Faithful to Praise
“Faithful to Praise”
by Pastor Kent Munsey
February 9, 2020
Here’s the story I’ll tell my friends when they come to worship, and punctuate it with Hallelujahs: Shout Hallelujah, you God-worshipers; give glory, you sons of Jacob; adore him, you daughters of Israel. He has never let you down, never looked the other way when you were being kicked around. He has never wandered off to do his own thing; he has been right there, listening. Here in this great gathering for worship I have discovered this praise-life. And I’ll do what I promised right here in front of the God-worshipers. Down-and-outers sit at God’s table and eat their fill. Everyone on the hunt for God is here, praising him. “Live it up, from head to toe. Don’t ever quit!”
Psalm 22:22-26 (MSG)
We should be faithful to praise. We should be faithful to rave, boast, and celebrate our Lord. We should be faithful to acknowledge Him in public. We should be faithful to express our love toward Him by blessing Him by kneeling or bowing and aligning our hearts with His. We should be faithful to making music to God with strings. We should be faithful to address Him with a loud voice, to shout, and to praise His name. We should be faithful to lift hands in adoration. We should be faithful to sing exuberantly about the Lord. We should want to be a part of a church community that is faithful to praise Him.
1. When Praise Shows Up, It’s Hard to Hide
In Genesis 45, Joseph recognizes his brothers, but they do not recognize him. At first, he hides but cannot continue to as his brother Judah approaches him. Judah means “praise”. He cannot hide anymore. We don’t need to hide. Our praise does not depend on how good we are but on how good God is. We can enter into his courts because he is a healer. It does not mean we don’t struggle. It just means that when we could not get to him, he came to us. In praise, you don’t have to hide. When David wrote Psalm 34, that we praise God at all times, his wife just died, and King Saul was trying to kill him. He had to pretend to be a mad man to save himself. No doubt, guilt, nor deception has to keep you from praising God. As Job says, “Though he slay me, yet I will trust him.” We won’t let what is wrong with the world keep us from seeing what is right with God.
2. When Praise Walks in, It Prioritizes the Word of God
In 2 Kings 3, Joram of Samaria and Jehosephat of Judah are fighting against Israel and only half-listening to God. The prophet Elijah tells them “I would not have come for you. I only came for the Lord.” We praise Him and it leads us to prioritize His word. That is why we enter His courts with praise and thanksgiving. When we enter into His presence, we can have an encounter with Him, and He can speak to us. He can give us direction and impart His word into our lives. God is speaking much more than our capacity to hear. God is speaking, but we can’t hear because we are praising other voices. We can’t hear him if we are praising other voices or if we have other priorities. The word of God is a lamp unto our feet and light to our path. We hear His voice by lifting our voice and giving Him praise and glory. During the week we need to read the Word while lifting our voice at all times in thankfulness.
3. When Praise Is in You, It Puts My Pain in Perspective
Paul and Silas praised God in jail at midnight, and their chains fell off. (Acts 16:25-34) Our praise leads us out of our circumstances. We cannot hide, but if we’re honest our praise will lead us to truth and God’s word. Greater is him who is in you and me than he who is in the world. When we sing spiritual songs to God, we release the power of God and his glory. ‘Let everything that has breath praise the Lord.’ When God works supernaturally, we become vessels of his praise. Lives are transformed. It may seem crazy that the prison walls were shaken, but it happened. Praise brings victory (Exodus 17:12-14). When we praise, we become vessels for God’s power and glory. As long as the arms of Moses were held up in praise, the Lord worked to win the battle for him.
Reflection/Discussion Questions:
1. Think of a time when you had the victory and it was easy to praise God.
2. Remember a time when you were facing hardships, and it was very difficult to praise God, but you praised anyway.
3. What can you do this week to make space for praise and thanksgiving?
4. Write about the effects of praising God in your life.