Yet he saved them for his name’s sake, that he might make known his mighty power.
– Psalm 106:8
Ah, this is such a good verse. It summarizes a core truth of Christianity, a core truth in the Bible that we need to make sure we get because we can miss it and so many people miss it.
Psalm 106:8 Teaches Us that We Were Rescued by God’s Mighty Power
So let me, let me say the verse again. Psalm 106:8. Yet he saved them. God saved them for his name’s sake, that he might make known his mighty power. And the context here is recounting God’s salvation specifically of his people from slavery in Egypt. That’s what verse seven says. Our fathers, when they were in Egypt, did not consider your wondrous works. They didn’t remember the abundance of your steadfast love. They rebelled by the sea at their red sea. But yet verse eight says, he saved them for his name’s sake.
So get what the Bible is teaching here. Get what God is teaching us here. He saves us. He lovingly, graciously, mercifully saves us and lovingly, graciously and mercifully. Those are the right words. That’s the whole point of even me reading. Verse seven is, it’s not that the people of God deserved his salvation, they had rebelled against him. That’s a language right before verse eight. Yet God saved them.
This is Romans 5. While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Even though we had rebelled against God, God saved us. But why? And Psalm 106:8 makes clear, God saves us for his own name’s sake. God saves us ultimately for His glory. This doesn’t in any way take away from his love for us, his mercy and grace toward us. He is absolutely loving, gracious, merciful, and in his love, in grace and mercy.
Psalm 106:8 Teaches Us God’s Intention Was to Glorify Himself in Our Salvation
The Lord saves us from our sin, from ourselves. He draws us into relationship with him. God gives us the greatest possible gift himself. He saves us and he does it for his own glory because everything he does is for his own glory. And I’ve mentioned this numerous times, certainly on this podcast at different boys because we see this all over the Bible.
When you hear that God does what he does for his own glory, if that rubs you wrong, that God does what he does to exalt himself, to glorify himself, why would just ask the follow up question? Who else would you rather him glorify? Who else would you rather him exalt? Because if God were to exalt or glorify someone or else at any point, he would no longer be the God who is worthy of all exaltation and all glory. He is. That’s what it means for him to be God.
Of course He saves his people for his own sake and see the beauty of this. How does God glorify his name? How does God choose to show his power? He does it by saving people from their sin. Oh, this is the gospel. God glorifies himself by sending his son as a substitute sacrifice for our sin so that we could be forgiven of all our sin and restored to relationship with him, to give him glory with our lives.
Psalm 106:8 Reminds Us We are a Testament of His Grace
Yes, this is Christianity. And so we pray, God, all glory be to your name for our salvation. We certainly don’t take any credit for our salvation. The only thing we brought to this equation was our sin in you and your mercy and your grace. Jesus, we praise you for the cross. We praise you for saving us from our sin, for dying on the cross, for rising from the grave, for sending your spirit down and by your spirit, opening our eyes to your salvation.
Thank you for saving us. We praise you for saving us. We are a people saved for your sake, we praise you for showing your mighty power and saving us from our sins. And we pray as people saved by your grace, you would spend our lives for your glory, for your name’s sake. May your salvation in us spread through us for your name’s sake.
God, we pray that you would use our lives to bring salvation in other people’s lives this week for your name’s sake. Show your mighty powers. Save our family members and friends and coworkers and neighbors, people we meet this week. Show your salvation for your name’s sake and more people’s lives in our cities and our countries among the nations.
Praying for the Pashtun People
God, we pray for the Pashtun people of Pakistan or and, and think about the brothers and sisters I know who are working to get the gospel to the Pashtun of Pakistan.
I praise you for your salvation in them. And I pray that your salvation would spread through them, among the Pashtun of Pakistan. We pray that you would show your mighty power in bringing the millions of Pashtun people in Pakistan, Afghanistan, and that whole region of Central Asia. God, we pray, show your mighty power and save the Pashtun people. Oh God, cause your glory to spread in our lives, through our lives, in our churches, through our churches, in our country, among all the nations, through your saving power. Save oh God, for your name’s sake. Make known your mighty power. We pray in light of Psalm 106:8. In Jesus name. Amen.
David Platt serves as a pastor in metro Washington, D.C. He is the founder of Radical.
David received his Ph.D. from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and is the author of Don’t Hold Back, Radical, Follow Me, Counter Culture, Something Needs to Change, Before You Vote, as well as the multiple volumes of the Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary series.
Along with his wife and children, he lives in the Washington, D.C. metro area.
