I am blessed because I am a “born-again” child of God.  I have the indwelling and love of God’s Holy Spirit in me and the assurance that He will never leave me or forsake me.  When I sin and grieve God’s presence within me, I ask for forgiveness for my sin and my fellowship is restored with God (1 John 1:9).  God does not leave me when I sin but He reminds me that I am wholly His and that He wants to make me “holy”, like His Son Jesus.  This is the special joy and fellowship every born-again child of God shares with His heavenly Father and at times I can’t help but shout “Hallelujah, Praise the Lord”.  

This is “the way, the truth and the life (John 14:6)” for me and for my “praisey” friends that I worship with at Chapel by the Sea.  You see, I help lead praise and worship at the Chapel and this is a very special privilege and blessing.  It is not that I am special but “praise and worship” has special Spiritual power to change lives and change the way we deal with life’s problems.  We are “made to worship” and we find our true self and purpose in worship to God.  The number one thing to do in Heaven is worship God and the highest position in God’s Heavenly court is to lead praise.

Before his fall, Satan was the praise and worship leader of Heaven.  He was the “cherub that covered” the throne of God (Ezekiel 28:14).  We see from the making of the Tabernacle that the wings of two Cherub cover the mercy seat of God and in Heaven four Cherub surround the throne of God but I think in the beginning Satan held this position alone before he fell from God’s grace.  Praise surrounds the throne of God and emanates from the throne of God.  The cherubs and the angels can’t contain their shouts of praise as they see God and see Him work.  The picture of praise in Heaven is clearly documented in scripture and it even spilled over onto earth when Jesus was born.

Luke 2:13:14

And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying,

 

“Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased.”

And this is the way God taught the Jews to honor Him and enjoy His protection.  The ministers of praise to God went “first” into battle, praising God while the ark of God’s presence followed the praise team and the soldiers followed the ark.  “The battle belongs to the Lord” and those who go before the ark proclaim the truth of the undefeated One that is going into battle.  The audacity of witnessing this parade of praise scared those who stood in the way of God.  And as the Jews marched into the promise land, the heathen nations in the land feared a righteous and powerful God who went before the untrained Jewish soldiers.

Do you remember the battle plan of Jericho?  Six days, the Jews circled the walls of Jericho while the priest blew the ram’s horn (the Shofar).  They might have even said sho-far … so good.  On the seventh day they circled the walls seven times blowing the shofars and then Joshua said to the people, “Shout! For the Lord has given you the city.”   And when the people shouted and the horns blew the walls fell down and the Jews killed everyone with the edge of the sword, except those protected by the house of Rahab. ( Joshua 6:1-27)

The point that God is trying to teach us is that praise and worship are the key to winning a battle for the Lord.  Drawing attention to what God is doing is where real change occurs and where every lasting glory is found.  The relief from the problems of the world is not found in tying to fix the problems of this world by our own reasoning but in praying to God, following Him and praising the One who has already overcome the world!  God is the One we are to trust and depend upon.  God always delivers His children from evil storms of life.  Sometimes God changes hearts so we are strengthen to endure the storm, sometimes He changes the circumstances so we pass through the storms of life to the other side on earth and sometimes He delivers us out of this world of evil and we pass through the storm to meet Jesus in Heaven!  This world is not our home.  For God is preparing a better place for His children, a New Jerusalem (John 14:2-3, Revelation 21:2), a world free from sin where Jesus dwells with His children forever!

God’s agenda at this time is to draw men to Him for salvation in His only begotten Son Jesus Christ (John 3:16).  This world can not be made into a utopia existence now because it is under the influence of sin and Satan.  Yes, we are to care for our fellow man and work by faith for good to prevail in this world (the great commandment) but this is NOT our primary purpose and hope.  Our primary purpose is to know God and make Him known (the great commission).  Quite frankly, this has always been and will always be the highest goal for our life, to know God.  For a Christian this world is the only hell they will every experience and sadly for an unbeliever this is the only heaven they will ever experience.

            Isaiah 50:10-11

            Who is among you that fears the LORD,
            That obeys the voice of His servant,
            That walks in darkness and has no light?
            Let him trust in the name of the LORD and rely on his God.

 

            Behold, all you who kindle a fire,
            Who encircle yourselves with firebrands,
            Walk in the light of your fire
            And among the brands you have set ablaze.
            This you will have from My hand:
            You will lie down in torment. 

There is much encouragement and power found in the praise of God’s people, so prepare to be amazed at God’s promises concerning “The Power of Praise” and may you always be found “praisey” in the Lord!

Psalm 16:11 “You will make known to me the path of life; In Your presence is fullness of joy; In Your right hand there are pleasures forever.”    (this is one of my favorite verses)

Psalm 22:3 “But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.”

Psalm 50:23 “He who offers a sacrifice of thanksgiving honors Me; And to him who orders his way aright I shall show the salvation of God.”

Psalm 89:10 “Lovingkindness and truth have met together; Righteousness and peace have kissed each other.”

Psalm 89:14 “Righteousness and justice are the foundation of Your throne; love and faithfulness go before You.”

Psalm 99:9 “Exalt the LORD our God And worship at His holy hill, For holy is the LORD our God.”

Psalm 106:1 “Praise the LORD! Oh give thanks to the LORD, for He is good; For His lovingkindness is everlasting.”   (this phrase is repeated many times in the psalms)

2 Chronicles 5:13 The trumpeters and singers performed together in unison to praise and give thanks to the LORD. Accompanied by trumpets, cymbals, and other instruments, they raised their voices and praised the LORD with these words: “He is good! His faithful love endures forever!” At that moment a thick cloud filled the Temple of the LORD.

Nehemiah 8:10 “Then he said to them, “Go, eat of the fat, drink of the sweet, and send portions to him who has nothing prepared; for this day is holy to our Lord. Do not be grieved, for the joy of the LORD is your strength.“ 

Zephaniah 3:17 “The LORD your God is in your midst, a mighty One who will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by his love; He will exult over you with loud singing.”

Romans 5:11 “And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.”

Philippians 2:10 “so that at the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE WILL BOW, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth,”

Philippians 4:4 “Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, rejoice!”

Revelation 7:11 “And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures; and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God,”

Revelation 7:15 “For this reason, they are before the throne of God; and they serve Him day and night in His temple; and He who sits on the throne will spread His tabernacle over them.”

Still praisey after all these years – Rogersings  

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