Praise and Worship

STUDY INDEX

Page 1 - The Importance of Praise

Page 2 - Methods of Praise; Expressions of Worship

Page 3 - Expressions of Worship; Blessings on True Worship

Page 4 - Is There a Wrong Way to Worship?; Conclusion

Methods of Praise

Offering praise to the Lord can take place in variety of ways.

1) Praise is key in the corporate worship of God's people. The psalmist wrote in Psalm 100:4, "Enter into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name." In Psalms 22:22, David said, "I will declare thy name unto my brethren: in the midst of the congregation will I praise thee." Again in Psalm 111:1, he wrote, "Praise ye the Lord. I will praise the Lord with my whole heart, in the assembly of the upright, and in the congregation." (see also Hebrews 2:12).

2) In corporate worship, or by yourself, the singing of psalms, hymns and spiritual songs is a way to express praise to the Father. Psalm 96:2-4 states:, "Sing unto the Lord, bless his name... for the Lord is great, and greatly to be praised." Again in Psalm 147, the scriptures tell us, "Praise ye the Lord: for it is good to sing praises unto our God; for it is pleasant; and praise is comely."

The apostle Paul exhorted the church at Ephesus, "...be filled with the Spirit; speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." (Ephesians 5:18-20; see also Colossians 3:16). The Bible tells us in 1 Corinthians 14:15, "I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding also."

3) Praise can be offered to the Lord through the playing of instruments. As in any form of praise, it is to be done "with the whole heart", and one is to play skillfully upon an instrument. Psalm 33 instructs us, "Rejoice in the LORD, O ye righteous: for praise is comely for the upright. Praise the LORD with harp: sing unto him with the psaltery and an instrument of ten strings. Sing unto him a new song; play skilfully with a loud noise." The word "skilfully" is translated from the Hebrew word yatab which means "to be good, to be pleasing, to do well."

David exhorts us in Psalm 150 to, "Praise him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the psaltery and harp. Praise him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed instruments and organs. Praise him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high sounding cymbals. Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD."

4) We can praise the Lord by telling others of what He has done for us. David wrote in Psalm 26:7, "That I may publish with the voice of thanksgiving, and tell of all thy wondrous works." In Psalm 9:1-2, David wrote, "I will praise thee, O Lord, with my whole heart; I will show forth all thy marvellous works."

When David transgressed against the Lord and found forgiveness and mercy, he was eager to tell others what God had done for him. In Psalm 51 12-15, David penned, "Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee. Deliver me from bloodguiltiness, O God, thou God of my salvation: and my tongue shall sing aloud of thy righteousness. O Lord, open thou my lips; and my mouth shall shew forth thy praise."

When David was delivered from his enemies, he wrote, "The LORD liveth; and blessed be my rock; and let the God of my salvation be exalted. It is God that avengeth me, and subdueth the people under me. He delivereth me from mine enemies: yea, thou liftest me up above those that rise up against me: thou hast delivered me from the violent man. Therefore will I give thanks unto thee, O LORD, among the heathen, and sing praises unto thy name." (Psalm 18:46-49)

Peter, in his first epistle, tells us, "But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light." (1 Peter 2:9)

Matthew Henry comments on this verse, "All true Christians are a chosen generation; they make one family, a people distinct from the world: of another spirit, principle, and practice; which they could never be, if they were not chosen in Christ to be such, and sanctified by his Spirit. Their first state is a state of gross darkness, but they are called out of darkness into a state of joy, pleasure, and prosperity; that they should show forth the praises of the Lord by their profession of his truth, and their good conduct. How vast their obligations to Him who has made them his people, and has shown mercy to them! To be without this mercy is a woeful state, though a man have all worldly enjoyments. And there is nothing that so kindly works repentance, as right thoughts of the mercy and love of God. Let us not dare to abuse and affront the free grace of God, if we mean to be saved by it; but let all who would be found among those who obtain mercy, walk as his people."

5) A life lived for God's glory is a way of praising the Lord. Jesus instructed us, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven." (Matthew 5:16). A life lived in service and surrender to the Lord, like a branch abiding in the vine which bears much fruit, glorifies the Father (John 15:1-8).

The apostle Paul exhorted the church at Philippi, "And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ; Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God." (Philippians 1:9-11).

For those who are suffering great trials, how you endure them can be a method of praising the Lord. Peter wrote in his epistle, "That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ." (1 Peter 1:7).

WORSHIP

"And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people; (for he was above all the people;) and when he opened it, all the people stood up: And Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God. And all the people answered, Amen, Amen, with lifting up their hands: and they bowed their heads, and worshipped the LORD with their faces to the ground." (Nehemiah 8:5-6).

Worship constitutes those actions and attitudes that reverence and honor God the Father. For those who worship God "in spirit and in truth", worship is God-centered and not man-centered. Through worship, we draw near to God in gratitude and for what He has done for us in Christ and through the Holy Spirit. True worship which is acceptable to God requires a commitment of faith and an acknowledgement that He is our Lord and Savior.

Expressions of Worship

1) True worship to God must be done in spirit and in truth. Two key principles govern Christian worship. a) "In spirit" points to the level at which true worship occurs. The worshiper must come to God in complete sincerity and with a life that is lived in surrender to God and directed by the Holy Spirit; b) "Truth" is characteristic of God, incarnate in Christ, intrinsic to the Holy Spirit, and is the very heart of the gospel. Therefore, worship must take place according to the truth of the Father that is revealed in the Son and received through the Spirit. The practice of worship must correspond to the New Testament pattern. Modern believers should desire, seek and expect as the norm for the church all elements found in the New Testament worship experience.

2) In the Old Testament, the sacrificial system was the key feature. However, through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ upon the cross, He has "by his own blood entered in once into the holy pace, having obtained eternal redemption for us." (Hebrews 9:12). Jesus's sacrifice is commemorated through the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, a solemn occassion which one is not to take part in unworthily (1 Corinthians 11:23-31).

3) Worship is done through living a holy and godly life filled with praise. The writer of Hebrews said, "Let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name." (Hebrews 13:15). The apostle Paul penned to the church at Rome, "I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service." (Romans 12:1).

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