True Praise Comes From A Crucified Life...

True Praise Comes From A Crucified Life - Zac Poonen
God is a great King, but the throne He sits on is not made of silver or gold. Such a throne would be too cheap for Him. "Thou art enthroned upon the praises of Thy people", says the psalmist (Psa. 22:3). Praise forms the throne on which God sits as a King. This is why heaven is a place of perpetual praise. The angels are constantly praising God. This is the throne on which God sits in heaven. When the Holy Spirit comes into our hearts, He brings heaven down into our hearts and we too can prepare a throne of praise for our God to be enthroned upon - in our hearts, in our homes and in the church.
This is why it is so important to work out our salvation from all grumbling and complaining, with fear and trembling, for God (the Holy Spirit) is working in our hearts to prepare a throne for the Father (See Phil. 2:12-14 together). God is also working outside of us in all our circumstances to make them work together for our good. So there is really nothing to grumble or complain about - if we have faith in Rom.8:28.
It is not possible to praise God effectively in the church, if we are grumbling and complaining at other times at home or in the office. True praise can only come from a crucified life. It is significant that the only verse in the Bible that tells us that God sits on the throne of the praises of His people is found in the midst of a psalm that vividly portrays the crucifixion (Psa. 22:3). The psalm begins with the cry of Jesus on the cross and it refers to His hands and feet being pierced (Psa 22: 16); and then in the midst of this very psalm, Jesus refers to us as His younger brothers and invites us to join Him in preparing a throne of praise for the Father (Psa 22: 22,23). We too are crucified with Him on the same cross - and there, while crucified with Him to the world, and to our lusts, we sing the praise of the Father. Herein lies the hollowness of a lot of praise and worship that is found in many churches, where the word of the cross does not have the central place. Some who have seen this hollowness have reacted against praise and worship altogether and decided that it has no place in the new covenant worship. But this is to fall over the cliff on the opposite side!
On the cross, crucified with Christ, we prepare a throne of praise for the Father. Psa. 118 is another psalm of the cross and of Christ (Psa 118: 11-14, 22). We lay ourselves on the altar and bind ourselves with cords to the cross (Psa 118:27), and lying there we "give thanks to the Lord" (Psa 118:28,29) and say, "This is the day that the Lord has made; let us rejoice and be glad in it" (Psa 118: 24).
Jesus has been anointed as our Head to give us "the oil of gladness and the garment of praise" (Isa. 61:1-3), instead of the spirit of heaviness and depression. If you are living under the spirit of depression, you can be sure that it is the work of Satan. Jesus has come to cast out that spirit from your life permanently, and to clothe and cover you with the garment of praise. It is never God's will for us to be depressed or discouraged or in a bad mood - for Jesus was never depressed, discouraged or in a bad mood at any time; and we are called to walk even as He walked (1 Jn. 2:6). But this is only possible if we take up the cross each day, as Jesus did.
In Psa. 8:2 we read that from the mouths of infants and nursing babes, God establishes strength to defeat the enemies. Jesus quoted this verse at the time when the chief priests criticised the children for shouting and praising God (Matt. 21:15,16). The chief priests, like many today, felt that in the house of God no one should shout or raise their voice in praise and worship. They thought that people should be long-faced and quiet in God's presence. But Jesus was thrilled to hear the noise of praise, for it reminded Him of His heavenly home where the angels praise God in voices that sound like loud thunders! This is one reason why Satan and his hosts cannot dwell in heaven - for they cannot stand the shouts of sincere praise to God. Neither can they stand it when such praise is found in any church here on earth. And so they will try one of two methods - either to rob the sincerity out of the praise or to stop the shouts of praise altogether. As one looks around at the various Christian denominations, one finds that Satan has succeeded almost everywhere with one of these two methods.
Why does Satan hate sincere praise to God? Jesus quoted Psa. 8:2 and said the 'strength' spoken of in that psalm was actually 'praise' (Matt. 21:16). Praise is the strength by which the enemy is driven out (Psa. 8:2).
Empty shouts of praise that do not come from a holy life, however, do not have any power. In Ex. 32, we read that the Israelites made a golden calf and even called it 'Jehovah' (v. 5) and danced and shouted to their 'Jehovah' with such a loud voice that Moses and Joshua heard it miles away (v. 17-19). But Satan was right in the midst of all that charismatic praise! There was immorality in their midst just as there is in the midst of many today who shout and dance in the name of 'Jesus'.
Our praise becomes powerful only when it comes from a crucified, holy life.
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