The Art of Worship: Corporate Worship

Text: Psalm 9:1

Introduction:Over the past few weeks, we have taken a deep look into what the bible has to say about worshipping God.

Two weeks ago, we looked at why we worship God.

Last week, we looked at what it really means to worship God in spirit and in truth.

This week we are going to look at what worship looks like in a corporate setting. (Go to the text)

Maybe you’ve been in church your whole life or perhaps you’ve only been a Christian for a short time. Whichever side of the street you are on, you have likely wondered, why do people worship that way on Sunday morning or Thursday night?

People have many ideas of what “praising God” is. Sometimes these outward acts of worship are done out of tradition, or emotion with no real thought into what the spiritual significance is.

There are many types of outward expressions of worship and praise, all of which the believer who worships in spirit and in truth should be comfortable in doing.

Thesis:Outward expression of praise is a key element of worship mentioned in the Bible, and the bible mentions specific ways to outwardly praise God.

Transition: The seven Hebrew words for praise mentioned in the Bible are:

I. Yadah (yaw-daw)

a. See Psalm 9:1

b. To worship God with the extended hand

c. The giving of oneself in worship and adoration

d. To lift your hands unto God

e. It carries the meaning of absolute surrender as a child lifting his hands to his father saying “pick me up, I am your child”

When we lift our hands to God, we are putting actions to our attitude and saying to Him that we are not just surrendering our heart our mind, but our entire being.

II. Tehillah (the-hil-law’)

a. See Psalm 34:1

b. To sing

c. To speak well of

d. Singing from the melody of your heart by putting words to it

e. Singing straight to God, not about him.

When we sing to God, not just the words on the screen but the love that is in our heart (even if it’s just “I love you Lord,”) we are putting actions to our worship and glorifying him through the song he has put in our heart.

III. Barak (baw-rak)

a. See Judges 5:2

b. To kneel or bow down

c. Giving reverence

d. Continually and consciously giving place to God

When we kneel or bow down before God we are putting action to the intent of our heart to recognize that He is our King and that we yield to Him. We acknowledge that he is both King and God.

IV. Halal (haw-lal’)

a. See Psalm 108:1

b. This word appears over 110 times in the old testament

c. To rave

d. To celebrate

When we rave and celebrate God we are putting action to our joy and trust in God by declaring to the world who he is.

V. Towdah (to-daw’)

a. See Psalm 50:23

b. To give worship by the extension of the hand in agreement with what has been done or will be

c. Giving of thanks or praise as a sacrifice before reception or manifestation of what was promised.

d. Thanking God for something that I don't have in the natural

This to me is the key behind lifting our hands even when we don’t feel like it. Yadah is submission to God because we want to. It’s out of love and devotion. Towdah, on the other hand is submitting to and agreeing with God. I don't care what the situation looks like (or how I’m feeling.) I'm agreeing with what His Word says and choosing to worship him. And by lifting my hands even now when I don’t feel like, I’m putting action to my praises of you for what you have promised me.

VI. Zamar (zaw-mar)

a. See Psalm 92:1

b. To make music

c. To sing along with music

When we make music and sing praises to God, we are using a method that he created for worship to worship him. It’s a sweet fragrance to him.

VII. shabach (shaw-bakh’)

a. See Psalm 98:4

b. A shout

c. Proclaim with a loud voice

d. Unashamed

It’s not just about being loud when it comes to shabach. When we make a loud noise unto the Lord, we are expressing our unashamed, uninhibited act of praise to God that is part of our whole being.

Close: These are just some of the words the bible uses when it talks about “praise.” The bible also talks about dancing before the Lord. Ultimately, these praise actions are our physical act of worship. They must be a part of our life and culture as a youth ministry. As we continue to worship together tonight I invite you to worship the lord the way you feel comfortable. But lets step out of our comfort zones this week and every week and give God our all the way his word described it.