BIBLE STUDY: Praise

Recap of last week’s bible study:
We discussed Worship?
What is Worship?
What provokes us to worship?

Question: What is praise?
Answer: Praise is active, vocal, and mostly social.

Old Testament Hebrew definition of praise:
Halal-To celebrate, glory, sing or boast, typically expressed in the sanctuary. The word Halal is the source of Hallelujah, a Hebrew expression of “Praise to God.” Praise is an active declaration of Gods goodness.

Praise comes in various forms:
Scriptural Text;

Psalm 9:1-2-will praise You, O LORD, with my whole heart; I will tell of all Your marvelous works. 2 I will be glad and rejoice in You; I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High.

Psalm 22:22-I will declare Your name to My brethren; In the midst of the assembly I will praise

Psalm 150-1 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!

Question: How do you praise and worship God?
Answer: I praise and worship God by. (Write your answer)


Question: When do you praise and worship God?
Answer: I praise and worship God when. (Write your answer)


Question; What praise and worship do you see that takes you outside your comfort zone?
Answer: Praise and worship that takes me outside my comfort zone is



The key to praise and worship is this; its intimate, personal and reflects the gratitude of ones heart for all God has done.

Supported Text:

2 Samuel 6:14-23 15 So David and all the house of Israel brought up the ark of the LORD with shouting and with the sound of the trumpet. 16 Now as the ark of the LORD came into the City of David, Michal, Saul's daughter, looked through a window and saw King David leaping and whirling before the LORD; and she despised him in her heart. 17 So they brought the ark of the LORD, and set it in its place in the midst of the tabernacle that David had erected for it. Then David offered burnt offerings and peace offerings before the LORD. 18 And when David had finished offering burnt offerings and peace offerings, he blessed the people in the name of the LORD of hosts. 19 Then he distributed among all the people, among the whole multitude of Israel, both the women and the men, to everyone a loaf of bread, a piece of meat, and a cake of raisins. So all the people departed, everyone to his house. 20 Then David returned to bless his household. And Michal the daughter of Saul came out to meet David, and said, "How glorious was the king of Israel today, uncovering himself today in the eyes of the maids of his servants, as one of the base fellows shamelessly uncovers himself!" 21 So David said to Michal, "It was before the LORD, who chose me instead of your father and all his house, to appoint me ruler over the people of the LORD, over Israel. Therefore I will play music before the LORD. 22 And I will be even more undignified than this, and will be humble in my own sight. But as for the maidservants of whom you have spoken, by them I will be held in honor." 23 Therefore Michal the daughter of Saul had no children to the day of her death.

Romans 12:1-1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service.

Summary:
As with any praise and worship to God, it must be lived as well as spoken. You can't say "Praise God" with one breath and go show rudeness someone in the next minute! So the word Hallel indicates a lifestyle of LOVE. Just the same as a couple in love don't really care what people around them think about how they are holding hands or hugging etc, if you are really praising God out of a love attitude (hallel), then you just won't care what anyone thinks or what you look like when you are doing it. You might dance, you would certainly sing, you would probably be shouting and clapping your hands. You might even be crying when you do it! This is what happened to King David when he praised God. He was so overjoyed that the presence of the Lord (the ark) was back in Israel that he didn't even care what his wife thought about his praise!

I would encourage you to not limit your 'love expression' to God by what others think. Don't limit it to a musical style. Don't even limit your praise to Him by a body position. When we talk and get excited about people we use body language to express ourselves. Just like the psalmist said: "All that is within me give him praise" - PS 103. Let everything you have give the Lord the praise he deserves! Don't hold back on loving your heavenly Father and giving Him Hallelujahs!

How do we Praise;

We Sing-(Psalm 95:1)-Come let us sing to the Lord! (Psalm 96:1) Sing a new song to the Lord.
We Shout-(Psalm 47:1)-Shout to the Lord with joyful praise!
We Clap our hands-(Psalm 47:1)-Come, everyone and clap your hands for joy!
We lift our hands-(Psalm 134:2)-Lift your hands in holiness, and bless the Lord.
We bow before the Lord-(Psalm 95:6)-Come, let us worship and bow down. Let us kneel before the Lord our Maker, for He is God.
(2 Samuel 16:14) David danced before the Lord.
We use musical instruments-(Psalm 150:3-5)
What presents worship? What inspires worship?

Pride Humility
Fear Boldness
Ignorance Revelation
Anger Love
Ungratefulness Gratefulness
Distractions Focus



Worship in warfare:
Acts:16:25-26- 25 About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them. 26 Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the jail were shaken, and immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone’s chains came loose.

Psalm 149:6-10- 6 Let the exaltation of God be in their mouths and a two-edged sword in their hands, 7 inflicting vengeance on the nations and punishment on the peoples, 8 binding their kings with chains and their dignitaries with iron shackles, 9 carrying out the judgment decreed against them. This honor is for all His godly people. Hallelujah!

Hebrews 4:12- 12 For the word of God is living and effective and sharper than any two-edged sword,

Ephesians-6:17- and the sword of the Spirit, which is God’s word



2 Chronicles 20:15-26

15 and he said, “Listen carefully, all Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem, and King Jehoshaphat. This is what the LORD says: ‘Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast multitude, for the battle is not yours, but God’s. 16 Tomorrow, go down against them. You will see them coming up the ascent of Ziz, and you will find them at the end of the valley facing the Wilderness of Jeruel. 17 You do not have to fight this [battle] . Position yourselves, stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD. [He is] with you, Judah and Jerusalem. Do not be afraid or discouraged. Tomorrow, go out to face them, for the LORD is with you.’ ” 18 Then Jehoshaphat bowed with his face to the ground, and all Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem fell down before the LORD to worship Him. 19 Then the Levites from the sons of the Kohathites and the Korahites stood up to praise the LORD God of Israel shouting in a loud voice.
Victory and Plunder
20 In the morning they got up early and went out to the wilderness of Tekoa. As they were about to go out, Jehoshaphat stood and said, “Hear me, Judah and you inhabitants of Jerusalem. Believe in the LORD your God, and you will be established; believe in His prophets, and you will succeed.” 21 Then he consulted with the people and appointed some to sing for the LORD and some to praise the splendor of [His] holiness. When they went out in front of the armed forces, they kept singing: Give thanks to the LORD, for His faithful love endures forever. 22 The moment they began [their] shouts and praises, the LORD set an ambush against the Ammonites, Moabites, and [the inhabitants of] Mount Seir who came [to fight] against Judah, and they were defeated. 23 The Ammonites and Moabites turned against the inhabitants of Mount Seir and completely annihilated them. When they had finished with the inhabitants of Seir, they helped destroy each other. 24 When Judah came to a place overlooking the wilderness, they looked toward the multitude, and there were corpses lying on the ground; nobody had escaped. 25 Then Jehoshaphat and his people went to gather the plunder. They found among them an abundance of goods on the bodies and valuable items. So they stripped them until nobody could carry any more. They were gathering the plunder for three days because there was so much. 26 They assembled in the Valley of Beracah on the fourth day, for there they praised the LORD. Therefore, that place is still called the Valley of Beracah today.



Summary;

Worship in the times of trials shows God our faith in Him which provokes Him to respond in our behalf.

Praise and Worship is your way to show God you both love and need Him. You love and desire for him should always be boldly shown, with the focus not on the music, singer, or praise leader, but God, His goodness, mercy, protection, and love for you.