We worship God for who He is.
We praise Him for what he has done.
Spiritual healing and emotional freedom often come from spending time before the Lord in open and honest praise and worship.
Praising God has to do with giving Him the honor and credit for what he has done for us. Let’s go to a particular verse that describes worship and how God reacts to our praises …
“But thou art holy, O thou that inhabitest the praises of Israel.”
Let’s think about that for a minute. That verse tells us that Lord God Almighty inhabits/sits enthroned in the praises of Israel (His people). He values the worship/praise of His children (Holy Spirit-filled, reborn Christians) so much that it inspires Him, causing Him to feel appreciated and honored. Even though this verse is in the Old Testament, its fulfillment remains with those of us in Jesus as we Christians are grafted into God’s Family Tree.
“17 But some of these branches from Abraham’s tree—some of the people of Israel—have been broken off. And you Gentiles, who were branches from a wild olive tree, have been grafted in. So now you also receive the blessing God has promised Abraham and his children, sharing in the rich nourishment from the root of God’s special olive tree. ”
The principle covenant in the Old Testament was God’s Blood Covenant between Himself and His people; beginning with Abraham. This Covenant was ratified with the blood of animals (bulls, goats, rams, and doves/pigeons) and was only valid as they remained true and faithful to God. The trouble was that His people, the Jews, continued to break this covenant, requiring a savior to rescue them from themselves and their oppressive tormentors (Philistines, Babylonians, Midianites, Assyrians, etc.) every so many years. The problem, though, was that the sin issue was never truly dealt with by the shedding of the blood of an animal and its subsequent vicarious atonement. The sacrificial system degraded into a never-ending cycle of sin, sacrifice, sanctification, then more sin.
There had to be a breakthrough — a permanent, everlasting sacrifice for mankind to truly remain in a holy relationship with Father God. According to the Word of God, the Jews needed a Savior. All mankind needs a Savior, a sinless Person who could/would stand in the place of sinful man to take upon Himself the penalty of sin. Death requires payment for the sins of man and still does for those who reject Jesus. We needed a Son of Man (the Messiah) to pay that debt for us and Jesus is that Messiah.
God promised Abraham that He would provide salvation not just for his descendants, but also for the Gentiles (non-Jews). In Matthew 1:1-17, Matthew delineates the genealogy of Abraham to Jesus.
“Abraham will surely become a great and powerful nation, and all nations on earth will be blessed through him.”
Photo by Mateus Campos Felipe on Unsplash
At this point in the history of mankind, we have the luxury of understanding that Jesus is that permanent, everlasting sacrifice and Savior meaning Jesus is the fulfillment of Genesis 18:18.
He laid down His life as a ransom for us because He was “the Lamb of God who came to take away the sins of the world.” Now we take hold of the not vicarious, but the imputed righteousness of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus in our mortal bodies with the impartation of the Holy Spirit. We possess in ourselves the same Holy Spirit that was with Jesus starting at His baptism.
“16 As soon as Jesus was baptized, he went up out of the water. At that moment heaven was opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting on him. 17 And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.””
One segment of depression is the sadness we feel so deeply and profoundly. Jesus was known as “a man of sorrows” and His desire is for our complete and total salvation. He wants us to form an intimate partnership with Him in our spirits, transforming us from sinner to saint — from the inside out. Depression came into the world as a result of sin. Jesus carried on Himself the sins of the world and paid for them all with His own, sinless Blood. Hallelujah!
Until the sin problem was officially dealt with in the spiritual realm by a sinless man (the Son of God Himself), mankind would have been forever lost in an endless cycle of attraction to — and repulsion from — God. As it is, since Jesus redeems us from all our sins (as we confess/repent of them, especially), the way to our healing goes through the Blood He shed on the cross.
Don’t hold back anymore. Hand over your sadness, grief, and regrets to Jesus. Declare that He is your Lord and Savior and you give Him the authority to make any and all changes necessary to your new life with Him.
God’s desire for us is revealed in this verse:
“23 Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24 God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.””
The Lord our God seeks people who are seeking Him! He wants to reciprocate the loving attention we give Him. He already loves us, it’s our turn to give back!
The proof of an intimate relationship with God is the open and honest praise and worship of a Child of God whose heart is turned toward their Father. It’s also key to your next breakthrough!
Conclusion
What do you think Heaven is like? Among many ideas of perfection and ideals, one thing we can be doubly assured of — it is a place of incredibly beautiful praise and worship performed by everyone with Heavenly skill and passion. It is the place of ultimate freedom to be our true selves as the Children of the Most high God (El Elyon) to honor our Great Daddy. We might as well get started now! Salvation doesn’t wait until we get to Heaven and neither should our worship and praise!
Prayer
Father God, I thank You for every single time You’ve bailed me out, saved my life, and reconciled me to others. Thank You for adopting me into Your Family Tree! Please help me to be more like You, Lord. Please help me and each and everyone around the world who is dealing with panic attacks, high anxiety, and depression come out of the darkness and into the light of Your glory and grace. Please give us a beautiful voice, activate our talents, and light a burning passion to sing your praises with all our heart and soul and worship you with timbrel and lyre or drums and guitars alongside our spiritual siblings. When it’s difficult to open my mouth and praise You, remind me that I am offering up a sacrifice of praise and give me the strength to sing. You deserve the glory and the honor, Lord! Let the words of my mouth and the meditations of my heart be pleasing in Your sight, Oh, Lord! You are worthy! In Jesus’ name I pray, amen.