| Chapter
18
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THANKSGIVING, PRAISE AND WORSHIP
The greatest honor of the citizens of any kingdom is
to have audience with their King and come before him.
It
is their opportunity to honor him and pledge their allegiance
to him.
It
is also an opportunity to present him with a special
gift.
They
would carefully follow all royal protocol in their behavior
toward him and show him great respect.
When
approaching the throne they would bow or curtsey and
not speak until spoken to by the King. They would then
address the King with words like "Your Royal Highness."
It
would be appropriate when presenting the King with a
gift to express their thankfulness and gratitude to
him.
They
would take the opportunity to praise the King for his
greatness, wisdom, many achievements and carefully listen
to what he has to say.
One
of the greatest Kings that ever lived was King Solomon.
He
built a magnificent Palace and when the Queen of Sheba
saw it, it took her breath away.
The
Bible describes his Throne Room:
2
Chronicles 9:17-20
"Moreover
the king made a great throne of ivory, and overlaid
it with pure gold.
And
there were six steps to the throne, with a footstool
of gold, which were fastened to the throne, and stays
on each side of the sitting place, and two lions standing
by the stays:
And
twelve lions stood there on the one side and on the
other upon the six steps.
There
was not the like made in any kingdom."
However
Solomon's throne cannot be compared to the magnificent
Throne of the God of Heaven and Earth, JEHOVAH.
Coming
before Gods Throne:
Christians
are children of the Most High God and citizens of His
Kingdom.
They
have the right to approach this supreme Throne of the
King of the Universe and render Him obeisance.
After
preparing themselves they carefully approach His Throne
with respect and humilty.
What
a priceless privilege it is to come before Him and enjoy
His awesome presence.
The
Bible describes this heavenly domain.
It
is greater in size than the universe.
Isaiah
66:1
"Thus
saith the LORD, The heaven is my throne, and the earth
is my footstool:"
There
are five things to consider about Gods Throne:
1.
Gods Throne is magnificent.
Revelation
4:2-6
"A
Throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne.
And he that sat was to look upon like a jasper and a
sardine stone: and there was a rainbow round about the
throne, in sight like unto an emerald. And before the
throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal:"
Revelation
4:5
"There
were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne,
which are the seven Spirits of God.
Take
a moment and imagine Gods Throne Room.
In front of His Throne is a crystal sea bigger than all the oceans of
the world.
Gods
Throne rises up bigger than the Universe.
It
shines so brightly that no human eye can look upon it.
Around
the Throne there is an emerald green rainbow.
Huge Seraphims protect the Throne crying with thunderous voices,
Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of Hosts.
Seven
fire burning lamps are before Gods Throne.
The
mist of Gods presence glorifies everything.
2.
An indescribable power proceeds from Gods Throne.
Revelation
4:5
"There
were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne,
which are the seven Spirits of God.
Take
a moment and imagine Gods Throne Room.
In front of His Throne is a crystal sea bigger than all the oceans of
the world.
Gods
Throne rises up bigger than the Universe.
It
shines so brightly that no human eye can look upon it.
Around
the Throne there is an emerald green rainbow.
Huge Seraphims protect the Throne crying with thunderous voices,
Holy, Holy, Holy is the Lord of Hosts.
Seven
fire burning lamps are before Gods Throne.
The
mist of Gods presence glorifies everything.
2.
An indescribable power proceeds from Gods Throne.
Revelation
4:5
"And
out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings
and voices:"
Awesome
power sustaining the life of every creature and atom
in the Universe proceed from Gods throne.
His
decrees control the orbit of the earth around the sun
and all of creation.
Millions
of prayers reaching Gods Throne every second are answered.
3.
Gods Throne is surrounded by many Celebrities:
Cherubim's
and Seraphim are worshipping God.
Archangels
Michael and Gabriel await Gods commands.
Myriads
of Angelic hosts are ready to do Gods bidding.
Patriarchs
like Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob grace the Heavenly Palace.
Hero's
like Moses, Samuel, David, Daniel, Peter, Paul, John,
Mary and many other Godly Saints come before His Throne
to bring glory to God.
4.
God who sits upon His Throne is beyond description.
