What’s the Point of Praise? 3 Reasons Your Worship Matters

This episode contains portions from the following programs:

"Dress Rehearsal for Heaven"

"The Least Becomes the Greatest"

"Elizabeth—Week 6: Elizabeth's Song"

_________________

Dannah Gresh: “Magnify the Lord with me and let us exalt his name together!” That invitation is from Psalm 34, and today I’m extending it to you. If worship has become a little ritualistic to you lately, if you’re just kinda singing words on Sunday morning without marveling at Jesus, I'm hoping this episode will be deeply refreshing—like a drink of cold water that revives you and reminds you that you’re alive. 

I’m your host, Dannah Gresh. Today on Revive Our Hearts Weekend, we’re answering the question, “What’s the point of praise?”

I've got to tell you, I dragged myself to church a few weeks ago, grumbling most of the way. There have just been a lot of hard things going on in my life. My husband and I have a broken refrigerator. The air conditioning is not working. There is a chipmuck loose in my living room that we cannot catch! Do you ever get to the point where just the little things bog you down. And you're like, "One of the next things will break me!" I've just been like that.

Well, I drug myself to church, I have to admit that my husband drug me to church. On the way home I said to him, "I feel different.

He said, "What do you mean, 'I feel different'?"

"Well, when we went in there, my body hurt from the stress, and it doesn't anymore. I feel different."

Friends, worshiping God that morning changed the way my body felt! And all those problems, they kind of faded away. Worshiping God refreshed and restored my soul! Let's not forget that.

Let’s start today with the ultimate point of our praise—to bring Jesus glory. He is worthy of all our worship, today and every day. Here’s my friend Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth to expand on this. 

 There’s a precious story told about President Abraham Lincoln. You can imagine that, as the president, he had an incredibly busy schedule. But one day, the story is told: A little old woman came to his office and asked to see him, and though he didn’t know why she had come, he graciously agreed that he would see her.

When she stepped into his office, he introduced himself and said, “What can I do for you?”

She said, “Oh, I didn’t come to ask you to do anything for me.” She had heard that there was a special kind of cookie that President Lincoln really liked, and she had made him some of these cookies and brought them to his office.

Now, you couldn’t do that today with the president, but back then you could. And the story is told that with tears in his eyes, President Lincoln looked at that woman and said, “You are the very first person who’s ever come into my office not asking or wanting anything from me, but bringing me a gift. I just want to thank you from the bottom of my heart.”2

As I think of how moved a president was at the thought that someone would come to him, not wanting to get anything but just wanting to give and to express appreciation to him, and how much that meant to him, my heart goes to our heavenly King and President and Lord.

I wonder sometimes if God doesn’t feel, “You know, those people down there spend a lot of time coming into My office and asking Me for things.”

Now, God wants us to come into His office and ask Him for things, and that’s a big part of what prayer is all about. He tells us, “Come, bring your requests before Me.” There’s nothing wrong with that.

But I wonder sometimes if God isn’t longing for us to come and say, “I don’t want to ask for anything. I don’t want You to do anything for me. I just want to give something to You. I want to bring You a gift. I made something for You.”

Now, those homemade cookies that little lady made probably were nothing compared to what the chefs of . . . I don’t know, it wasn’t the White House then . . . whatever it was where the president lived; I’m sure he could have had fancier meals.

Sometimes when we bring our praise to the Lord . . . I don’t know about you, but I feel, this is kind of like my little homemade cookies. It’s not much, but God says, “I love it.”

God loves our praise. He loves it when we bring Him our worship. As much as you love it when your little child comes to you with a handful of crumpled dandelions, that you know are really weeds . . . but that child reaches out and gives those to you, and says, “I picked these for you, Mama.” You love it. Even though to us it may look like just a handful of crumpled dandelions or a tin of cookies, God says, “Whoever offers praise glorifies Me” (Psalm 50:23, NKJV).

In fact, the Psalmist says, “I will praise the name of God with a song; I will magnify Him with thanksgiving. This will please the Lord more than an ox or a bull with horns and hoofs” (Psalm 69:30-31, ESV).

