Praise # 7 10-29-95
Today we’re going to continue on the subject of “The Untapped Power of Praise.” As we begin to walk in the area of Praise and Worship to God, we’ll begin to walk in a new realm of victory in our lives.
I. (Psalm 22:3) Says, “But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.”
A. This is the main text that we have been using in this series.
1. God will dwell in the mist of our praises.
B. Turn with me to PSA 50:23
1. The word “Praise” in this V is the Hebrew word “TOWDAH” meaning the “Sacrifice of Praise or the Sacrifice of Thanksgiving.”
a. Sure we are to offer up Thanksgiving for what God has done and for what He is doing, But there is another very important area of Praise.
2. We are to Praise God for the things that He has said in His Word that are ours, especially if we don’t see it.
a. We are to praise Him by thanking Him for what He has promised in His Word and believing that they belong to us.
C. But there is another aspect of praise that we haven’t looked at yet, and we can see it from this V (PSA 50:23)
1. The literal translation of this V should be, “He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me; And to him who orders his way aright I shall show the salvation of God.” (NASB)
a. We are to “Offer the Sacrifice of Thanksgiving.”
2. The part of this V that I want to look at is the word “Sacrifice.”
a. A sacrifice is something that cost you dearly.
b. What cost us dearly about praise?
i. Oh, it could be that by spending time with the Lord that we learn to put our trust in Him, which would get rid of our PRIDE. (Thinking that we could do it ourselves.)
ii. But is getting rid of our pride really a sacrifice?
3. Paul gives us some insight into this in HEB 13:15 (Turn there)
a. He’s telling us “to offer the sacrifice of praise continually.”
i. What is the Sacrifice?
ii. Our time.
b. It doesn’t mean just 2 minutes of our time, that’s not a sacrifice.
i. Paul said “Offer the sacrifice of praise or thanksgiving Continually.”
D. That’s where the true blessings of God are. When you’re spending time praising Him and thanking Him for what He has promised in His Word.
1. (Psalm 37:4) Says, “Delight thyself also in the LORD; and he shall give thee the desires of thine heart.”
a. All to often our prayer without praise becomes begging or whining.
i. But praise and thanksgiving seals our prayers with faith.
b. I said this last week, but it’s so true, Praise finishes what prayer begins.
2. When you’re going through the different storms of life, that’s when you really need to put on the Sacrifice of Praise and Thanksgiving.
a. It’s not that you’re trying to force God to do what you want.
b. Real prayer and praise is simply agreeing with the Word of God.
II. 1 of the reasons why we go through up hill fights or battles is that we’re listening to enemy.
A. 1 of Satan’s main strategies is to try to get you to doubt the Word.
1. He will use phrases like, “Did God really tell you that?” “Is that really true?” “Did God really mean that?” “Does God really care about you and your situation?” (He did that with Eve.)
a. Or he’ll use the big “What IF” or just “IF.”
i. If you’re really a child of God, then why aren’t you prosperous?
ii. He’ll always try to cast doubt on the Word of God.
iii. If he can do that he will defeat you. You’ll lose the victory.
2. He did that to Jesus. He said in (MATT 4) “If thou be the Son of God.”
a. We need to do the same thing that Jesus did.
i. It is written, it is written, it is written!
b. When Jesus did this the Bible says that the Devil left Him and angels came and ministered to Him.
c. JAMES 4:7
i. We have to resist the enemy and those thought of doubt and unbelief, and you do that with the Word of God. (Resist enemy flee)
3. Unfortunately, we are prone to say, “The Devil said this.” “The Devil did this.”
a. If we want to overcome the enemy you have to do what Jesus did. It is written!
B. Turn to JAMES 2:26
1. James says that faith without works is dead, but there are times that you don’t know how to put action to your faith.
a. Like in prosperity.
b. But praise is putting action to your faith.
III. Turn with me to PSA 8:1-2 (“Ordained” better translated “established”)
A. This is a little blind to us without comparing it to another V. Something that Jesus said.
1. Look at MATT 21
a. In (MATT 21) here is a story of Jesus entering Jerusalem on what we call Palm Sunday.
b. Both adults and children ran before Him putting Palm branches in the road shouting, “Hosanna to the Son of David.” “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.” “ Hosanna in the highest.”
c. Jesus went into the city and into the temple and healed the blind and the lame.
i. The religious people weren’t very happy with Him.
2. Let’s pick up the story in MATT 21:14-16 (V16 “perfected” better “prepared”)
a. David said in (PSA 8:2) “Ordained or established strength.”
i. Jesus gave us more light by saying “Prepared Praise.”
3. Let’s turn back to PSA 8:2
a. How has God “Ordained strength?” Through praise.
i. Why?
b. Because of His enemy, that He might still the enemy.
4. The words “Ordained strength” can also mean “Strong walls of defense.”
B. You could word (PSA 8:2) like this “Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings hast thou PREPARED PRAISE WHICH ARE STRONG WALLS OF DEFENSE because of thine enemies, that thou mightest still the enemy and the avenger.”
1. According to this V Praise (1st) Establishes strength and builds strong wall of defense, (2nd) It doesn’t matter where you are in level of maturity with the Lord, He says spiritual babes can do this, and (3rd) it will stop the enemy in his tracks.
a. In (PSA 8:2b) it says that praise might STILL the enemy and the avenger.
b. The word “STILL” from the Hebrew means “to cause to cease, put an end to, to exterminate, destroy, to remove, or to cause to fail.”
i. Praise will put an end to, exterminate and destroy the plans of the enemy.
2. Very possibility praise is the most powerful weapon that we have.
i. If you want this ability and this source of strength. LET’S JUST PRAISE THE LORD.
WOLCC SUN AM 10/29/95 From Charles Trombley’s book “Praise, Faith in Action. Pg. 79 through 112.