Tuesday Night Bible Study at CDG
Do you remember the song written by William Murphy, Praise Is What I do?
That’s the subject of this Bible Study tonight….Praise. Mike Jr. talked about praise a couple of weeks ago and he encouraged us to praise God at all times even when things weren’t going well. I want to continue to talking about praise tonight and what the Bible tells us about praise. Specifically about praising God.
One of the most important keys that will make it possible for us to walk a victorious life is our expression of praise. The Lord’s prayer begins in an attitude of worship and praise.
Luke 11:2 (NKJV)2 So He said to them, "When you pray, say: Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven.
Praise is a command Turn to Psalm 150. We all know this many of you know it by heart. I read it a lot on Sunday morning before Praise and Worship. This psalm reads like a command.
Psalm 150:1-6 (NKJV)1 Praise the LORD! Praise God in His sanctuary; Praise Him in His mighty firmament!2 Praise Him for His mighty acts; Praise Him according to His excellent greatness!3 Praise Him with the sound of the trumpet; Praise Him with the lute and harp!4 Praise Him with the timbrel and dance; Praise Him with stringed instruments and flutes!5 Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise Him with clashing cymbals!6 Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD!
Heaven is filled with praise.
Revelation 19:5-6 (NKJV)5 Then a voice came from the throne, saying, "Praise our God, all you His servants and those who fear Him, both small and great!"6 And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, "Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns!
What is praise really?
Merriam-Webster dictionary defines praise as;
- to say or write good things about (someone or something) : to express approval of (someone or something)
- : to express thanks to or love and respect for (God)
synonyms are admire, commend, extol, honor, and worship.
Man can be the object of praise and it’s not necessarily wrong to praise another person. Let me explain. I just gave you the definition of praise which was to say or write good things about (someone or something) : to express approval of (someone or something), we can do that for people as well as God.
We praise our children for getting good grades in school and for other accomplishments. We praise our friends for things they accomplish. We praise our spouses...you get the point.
In fact there are examples in the Bible where men were praised.
Genesis 6:9 (HCSB)9 These are the family records of Noah. Noah was a righteous man, blameless among his contemporaries; Noah walked with God.
Proverbs 31:30 (HCSB)30 Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting, but a woman who fears the LORD will be praised.
and Jesus praised Nathaniel, who was also called Bartholomew, one of the disciples.
John 1:47 (HCSB)47 Then Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward Him and said about him, “Here is a true Israelite; no deceit is in him.”
When we praise people it should be in a God-centered way, by praising them for being godly, for being Christlike, by commending them for God’s glory, applauding them for doing something good in the strength God supplies, because we are not to put anything or anybody above God.
Exodus 20:3 (HCSB)3 Do not have other gods besides Me.
God is the object of the praise that I want to talk about tonight.
We are going to talk about what the Bible says about why, when, and how we praise God.
A definition of Christian praise is the joyful thanking and adoring of God, the celebration of His goodness and grace. This implies that the act of praising is due God.
From the Holman Bible Dictionary
Praise comes from a Latin word meaning “value” or “price.” Thus, to give praise to God is to proclaim His merit or worth. Many terms are used to express this in the Bible, including “glory,” “blessing,” “thanksgiving,” and “hallelujah,”...
While the Bible contains frequent injunctions for people to praise God, there are also occasional warnings about the quality of this praise. Praise is to originate in the heart and not become mere outward show
Matthew 15:8 (NKJV)8 'These people draw near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me.
This was Jesus’ response to the Pharisees criticizing His disciples for not washing their hands before they ate which was one of the rules they established to supplement the law
He was saying the what they were doing was a phony piety.
That’s what praise that doesn’t come from the heart really is. Many times we put on an act of praise so that we don’t look out of place with others or we want to try and impress others.
Praise is also firmly linked to an individual's everyday life
Amos 5:21-24 (NKJV)21 "I hate, I despise your feast days, And I do not savor your sacred assemblies.22 Though you offer Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings, I will not accept them, Nor will I regard your fattened peace offerings.23 Take away from Me the noise of your songs, For I will not hear the melody of your stringed instruments.24 But let justice run down like water, And righteousness like a mighty stream.