What’s he saying? More than any other gift I could bring to the Lord, it will please Him if I bring Him my song and my thanksgiving. You see, the Lord is supremely worthy of our worship and our praise.

Let me say, by the way, we’re all worshipers. We all worship or praise something or someone. We’re made to worship. We can’t help ourselves. The question is, who or what do we worship?

The fact is, most of us worship ourselves. We worship things. We worship this earth. We worship our own hopes and desires and our families and our houses and our time and our reputation. Those are the things that are precious to us.

But true worship is coming to see the incredible value and worth of Christ as surpassing anything else that might have meaning to me.

That’s why the psalmist said in Psalm 73:25, “Lord, who do I have in heaven besides You? And on earth there is nothing, there is no one I desire more than You” (paraphrased).

Lord, You are more precious than silver.
Lord, You are more costly than gold.
Lord, You are more beautiful than diamonds,
and nothing [nothing, nothing that] I desire compares with You.³ 

The Psalmist said, “ I will call upon the Lord, who is worthy to be praised” (Psalm 18:3, NKJV).

“Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion” (Psalm 65:1, ESV).

It’s what we owe to Him. He’s worthy of our praise and our worship. And that’s what the angels said in Revelation, chapter 4, in John’s vision:

“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” (Revelation 4:11, NKJV).

He created us. He owns us. If we are His children, He’s bought us. He’s purchased us to be His own.

We owe Him all our praise.

Dannah: Amen. He is worthy. Later in that message Nancy spends some time in prayer, exemplifying what true praise sounds like. If you’d enjoy listening to that, we’ll link to the full episode in today’s transcript. Just visit ReviveOurHearts.com/weekend to find it.

We find examples of praise in Scripture, and there’s a particularly beautiful one in John chapter 12. At a Revive conference, Pastor Bob Bakke recounted this scene for us. It centered on Christ and, get this, a woman. Women were considered pretty insignificant in this time and culture, so that should cause you and me to lean in. 

Pastor Bob Bakke: A woman's gender was not trusted in the courts of law. A woman could not survive on her own apart from the hospitality of her family or her friends. She could not survive on her own economically, could not inherit property, she was lost. She could serve in somebody's household. She could be a wet nurse to somebody's baby. She might be loved and cherished in somebody's home. She could maybe beg on the streets or sell her body. Those were her career options. And she is the one upon whom the entirety of the gospel of John pivots. And in this moment the least, at least in the eyes of Jewish men, becomes the greatest.

John chapter 12, let me read it in the NIV.

Six days before the Passover, Jesus arrived at Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. And here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; and she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.

But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, “Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages.” He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; and as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.

“Leave her alone,” Jesus replied. “It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.” (vv. 1–8)

So as the powerful Sanhedrin becomes the supreme expression of humankind's refusal to believe in Jesus, the anointing of Jesus by a powerless Mary becomes the most magnificent expression of adoring faith. Both prophesy about Jesus' death.

By Mary's humble adoration, Mary does a thing of more significance than she could possibly have imagined. She has no clue what she is doing except adoring her Lord. Only Jesus has the eyes to see the magnitude of her actions.

Verse 7 Jesus says, “It was intended that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial.”

“It was intended,” He said. This is a statement full of mystery and wonder all by itself. These words aren't literally in the Greek text, but the force of the grammar of the Greek demands we understand the words of Jesus this way.

Who knows how God might fit your sacrifice into the grand story He’s writing!

Jesus is saying that God's design all along, before the foundations of the earth were laid. God planned that this family treasure, now in Mary's possession, would be kept for this day and this moment. And Mary, again, who is oblivious to the higher meaning of her actions, participates in God's sovereign design and administers the death anointing of the Christ.

Mary, by obeying the impulse of her heart, unwittingly becomes the divine agent who prepares the Lamb of God to redeem the earth.

What's John's point? The point is this: that Jesus, having been rightly adored, is now rightly prepared for the hour of His glory. And our Redeemer, who culminated His public ministry by calling Lazarus from the grave, is now ready for the cross and the grave Himself—because a single woman, of absolutely no consequence to her surrounding culture, was compelled to worship Him at His feet.