He
is:
Ancient
of days
Elohim
- Creator of Heaven and Earth
El-eljon
- God Most High
El-shaddai
- God Almighty
Yahweh
- Jehovah
Isaiah
and David saw God upon His Throne and became terrified.
Isaiah
6:1-5
"I
saw also the LORD sitting upon a throne, high and lifted
up, and his train filled the temple.
Above
it stood the seraphim's: each one had six wings; with
twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered
his feet, and with twain he did fly.
And
one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy,
is the LORD of hosts: the whole earth is full of his
glory.
And
the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that
cried, and the house was filled with smoke.
Then
said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man
of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people
of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the
LORD of hosts."
Psalm
18:6-10
"I cried unto
my God: he heard my voice out of his temple,
Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations also
of the hills moved and were shaken, because he was wroth.
There went up a smoke out of his nostrils, and fire
out of his mouth devoured: coals were kindled by it.
He bowed the heavens also, and came down: and darkness
was under his feet.
And he rode upon a cherub, and did fly: yea, he did
fly upon the wings of the wind."
5.
How we approach this awesome God.
We
come before God with reverence and greatly praise Him.
This
is what David said.
Psalm
138:2-5
"I
will worship toward thy holy temple ...for thou hast magnified
thy word above all thy name.
All
the kings of the earth shall praise thee, O LORD, when
they hear the words of thy mouth.
Yea,
they shall sing in the ways of the LORD: for great is
the glory of the LORD."
Psalm
104:1-2
"Bless
the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, thou art very great;
thou art clothed with honour and majesty. Who coverest
thyself with light as with a garment:"
An
appropriate way of approaching God.
When
we come before God we should ask Him to cleanse us from
all sin and sanctify us with the precious Blood of Jesus.
Psalm
24:3-4
"Who
shall ascend into the hill of the LORD? or who shall
stand in his holy place?
He
that hath clean hands, and a pure heart."
Matthew
6:9-12
"Our
Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy
kingdom come, Thy will be done in earth, as it is in
heaven ... forgive us our sins."
I
John 1:7
"And
the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from
all sin."
Once
we have been sanctified we do three things:
a.
Thank Him.
b.
Praise Him.
c.
Worship Him.
Our
thanksgiving, praise and worship are directed toward
God the Father, Jesus Christ the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Thanksgiving.
The
word thanksgiving means an expression of gratitude to
God. (Saying thanks to God)
We
thank Him for all the things that He has done for us
and others.
Thank
you God:
For
giving Yourself to me.
For
becoming my Heavenly Father.
For
giving Jesus Christ as my Savior.
For
giving me the Holy Spirit.
For
giving me the Word of God.
For
saving me.
For
writing my name in the Book of Life.
For
giving me everlasting life.
For
delivering me from sinful habits.
For
restoring my soul.
For
healing me.
For
supplying all my needs.
For
your Divine Nature of love, mercy, kindness, truth,
justice, life, peace, joy, glory.
There
are so many other things that we can thank God for.
Praise.
The
word praise means to warmly commend someone for their
attributes and who they are.
To
praise God means to extol and glorify Him.
Praising
God can be done privately in our home or openly before
people.
It
can also be done together with other Christians with
prayers or songs of praise.
There are
five different utterances of praise:
1.
Words of praise.
2.
Statements of praise.
3.
Songs of praise.
4.
Scriptures of praise.
5.
Prayers of praise.
There
are four important things of praise we need to know:
1.
Praise is a powerful weapon.
Acts
16:25-26
"And
at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises
unto God: and the prisoners heard them.
And
suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations
of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors
were opened, and every one's bands were loosed."
2
Chronicles 20:22
"And
when they began to sing and to praise, the LORD set
ambushments against the children of Ammon, Moab, and
mount Seir, which were come against Judah; and they
were smitten."
Praise
is a powerful weapon that brings about the defeat of
our enemies.
2.
We praise God for who He is.
We
praise Him for His:
Greatness.
Omnipotence.
Omniscience.
Omnipresence.
Eternal
existence.
Divine
Nature.
There
are so many other things to praise God about.
His
praise should be continually within our mouth.
Psalm
34:1
"I
will bless the LORD at all times: his praise shall continually
be in my mouth."
3.
Praise is a way of entry into Gods Courts.
