The Potency of Biblical Praise and Worship

John Hubley, ThD

This is the first in a series of brief pieces on biblical praise and worship.

How did John Hubley become interested in biblical praise and worship? Well, it took place exactly like this. I became deeply involved about a decade ago. I had unbearable head pain following invasive inner ear surgery. I could not sleep. I prayed and prayed but prayer seemed not to help. Someone suggested I try praising God. It worked a miracle. Prayer was asking God for grace I did not have. Praise was invoking grace God had already given in Christ. Deut 10:21 became a harbor of peace for me: “He (the Lord) is your praise, He is your God, who has done for you these great and awesome things.” Along with: “By Him (Christ) let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God” (Heb. 13:15).

Worship came into my life along a different path. I taught a group of pastors about the power of praise. They asked why I didn’t teach about worship. That request kicked me into an in-depth study of worship. I started in the Old Testament. I discovered worship was a verb. It defined a relationship to God; not a worship service about God. That made me curious. The Hebrew verb was shachah that the lexicon said meant bowing in obeisance to God. English translators rendered it at  times worship, bow down, or make obeisance. I wondered how worship got into the act. Then an amazing thing happened. I learned that a Bible Museum had been opened nearby. It had copies of William Tyndale’s first ever (1536) translations of the Hebrew into English. To make a long story short, he explained that he rendered shachah as worship because worship meant bow down in obeisance to God in the Middle English of his time.

In conclusion: Praise and worship are two distinct ways of relating to the Lord. Praise lifts up the grace of the Lord in saving and supporting us as His own. In worship we bow down in obeisance before the Lord as our King. We use psalms and songs in our praise to the Lord. We yield the issues of our lives to the Lord (Your will be done) as the primary expression of worship. No matter what style of worship service we may choose, we must remember that true worship is not synonymous with our worship service. Rather such worship becomes a life changing catalyst through habitually praising and humbly submitting all the issues of our daily lives as willful responses to God’s awesome grace. Amen.