Listen to me again, please. There is no telling what divine scheme we may be initiating, what you may be initiating, what mysteries may be unfolding, what enemies we may be defeating when we simply give ourselves for the worship and adoration of Jesus.

Dannah: Wow, what a thought-provoking challenge from Pastor Bob Bakke. We just uncovered another point of praise. It’s a way we participate in God’s redemptive story. It centers our hearts on the Savior. When we worship, our gaze shifts. We see Jesus more clearly. The gospel becomes more beautiful to us.

The world may respond to our worship like Judas responded to Mary’s. People might say “What a waste.” But we know the truth. Our praise presses back the darkness. It confronts the enemy by holding up Christ’s glory. So let’s be lavish with our praise like Mary. Let's pour it out like a fragrant offering.

This offering of praise serves a beautiful dual purpose. It glorifies the Lord and encourages our brothers and sisters. That’s the third and final point of praise. It’s a powerful way we love our fellow Christ-followers. My good friend, Erin Davis, sat down with author Jaquelle Crowe and pastor’s wife Alejandra Slemin to talk about this. Their conversation was part of a larger series on the life of Elizabeth. Let’s listen.

Erin Davis: The Bible talks about the sacrifice of praise. I love that phrase. Why do you think the Bible calls praise a sacrifice?

Jaquelle Crowe: Because praise isn’t always easy. It doesn’t come naturally . . . especially in disappointment and suffering.

Erin: I love Sunday morning. I love to be in the church. I feel like the rest of the week there are dogs chasing me and ready to chomp on to my ankles. But when I get in the sanctuary with the body of Christ I feel, “Ah . . . somebody called off the dogs!”

I know enough about my local church body to know, “She’s singing, and she’s going through the hard.” That couple is here ,and they are going through something hard. His hands are in the air, and he is worshipping, and he is walking through a season of hard. That is a sacrifice of praise.

Jaquelle: It makes praise mean so much more. I think all of us can fall into we know the words, we can sing the words, but we don’t even think about the words.

When we have to come to worship when we don’t feel like it and we make that sacrifice of praise, it’s hard, but it is so beautiful and precious.

Erin: Why do we continue to do it? Because Jesus is still worthy. That’s what we are saying to each other. We’re saying, “Yeah, we’re broken. This is broken; the culture is broken. But Jesus is worthy of us being here.” So there is something about singing to each other.

As you have been reading Elizabeth’s story over and over in these weeks, why struck you about how Elizabeth encouraged others?

Alejandra Slemin: It doesn’t record her lamenting through the years prior to receiving this news. Her not complaining but quietly, patiently waiting for the Lord to save. I think that says a lot about a women, because we tend to voice things very quickly . . . because we feel it we think it must be true. There’s not Scripture recorded that she complained. On the opposite side, she felt honored.

When Mary came, it was beautiful how she received her with such grace. She shared that station of their lives with such love. That really got to me.

Erin: Her excitement about Mary’s pregnancy is phenomenal to me. She is what I call a champion. She’s going to champion Mary. She could have done differently.

She could have thought, I have waited all my life. I was married. I am now older and pregnant. This young thing is not even married. She’s doing it all out of order. And she gets to have the Savior, the Messiah?

She could have been embittered, but she wasn’t. She so thrilled for Mary. The Scripture doesn’t necessarily say that she’s singing. But she is saying that this baby in my womb is leaping. She is the first human to declare Jesus’ lordship. That baby she calls the Lord.

That’s not a heart attitude that wasn’t created over time. That’s not a heart position that didn’t take time. She clearly was tethered to the Lord. She was excited for what the Lord would do.

Maybe she did some singing over that baby in Mary’s womb. We have that same call to encourage each other. I’m going to read us Ephesians 5 because it gets pretty specific about how we do that.

