Authentic Worship

"Ascribe to the LORD the glory due his name: worship the LORD in the splendor of his holiness"  (Psalm 29:2, NIV).
"Blessed are those who have learned to acclaim you, who walk in the light of your presence, LORD," (cf. Psalm 89:15, NIV). 
"But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of thy Israel" (Psalm 22:3, KJV).

God desires those who worship to do so in spirit and in truth (cf. John 4:24), and this implicates our whole being and that we do it in the right spirit, or filled with the Spirit, and in truth or not hypocritical, phony, or mere lip service--but also consistent with sound doctrine--God is the God of Truth!   We are to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and this means everything that we are--our whole being!  It doesn't mean you be something you're not, but to be what God made you and do what you were designed to do. 

There's no "one-size-fits-all" way to worship:  some are traditionalists, seeking liturgy and ritual; some are musical; some caregiving; some activists; some contemplative; and some are even intellectual.  We are not all hard-wired the same, but we are all meant, designed, and made for worship.  Dostoevsky said, "Man cannot live without worshiping something."  That is, if we don't worship God, we will worship something; i.e., we will worship!  We've been called Homo religiosus, or the religious man or being.  We all have a spark of the divine in us and have been called Homo divinus (penned by John Stott) to point that out.

Worship (meaning worth-ship or ascribing worth that's due) isn't always corporate or in the church assembly--though this is highly rewarding and encouraging.  We offer ourselves to God or consecrate ourselves in surrender.  The believer must learn to live his life as a sacrifice to God and as a service to Him in offering himself.  God doesn't want our achievements--He wants us!   We don't want to just go through the motions, or get into a rut, but seek meaning and purpose in our worship.  We don't just go to church to worship--we go to work!  For example, A man laying bricks was asked what he was doing and he responded that he was building a chapel!  The condition of our soul and spirit is what is our aim, not just where we are. 

We are to keep the channel open and the link connected to God as we continually practice the presence of God in our daily chores and activities. Martin Luther proclaimed manual labor as dignified and to the glory of God.   All that we do is to be to God's glory (cf. 1 Cor. 10:31).  Living our lives in God's will is our sacrifice to Him, and this is our yoke, not the Law, as in the old covenant--this is real spirituality.  God wants our obedience in life and this is more important than being religious or having religiosity:  "To obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams" (cf. 1 Sam. 15:22).

The reason we meet together for corporate worship though is that we all have different gifts and need mutual edification.  Like it says in 1 Cor. 14:26 (NIV) that when we meet together "everyone has a hymn, or a word of instruction, a revelation, a tongue or an interpretation." The gifts are given for the benefit of the body as a whole, not just for our personal growth.  The point of corporate worship is that the singing of hymns and spiritual songs is not the only form of worship:  We worship in giving of our monetary blessings; we worship in the Lord's Supper as a memorial to Him that contemplate; we worship by heeding the preaching of the Word, and we worship by our fellowship with our brethren. 

By way of analogy, our entire lives are to be an act of giving or of worship and thanksgiving as we render to God His due and live according to His will and walk with Him in the Spirit.  Worship is sacrifice among other criteria:  There are two sacrifices that the Bible stresses, besides the ones given in the Mosaic Law:  The sacrifice of praise (cf. Heb. 13:15); and the sacrifice of thanksgiving (cf. Ps. 50:23).

In summation, Psalm 100:1, 3, 4 (KJV, boldface mine)  portrays the right mental attitude or formula for opening the door to the throne room of God into His dimension for spiritual worship as follows:  "MAKE a joyful noise ...  Serve the LORD with gladness: come before his presence with thanksgiving, know ye that the LORD he is God ... Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: be thankful  unto him and bless his name." [Note that we worship in making noise (i.e., audible attention-getting devices), serving (missions, ministry), coming (approaching in prayer--corporate and private, and fellowship--corporate and one-on-one) to Him, offering praise, being thankful (in everything), and in giving blessings (to God and others).]   Soli Deo Gloria!

"Let's Just Praise The Lord!"

"Bless [praise] the LORD, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless [praise] is holy name!"  (Psalm 103:1, ESV).

"Whoever offers praise glorifies Me..."  (Psalm 50:23, NKJV).  

"O Lord, open my lips, And my mouth shall show forth Your praise" (Psalm 51:15, NKJV).

