Sweet Praise

May 14, 2013

Tuesday

Sweet Praise

Colossians 3:16 King James Version (KJV)

16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord

Keyword definitions:

Dwell = to dwell in one and influence him (for good)

richly = abundantly

wisdom = supreme intelligence, such as belongs to God

admonishing = to warn, to exhort

(blueletterbible)

Commentary:

What this tells me is that we study the word of God continually and apply the wisdom from the word of God.  We sing spiritual songs to edify others and also to bring praises to the Lord Jesus.  We never stop teaching, warning, and instructing each other in the things of God.  

What this  means is that the Word of God must be so deeply rooted in us that It is ready in season and out of season.  Our whole life must be directed by the wisdom of God in everything.  We are to instruct each other with the Word and the examples of our lives.   We are to minister to others in spiritual songs.  (Henry)

So all the spiritual songs are for praising and glorifying God as an expression of love.  It should be spirit led.  It is a weapon of warfare to battle evil and darkness.  It is used to lift off oppressions and invade the strongholds of depression. And in doing so, it clears negative thoughts. We must continue to offer spiritual songs to the Lord for He inhabits in the praises of His people.  Sin offerings and burnt offerings He did not require.  He is pleased with the offering of praise and thanksgiving. Therefore, spirit-filled and spirit-lead praise and worship are mighty weapons of God.  These are spiritual weapons to battle against all strongholds and all the strongman.  (Stamps)

It is the strong man that governs and controls different territories on the earth.  Anyone that enters the territory of a strong man is under and affected by the power, principalities,rulers of darkness and spiritual hosts of wickedness in high places.  As we enter a hospital intensive care unit, the atmosphere is full of and  thick with the spirit of death.  You can smell the death.  You can sense death.  But if we come in the spirit of Christ and offer up spiritual songs and words of graces, it immediately affects the strongholds. We bring life and the light of Christ.  

Remember the strongman in Mark 5 with unclean spirits who have been dwelling among the tombs and no one could bind him, not even with chains.   He broke the shackles and chains.  No one could tame him.  And when he saw Jesus from afar, he ran out and worshipped Him.  

Mark 5:8-10

For He said to him, “Come out of the man, unclean spirit!” 9 Then He asked him, “What is your name?”  And he answered, saying, “My name is Legion; for we are many.” 10 Also he begged Him earnestly that He would not send them out of the country.

And so liken unto these passages, these intensive care units are like the tombs with the spirit of death in them.  We can come as appointed by the Lord to bring the spirit of Christ into the room and to cast out the spirit and to bring life and abundant life in His name.

What today’s word is reminding  us is that the Lord wants us to minister to hospitals, especially the intensive care units, where death prevails.  We must invade this darkness and bring light and hope to the hospitals.   God is leading us to Queen’s hospital to minister there..  WE must sing spiritual songs there and invade the spirit of death.   We must speak the word of God over the prayer requests in the hospital chapels.  We must pray in the spirit and bring the spirit of Christ into the hospitals and bring the message of hope and love to them.

In the daily bread illustration, the teacher who was discouraged was ministered to by the three teenage girls who sang spiritual songs down the hall.  The girls’ singing demonstrated the power of praise and worship.  It can impact any strongholds and cause a life change.  The spiritual songs is a mighty weapon of warfare.  

Poem

To let the word of God dwell richly in us

To teach each other to obey and trust

To sing and praise Jesus for He is Lord

is how we glorify Him forevermore

So let us come together and be His light

to stand arm in arm to fight the good fight     

to invade the strongholds in every place

so we can conquer this evil face to face

By word:  In the realm of spiritual warfare, either you stand and fight or you die by the wayside.   There is no neutral ground.  

Work cited

Matthew Henry Commentary,  Colossians 3, http://www.blueletterbible.org/commentaries/comm_view.cfm?AuthorID=4&contentID=1787&commInfo=5&topic=Colossians

Blueletterbible,  lexicon results, http://www.blueletterbible.org/lang/lexicon/lexicon.cfm?Strongs=G4146&t=KJV

Stamps, Donald C., The Full Life Study Bible King James Version, Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1992.

Aldwin and Wendy Naruse
The Body of Christ Jesus Fellowship
Makaha, HI USA