The Sacrifice of Praise

Armand J. Azamar
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Praise and worship is a common element of any church service, whether past or present, in America or outside of the States. And although it may strike the emotions of the Christian, praise and worship also carries restorative and corrective traits as well.

Let’s read Hebrews 13:13-16:

13 Therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach
14 For here we have no continuing city, but we seek the one to come.
15 Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of [our] lips, giving thanks to His name.
16 But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.
 
In verse 15, the writer of Hebrews calls believers to continually offer up the sacrifice of praise to God, which includes fruit of the lips and thanks to His name. Doing good and sharing are also included.

A simple dictionary definition states praise is an expression of approval, admiration, strong commendation; to extol or exalt. In context of the Bible, this admiration is directed towards God. The passage in Hebrews itself even defines it: praise involves giving thanks to God with the lips (verse 15). So there is the aspect of verbally thanking God, not just in your heart.

Worship is often associated with praise. It is derived from the Old English words of worth and ship, i.e. something is seen as having the quality of worth. For example, when we see the worth of God, we worship God. If we don’t see the worth of God, we don’t worship God.

Based on these descriptions, praise and worship can be considered a reaction to the presence or knowledge of God. We worship God, because we see the worth of God. For all the things He did for us (Jesus shedding His blood for our sins, saving us, and keeping us), He is more than worthy of our praise. Truly, the ability to praise and worship is a gifted response, as Matt Redman says. In our old nature, we wouldn’t need or want to praise the Lord.
 
First, before we get into the sacrificial nature of praise and worship, I want to ask a question: Why would praise and worship have a corrective/restorative nature on man?

There are many answers. Man was initially created to glorify God (Isaiah 43:7). So, when man gives thanksgiving to God, he is being what God intended him to be. Many of man's difficulties originate from self-worship and self-gratification. Worship to God breaks the fear of man, and reveals in the fear of God. It also debases man's pride, as worship involves humbling one's self to God. Worship also directs the believer's attention to eternal things, the only thing that really matters (Colossians 3:1-2).

Hebrews 13:15-16 is interesting, because it brings in another perspective to praise and worship, which is a sacrifice of praise. One can conclude then that praise actually cleanses a person’s spirit in a similar manner as sacrifice does.

Note that this sacrifice of praise is through the blood of Christ; this isn’t a sacrifice for salvation. Hebrews13:15 says this sacrifice is by Him. In other words, by Jesus. The sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross gives us the ability to give this praise sacrifice.

The best way to compare these sacrifices is to look at the Old Testament sacrifices. The meanings for these sacrifices go deeper than what many Christians realize, and how each kind relates to an aspect of the New Testament believer.

For example, the sin offerings of the Old Testament foreshadow the ultimate sin offering: Jesus dying for the sins of humanity. The burnt offerings relate to the Christian giving their entire life to God. These sacrifices can really be a study by themselves.

The meat offering or peace offering tend to relate to the sacrifice of praise. One commentator said that the meat offerings were an offering to God of His own best gifts, as a sign of thankful homage. It is a means of maintaining His service and His servants. It also invokes enjoyment of communion with God.

A believer can bring many criticisms about worship:
 
“I don't feel like worshipping!”
“Worship doesn't make me feel anything.”
 
And worship can make you feel better. However, that is not the ultimate aim; worship is not about you feeling good. Like the one missionary who came to visit our congregation said, "We aren't worshipping you. We are worshipping God."

It is a sacrifice. Even the term sacrifice denotes that you are surrendering yourself to some degree. There is some kind of loss to you, whether it be your pride, self-worship or whatever.

A sacrifice isn't really a sacrifice unless it is something valuable to you. If it isn't something valuable to you, then it is expendable.
 
There is one practice, though not mentioned in Hebrews, that needs to be addressed. This is because it is so interconnected with praise and worship.

1 Timothy 2:8 says I desire therefore that the men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands, without wrath or doubting;

The lifting of the hands is a practice often associated with praise and prayer. It is the universal sign of surrender. It is actually a very ancient practice; David (Psalm 28:2) and Solomon (1 Kings 8:22) are shown to be doing this. However, there is another aspect of lifting of hands that is unfamiliar to modern believers.

Psalms 141:1-2 says,

1 A Psalm of David. Lord, I cry out to You; Make haste to me! Give ear to my voice when I cry out to You.
2 Let my prayer be set before You as incense, The lifting up of my hands [as] the evening sacrifice.

We see that the lifting up of hands is associated with the evening sacrifice. So, there are sacrificial overtones to the lifting up of hands, similar to praise.

Again, there is another correlation with the Old Testament. The lifting of the hands is connected to the wave offering. In the wave offering, portions of the things offered are literally waved in the air. The lifting of hands parallels this offering and continues to the present Church age. The fact that Paul wants believers everywhere to lift up hands shows this.

Finally, the sacrifice of praise carries a constant nature. In other words, lifestyle. Our main Hebrews verse says:

15 Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of [our] lips, giving thanks to His name.

Notice the word continually. The sacrifice of praise is supposed to be a constant, ongoing aspect of the believer's walk, not just for gatherings of corporate praise and worship on Sunday morning. In fact, the singing and music aspect of worship is only a small portion of a life of praise. It is very possible for the Christian to be uneasy in corporate worship because they haven't been living a life of worship in their individual lives.

Again we can look back at the Old Testament. In the Old Testament, when sacrifices were offered up, they needed to be done in a very specific way: the right person needed to give them, the animal given needed to be without blemish and the prescribed animal precise.

Likewise, if you bring up a sacrifice of praise or lifting of hands with an incorrect spirit or hypocritically, then it is useless. If you spent the whole week serving yourself (maybe with a few quickie prayers and a glance at the Bible), then when you come here to worship Sunday or Wednesday, it doesn't seem right.

If we get stuck in a spiritual rut, let us not neglect this sacrifice for the believer. It will restore our spirit and soul to its proper place: to glorify God.