of others for that much time can be a daunting task.  I did not have that problem, because my report on cosmology ended up lasting 40 minutes.  The teacher was in his last year before retirement, and I remember him saying that in all his years a student making that long of a presentation was a first for him.  I was not sure how I could have made it any shorter.  I was talking about the universe after all; it’s a really big topic.  

               We can begin to get a sense of just how big it is, just by looking up at the night sky.  Have you ever had the opportunity to see the stars?  I mean, really see the stars, away from light pollution and on a clear night.  In those conditions the night sky is vast and awe-inspiring.  This is how the sky would have looked when David looked up centuries ago from Jerusalem or the Judeah countryside.  It would have been this pristine unfiltered view of the universe that inspired David when he wrote this morning’s scripture.  Psalm 8 expresses both the enormity of God’s nature and the amazing love that God displays for people.   When David looked up at the night sky he was struck by the enormity of it.   Since that time, we have learned that the universe is far bigger than David ever could have conceived, and given the size of the cosmos, it really does make the love of God even more remarkable. 

               When we consider the scope and scale of all that God has created, it is no wonder that the Psalm begins with LORD, our lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!  The size of the universe is staggering.   For instance, the closest object to our planet is the moon and it is 238,900 miles from earth.  Think of the car that you drove the longest.  How many miles did you put on it: 110,000, 175,000, 200,000?   Most of us have not put enough miles on a car to make it to the moon.    The moon is just our satellite, and we are the third planet in a solar system orbiting a star.    The size of our solar system is vast to reach interstellar space requires traveling 15 billion miles from the sun.   We are in one solar system of many that make up the milky way galaxy.   Our galaxy contains between 100 billion and 400 billion stars.  Many of these stars have a solar system of their own, the size of the galaxy is hard to wrap our minds around, but our galaxy is not the only one.   Astronomers have observed and cataloged over 1 million galaxies.   The mathematical models suggest that there are over 2 trillion galaxies in the observable universe.   Each one of these galaxies has billions of stars.  When all of this is added together, as famed cosmologist Carl Sagan put it, there are more stars in the universe than there are grains of sand.  

               The universe is bigger than we truly can comprehend.  The size and scale of it go beyond our ability to really grasp and engage with.  What is even more incredible is that God, the very God that we gather to worship today, is the creator of the universe.  Not just our little world, but the whole universe.   There are billions of galaxies that we never seen, yet God created each of those galaxies.  God hand made the billions of billions of stars in the and placed them exactly where God wanted them to be in the heavens.  

               To consider the vastness of the universe means we also must consider the vastness of God.   It is hard to look at the night sky with its thousands of stars and not feel incredibly tiny.   Perhaps, this is what David was thinking when he wrote in this morning’s scripture:  What is mankind that you are mindful of them, human beings that you care for them?”  

               While this morning’s scripture may put it more poetically, this is a question that all of people wrestle with in some capacity.   At some point or another we wrestle with the existential questions.   Sometimes we ask these questions in general terms, but other times we ponder these questions in more personal terms like, “Why am I here?”  “What is purpose to all of this?”  “How do we know we are not truly alone?”   These are the kinds of deep questions that staring into the vastness of night can bring about, and if this morning’s psalm ended with the questions of verse 4, then it would be kind of a downer scripture.  It would be a big existential question left hanging without an answer. 

               Fortunately, The point of this morning’s scripture is not one of foreboding insignificance, but it is one of wonderous awe at God.  Because David goes on to remind us that God does care about humanity, that God is mindful of us.   Despite the grandeur of God’s creation, God has crowned humanity with glory and honor.  David reminds us that God has entrusted us with the works of God’s hands, the earth.  Even if it is just a speck on the cosmic scale, God’s care for us is vast enough that God has provided us with all we need in this world that is perfectly suited for human life to be fruitful and thrive.  This Psalm reminds us that God created the universe, but God also created each and everyone of us.  This psalm reminds us that we do have meaning and purpose.  This psalm reminds us that the creator of the whole cosmos cares about us very much.  This morning’s scripture challenges us to consider the scale of the universe, the wonderous greatness of God, and expansive love that God has for us.   As we consider those big topics, there are two points this scripture helps shine light on.  

