To Begin with:
I would like to bring before you three simple points that will
illustrate the importance of praise. You won't have to stretch
your imaginations too far to appreciate that real praise is almost
a lost art. Ask any congregation to stand and praise the Lord
and they'll look for the musicians. Tell them there aren't any
but just carry on anyway. What you will almost certainly get
is an awkward silence followed by some brave soul praying out.
That prayer may, but most likely won't be praise.
You see, we have become accustomed to having things done for us.
The original thrust of the Anglican church was to make it easy
for the then illiterate folk to be right with God. So, the Bible
was read for them, the prayers were said for them. All they had
to do was watch, and say amen when told to. Even in today's Anglican
church there are set responses printed on a card, and the prayers
are read from a book. Folk are told to kneel etc. What started
out as a good idea, has become tradition. What was intended to
bring life, now serves only to stifle life and growth.
In the so called high Anglican church, people are still treated
as though they were illiterate. Everything is done for them, hence
there is no cultivation of a personal relationship with the Lord.
Everything is 'third party', and of course this applies to praise
& worship. The art of self expression is almost dead, but this
self expression, is the very thing that God wants from His people.
He's not interested in clones or robots, He's not interested in
duty. You can't worship Him by proxy. He wants us to do what we
do out of love for Him. Of course not all
Anglican churches are the same, many are truly alive in the Spirit
of God, and some would put the charismaniacs to shame,
speaking of which...
You may think that the charismatic's have got this problem solved,
but they haven't. A song is put up on the overhead and we all sing
it. The lyrics are written down, the music is written down, the
order of verses and choruses is written down. Where is the 'self'
expression in that? We are only expressing what someone else has
written, and that may or may not be what you want to express. The
songs force us to alter our form expression, it would be better
to force the song writers to alter their songs to match our desired
form expression. The above little test shows up the lack
of confidence in our expression perfectly. As a body of believers,
we don't know how to express ourselves to God in praise and worship
without the paraphernalia. True, some churches encourage singing
in the spirit, as do I, but it's nearly always inaudible, feeble
would be a better word. O the joy of being
among brothers and sisters who are not too self conscious to let
rip before the Lord. How it must bless Him, and how it must
make the devil shake.
There are other pages in this site dealing with worship, so this
page is dedicated to praise.
I believe that the devil has done his utmost to stamp out praise.
Even in charismatic churches there's a tendency to have one, or
at the most two, 'fast' songs, and then it's off into the slow
stuff. If your church is not like this then shout praise the Lord,
you're blessed. The following study relates three points about
praise, all of which give the devil good reason to dread it.
1. Created to praise.
I made this discovery some time ago and it totally changed my
outlook on praise, and also the nature of our God.
Isaiah 43:19-23, NIV
19 See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive
it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland.
20 The wild animals honour me, the jackals and the owls, because
I provide water in the desert and streams in the wasteland, to
give drink to my
people, my chosen,
21 the people I
formed for myself that
they may proclaim
my praise.
Points:
- If God formed us to praise Him, we should obey! God expects
and demands our obedience. This is true of all walks of life.
God never blesses disobedience, and the Bible states, "to
obey is better than sacrifice." This was written
when sacrifice was a very real part of everyday life, so id
obedience was better then, how much more so now?
- It's worth looking at the language behind the translation here,
because it throws up some points that will confirm what I said
in the introduction. The word for formed means to squeeze together.
What a picture - God squeezing us together to make 'a people',
and of course, He made us for Himself!
- The word for proclaim is very revealing. It means to "list
in detail orally." To speak out as it were, a list. But,
proclamation isn't just speaking, it's shouting at the top of
your lungs so that everyone will hear. The whole point of a proclamation
is just that, that everyone will hear the news. The word also
carries a degree of accuracy with it, so the 'list' has to be
precise and of course, accurate. Which leads us nicely to the
next point.
