Spiritual Contemplations for those who serve the Lord |
In the Old Testament church, it is observed that spiritual revival was related to praise. Whenever there was not much praise, people would get busy with war and diverge to worshiping idols. Then the Levites would seek their daily living and the outcome would be general spiritual sluggishness. It is also observed that some intermittent consecutive spiritual revivals had occurred. For, we read that during the period of Asaph, the people had entered into a covenant with God and swore to the Lord, the God of Israel with a great voice, shouts and the blowing of pipes and horns and all the kingdom of Judah rejoiced. After that there was resurgence during the reign of Jehoshaphat under the leadership of a man called Jahaziel son of Zachariah from Asaph and there was a great joy on the earth and the Levites and the sons of Kohat praised the Lord of Israel in a very powerful voice. Thus, one can say that every spiritual revitalization took place because of the return to praise. As it is written, Jehoshaphat stood in holy ornament and caused the singers to sing praising and saying “Praise the Lord for His mercy endures forever” (2 Chronicles 20:21). It is worth noting that when they returned to God with praise, they had victory over their enemies as is written, they constructed ambushes against the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir (2 Chronicles 20:22). Their enemies were defeated and the people returned happily because God gave them victory and they entered Jerusalem "with stringed instruments and harps and trumpets, to the house of the Lord" (2 Chronicles 20:28).
Hezekiah the righteous king who did what was good in the eyes of the Lord just as his father David did was said to have made the Levites stand in the house of the Lord "with cymbals, with stringed instruments, and with harps" (2 Chronicles 29:25) and his days were days of spiritual restoration and joy. The Levites and the priests would praise the Lord and thank him daily and the same would happen during the days of Josiah the righteous king. After that the people passed through a degraded spiritual state of praise till it reached its summit during their exile in Babylon when all praise had stopped completely “how do we praise the Lord in a strange land?” It is difficult for someone exiled to sing the praises of joy. Throughout the exile period no praise would be heard of. However, some prophets prophesied that God would return joy and praise once again. In that respect, Isaiah said about the men of Jerusalem that during the feast Her gates shall lament and mourn (Isaiah 3:26) but he turned around and 2 prophesied about the redemption and the joy for the return of praise saying “the ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion with singing” (Isaiah 51:11). We find that Ezra and Nehemiah who in stages brought the people back from exile established choirs of praise. It is said that Ezra counted the people and discovered there were one hundred and twenty-eight singers from Asaph while previously there were four thousand of them. In the book of Ezra, it is written that he made the priests stand in their clothes and their horns and the Levites with their cymbals to praise the Lord for He is good and His mercy endures forever. The people would shout with praises to the Lord and read in the book of the law half the day and during the other half they would worship and praise the Lord their God. At the anointing of the gate Nehemiah said “So I brought the leaders of Judah up on the wall, and appointed two large thanksgiving choirs” (Nehemiah 12:31). This was the first occasion to have two choirs and that is what the church does now “East and West”. To bring back the glory of praise, he exempted the choirs of praise from paying taxes and gave them salaries just as it were in the days of Solomon. “In the days of Zerubbabel and in the days of Nehemiah all Israel gave the portions for the singers and the gatekeepers, a portion for each day” (Nehemiah 12:47). In the days of Nehemiah, people got busy with worshiping and they sang new songs like David and Solomon and distributed the responsibilities among the Levites. There were head singers and lots of songs and praise for the house of the Lord. This order of things continued until the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ. However, although everything was in order yet it lacked spirit and understanding. For, there were many types of religious people like the scribes, the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the Levites who were very meticulously keeping the form but lacking the spirit and that is why Jesus Christ would rebuke them. The Lord Jesus Christ Himself practiced the offering of praise as it is written that on the Holy Thursday “they worshiped and then went out to the Mount of Olives”. Also after the Resurrection and the descent of the Holy Spirit, the apostles used to go to the temple not to offer the blood offerings that were annulled by the Cross offering but to present a praise offering with psalms and hymns. When they were cast out of the temple they went out carrying the most precious treasures, the praises and passed them down to the New Testament church. In summary, the glory of the church and her regeneration depends on the revival of praise and worship. The father monks are separated for this work and this preserves to the church her glory and power; and with the monasteries becoming open to the churches, praise has spread wide among the youths and even among children. In the Garden of Eden and before the fall, Adam worshiped; but after the fall praise stopped and Adam’s relation with God would be based on blood offerings. In Moses’ days worshiping through blood and incense was established. In David’s days, blood, incense and praise were to be found. In the New Testament church there is no blood offering except the offering of the Eucharist, Christ, along with incense and praise. However, in heaven there is to be found praise only, “full of incense, which is the prayers of the saints” (Revelation 5:8). That is why those who love praising and practice it are qualified to be called “earthly angels or heavenly humans” because they are practicing the life of heaven on earth. Finally, praises are not just good voices and synchronized tones but are most importantly spirituality and understanding “I pray with my spirit and mind and with emotional understanding of the words and music." Worshiping in church is not mere performing church duty. May the Lord grant us David’s life of joy and worship as well as his mind. Amen! *Adapted from HGBY monthly Clergical letters - January 2013
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