An unqualified repudiation of the sacrifices of Israel.
If your lifestyle is contrary to the Word of God then there is a warning that God doesn’t even want to hear it.
One Hebrew word for “praise” is yadah, meaning “praise, give thanks, or confess.” A second word often translated “praise” in the Old Testament is zamar, “sing praise.” A third word translated “praise” is halal (the root of hallelujah), meaning “to praise, honor, or commend.” All three terms contain the idea of giving thanks and honor to one who is worthy of praise.
Praising God is not a feeling
Praise is conscious admiration and thanks for who God is and what He does. It is an act of the will to praise Him by thoughtfully celebrating His goodness, His greatness, His majesty, His love, His grace, His mighty deeds on our behalf.
The Bible says that His entire entire creation is to praise Him
Angles
Psalm 103:20 (NKJV)20 Bless the LORD, you His angels, Who excel in strength, who do His word, Heeding the voice of His word.
Revelation 5:11-12 (NKJV)11 Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands,12 saying with a loud voice: "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain To receive power and riches and wisdom, And strength and honor and glory and blessing!"
All creatures and inanimate things praise Him;
Psalm 19:1-4 (NKJV)1 The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork.2 Day unto day utters speech, And night unto night reveals knowledge.3 There is no speech nor language Where their voice is not heard.4 Their line has gone out through all the earth, And their words to the end of the world. In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun,
Psalm 148:10-13 (NKJV)10 Beasts and all cattle; Creeping things and flying fowl;11 Kings of the earth and all peoples; Princes and all judges of the earth;12 Both young men and maidens; Old men and children.13 Let them praise the name of the LORD, For His name alone is exalted; His glory is above the earth and heaven.
Revelation 5:13 (NKJV)13 And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: "Blessing and honor and glory and power Be to Him who sits on the throne, And to the Lamb, forever and ever!"
Isaiah 55:12 (NKJV)12 "For you shall go out with joy, And be led out with peace; The mountains and the hills Shall break forth into singing before you, And all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
Luke 19:40 (NKJV)40 But He answered and said to them, "I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out."
And Last But Certainly Not Least, Man the crowning jewel of creation is to praise Him;
While the Bible tell us about the angels, the creatures, the rocks, it is primarily concerned with the praises offered to God by man.
There are hundreds of scriptures in which man is encouraged to praise God. Many of them are in the Psalms. Let’s look a a very few.
Psalm 7:17 (NKJV)17 I will praise the LORD according to His righteousness, And will sing praise to the name of the LORD Most High.
Psalm 9:2 (NKJV)2 I will be glad and rejoice in You; I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High.
Psalm 21:13 (NKJV)13 Be exalted, O LORD, in Your own strength! We will sing and praise Your power.
Exodus 15:2 (NKJV)2 The LORD is my strength and song, And He has become my salvation; He is my God, and I will praise Him; My father's God, and I will exalt Him.
2 Samuel 22:4 (NKJV)4 I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised; So shall I be saved from my enemies.
Isaiah 25:1 (NKJV)1 O LORD, You are my God. I will exalt You, I will praise Your name, For You have done wonderful things; Your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.
Hebrews 2:11-12 (NKJV)11 For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of one, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brethren,12 saying: "I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will sing praise to You."
1 Peter 1:7 (NKJV)7 that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ,
Why Should We Praise God ?
Of course it’s to show how much we thank God for what He’s done for us and those we love, it’s to acknowledge Him as the creator, and the one that holds everything together. We praise Him because He is worthy of our praise.
Psalm 145:3 (NKJV)3 Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; And His greatness is unsearchable.
Just as important, in my opinion, is that we should also praise God because praise gets the focus off ourselves and puts it on God.