- The world needs to know the truth about our God. The perception
the world has of our God is false. The picture portrayed is of
a God who is confused, weak, irrelevant, and powerless. Actually
it's the visible picture of the church that is attributed to
our God, and by church, I mean the traditional church, as they're
the only ones who get on the TV! So, the media delivers to the
world it's idea of God. The media is owned by the devil of course,
even though Rupert Murdoch pulls many of the strings, he is actually
just a puppet in the devil's hands. A willing puppet!
- So how are the world ever going to find out about the true
God, the living God? Only when we 'proclaim' to them who He is,
and what he has done for us. This, after all is praise, telling
out what God has done, and how well He's done it. Now you can
start to see the wisdom of our God, He has given us both the
mandate to, and the privilege of praising Him. Yes praise is
a privilege, although sometimes you wouldn't think so when you
look at the faces of church goers. Outside, happy. Inside, straight
faced. Outside, laughing and jolly. Inside, quiet and solemn.
Hypocrites! No wonder the world thinks God is irrelevant, we
act as though He is. Please prove me wrong......
- Praise is like water in dry places. This is inside the church.
Real praise, when it happens, is like refreshing water in a hot
desert. We are told to "fix our eyes on things above",
if we will only do it, it has a profound effect on both us, and
anyone in close proximity. Praise is infectious. That's because
God is infectious -when we let Him out of the box that is! On
to the next point.
2. What God can do through praise.
I'm not an advocate of praise as a weapon. To me this takes the
focus away from God, which as you will now know I really hate.
However, God can, and will do all kinds of stuff as we praise Him.
Remember God blesses obedience, and as we saw in point one, praising
God is an act of obedience. What a wonderful God we serve. He gives
us the privilege of praising Him, so we get blessed 'by' praising
Him, and get blessed 'for' praising Him, a double whammy! The following
passage reveals just what our God will do through praise.
Acts 16:25-30, NIV
25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns
to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them.
26 Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations
of the prison were shaken. At once all the prison doors flew open,
and everybody's chains came loose.
27 The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he
drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought
the prisoners had escaped.
28 But Paul shouted, "Don't harm yourself! We are all here!"
29 The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before
Paul and Silas.
30 He then brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I
do to be saved?"
You have to get a picture of what is happening here. Paul's& Silas
had been beaten, dragged by a mob through the streets and brought
before some kind of judge. They were shouted down, abused, debased,
and falsely accused, nice! And this for preaching the gospel! The
culmination of all this is that they are thrown into prison.
Try to imagine yourself in that prison. It stinks, no sanitation
here. It's crawling with rats, and whatever else's happens to drop
in! You've been flogged, you're sore, you're in chains, and it's
dark, add to that it's getting late. Are you there? Right, lets
look at this scripture again from inside the prison.
About midnight Paul and Silas were
praying.
Well this isn't too difficult to take on board. If you or
I were really in that prison we'd be praying too, and I mean
praying. None of this heads bowed stuff done decently and
in order, we'd be going at it hammer and tongues (sorry.).
Our prayer would be "GET ME OUTA HERE", or something
very similar. But what about the next bit?
and singing hymns to God,
I'm not so sure I'd be singing. Sure we all know that we should
praise God in all circumstances, but this is prison, we were
put in here by an angry mob, we might not get out in one piece.....
Two things to note here - 1. These were not hymns as we know
them, even Wesley's music is not that old! 2. The word for Hymn
means, a song of glorious praise.
It's important to note the 'glorious' emphasis. Which leads to "to
God." This also is important, the songs weren't "O
woe is me" stuff. They weren't trying to 'identify' with
the problem, or have a counseling session. They were singing
God's praises in prison. Loudly! How do we know this....
and the other prisoners were listening
to them.
Well, there was no TV, and most of what you would hear in this
situation would be moaning and groaning and cursing. So here's
these two guys, just been thrown into prison, singing their heads
off at midnight. Would it get your attention? I love the next
bit.
Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake
that the foundations of the prison were shaken.
As if the two strangers weren't enough, now there's an earthquake!
But hold on, what's this?
At once all the prison doors flew open,
and everybody's chains came loose.
