By Our God is in the heavens;
Psalm 115:3
he does all that he pleases.
God is not like man. Man is on earth; God is above it all in the heavens. Man cannot, and must not, be allowed to do as he pleases; God can, indeed must, do as He pleases. If man seeks his own glory, it is called arrogance, pride, or, in old English, vainglory; when God seeks His own glory, it is called being God. That is what sets the true living God apart from all false gods.
Psalm 115 is a Psalm about God getting all the glory for all His deeds.
In verse 1 those who are exalted by God acknowledge that even their exaltation is merely to be an instrument of bringing attention to God Himself.
Verse 2 is a question of the self-made man who thinks that he is the centre of the universe and the master of his own destiny, but verse 3 is the clear objective answer to that question.
Verses 4 to 8 are then an open mockery of the best of man’s works. Indeed man can do much, but at best their creations are nothing more than they themselves. When man makes himself a god, his god will be no greater than himself; this is indeed the true limit of human effort.
But the LORD God is very, very, very different. Not only is He in the Heavens and does all that He pleases, but He is pleased to act on behalf of those whom He promised to bless (v. 9), those whom He set apart for service (v. 10), and every individual worshiper (v. 11).
The Psalm ends with an entire section (vv. 12-18) demonstrating how the greatest of God’s acts of goodness and blessing are simply turned into more praise for Himself. A God that is so incredibly lofty, sovereign, and powerful, is indeed a God to fear. And that such God is pleased by blessing us, is a reason for us to attribute all glory, praise, and blessing to Him, and to Him alone.
God has placed you on this earth for a reason; exalt Him.