Churching Well Part 3

Last week, we said that the church is ultimately about relationships. Relationship with God, relationship with the people of God, and relationship with those who do not yet know Jesus. These relationships are developed in the context of worship, discipleship, fellowship, and mission. All of these relationships also need to be understood in the context of the tension of the Now and Not Yet of the Kingdom of God.
Acts 2:42-47 (NIV)
42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. 44 All the believers were together and had everything in common. 45 Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
We are going to dig deeper today into the church as a worshiping community. One of the hallmarks of a worshiping community is praising God.
Acts 2:46-47 (NIV)
46 Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved.
Praising God happens as we realize that as citizens of the kingdom everything belongs to God and all that we are and have comes from Him.
Psalm 24:1-2 (NIV)
1 The earth is the LORD’s, and everything in it, the world, and all who live in it; 2 for he founded it upon the seas and established it upon the waters.
As we praise Him, we experience His presence in a very real way, now.
Psalm 22:3 (NKJV)
3 But You are holy, Enthroned in the praises of Israel.
He inhabits the praise of His people. Praise is celebrating how awesome God is in all that He has done for us.
There are a number of Hebrew words in the Old Testament that we translate as praise. One of them is “yadah” which means “praise, give thanks, or confess.” Another one is “zamar” which means to “sing praise.” A third word translated praise is “halal” (where the word hallelujah comes from), which means “to praise, honor, or commend.” As we can see in these words, praising God is about giving thanks and honor to the One who is worthy of praise. Praising God is giving to Him the recognition He deserves.
Psalm 96:4 (NIV)
4 For great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; he is to be feared above all gods.
The Psalmist gives us a great road map of what praise looks like in Psalm 150. It talks about the where, the why, the how, and the who of praise.
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!
The “Where” of Praise
Psalm 150:1 (NKJV)
1 Praise the LORD! Praise God in His sanctuary; Praise Him in His mighty firmament!
Praise Him in His sanctuary. When we gather together as a worshiping community, we must be a people who are focused on honoring and exalting Him. It is all about Him. We are also to praise Him in His mighty heavens which reminds us that are praise is to extend beyond the sanctuary into our day to day lives. Praise, like worship, is a life style.
The “Why” of Praise
Psalm 150:2 (NKJV)
2 Praise Him for His mighty acts; Praise Him according to His excellent greatness!
Praise Him for who He is and for all that He has done and all that He has promised to do. We praise Him for His mighty acts, the power of the age to come breaking through into this present age, the kingdom of God that has been inaugurated at the cross and which will be consummated at His return. We praise Him for going to prepare a place for us, knowing that He is coming for us soon. We praise Him for the way He has fulfilled prophecy, giving us the hope of knowing that He will continue to fulfill all that He has promised.
We praise Him not only for what He has done, is doing and will do. We praise Him for who He is. For His greatness, for His love, for His goodness, for His faithfulness.
The “How” of Praise
Psalm 150:1-6 (NKJV)
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!
It is interesting that these verses talk about praising God with a variety of instruments and dance. The key to understanding these verses is in 1 Chronicles 13:8:
1 Chronicles 13:8 (NIV)
8 David and all the Israelites were celebrating with all their might before God, with songs and with harps, lyres, tambourines, cymbals and trumpets.
They celebrated with all their might, with songs and with harps, lyres, tambourines, cymbals and trumpets. We are to praise God with all our might.
The “Who” of Praise
Psalm 150: 6 (NKJV)
6 Let everything that has breath praise the LORD. Praise the LORD!
All of us who have breath, especially those of us who as citizens of the kingdom realize that our very breath is a gift from Him, need to fill our lives with his praises. As the church, we must gather together and fulfill this most important task of giving praise, glory, honor, and thanks to the One who is worthy of praise.
At the end of this age, all of God’s people will join in eternal praise of God.
Revelation 22:1-5 (TEV)
1 The angel also showed me the river of the water of life, sparkling like crystal, and coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb 2 and flowing down the middle of the city’s street. On each side of the river was the tree of life, which bears fruit twelve times a year, once each month; and its leaves are for the healing of the nations. 3 Nothing that is under God’s curse will be found in the city. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will worship him. 4 They will see his face, and his name will be written on their foreheads. 5 There shall be no more night, and they will not need lamps or sunlight, because the Lord God will be their light, and they will rule as kings forever and ever.
Our corporate praise and worship of God now is just a foretaste of what is coming. It is preparation for the celebration of the King of Kings and Lord and Lords that will take place in eternity.