Now things are really getting bizarre, praying, singing, earthquakes,
now the door's are open and the chains have fallen off. So here
we have a prison full of prisoners, late at night, dark, the
doors are all open, and everybody's chains are off! What do you
think is going to happen? Mass exodus, break out, escape, prisoners
hightailing it in all directions? Well wouldn't you if you were
in that situation? There must have been some commotion, or perhaps
it was the earthquake, because ......
The jailer woke up, and when he saw the
prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill
himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped.
See, the jailer drew the same conclusion. "That's it, I'm
done for, they've all escaped, may as well save kill myself now
and have done with it." By all that's natural and logical,
those prisoners should have been miles away by this time, but...
But Paul shouted, "Don't harm yourself!
We are all here!"
Paul has a word of knowledge, (it's still dark remember), and
makes the statement that saves the jailers life, and defies all
reason. "We
are ALL here!" How
could this happen? Why was there no escape? The answer is simply
this. Those prisoners had been hearing about a God! A loving
God, a saving God, a God who cares for His own. Their fascination
with what they were hearing was so strong that they 'forgot'
to escape! No power on earth could do this, but
with God, all things are possible.
What would have happened if Paul & Silas had been down in
the dumps, bemoaning their plight? Would a song about the problem
have had the same effect? No way. It was a song of GLORIOUS praise
that did it.
The jailer called for lights, rushed in
and fell trembling before Paul and Silas.
He then brought them out and asked, "Sirs, what must I do
to be saved?"
On the way into prison, Paul & Silas would have found the
toe of this jailers boot, but what a difference now, "sirs,
what must I do to be saved?" And
he didn't hear the prayers or the song, he was asleep! He was
responding to the presence of God in that prison. O the power
of praise, and how the devil must hate it.
Points:
- God caused the earthquake. He knew exactly what He was doing,
and what would happen. The prayer & praise were the trigger,
man's small input opened the way for God's mighty input. God
is a good enough shot to have only released Paul & Silas,
but praise is not just for the Christian,
it's for everybody!
- God brought salvation out of it. There was a plan to all this
that included the mob, and the beatings. Truly, God's ways are
not our ways. But His ways are best!
- God can, and will do mighty things when we praise Him. It's
not for nothing that the Bible says, "From
the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of
the Lord is to be praised." That's
a command, not a suggestion. We are commanded to praise God everywhere,
and all the time.
- That's why the devil hates it. Praise damages the devil's plans.
This fact alone should be enough to cause us to do it. Because
of the praise, God moved, and when God moves things happen. "Sirs,
what must I do to be saved?"
3. The role of praise in the life of the church:
It teaches us about God. Any new converts who come into a praising
church will learn about God quickly. Why? Well God will be evident
in such a church. He's in the songs for one thing, He's on the
lips of the people, He's plastered over the walls on banners, He's
preached from the platform (yes I am serious!). Coverts into such
a church will both survive and thrive. Below are two examples of
what I mean, let's start with Psalm 78.
Psalms 78:1-16, NIV
1 A maskil of Asaph. O my people, hear my teaching; listen to the
words of my mouth.
2 I will open my mouth in parables, I will utter hidden things,
things from of old--
3 what we have heard and known, what our fathers have told us.
4 We will not hide them from their children; we will tell the next
generation the praiseworthy deeds of the LORD, his power, and the
wonders he has done.
5 He decreed statutes for Jacob and established the law in Israel,
which he commanded our forefathers to teach their children,
6 so that the next generation would know them, even the children
yet to be born, and they in turn would tell their children.
7 Then they would put their trust in God and would not forget his
deeds but would keep his commands.
Else:
8 They would not be like their forefathers--a
stubborn and rebellious generation, whose hearts were not loyal
to God, whose spirits were not faithful to him.
9 The men of Ephraim, though armed with bows, turned back on
the day of battle;
10 they did not keep God's covenant and refused to live by his
law.
11 They forgot what he had done, the wonders he had shown them.
12 He did miracles in the sight of their fathers in the land
of Egypt, in the region of Zoan.
