God commands us to praise Him, and we do that by saying praiseworthy things about Him.
What is praise?
Webster defines the word praise as to say good things about and it is synonymous to words such as admire, commend, extol, honor, and worship. A definition of Christian praise is the joyful thanking and adoring of God, the celebration of His goodness and grace. This simply implies that the act of praising is rightfully due to God alone.
From the Holman Bible Dictionary
Praise comes from a Latin word meaning “value” or “price.” Thus, to give praise to God is to proclaim His merit or worth. Many terms are used to express this in the Bible, including “glory,” “blessing,” “thanksgiving,” and “hallelujah,” the last named being a transliteration of the Hebrew for “Praise the Lord.” The Hebrew title of the book of Psalms (“Praises”) comes from the same root as “hallelujah” and Psalm 113-118 have been specially designated the “Hallel” (“praise”) psalms.
While the Bible contains frequent injunctions for people to praise God, there are also occasional warnings about the quality of this praise. Praise is to originate in the heart and not become mere outward show
Matthew 15:8 (NKJV)8 'These people draw near to Me with their mouth, And honor Me with their lips, But their heart is far from Me.
Praise is also firmly linked to an individual's everyday life
Amos 5:21-24 (NKJV)21 "I hate, I despise your feast days, And I do not savor your sacred assemblies.22 Though you offer Me burnt offerings and your grain offerings, I will not accept them, Nor will I regard your fattened peace offerings.23 Take away from Me the noise of your songs, For I will not hear the melody of your stringed instruments.24 But let justice run down like water, And righteousness like a mighty stream.
One Hebrew word for “praise” is yadah, meaning “praise, give thanks, or confess.” A second word often translated “praise” in the Old Testament is zamar, “sing praise.” A third word translated “praise” is halal (the root of hallelujah), meaning “to praise, honor, or commend.” All three terms contain the idea of giving thanks and honor to one who is worthy of praise.
In the Bible God who is the object of praise. The entire creation is to praise Him.
The angels praise Him;
Psalm 103:20 (NKJV)20 Bless the LORD, you His angels, Who excel in strength, who do His word, Heeding the voice of His word.
Revelation 5:11-12 (NKJV)11 Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne, the living creatures, and the elders; and the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands,12 saying with a loud voice: "Worthy is the Lamb who was slain To receive power and riches and wisdom, And strength and honor and glory and blessing!"
All creatures and inanimate things praise Him;
Psalm 19:1-4 (NKJV)1 The heavens declare the glory of God; And the firmament shows His handiwork.2 Day unto day utters speech, And night unto night reveals knowledge.3 There is no speech nor language Where their voice is not heard.4 Their line has gone out through all the earth, And their words to the end of the world. In them He has set a tabernacle for the sun,
Psalm 148:10-13 (NKJV)10 Beasts and all cattle; Creeping things and flying fowl;11 Kings of the earth and all peoples; Princes and all judges of the earth;12 Both young men and maidens; Old men and children.13 Let them praise the name of the LORD, For His name alone is exalted; His glory is above the earth and heaven.
Revelation 5:13 (NKJV)13 And every creature which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the sea, and all that are in them, I heard saying: "Blessing and honor and glory and power Be to Him who sits on the throne, And to the Lamb, forever and ever!"
Isaiah 55:12 (NKJV)12 "For you shall go out with joy, And be led out with peace; The mountains and the hills Shall break forth into singing before you, And all the trees of the field shall clap their hands.
Luke 19:40 (NKJV)40 But He answered and said to them, "I tell you that if these should keep silent, the stones would immediately cry out."
Man the crown jewel of creation is to praise Him;
While the Bible tells us about praise from the angels, the creatures, the rocks, it is primarily concerned with the praises offered to God by man.
Psalm 117:1-2 (NKJV)1 Praise the LORD, all you Gentiles! Laud Him, all you peoples!2 For His merciful kindness is great toward us, And the truth of the LORD endures forever. Praise the LORD!
Isaiah 25:1 (NKJV)1 O LORD, You are my God. I will exalt You, I will praise Your name, For You have done wonderful things; Your counsels of old are faithfulness and truth.
Jeremiah 20:13 (NKJV)13 Sing to the LORD! Praise the LORD! For He has delivered the life of the poor From the hand of evildoers.
Luke 18:43 (NKJV) And immediately he received his sight, and followed Him, glorifying God. And all the people, when they saw it, gave praise to God.
Praising God is not a feeling. Praise is conscious admiration and thanks for who God is and what He does. It is an act of the will to praise Him by thoughtfully celebrating His goodness, His greatness, His majesty, His love, His grace, His mighty deeds on our behalf.
Praise takes the focus off you and puts it on God.
We praise Him because;
- He’s worthy
Psalm 96:4 (NKJV)4 For the LORD is great and greatly to be praised; He is to be feared above all gods.
Psalm 145:3 (NKJV)3 Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; And His greatness is unsearchable.
2 Samuel 22:4 (NKJV) I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised; So shall I be saved from my enemies.
Revelation 4:11 (NKJV)11 "You are worthy, O Lord, To receive glory and honor and power; For You created all things, And by Your will they exist and were created."
- He’s full of glory
Psalm 138:5 (NKJV)5 Yes, they shall sing of the ways of the LORD, For great is the glory of the LORD.
- He’s great
Psalm 145:3 (NKJV)3 Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; And His greatness is unsearchable.
- He’s wise and powerful
Daniel 2:20 (NKJV) Daniel answered and said: "Blessed be the name of God forever and ever, For wisdom and might are His.
- He’s good
Psalm 107:8 (NKJV)8 Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of men!
