Praise Can Be Our Greatest Weapon

I was recently teaching at a retreat about effectively incorporating prayer into scripture study.  Two of the topics I asked the ladies to include in those times were praise and gratitude.  One of the ladies commented to me that it was difficult to separate them.  She was right.  I realized that I was unconsciously combining them even in the examples I was giving.  Why is it so hard to praise God without just jumping to giving thanks for all He has done?  I believe it is because we are always so focused on what good things God might to do for us in our current circumstance.  There is nothing wrong with that.  Gratitude to a loving Father is important.  But praise has nothing to do with anything God has given us.  Praise is so much more universal and crucial than that.  It has to do with who God is.  And it can be our most powerful weapon against Satan.

What is praise?

So what is praise, then?  Praise is naming the attributes of God, as He has revealed Himself through scripture.  It is recognizing who He is at all times, regardless of what our circumstances might be in the moment.  It is demonstrating to God that you really know Him, that you are in awe of Him, and that you worship Him because He is so much more than you.  It is a statement of the order and hierarchy of all existence – there is God, and there is everything else.  Praise is also acknowledging the huge gap that exists between the two – one high, holy, and lifted up, and the other fallen and sinful. 

Praise is reserved for stating who God is.

Our praise should be statements like, “God, You are all-powerful and all-knowing.”  Or, “Jesus. You are the Lamb that is worthy.”  Or, “God, there is none like You – You are exalted and set apart.”  It can also be acknowledgement of His grace, love, creative beauty, or His willingness to see and know us.  It can even be a simple, “Hallelujah – I sing praise to You.”  But it is not a thank you.  “Thank you” is certainly appropriate when a prayer has been answered, a promise kept, or a blessing given.  But praise is reserved for stating who God is, even if He had never allowed you to be created.

Satan can never take away God.

That is why praise specifically is such a powerful weapon.  It is the thing that Satan can never take away from us.  He cannot remove any of the attributes of the God who created us and desires to walk with us.  Satan can take away our health, our possessions, our relationships, our service, our happiness.  He can rob and steal anything of this world.  But he can never take away God.  Satan will try to corrupt and remove everything we could have gratitude for, but he can’t corrupt or remove the only thing we should ever have praise for.  And Satan understands this – that is why even the demons tremble at the name of Jesus.

He is trying to steal Job’s praise.

This is demonstrated nowhere better than in the first part of the book of Job.  As God is meeting with Satan, Satan has many opportunities and much freedom to affect Job.  He is first allowed to take Job’s possessions and family away.  Then he is allowed to cause Job to have disease and pain up to, but not including, death.  But what is Satan really after?  God has already declared Job a righteous man.  God already knows that Job will come out of this victorious and blessed.  God knows Job will pass the test and win the battle.  He tells Satan as much.  So if Satan can’t have Job entirely, what is he after?  Satan says in Job 1:11, “But stretch out your hand and touch all he has, and he will curse you to your face.”  Satan is trying to get Job to curse God.  He is trying to steal Job’s praise.  The most valuable thing he can steal from Job is his ability to acknowledge God.  Job famously replies in Job 1:21, “Naked I came from my mother’s womb, and naked I shall return.  The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.”  God’s reply, in verse 22, is that in that, Job did not sin.  Job only began to sin when he quit praising God, and began accusing Him.

We will be amazed to see the power of our praise and worship of God.

That should tell us something about the power of praise in the supernatural realm.  Satan knows that those who are saved and declared righteous by the blood of Jesus can never eternally be his.  But he doesn’t give up on tormenting them.  And the thing he desires most from them is to silence their praise.  I believe some day, we will be amazed to see the power that our praise and worship of God really has in the eternal and unseen realm.

Praise was David’s only weapon in those moments.

King David understood the power of praise perhaps more than any other human in the Bible.  He wrote so many psalms of lament.  At times, he was in such emotional pain, he felt like his bones were melting.  And yet he would include praise even in those circumstances.  Often his praise would focus on God as the one who defeats our foe, using images of war and weapons.  Praise was David’s only weapon in those moments.  Praise in remembering the power and faithfulness of God was how he fought his personal emotional and spiritual battles.

Why should we do any less?

Other scriptures remind us of the powerful weapon that is praise.  Revelation 5:13 tells us that one day, everything that is on the earth – people, animals, and perhaps even stones – will praise God.  In Philippians 4:8, Paul says, “. . . if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things.” In verse 9, he says that then the God of Peace will be with you.  In Ephesians 1:3, Paul reminds us that praise relates to the things of heaven, not to the things of this earth: “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.”  David reminds us of the power of praise to calm and restore our soul in Psalm 42:11:  “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me?  Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.”  And I find it interesting that in the Lord’s Prayer, where Jesus is teaching us how to pray, He never says “thank you”.  What He does is begin His prayer with praising His Father (Matthew 6:9-10).  Why should we do any less?

When we praise God, we are taking a stand.

When we praise God, we are taking a stand.  We are saying that no matter what Satan does – no matter how difficult our path or heartbreaking our situation – he can’t take our God from us.  God WILL make all things work for good eventually.  God WILL restore all creation and end the groaning of the fallen world.  God WILL save us for the day of salvation in Christ Jesus.  No one will ever pluck us from His hand.  God will be faithful and keep His promises and be with us always.  The only condition that is required is submitting to Jesus, the Son and only way to the Father.  Giving your heart and life forever to Him means your war is already over.  You win.  Satan is powerless.  All he can ever do to you after that is make your circumstances hard for a brief moment.  Soon it will turn into an eternity of joy and praising in the presence of the Father.  And that’s why praise makes Satan so angry.  He is powerless against it.  It is the one thing he desires and will never truly have.  It is the one thing that he can’t find a way to stop us from doing.  As long as we have a heart that beats and a mind that thinks, we can praise.

Try starting your prayer time with praise.

The next time you find yourself struggling in circumstances that are painful and seem overwhelming, try starting your prayer time with praise.  God wants you to honestly tell Him everything that is on your heart.  But don’t start with the pain and the problems, or even with the thank you.  Start with listing who God is.  Start with describing Him in awe, wonder, and respect.  Remember just how big and powerful He is.  You will be reminding yourself – and Satan – that the battle is over.  You are the victor.  You already have an eternity ahead with no pain or suffering. Satan’s influence is nothing but a flicker in the cosmic scale of your existence with God.  This praise will adjust your perspective and distance your adversary.  Then find things to be grateful for, share your heartaches and pain, pray for what you want and need. Pray for others that are hurting also.  You will be able do those things more from a position of assurance and confidence.  That is the power of the weapon of praise.

All praise and glory to You.

To end this blog, I want to spend some time in praise – pure praise outside of any of our circumstances.  God, You are perfect and mighty and holy.  You are transcendent beyond all things.  You are also as close as our hearts.  You see and hear and know all things.  You care about all things.  You have all things in control, including the number of hairs on our heads, the boundaries that we will travel in our lives, and the day we will go to join You.  Nothing can stop You, influence You, or change You.  You are alpha and omega, eternally the beginning and the end.  You chose to save us entirely because of Your mercy, grace, and infinite love.  You have won all the battles and have victory over the darkness of this world, death, and the grave.  We stand in awe and trembling – in reverence at the immensity and wonder of who You are.  All praise and glory to You – the God who allows us to call you Father.  And no one can take that away.  Amen.

I hope today’s message touched your heart, increased your understanding, and encouraged you.  Praying the peace and comfort of Christ Jesus on your life.