Points:
Praise changes people. You can see in verses 1-7 that these folk
have 'decided' to pass on the good things of God by telling the
next generation about Him. This will have an affect, they
will put their trust in God, and not forget His deeds, but would
keep His commands.
Praise helps us to remember. This is so true. The stuff you sing
is the stuff you remember, that's why music and advertising go
hand in hand. Verses 8+12 speak of an earlier generation, and how
they failed to follow God and keep His laws. Thus reaping the fruit
of defeat etc. We can read about this generation...
Judges 2:6-14, NIV
6 After Joshua had dismissed the Israelites, they went to take
possession of the land, each to his own inheritance.
7 The people served the LORD throughout the lifetime of Joshua
and of the elders who outlived him and who had seen all the great
things the LORD had done for Israel.
8 Joshua son of Nun, the servant of the LORD, died at the age of
a hundred and ten.
9 And they buried him in the land of his inheritance, at Timnath
Heres in the hill country of Ephraim, north of Mount Gaash.
10 After that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers,
another generation grew up, who knew neither the LORD nor what
he had done for Israel.
Here's a sad story indeed. Joshua and his generation are
leading Israel, and the people are serving the Lord. But
all things die, and Joshua was no exception, nor were his
generation. So they die off and look what follows. After
that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers,
another generation grew up, who knew neither the LORD nor
what he had done for Israel. I find this amazing.
How can they not have passed on the good things of God to
their kids? These guys crossed the Jordan, shouted at Jehrico,
slaughtered seven nations, took their inheritance in the
land promised to them! How could you not tell them of adventures
like that? But it happened. The next generation 'grew up'
not knowing the Lord nor what He had done.
You know what's coming next don't you. You see, where there
is a void the devil has something to fill it. Read on.......
11 Then the Israelites did evil in the
eyes of the LORD and served the Baals.
12 They forsook the LORD, the God of their fathers, who had brought
them out of Egypt. They followed and worshipped various
gods of the peoples around them. They provoked the LORD to anger
13 because they forsook him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths.
14 In his anger against Israel the LORD handed them over to raiders
who plundered them. He sold them to their enemies all around,
whom they were no longer able to resist.
Points:
Had they known their God, Baal & Ashtoreth wouldn't have looked
so good. You see, Baal was just a post stuck in the ground, that's
really exciting! God stopped the Jordan in it's tracks while they
crossed over, Baal was still stuck in the ground. God spoke the
command to them to be silent and then shout, and the walls came
a tumbling down, Baal was stuck there in the ground. God fought
for them as they slaughtered seven nations to take possession of
the land, Baal as exciting as ever, was still stuck there in the
ground. He may have creaked a bit as the wood aged, O and there
was that really exciting time when a crack appeared!....... And
they followed
and worshipped the post!
In a single generation so much was lost. From the glory of God
to a post in the ground, from victory to defeat, from serving a
loving God, to having Him as an enemy. All in one generation, how
sad.
So. What are we doing about the generation after us? You see,
Baal is still here. He's had a few name changes, but he's still
here. Alcohol, heroin, crack, resin, glue, ecstasy, pornography,
horoscopes, spiritualism, Mormonism, Jehovah's witnesses, moonies,
wealth, greed, gluttony, homosexuality, prostitution, pedophilia,
violence, witch craft, masons, psychiatry, psychology, tarot, palm
reading, divination, homeopathy, acupuncture, marshal arts, adultery,
fornication, masturbation. The list is as long as Satan's criminal
record, and these are the modern day Baals. These are the modern-day
posts that people are following and worshipping. Are we proclaiming
God's praise, are we having an effect on Satan's domain, are we
fighting with stones, or using God's praise bombs? As long as 'they'
don't know the difference, 'they'll' keep right on following and
worshipping Satan's alternatives to God. Satan's posts, just stuck
in the ground, with millions of people chained to them. The choice
is ours, but why else are we here?
There you have it. Three good reasons to look on praise as important.
To reiterate - To praise God is to speak about Him in such a way
that there can be no mistake as to who He is, what He has done,
and how well He has done it.
Warning - Praising God will seriously
damage your problems!
In His service,
Colin. |
