Scripture

Around midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God… Suddenly, there was a massive earthquake, and the prison was shaken to its foundations. All the doors immediately flew open, and the chains of every prisoner fell off!

~Acts 16:25-26, NLT

Quote

Praise is the natural response of a grateful heart.

~Nancy Leigh Demoss

When Jesus made His triumphant entry into Jerusalem, the children got excited and after Jesus entered the outer court and drove out the merchants and bankers, the children continued to praise Him. This upset the Jewish Religious Leaders for at least two reasons: [1] They disliked Jesus and did not want Him to be praised and [2] Jesus had upset their little money making scheme. The Jewish religious leaders were doing exactly what the scriptures forbid–taking advantage of the poor and the oppressed. Jesus turned the outer court in to a triage unit and make the Temple a place of healing instead of a place of hurt. The Jews did not like the singing and the praising and they wanted Jesus to make the children be quiet but Jesus said, “If they kept quiet, the stones along the road would burst into cheers!” The praises of the children and the disciples helped to cleanse the temple. The devil cannot stand it when we praise Jesus.

Nancy Leigh Demoss in her classic work, A PLACE OF QUIET REST, gives us a list of reasons to praise Jesus! [1] We are commanded to praise the LORD. Praise the LORD is one of the most oft repeated refrains in scripture. Psalm 150 is the final doxology of the Psalms and it commands us to praise God twelve times. [2] Praise will be one of the primary activities of heaven. Those who refuse to praise Jesus are not going to enjoy heaven. [3] Jesus is worthy of our praise. In light of His sacrifice, He deserves our praise. [4] We were created to praise Him [5] Praise ushers us into the presence of God. God inhabits the praises of His people. [6] Praise is the cure for spiritual dryness [7] Praise drives Satan away: he cannot stand to hear Jesus praised. Praise torments the tormentor. [8] Praise sets us free from spiritual bondage.

Are you in some kind of spiritual prison today? You want to know how you can break out? The key that unlocks those prison doors is praise. You begin praising Jesus and doors will fly open.

Extra

I sat up and watched the basketball game so I am late starting this morning. I actually talked to Morris K. Edmonson on the phone yesterday. His kidneys are not functioning properly but he is hanging in there. I hope to get over that way today. Lord willing I will make all my other visits tomorrow. Enjoy the rain and have a great day. Thanks for reading the blog.