1 Chronicles 16:25 (HCSB)25 For the LORD is great and highly praised; He is feared above all gods.
Revelation 5:11-14 (HCSB)11 Then I looked and heard the voice of many angels around the throne, and also of the living creatures and of the elders. Their number was countless thousands, plus thousands of thousands.12 They said with a loud voice: The Lamb who was slaughtered is worthy to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing!13 I heard every creature in heaven, on earth, under the earth, on the sea, and everything in them say: Blessing and honor and glory and dominion to the One seated on the throne, and to the Lamb, forever and ever!14 The four living creatures said, “Amen,” and the elders fell down and worshiped.
We praise Him because of His attributes
He is full of glory
Psalm 138:5 (HCSB)5 They will sing of the LORD’s ways, for the LORD’s glory is great.
He is great
Psalm 145:3 (HCSB)3 Yahweh is great and is highly praised; His greatness is unsearchable.
He is wise and powerful
Daniel 2:19-20 (HCSB)19 The mystery was then revealed to Daniel in a vision at night, and Daniel praised the God of heaven20 and declared: May the name of God be praised forever and ever, for wisdom and power belong to Him.
Daniel praised God after he was given the interpretation of king Nebuchadnezzar's dream.
He is good
Psalm 107:8 (HCSB)8 Let them give thanks to the LORD for His faithful love and His wonderful works for ⌊all⌋ humanity.
He is merciful and faithful
Psalm 89:1 (HCSB)1 I will sing about the LORD’s faithful love forever; I will proclaim Your faithfulness to all generations with my mouth.
We praise Him for His wonderful works
Psalm 150:2 (NKJV)2 Praise Him for His mighty acts; Praise Him according to His excellent greatness!
We praise Him because He is the One who saves us
Psalm 18:46 (HCSB)46 The LORD lives—may my rock be praised! The God of my salvation is exalted.
He keeps His promises
1 Kings 8:56-57 (HCSB)56 “May the LORD be praised! He has given rest to His people Israel according to all He has said. Not one of all the good promises He made through His servant Moses has failed.57 May the LORD our God be with us as He was with our ancestors. May He not abandon us or leave us
He forgives sin
Psalm 103:1-3 (HCSB)1 My soul, praise Yahweh, and all that is within me, praise His holy name.2 My soul, praise the LORD, and do not forget all His benefits.3 He forgives all your sin; He heals all your diseases.
He provides for us
Matthew 6:31-33 (NKJV)31 Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'32 For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.
To try to list all the reasons to praise God is impossible. He is the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, the King of kings and Lord of lords. He is our Creator, Provider, Healer, Redeemer, Judge, Defender and much more. It’s a great exercise to try to list all the reasons to praise God because it keeps us mindful of how much we owe to Him. It puts our focus on Him and takes it off us.
Ways to Praise God
Those are just a few of the reasons to praise God. The list of ways to praise God is also endless...singing songs and hymns, clapping our hands, even jumping for joy etc. We can praise God with the use of our physical limbs, our hearts and minds, and our deeds. Although there are many way to praise God, they should all result in acknowledgement of His power, love and grace.
- Praise Him with Sacrifice
Before Jesus became the last sacrifice required for the forgiveness of sin the offering of sacrifices was a way to praise God.
Leviticus 7:13 (NKJV)13 Besides the cakes, as his offering he shall offer leavened bread with the sacrifice of thanksgiving of his peace offering.
Romans 12:1 (NKJV) I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.
- Praise Him with movement (dance)
2 Samuel 6:14 (NKJV) Then David danced before the LORD with all his might; and David was wearing a linen ephod.
- Praise Him with silence and meditation
Psalm 77:11-12 (NKJV)11 I will remember the works of the LORD; Surely I will remember Your wonders of old.12 I will also meditate on all Your work, And talk of Your deeds.
- Praise Him with testimony
Psalm 66:16 (NKJV)16 Come and hear, all you who fear God, And I will declare what He has done for my soul.
- Praise Him with prayer
Philippians 4:6 (NKJV) Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;
- Praise Him with music
Often praise is associated to music, whether structured Praise and Worship, personal quiet time, or spontaneous outbursts of thanksgiving.
Psalm 40:3 (NKJV)3 He has put a new song in my mouth-- Praise to our God; Many will see it and fear, And will trust in the LORD.