Psalm
100:4
"Enter
into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts
with praise."
It
is with praise that we are allowed entrance into these
exclusive Heavenly Courts. There we experience more
of God and the things of God. It is here that we are
clothed with a special garment of praise.
Isaiah
61:3
"To
give unto them ... the garment of praise."
4.
God is to be praised continually and in all circumstances.
Psalm
71:8
"Let
my mouth be filled with thy praise and with thy honour
all the day."
Hebrews
13:15
"By
him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to
God continually."
We
can praise God in difficult times because we know that
all things we experience are for our good.
Romans
8:28
"And
we know that all things work together for good to them
that love God."
Children
enjoy a close relationship with their parents.
A
child may sit on a father's knee, look into his eyes
and experience a special closeness with him.
There
is something special in this relationship of sharing
intimate feelings and words of love.
This
loving relationship of Gods children and their Heavenly
Father is wonderful.
In
these moments of worship we are close to God.
We
also experience very precious moments in worshiping
our lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit.
Worshiping
God.
The
word worship means to be devoted to, honor, respect
and adore someone of Divinity.
Worshiping
God is a deep spiritual experience and may be expressed
in four ways:
1.
Our worship may be expressed outwardly with words
and gifts to God.
We
have the example of Mary Magdalene worshiping Jesus
in the company of others.
Luke
7:37-38
"And,
behold, a woman in the city, which was a sinner, when
she knew that Jesus sat at meat in the Pharisee's house,
brought an alabaster box of ointment,
And
stood at his feet behind him weeping, and began to wash
his feet with tears, and did wipe them with the hairs
of her head, and kissed his feet, and anointed them
with the ointment."
2.
Worship can also be very intimate.
When
we are alone with God we can share our deep innermost
secrets and warm feelings of love for Him.
3.
We may also worship God as Priests, in our Priestly
Office.
As
Children of God Jesus has appointed us to be Royal Priesthood
unto God.
Revelation
5:10
"And
hast made us unto our God... priests"
1
Peter 2:9
"But
ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood."
It
is our Priestly responsibility to offer up praise and
worship to Him.
2
Peter 2:5
"A
royal priesthood... that ye should shew forth the praises
of him;"
Hebrews
13:15
"By
him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to
God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving
thanks to his name."
As
Priests we may spend time in Gods presence bringing
Him our sacrifices of worship. They ascend before His
Throne as holy incense and are:
a.
Sacrifices of our lips.
b.
Sacrifices of our body. (This could be suffering through
persecution or fasting.)
Romans
12:
"I
beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God,
that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy,
acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service."
4.
Worship is a Ministry of excellence in the Temple.
The
worship in Solomon's Temple was a wonderful example
of excellence.
Four
thousand people praised God.
1
Chronicles 23:5
"Four
thousand praised the LORD with the instruments which
I made, said David, to praise therewith."
One
hundred and twenty Priests played the trumpet.
2
Chronicles 5:12
"Being
arrayed in white linen, having cymbals and psalteries
and harps, stood at the east end of the altar, and with
them an hundred and twenty priests sounding with trumpets:"
Twenty-four
choirs sang and had one hundred and fifty members in
each choir.
Each
ministered unto the Lord for two weeks in the Temple.
They
came to Jerusalem from all over Israel.
Once
a year four thousand came together in one mass choir
and sang for two weeks during the main Feast. All things
were done excellently unto the Lord.
Josephus
the historian said that the music and singing during
this time could be heard echoing for miles over the
mountains near Jerusalem.
The
priestly activities of the Old Testament Tabernacle
are symbolical of our New Testament priestly activities
within the Temple of the Holy Ghost. The Tabernacle
in the wilderness consisted of an outer court, a holy
place and a holy of holies.
We
are the Temples of the Holy Spirit in this New Testament
time.
We
consist of three parts:
A
body.
A
soul.
A
spirit.
1
Corinthians 6:19
"What?
Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy
Ghost which is in you."
The
Outer Court of the Tabernacle is symbolical of our human
body where physical sacrifices are made to God. With
our bodies we kneel, speak, sing and lift up our hands.
The
Holy Place is symbolical of the human soul and here
from our emotion, mind and will we offer the incense
of praise and worship to God. These are our thoughts,
feelings and decisions of praise and worship.