Encouragement is another one of the Christian buzzwords. But what does that mean? Ephesians 5:18–21 says this:

And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with all your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

How do we encourage one another? This is telling us to sing to each other. Now, that might feel a little silly. There’s an older gentleman in our church (he’s gone now). But he would come and say the psalms out loud at the beginning of Sunday. He would talk about, “What a great day it is to be singing in the house of the Lord.”

And we say, “Yes, it is!”

There is power in our songs and singing to each other in the midst of disappointment and encouraging the disappointed ones in our lives . . . which is all of us.

Let’s read a couple passages of Scripture. If you’re not sure that you should be singing, then spend a little bit of time in Psalms. We’ve got some passages from Psalms of the people of God singing.

Jaquelle, you have . . . what passage do you have for us?

Jaquelle: I have Psalm 71:23.

My lips will shout for joy when I sing praises to you; my soul also, which you have redeemed.

Erin: I love that! “My lips will shout for joy.” It’s a, “I’m going to do it. I’m going to shout for joy. I’m going to sing to You.” It’s a choice. I love that.

What passage do you have, also from Psalms.

Alejandra: I have Psalm 95:1.

Oh come, let us sing to the LORD; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation!

Erin: It’s that “let us.” Come on! Let’s do it, church! Let’s us make a joyful noise.

Jaquelle: I love that the singing is connected to the greatness of God. So even when we feel disappointed and we do not feel like singing for our own sake, we are not singing about ourselves. We are singing about the glory of our God. That’s why we are here.

Erin: I can get a little bit squeamish about those songs that we are singing in the church that are about us folks. I have plenty of practice focusing on myself. I do that all year. I’m pretty self-absorbed—I can be in my flesh.

This, oh, let us come together and sing about the greatness of GOD! Let us think about Him, collectively. Let us do it loudly. Let’s focus on Him.

Psalm 105:2 is the passage I have.

Sing to him, sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works!

An exclamation point right there in Scripture. The Bible is full of that charge. Like . . . come on, church, let’s sing about Him. Let’s sing to Him. Let’s sing together. Let’s sing as we go. Let’s sing in the car. Let’s sing in the church. Let’s sing from the rooftops.

You know what there is a lot of going on in the church? Hand wringing. Like, “Oh, the culture is dark. The times are dreary. The election is whatever.”

I think this seems like an overly simplistic solution, but I don’t have a plan better than the Lord’s throughout all of time.

Let’s sing. Let’s sing about the goodness of God.

Dannah: Amen. I can’t wait to go to church this Sunday and worship the Lord alongside my brothers and sisters in Christ. I hope you’ll do the same and sing to the Lord with your local body of believers. 

You know, as Revive Our Hearts continues to expand internationally and reach women around the world, I can’t help but think of these words from Isaiah chapter 61: “For as the earth produces its growth, and as a garden enables what is sown to spring up, so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations.”

What beautiful imagery. I’m in awe of how God is allowing Revive Our Hearts to take part in this work. Through our radio program and podcast episodes, print resources, blog articles, and so much more, we get to magnify the name of Jesus among the nations. It’s such a privilege—and another reason for praise!

To explore our global outreaches, we’d love for you to visit ReviveOurHearts.com/global. It’s really encouraging to read about all that God is doing around the world through this ministry.

If you have a heart for the message of Revive Our Hearts and feel prompted to help it spread further, you can partner with us through a financial gift. When you make a donation of any amount this month, we’ll send you a copy of Nancy’s newly updated devotional, Dwell: 30 Days with God in the Psalms as our thanks. To give and request your copy, visit ReviveOurHearts.com. 

If you feel worn out, weak, or even desperate today, I have good news for you. Those feelings are really an invitation to depend on the Lord. He loves you and wants you to come to Him. Next weekend, we’re gonna embrace our need together and marvel at the God who meets us in it.

Thanks for listening today. I’m Dannah Gresh. We’ll see you next time for Revive Our Hearts Weekend.

This program is a listener-supported production of Revive Our Hearts in Niles, Michigan, calling women to freedom, fullness, and fruitfulness in Christ.

*Offers available only during the broadcast of the podcast season.