Psalm 95:1 (NKJV)1 Oh come, let us sing to the LORD! Let us shout joyfully to the Rock of our salvation.
Psalm 98:4-6 (NKJV)4 Shout joyfully to the LORD, all the earth; Break forth in song, rejoice, and sing praises.5 Sing to the LORD with the harp, With the harp and the sound of a Psalm,6 With trumpets and the sound of a horn; Shout joyfully before the LORD, the King.
- Praise Him with your life
Everyone, well almost everyone, agrees that praise is good. When we’re happy we praise God but,
Philippians 4:4 (NKJV) Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
Praise is not what happens afterwards it’s what goes on before. Praise is the engine that causes everything else to move.
Remember Paul and Silas?
Acts 16:22-26 (NKJV)22 Then the multitude rose up together against them; and the magistrates tore off their clothes and commanded them to be beaten with rods.23 And when they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them securely.24 Having received such a charge, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.25 But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.26 Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone's chains were loosed.
Your faith in God is enhanced with praise. Praise affects you, and it affects God.
Psalm 22:3 (KJV)3 But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.
Praise touches everything and every part of your life. A lack of praise affects you in a negative way because remember praise takes the focus off you and places it on God. If praise and thanksgiving isn’t a part of your life you are probably not spiritually healthy.
When you are down in the dumps of something happens that causes stress and worry try praising God. Remember when you praise God the focus is no longer you are your circumstances it’s on God. When the focus is on God you start to remember what He’s done for you in the past, you remember that nothing is impossible with Him you remember the reasons that I just mentioned as to why we praise God. It’s a good idea to memorize as many of the scriptures about praise as you can and then get them out of your memory banks when things are not going great. It’s easy to praise when things are going good but tough when they are going bad. Remember praise is not a feeling it is conscious admiration and thanks for who God is and what He does.
Praise is not the thing that comes when everything's going right in our lives; it is the driving force of our lives. When we start praising God in the middle of our problems, our problems become so small that we hardly remember them at all, they become an afterthought in the wake of our praise.
When you live a life of praise then you are able to rejoice always.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 (HCSB)16 Rejoice always!17 Pray constantly.18 Give thanks in everything, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
Philippians 4:4-7 (HCSB)4 Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice!5 Let your graciousness be known to everyone. The Lord is near.6 Don’t worry about anything, but in everything, through prayer and petition with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God.7 And the peace of God, which surpasses every thought, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.
Praise is a vital part of a life surrendered to God, and it gives credit where credit is due.
Psalm 107:8 (NKJV)8 Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men!
Colossians 3:16 (NKJV) Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
Praise is also our ultimate destiny. When the Jesus Christ returns again to earth, all creation -- including prideful mankind -- will recognize His glory and praise Him
Philippians 2:9-11 (NKJV)9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth,11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
When you live a life of praise it’s who you are and what you do.
“Praise Is What I Do" by William Murphy
[Solo:]
Praise is what I do
When I want to be close to You,
I lift my hands in praise.
Praise is who I am,
I will praise Him while I can.
I'll bless Him at all times.
[Chorus:]
I vow to praise You
Through the good and the bad.
I'll praise You,
Whether happy or sad.
I'll praise You
(this is my testimony)
In all that I go through,
(somebody said why)
Because praise is what I do,
Cause I owe it all to You.
[Verse 1:]
(come on church)
Praise is what I do
(come on church)
When I want to be close to You,
(I lift my hands-somebody lift Him)
I lift my hands in praise.
(somebody say it so the devil will hear you)
Praise is who I am,
(come on praise the Lord)
I will praise Him while I can.
I'll bless Him at all times.
[Chorus:]
And I vow to praise You
Through the good and the bad.
I'll praise You,
Whether happy or sad.
I'll praise You
(Somebody lift your voice and say)
[Verse 2:]
Praise is what I do,
Even when I am going through,
(see I've learned...)
I've learned to worship You.
(see I want to let the devil know tonight, even though...)
Though my circumstance doesn't even stand a chance,
My praise out weighs the bad.
(so I vow to praise)
[Repeat Chorus]
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