The
Holy of Holies is symbolical of the human spirit where
God is present.
Our
worship of God knows three dimensions:
1. Worshiping God with our physical Body.
2. Worshiping God with our Soul.
3. Worshiping God with our Spirit.
Worshiping
God is the highest ultimate experience of heaven, earth
and creation.
Revelation
4:8-11
"And
the four beasts ... rest not day and night, saying, Holy,
holy, holy, LORD God Almighty, which was, and is, and
is to come.
The
four and twenty elders fall down before him that sat
on the throne, and worship him that liveth forever and
ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying,
Thou
art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honour and
power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy
pleasure they are and were created."
We
are called to worship God in Spirit:
John
4:23
"True
worshippers ... worship the Father in spirit and in truth:
for the Father seeketh such to worship him."
Spiritual
worship transcends and is deeper than physical or intellectual
worship. It comes from the realm of the spirit. Genuine
true spirit worship pleases God more than all other
forms of worship. It is the most important activity
of our spiritual lives. It may take place at all times,
in all circumstances and all situations.
Ephesians
5:20
"Giving
thanks always for all things unto God and the Father
in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;"
In
times of desperate need, worshiping God takes precedence
over our need.
We
first worship God and then He will take care of our
needs.
Mark
7:25
"For
a certain woman, whose young daughter had an unclean
spirit, heard of him, and came and fell at his feet:"
After
she fell at Jesus feet and worshipped Him, He took care
of her need.
There
are three kinds of worship:
1.
Strange worship.
Leviticus
10:1
"And
Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took either of them
his censer, and put fire therein, and put incense thereon,
and offered strange fire before the LORD, which he commanded
them not."
2.
Ignorant worship.
There
are manmade forms of liturgical or traditional worship
that are not pleasing to God.
Jesus
said:
Matthew
15:9
"But
in vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the
commandments of men."
Paul
speaks of people who worship God in ignorance.
Acts
17:23
"To
the unknown God. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship,
Him declare I unto you."
We
should not be ignorant in worship. The Bible clearly
teaches us what we have to do.
3.
True worship.
This
kind of worship costs something and God demands our
best.
1
Chronicles 16:29
"Give
unto the LORD the glory due unto his name: bring an
offering, and come before him: worship the LORD in the
beauty of holiness."
Malachi
1:6-8
"Where
is mine honour? Where is my fear? saith the LORD of
hosts unto you, O priests, that despise my name. Ye
offer polluted bread upon mine altar;
And
if ye offer the blind for sacrifice, is it not evil?
And if ye offer the lame and sick, is it not evil? Offer
it now unto thy governor; will he be pleased with thee,
or accept thy person? saith the LORD of hosts."
When
David worshipped the Lord God, it cost him a great price.
1
Chronicles 21:23-24
"And
Ornan said unto David, Take it to thee, and let my lord
the king do that which is good in his eyes: lo, I give
thee the oxen also for burnt offerings, and the threshing
instruments for wood, and the wheat for the meat offering;
I give it all.
And
king David said to Ornan, Nay; but I will verily buy
it for the full price: for I will not take that which
is thine for the LORD, nor offer burnt offerings without
cost."
There
is a definite way of approaching God:
Psalm
100:4
"Enter
into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts
with praise: be thankful unto him, and bless his name."
It
is threefold:
1.
We firstly enter the gates of Gods presence with thanksgiving.
2.
We then enter His courts with praise.
Here
we are drawn closer to God because He inhabits our praises.
Psalm
22:3
"But
thou art holy, O thou that inhabits the praises of Israel."
The Hebrew word for inhabit is "yashab" and means to sit or dwell with.
3.
We love and worship God.
Understanding
the Hebrew words relating to thanksgiving, praise and
worship.
Here
are eight words that are used:
1.
Hallal.
This word occurs eighty-eight times in the New Testament
and means to celebrate or boast in the Lord. When we
boast about God, everyone knows how we feel about Him.
He is the greatest!
We call all our family and friends together to celebrate
His existence in our lives. He is our celebration!
2.
Hilluwi.
It
means to say thanks for what God has given.
3.
Tehillah.
It
means to sing or boast in the Lord.
4.
Shabach.
It
means to shout in triumph when experiencing victory.