               Ever since my 6th grade report on cosmology, it has been an area that I have been interested in.   However, much of our understanding of the universe has changed significantly since the 1990s.   As scientists point telescopes into the heavens, they constantly make new discoveries.   New planets are discovered that exist at sizes and in orbits that older models said were impossible, galactic structures that push the limits of physics are observed, and the data supports answers that seemed outlandish just a few years ago.   When we consider the heavens God has created, the works of God’s fingers, the moons and the stars that God has set into place, then one of the striking aspects is the seemingly infinite diversity in infinite combinations that seems to exist on the galactic scale.  When we look to the heavens we see the full creative nature of God on display.  

               The God that has created untold wonders in the cosmos, is the same God that has created each and everyone of us.   As Ephesians 2:10 puts it, “We are God’s masterpiece.”  When we consider the vastness and wonder of all that God has made, we should remember that we are also made by God, and all the diversity and uniqueness that makes up who we are, is part of God’s design.    This is a message that the majority of us need to take to heart.   Studies show that about 85% of all people on earth have issues with self-esteem or negative self-image.   Too often, we beat ourselves up because we do not fit into a binary “this” or “that” category, we get down on ourselves because we feel we do not meet some sort of standard set by others.  For the majority of us, when we consider ourselves, we do not see God’s masterpiece.   Yet, that is what the bible says we are.   The God that made the stars made us, and friends God does not make junk.  We can look into the heavens and celebrate the infinite diversity of God’s creation, but we can also look around where we are and celebrate the same creative glory set in the heavens is in the people all around us.  This morning’s scripture reminds us of the glory of God’s creation, and it can also remind us we see part of that same wonderful creation when we look in the mirror. 

               David’s main point in this Psalm is the wonder that even though God has created so many incredible wonders, God still cares for, values, and is mindful of people.   This is the second area this scripture shines light on, because God still is mindful of humankind, God still cares for them, and more importantly, as our collective faith proclaims God loves people.       

               This is a consistent message found across scripture.  In Romans Paul wrote, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us and in 1 John 3:16 the apostle wrote, “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us.”   Through the giving of his one and only son Jesus Christ to atone for the sins of all humanity, God has shown the lengths of love that God will go to.  This means that the God of the cosmos, loves you more than the stars that God taught how to shine.   This means that an infinite God who has created galaxies beyond number, isn’t just mindful of you, but loves you with a love that is vaster than the entire observable universe.  

 When we look at the heavens that God has created, it is easy to feel a little small.  However, when we remember that despite creating such grandeur, God still loves us as individuals, then it can make everything else in our life that feels overwhelming feel a little smaller.  Because of God’s great love, we can have a confidence that God is on our side.   We can have a peace because we know that the One who worked out how the universe works, is working on our behalf.    We can have a joy because we know that the creator of everything is willing to take time out of managing the known universe to listen to us.   We can have a blessed assurance that despite the vastness of it all, we are not alone.    We can have an unshakable confidence that goes to infinity and beyond, because we know that the God who has the power to create trillions upon trillions of stars and place them in billions of galaxies is mindful of us, cares for us, and loves us.   Friends, when we keep that perspective in mind then the problems, the heartaches, and the setbacks we go through can feel a little less severe. 

In this morning’s scripture, David asks: “What is mankind that you are mindful of the, human beings that you care for them?”   We find the answer to that question throughout the bible.   We are God’s masterpiece, created by God-but more importantly loved by God.  God proved this love through Jesus Christ.   May you know that you are created by God, may you know that you are loved by God.   May those truths take root in your life, and may they shape your perspective on how you view other people and how you face the troubles of this world.   Being in awe of the glory God has set in the heavens, may we all be able to praise and worship the God of the cosmos by proclaiming, LORD, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!  How majestic is your name in all the universe.