So many of the psalms urge us to enter God’s presence with thanksgiving and praise (Ps 100:4, Ps 146:1-2), but we don’t always stop to consider the many benefits of praise, perhaps because we associate praise with feelings of exuberance and joy, and we don’t always feel that way when we come into God’s presence! To praise God means to express gratitude or admiration for Him, and He commands praise not because He is narcissistic or vain, but because He is worthy of praise.

Praising God is important because…

1. it restores perspective to us. We praise God for His acts of power and His surpassing greatness (Ps 150:2) and are reminded of who He is and who we are (‘Know that the Lord is God.  It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, the sheep of his pasture. (Ps 100:3)) Life is a lot easier when we get these fundamental relationships right!
2. it leads us into God’s presence (Ps 22:3) where there are blessings for evermore (Ps 16:11, Ps 67:5-6)
3. it paves the way for God’s Holy Spirit to move in miraculous power (see Acts 16:25-26, 2 Chron 20:21-23)
4. it is a spiritual weapon (Ps 149:6-9)
5. it is the pathway to joy and spiritual refreshment (Neh 8:10, Ps 16:11)

‘Hallelujah’ is one of those foreign words which has been adopted into the English language and used in all kinds of pieces of music (from the triumphant ‘Hallelujah Chorus’ of Handel’s ‘Messiah’ to the very popular Leonard Cohen song ‘Hallelujah’). It means ‘praise the Lord’, from the Hebrew word ‘hallel’ (praise) and ‘yah’ (the shortened form of Yahweh, God’s most holy name.) It’s also the key word in the final five psalms in the Psalter, often known as the ‘Hallelujah’ psalms or the ‘Final Hallel.’

As we move towards the end of our studies on the book of Psalms, it’s appropriate that we look at this word in more detail and at the subject of praise, for (according to Claus Westermann), ‘praise is the last word of faith.’ The psalms are arranged into 5 books and each book concludes with praise (often known as a ‘doxology.’) In many ways, the Psalms show us the whole of life’s journey, from obedience to praise, ‘through the unmapped back countries of pain, doubt, and trouble.’ (Eugene Peterson, ‘Answering God’, P 121) These last five psalms – all of which begin and end with the word ‘Hallelujah’ – help us to understand that there is a glorious future awaiting us all in God (see also Rev 19:1, 4, 6). Psalm 145 lists many reasons for praise (connected with both God’s character – He is gracious, compassionate, forgiving, faithful, slow to anger, rich in love – and with His actions – which are wonderful, awesome and great) and each of the remaining five psalms looks at different aspects of praise.

Ultimately, praising the Lord is both pleasant and fitting (Ps 147:1) and is something which we must do individually (‘praise the Lord, my soul’ Ps 146:1b) and corporately. Praising God restores our perspective, reminding us of His greatness and our humility, and leads us to a place of spiritual victory (see Ps 149:6-9).

‘And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. ¹⁹ Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰ for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.‘ (Eph 6:18-20)

Paul’s words remind us of the urgent need for prayer – not just occasional prayer, but prayer ‘on all occasions’, not just one set prayer or type of prayer, but prayer in all its diverse forms and features. We need both private prayer and corporate prayer; prayer with words and in silence; prayer with movement and prayer on our knees. So often, we approach prayer diffidently, overwhelmed by the task before us. Here, Paul gives us practical tips for prayer:

• Be alert. It’s not good to relegate prayer to the last act of a busy day if you’re so exhausted, you can’t focus or concentrate at all. Prayer is hard work. At times, we have to wrestle in prayer (Col 4:12). God deserves some of our quality time!
• Pray for God’s people. Start with the people you know in your church and work from there. Everyone needs prayer. Pray for your church leaders. Pray for your friends. Pray for the children in your church. Pray for the elderly people in your church (who can perhaps no longer attend services.) Pray for the sick and needy. Then broaden your prayers to God’s people in other local churches and in the wider world. There are many people to pray for!
• Pray for fearless proclamation of the gospel. All of us need courage and fearlessness in speaking about Jesus. If Paul needed prayer for this, we surely do! As we pray for these opportunities, God will use us to proclaim His message to those who do not yet believe. Our gaze always needs to be outwards, to those who do not yet know the Lord.

Paul’s last item in the armour of God is the sword of the Spirit, the word of God (see also Heb 4:12). A double-edged sword made it easier to penetrate, as well as to cut in every way; Eugene Peterson likens this to the sharpness of a surgeon’s scalpel. God’s Word has the power to reach the heart, the very centre of actin, and lays open the motives and feelings of those it touches.

God’s words are powerful (see Heb 1:3). They have the power to sustain us, to bring things into being, to create and to give life. We need God’s Word to guide us and lead us in life, to expose lies and to keep us in the paths of truth. We need to soak ourselves in the word of God and be able to wield this sword wisely and well.

Prov 23:7 says ‘as a man thinks within himself, so he is.’ Our thoughts are powerful and can determine our lives to a great extent. If we think we are useless and limited, we rarely try to do anything special. Cris Rogers has just published a book called ‘What If We Knew What God Knows About Us’ and asserts ‘what we think of ourselves governs what we do… What if we knew what God knows about us? What if we’re transformed by it and our hands lived it?’

Paul tells us to take the helmet of salvation (Eph 6:17). A helmet protects the head, and we need God’s protection for our thoughts. We need to understand how God sees us and be prepared to believe that, rather than our own inflated or humiliated versions of ourselves or the opinions of other people. Mental illness causes great distress to many people and is a result of a misalignment, to some extent, of our thoughts and God’s thoughts.

Rom 12:1-2 reminds us of the importance of the transforming and renewing of our minds. Old ideas, opinions, and worldviews must be replaced. We must allow God’s truth to continually wash away the world’s filth, lies, and confusion from our minds and adopt God’s perspective. Paul talks of taking every thought captive to Christ (2 Cor 10:5) and by wearing the helmet of salvation, we protect our minds from the lies of the enemy.

‘In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.’ (Eph 6:16)

The Roman shield was called a scutum and was as large as a door. It covered the soldier entirely and therefore protected the soldier’s whole body. When fighting as a group, a phalanx of soldiers could position their shields so that they made an enclosure around themselves (called a ‘testudo’, or ‘tortoise.‘) In doing this, the whole group was protected from the flaming arrows launched from the walls of the cities they were attacking.

Faith is our best defence against the schemes, tactics and strategies of the enemy. Our temptation is to rely on our own skills and ingenuity in times of trouble, but God wants us to live by faith and not by sight. (2 Cor 5:7) Faith looks for the invisible and believes God’s promises, even when we do not understand His actions or ways. One translation has brought the idea of flaming arrows up to date by talking about missiles – launched afar off and not seen until they come exploding into our lives, shattering our peace and disturbing our certainties. Faith protects us in difficult times and helps us to see life as God sees it, secure in His sovereignty and goodness.