Why would a God this great care about you?

In Psalm 8, David looks at the night sky and asks, “What is man that You are mindful of him?” In this study, Dr. Toby Holt shows how God is both towering above all things and tender toward each of us.

David is overwhelmed by God’s majesty — the heavens, the moon and the stars, all the work of His fingers. Against that vastness, people seem tiny. Yet the wonder of the psalm is that this towering God stoops to care for us, crowning humanity with honor and dignity. Dr. Holt explains that God exceeds us not only in size but in substance, and that we bear His image. The God who set the stars in place is also the God who is mindful of you.

Questions this study answers:

1. What is so striking about Psalm 8? That the God who made the vast heavens also cares about small, sinful people. His greatness and His tenderness meet in this psalm.

2. Why does David focus on the “name” of God? Because God’s name carries His nature and majesty. To praise His name is to praise who He truly is.

3. What proof do you have that God loves you? That the towering Creator stoops to be mindful of you and crowns you with dignity. His care for the small is the wonder of Psalm 8.

“What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him?” — Psalm 8:4 (NKJV)

Speaker: Dr. Toby Holt is the President of New Geneva Theological Seminary, a Reformed seminary in Colorado Springs. He is known for clear, down-to-earth Bible teaching, and his sermons have been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on SermonAudio.

Listen and go deeper: This sermon is part of the Psalms Explained study from New Geneva Theological Seminary. Find more verse-by-verse teaching across the Bible at newgeneva.org. To support this teaching ministry, visit newgeneva.org/give.

What does it mean that the Lord is your shepherd?

In Psalm 23, the most beloved psalm in the Bible, David calls the Lord “my shepherd.” In this study, Dr. Toby Holt unpacks why this short psalm has comforted God’s people for three thousand years.

To call the Lord “my shepherd” is a bold, personal claim — and it also admits that we are sheep: prone to wander and in need of care. Dr. Holt walks through the psalm’s two pictures: God as the Shepherd who guards, provides, and leads, and God as the gracious Host who anoints our head and fills our cup to overflowing. Jesus took up this very image when He called Himself the Good Shepherd, whose sheep hear His voice. It is the most requested passage at funerals — because its hope reaches all the way to “the house of the LORD forever.”

Questions this study answers:

1. Why is Psalm 23 the most beloved psalm? Because it speaks of God’s personal care in life and in death. Its comfort meets people in their deepest needs.

2. What does it mean to call the Lord “my shepherd”? It is a claim of trust — and an admission that we are sheep who need leading, providing, and protecting.

3. What does it mean to be one of God’s sheep? It means knowing the Shepherd’s voice and following Him. His sheep are kept safe by the One who laid down His life for them.

“The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.” — Psalm 23:1 (NKJV)

Speaker: Dr. Toby Holt is the President of New Geneva Theological Seminary, a Reformed seminary in Colorado Springs. He is known for clear, down-to-earth Bible teaching, and his sermons have been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on SermonAudio.

Listen and go deeper: This sermon is part of the Psalms Explained study from New Geneva Theological Seminary. Find more verse-by-verse teaching across the Bible at newgeneva.org. To support this teaching ministry, visit newgeneva.org/give.

Is it okay to ask God “how long”?

In Psalm 13, David cries out “How long, O LORD?” four times in just six verses — and then ends in worship. In this study, Dr. Toby Holt shows that honest lament and real faith can go together.

David feels forgotten and overwhelmed, and he tells God so plainly. Dr. Holt notes that our struggle is often the duration of hardship, not only its severity. Yet David does not stay in despair: he remembers God’s past faithfulness — rescue from the lion, the bear, and Goliath — and chooses to trust again. The psalm moves from frustration to faith, ending, “I will sing to the LORD, because He has dealt bountifully with me.”

Questions this study answers:

1. Why did David, “a man after God’s own heart,” feel abandoned? Because faith does not erase real pain. David honestly voiced his anguish even while continuing to trust God.

2. What does this psalm teach about honest prayer? That God welcomes our raw, honest cries. Lament is not the opposite of faith; it can be an act of it.

3. How can worship rise even from pain? By remembering God’s past faithfulness and trusting His mercy. David sang again because he recalled how God had dealt bountifully with him.

“But I have trusted in Your mercy; my heart shall rejoice in Your salvation. I will sing to the LORD, because He has dealt bountifully with me.” — Psalm 13:5-6 (NKJV)

Speaker: Dr. Toby Holt is the President of New Geneva Theological Seminary, a Reformed seminary in Colorado Springs. He is known for clear, down-to-earth Bible teaching, and his sermons have been downloaded more than 1.9 million times on SermonAudio.

Listen and go deeper: This sermon is part of the Psalms Explained study from New Geneva Theological Seminary. Find more verse-by-verse teaching across the Bible at newgeneva.org. To support this teaching ministry, visit newgeneva.org/give.