5.
Yadah.
It
means to lift up and extend our hands in adoration and
towards God.
6.
Barak.
It
means to kneel before God in adoration.
7.
Towdah.
It
means to lift up and extend our hands in thanksgiving
to God.
8.
Zamar.
It
means to touch and play the strings of a musical instrument
with great rejoicing.
We
may personally experience and enjoy all forms of praise
and worship.
There
is a definite measuring scale of thanksgiving, praise
and worship.
It
ranges from the lowest to the highest level of praise:
1.
Natures praise is the lowest form.
Luke
19:37-40
"And
when he was come nigh, even now at the descent of the
mount of Olives, the whole multitude of the disciples
began to rejoice and praise God with a loud voice for
all the mighty works that they had seen;
Saying,
Blessed be the King that cometh in the name of the Lord:
peace in heaven, and glory in the highest.
And he answered and said unto them, I tell you that,
if these should hold their peace, the stones would immediately cry out."
This
is a praise that ascends to God from all of nature.
2.
From babes and sucklings.
This
praise is higher than that of creation.
Matthew
21:16
"Have
ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings
thou hast perfected praise?"
3.
Hallal -
Talking
to others about Gods goodness.
4.
Hilluwi -
Thanking
God.
5.
Tehillah -
Singing
to others about the goodness of God.
6.
Shabach -
Shouting
triumphantly in victory over satan and his kingdom.
7.
Yadah -
Lifting
up our hands in praise and worship to God.
8.
Barak -
Kneeling
or laying prostrate before God in worship.
9.
Spirit Praise -
This
is the highest form of praise and worship.
1
Corinthians 14:15
"What is it then? I will pray with the spirit, and I will pray
with the understanding also: I will sing with
the spirit."
This
is speaking and singing to God with our human spirit
by the Holy Spirit.
It is speaking and singing in tongues "glossais" which is "heavenly
languages".
That's
what happened to Paul and Silas in Acts 16:25. When
their praises became the high praises of God, it caused
an earthquake that shook the foundations of the prison
and brought about their deliverance.
David
refers to this kind of praise.
Psalm
149:6-9
"Let
the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged
sword in their hand:
To
execute vengeance upon the heathen, and punishments
upon the people;
To
bind their kings with chains, and their nobles with
fetters of iron;
To
execute upon them the judgment written: This honour
have all his saints. Praise ye the LORD."
This
is God kind of praise and worship.
Dealing
with incorrect or incomplete thanksgiving, praise and
worship:
Thanksgiving,
praise and worship to God often needs to be corrected
or perfected:
Incorrect
praise is:
In
ignorance,
With
pride,
Incompletely,
Traditionally.
It
may need correcting, adjusting or perfecting.
The
Holy Spirit perfects the praise and worship of Christians.
Acts
2:11-17
"We
do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works
of God.
And
they were all amazed, and were in doubt, saying one
to another, what meaneth this?
But
Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice,
and said unto them,
This
is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel:
And
it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I
will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh:"
Thanksgiving,
praise and worship is very important for end-time Christians.
We
know that the Holy Spirit is restoring the end-time
Church of Jesus Christ.
Christians
are being enlarged in their spiritual understanding.
Their intentions and expressions of thanksgiving, praise
and worship are being purified. We have been given a
prophetic word about this.
Acts
15:16
"After
this I will return, and will build again the tabernacle
of David, which is fallen down; and I will build again
the ruins thereof, and I will set it up:"
David
built this Tabernacle for the Ark of the Covenant. It
was there where he came before the Lord in worship.
It was a place where God manifested His presence and
glory.
When
the Temple of Solomon was built, the Tabernacle of David
was broken down.
We
understand that true and glorious worship of God will
be restored in the end-time.
David
exhorts us to praise God in his last recorded Psalm:
Psalm
150:1-6
"Praise
ye the LORD. Praise God in his sanctuary: praise him
in the firmament of his power.
Praise
him for his mighty acts: praise him according to his
excellent greatness.
Praise
him with the sound of the trumpet: praise him with the
psaltery and harp.
Praise
him with the timbrel and dance: praise him with stringed
instruments and organs.
Praise
him upon the loud cymbals: praise him upon the high
sounding cymbals.
Let every thing
that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD."
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