You have made him a little lower than the angels, and You have crowned him with glory and honor. (Psalm 8:5)
I’ve often wondered just what David meant by these words seeing that, in all of Creation, only mankind was created in the image and likeness of God. That being said, angels and not men, are able to behold the face of God continually (Matthew 18:10). Angels are allowed to gather around the Throne of God and have the ability to minister to God’s people and destroy their enemies. Add to this, almost everyone who saw an angel in the Bible fell on their face in fear and dread, strongly suggesting that the presence of an angel of God was overwhelming. Still, it is man who was created in the image and likeness of God and it is man for whom the Son of Man was sent into the world to redeem.
Consider then, in spite of our frailty, within each man and woman is the breath of God. In other words, the same breath that brought angels into existence is the same breath that infused all of mankind with life. Therefore, just as angels are spirit, we too are spiritual beings albeit imprisoned in a house of corruptible flesh. Angels do not have to contend with the desires of the flesh as we do, and are therefore unfettered when it comes to their purpose in serving the Creator. At the same time, that which handicaps us as mortals — the internal struggle of good vs evil — serves to amplify the notion that we are made in His image. Through Messiah, we have been given the opportunity to choose right over wrong, to overcome the evil inclination and to be conformed to the image of the Son of God. I would argue that this is why David said of man, “You have crowned him with glory and honor.”
Peter said that there are mysteries of the kingdom that have been given to us which the angels desire to look into (1 Peter 1:12). The greatest and most consequential of these mysteries is the Messiah and the work He accomplished through His suffering. Speaking to this, the writer of Hebrews said that, after purging our sins, He “sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become so much better than the angels” (Hebrews 1:3-4).
The point is this: God may have made us a little lower than the angels but, because of Messiah, those who are in Him are destined to rule nations and judge angels. However, that is not the reason we rejoice; we rejoice because our names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life. We rejoice because when we see Him we will be like Him meaning that, we who have been imprisoned in a mortal body, will be released from this house of flesh to behold the face of God for all eternity.
Blessings and Shalom,
Bill
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