- He’s merciful and faithful
Psalm 89:1 (NKJV)1 I will sing of the mercies of the LORD forever; With my mouth will I make known Your faithfulness to all generations.
- He saves
Psalm 18:46 (NKJV)46 The LORD lives! Blessed be my Rock! Let the God of my salvation be exalted.
- He keeps His promises
1 Kings 8:56 (NKJV)56 "Blessed be the LORD, who has given rest to His people Israel, according to all that He promised. There has not failed one word of all His good promise, which He promised through His servant Moses.
- He pardons sin
Psalm 103:1-3 (NKJV)1 Bless the LORD, O my soul; And all that is within me, bless His holy name!2 Bless the LORD, O my soul, And forget not all His benefits:3 Who forgives all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases,
To try to list all reasons to praise God is impossible, let’s just say we should praise God because of who He is and what He’s done. Making a list is an excellent idea because it puts our focus on Him and takes it off us. It reminds us of how much we owe to Him.
The list of ways to praise God is also endless...singing songs and hymns, clapping our hands, even jumping for joy etc. We can praise God with the use of our physical limbs, our hearts and minds, and our deeds. Although there are many way to praise God, they should all result in acknowledgement of His power, love and grace.
- Praise Him with Sacrifice
Leviticus 7:13 (NKJV)13 Besides the cakes, as his offering he shall offer leavened bread with the sacrifice of thanksgiving of his peace offering.
Romans 12:1 (NKJV) 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.
- Praise Him with movement (dance)
2 Samuel 6:14 (NKJV) Then David danced before the LORD with all his might; and David was wearing a linen ephod.
- Praise Him with silence and meditation
Psalm 77:11-12 (NKJV)11 I will remember the works of the LORD; Surely I will remember Your wonders of old.12 I will also meditate on all Your work, And talk of Your deeds.
- Praise Him with testimony
Psalm 66:16 (NKJV)16 Come and hear, all you who fear God, And I will declare what He has done for my soul.
- Praise Him with prayer
Philippians 4:6 (NKJV) Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God;
- Praise Him with your life
1 Peter 1:3-9 (NKJV)3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His abundant mercy has begotten us again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,4 to an inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not fade away, reserved in heaven for you,5 who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.6 In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials,7 that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ,8 whom having not seen you love. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory,9 receiving the end of your faith--the salvation of your souls.
- Praise Him with music
2 Chronicles 29:30 (NKJV) Moreover King Hezekiah and the leaders commanded the Levites to sing praise to the LORD with the words of David and of Asaph the seer. So they sang praises with gladness, and they bowed their heads and worshiped.
Colossians 3:16 (NKJV) Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord.
Exodus 15:1 (NKJV)1 Then Moses and the children of Israel sang this song to the LORD, and spoke, saying: "I will sing to the LORD, For He has triumphed gloriously! The horse and its rider He has thrown into the sea!
Judges 5:1-3 (NKJV)1 Then Deborah and Barak the son of Abinoam sang on that day, saying:2 "When leaders lead in Israel, When the people willingly offer themselves, Bless the LORD!3 "Hear, O kings! Give ear, O princes! I, even I, will sing to the LORD; I will sing praise to the LORD God of Israel.
Everyone, well almost everyone, agrees that praise is good. When we’re happy we praise God but, when we’re not happy we don’t praise….. we pray. I say we should do both. We don’t feel any responsibility to praise God when things aren’t going good. We think that praise is just a response to what happens. Not true.
Philippians 4:4 (NKJV) Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!
Praise is not what happens afterwards it’s what goes on before. Praise is the engine that causes everything else to move.
Remember Paul and Silas?
Acts 16:22-26 (NKJV)22 Then the multitude rose up together against them; and the magistrates tore off their clothes and commanded them to be beaten with rods.23 And when they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them securely.24 Having received such a charge, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.25 But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.26 Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone's chains were loosed.
Your faith in God is enhanced with praise. Praise affects you, and it affects God.
Psalm 22:3 (KJV)3 But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.
Praise touches everything and every part of your life. A lack of praise affects you in a negative way because remember praise takes the focus off you and places it on God. Lives that are not constant with praise and thanksgiving are not spiritually healthy.
Praise is not the thing that comes when everything's going right in our lives; it is the driving force. When we start praising God in the middle of our problems, our problems become so small that we hardly remember them at all, they become an afterthought in the wake of our praise.
When you live a life of praise it’s who you are and what you do.
[Solo:]
Praise is what I do
When I want to be close to You,
I lift my hands in praise.
Praise is who I am,
I will praise Him while I can.
I'll bless Him at all times.
[Chorus:]
I vow to praise You
Through the good and the bad.
I'll praise You,
Whether happy or sad.
I'll praise You
(this is my testimony)
In all that I go through,
(somebody said why)
Because praise is what I do,
Cause I owe it all to You.
[Verse 1:]
(come on church)
Praise is what I do
(come on church)
When I want to be close to You,
(I lift my hands-somebody lift Him)
I lift my hands in praise.
(somebody say it so the devil will hear you)
Praise is who I am,
(come on praise the Lord)
I will praise Him while I can.
I'll bless Him at all times.
[Chorus:]
And I vow to praise You
Through the good and the bad.
I'll praise You,
Whether happy or sad.
I'll praise You
(Somebody lift your voice and say)
[Verse 2:]
Praise is what I do,
Even when I am going through,
(see I've learned...)
I've learned to worship You.
(see I want to let the devil know tonight, even though...)
Though my circumstance doesn't even stand a chance,
My praise out weighs the bad.
(so I vow to praise)
[Repeat Chorus]