"You are always on their lips but far from their hearts." (cf. Jer. 12:2, NIV). 

(We may be familiar with the words Alleluia, and Hallelujah, which are interpreted from Greek and Hebrew respectively as "praise the LORD!"  

Do you recall the Bill Gaither Trio singing that anthem in the '70s?  It was ubiquitous on the airwaves and humbled the spirit into just concentrating on praise per se.  I recall repeating that phrase in song over and over again ad infinitum.  The Psalms is a book of praises; therefore, it's called the Psalter. The Jews called Psalms Tehillim, or "praises," presumably because there's praise for all occasions. The last several psalms are just doxologies or praises to God and magnifying Him through any means possible, every instrument in the band, for instance, brings Him praise; ergo everyone can praise God and you don't need to be a musician (instrumentalist nor vocalist) to bring Him praise:  God loves our singing even if we think we can't sing, it brings Him praise and He enjoys it.

Obedience brings God praise and we can do everything to the glory of God and in His name, ultimately bringing Him praise. It has wisely been said that praising God entails much more than uttering the words per se just like giving thanks is more than lip service of saying "thank-you!", because it's an action and we must show our praise by what we do.  Sometimes it's singing, but it's not limited to that, because some people literally cannot sing, and they can still praise God. There's no "one-size-fits-all" for praising God, we all do it differently.  

When we focus on Christ and meditate on Scripture, we are praising God with our minds. We are to love God with all our minds, as well as our hearts, souls, and strength.  When we do the Lord's work we are incorporating our strength, and when we worship, our souls and hearts.  "Let everything that hath breath praise the LORD!  Praise the LORD (Psalm 150:6, ESV)!"

Praise is giving glory to God for who He is, as thanksgiving is giving glory to God for what He's done.  Praise is comely for the upright in heart and "God inhabits the praises of His people," as Psalm 22:3 says in the KJV.  God doesn't need our praise, but we need to praise Him to get into the Spirit.  It may make us feel good, but that is not the goal--God deserves our praise and our duty as servants and creatures is to offer it.  Paul exhorts us to do everything, even our eating and drinking, to the glory of God (cf. 1 Cor. 1:31).  Whatever we do, in all our work, we are to do it heartily as unto the Lord, not unto men (cf. Col. 3:23).

Many Christians utter the phrase "praise the Lord" (known as PTL) as a matter of course and in a perfunctory manner. But just saying the words per se is not necessarily praising the Lord and misses the point.  Indeed we do desire to see God's praise and He lifted up in worship, but it's the same as saying "thanks" when a person really isn't thankful.  The heart must correlate with the lips or it's merely lip service.  Jesus warned about those whose lips honor Him, but their hearts are far from Him (cf. Isaiah 29:13; Jer. 12:2; Mark 7:6-7).  What God seeks is an acknowledgment of His glory, deeds, and presence.  "... There is no faithfulness, no love, no acknowledgment of God in the land"  (Hos. 4:1, NIV).

Who can adequately praise God, for He alone is worthy, and it only behooves us to give Him the recognition He deserves.  God thrives on our praises and everything, in the end, shall bring Him the praise He deserves, for even the wrath of man shall praise Him (cf. Psalm 76:10).

We enter God's dimension when we offer praise and are ushered directly into the throne room (cf. Psalm 100:4).  We must seek God's presence and power to offer Him praise, and this is what glorifies Him in return, as we walk with Him in the fellowship of praise.  "Let us acknowledge the LORD; let us press on to acknowledge him"  (Hos. 6:3, NIV).  Give Him all the credit, to whom the credit is due!  Our obligation doesn't ever end and is never fulfilled; uttering the words without follow-through is vain.   Soli Deo Gloria! 

Mouthing It And Doing It

   "Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to  God a sacrifice of praise--the fruit of lips that openly profess his name"  (Hebrews 13:15, NIV).

Efficacious praise is more than lip-service.  It is deeper than the phrase connotes--it is only in actively doing it that one really praises the Lord, not in the mere saying of it:

It is one thing to say "Praise the Lord" and quite another to make good on it or make it a reality. Alleluia is the Greek, and Hallelujah is the Hebrew for "praise the Lord," which is commonly said. This word is commonplace in our hymns and must be understood, not just be an empty phrase.   Has the expression become trite or hackneyed to you, and have little spiritual impact on your spirit?  It is imperative to say "Praise the Lord!"  and in the indicative mood when you realize it--or a declarative statement.  "Praise the Lord!" is a command; while "I Praise the Lord!" is worship (but, for what or why?).  Analogous would be saying, "Thank God!" and then thanking Him in a prayer of thanksgiving for something specific.  Viva la difference! 

