This essay continues a sequence. Read the previous one here.
Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise
— Matt 21:16, KJV
Words are material, genuine praise is not.
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Praise vs Flattery
We have established that the ideal prayer is an expression of joyful gratitude.
But this does not necessarily mean singing “songs of praise” and suchlike.
If we express love for God and our neighbour in our daily conduct we are praising God without having to verbalise “praise”:
He that hath my commandments,
and keepeth them,
he it is that loveth me
— John 14:21
Verbal or lyrical eloquence, if not driven by pure love for our fellow men, is not praise but flattery. Therefore such words, songs, or prayers cannot gain connection with the Almighty:
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord,
shall enter into the kingdom of heaven;
but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.
— Matt 7:21
The idea that “praising” God has to do primarily with words expresses ignorance of The Word and paints flattery as something more than it is.
God vs Man
There is anthropomorphism (ref. “God Is Neither Superman Nor Santa“) in our thinking if we believe that the Eternal and Unchangeable Creator is “happy” when we say nice things about Him, and that He “rewards” us for our beautiful words. We might expect this of the average (vain) human being, but surely not the Almighty?
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It has gone so far that some Christians have argued that one of the reasons the Almighty created man was because He wanted a creature that would praise Him. This is a childish idea.
We no longer understand pure Love (ref. “We Don’t Understand Love“, “God ‘Wants’ Nothing“), one of whose implications is that God only gives (ref. “God ‘Wants’ Nothing“) and needs absolutely nothing (including praise) from us.
In “How Can Left Hand Not Know What Right Hand Doeth?” we described how Christ demanded that we cultivate the human equivalent of this pure love in ourselves.
Worship = Reverence = Service = Obedience
This leads us to deeper consideration of statements like:
But the hour cometh, and now is,
when the true worshippers shall worship the Father in spirit and in truth:
for the Father seeketh such to worship him.
— John 4:23
We already explored this statement in “God ‘Wants’ Nothing“.
To serve is to obey. We cannot “serve” or “worship” God in any way other than by obeying His Laws (ref. “The Nature of God’s Laws“) and, in so doing, contributing to a world that is aligned with His Will.
Servants of God
This means that being a “servant of God” has nothing to do with being a religious dignitary. Every one of us, the average person, can and should aspire to be a “servant of God” (i.e. understand and apply His Will) in all things and in our own way.
Over the course of human history the lifestyle of the average person has drifted so far away from the principle of Love that worship of God through everyday life has become a foreign concept (ref. “Thinking Without Thinking, Part 2“, “Fall Down and Worship Me!“). Naturally, “praise” has become something special: occasional, artificial, and forced.
Instead of it being natural, like eating and drinking, it has become something restricted to specific days of the week or special occasions. Making a living is now about making money, instead of crafting a beautiful, God-willed life, which is a form of praise.
It is only with the right mindset that exhortations like “Pray without ceasing” (1 Thessalonians 5:17) can be interpreted correctly. Prayer and praise need to be action, not merely words…
Today’s Resolution:
- We pray for insights to help us see how to make our lives a form of prayer, and the strength to make the required changes.
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