But some people just go through the motions in their worship--they have memorized the Dance of the Pious. We say "I love you, let me count the ways!" And we exalt God I worship Him" and mean it from the bottom of our heart; we shouldn't just utter the words thinking that that satisfies (us or God)--we are meant to worship and are only fulfilled in doing it unto our God who made us this way.  Don't just say it--do it! There are many ways to praise the Lord according to Psalm 150 and many reasons to elicit praise.  It is the proper thing to do to offer the Lord His due, and pay homage to the One we adore.  When we learn to respect and honor is one thing; however, to learn, in turn, to apply it to God is another.

How do we praise Him?  Our lives are a witness to His glory and our testimonies are giving Him the honor he deserves.  For only God is worthy of our praise, but man will praise something or someone if not God.  "Let's just praise the Lord!"  We must be discerning to manifest the many ways this can be accomplished.  The Bible says that infants can praise the Lord in Psalm 8, and the firmament shows His handiwork in Psalm 19.  Everything in creation is meant to bring glory to God (Isaiah 43:7 says we were created for His glory!).  God even makes the wrath of man to bring Him praise according to Psalm 76:10!  God indeed allows all to happen for His own purposes and to ultimately bring Him the utmost glory, His chief end.  If you want to see the glory of God, just look in a mirror and see the intricate design that God made and then behold the beauty of the Lord in all creation; for there can be no art without an artist.  God cares a lot about beauty because He made so much of it--is is manifested in manifold ways.

It is one thing to just say the phrase, and quite another to sing it or shout it--that form of expression is inherently praiseworthy.  In other words, it isn't just what we say all the time, but how we say it that makes it meaningful.  An analogy would be the man who just says he loves His wife, but never manifests or proves it or makes good on it in the display. Of course, he ought to say it, but if he means it his conduct will prove it.  Sure the words are important, but we must love not only in word but in deed and in truth.  Likewise, we can say "Praise the Lord" but do we mean it?   As a witness to others, bringing up the fact that you worship God does bring God glory because people are made God-conscious.  I used to hang around a bunch of Christians who constantly used this expression and meant what they said.  It is like saying Amen all the time to acknowledge the truth and agreement with a spiritual truth.  These believers said it with such enthusiasm and expression and the right demeanor that it was contagious!

Let's just think of many things to praise the Lord for His provision; His providence; His protection; His blessing;  His presence; His name!  I could go on, but we thank God for what He's done and just praise Him for what He is and what He does.  Psalm 100 says we are to enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise!   "I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised..." (Psalm 18:3, ESV).  "... Shout unto God with the voice of triumph [for this praises God]"  (Psalm 47:1, KJV).

When we brag about someone or report the good deeds we are praising them, it is about time we do likewise to God and give credit where credit is due,   "Sing praises to the LORD, O you his saints..."(Psalm 30:4, ESV).  This means we should worship God in song as well as in our speech--praise is another word for blessing and glorifying someone.  Hail God, in other words!  We worship and adore Him with all our being and want to celebrate it and pass it on.  Once you've experienced authentic praise to God you want to spread the word and pass it on, because it is contagious.   I can relate to David in Psalm 34 (ESV) saying, "I will bless the LORD at all times; his praise shall continually be in my mouth."  There is power in praise and it is the way to reach out to God and enter His presence. The most joyful believers are those who have learned to praise unashamedly.

Whenever you turn a person away from the human way of thinking to the divine viewpoint, you have praised the Lord because God is honored by it.  Worship is praise.   "... Praise the LORD, O my soul? I will praise the LORD as long as I live; I will sing praises to my God while I have my being" (Psalm 146:1-2, ESV).  It is paramount that we praise Him in His sanctuary and when we are gathered together in His name; in fact, it is commanded.   Let us extol and lift up the name of the Lord (all that He is and His awesome reputation)!  Worship and songs that glorify Him bring Him praise.     Soli Deo Gloria!