This is something to think about. I don’t know if all will agree, but I do believe it is worthy of further study and discussion. (condensed from a series of 4 previous blogs on worship)
IS THERE A DIFFERENCE IN PRAISE AND WORSHIP?
PRAISE (in our soul)
(1) Praise is specific – exalting an aspect or experience of God to be enjoyed as edification (building up) of the body of Christ Songs/hymns/psalms, instrumentals written to magnify a certain aspect of God or His interaction with us
(2) Praise springs forth out of emotion. It is usually presented with gladness and joy
(3) Praise is most often a group dynamic But it also can be alone for our pleasure
4) Praise is an offering that can be enjoyed by all Praise is for our benefit to strengthen us and our faith
(5) Praise is initiated by us and comes forth from our soul (not our spirit) Praise is intentional
WORSHIP (in our spirit)
(1) Worship is non-specific At any moment, an event, thought, word, activity, revelation, etc. can trigger worship
(2) Worship is not dependent upon emotion It can be expressed in weeping, laughing OR in stillness and silence or awe
(3) Worship can be done anywhere, anytime, any place, but more readily done outside the constraints of time and place and for varying degrees of duration (from milli-seconds to hours).
(4) Worship, whether in a group or alone, is still one-on-one There may be 1,000 people praising God, but only 3 worshipping God, or 997 worshipping. It depends on who is in spirit
(5) Worship happens It is NOT dependent upon us initiating it. We may begin to praise the Lord, but until a spiritual connection is made, worship has not happened. It is God Himself who initiates or becomes the catalyst to bring about worship in us toward Him.
What sets worship apart from praise is listed above, but the main difference is that worship MUST be in spirit and truth/reality (Jn. 4:24). Notice closely Eph. 5:19 “…speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs and making melody with your hearts unto to the Lord.” Notice the difference? Our speaking and singing is to one another, for our enjoyment and encouragement/edification, ah, but the Lord hears and enjoys the sweet melody of our hearts. We enjoy the music, the tempo, the harmony of our voices; God hears the heart. Col. 3:16 says, “…teaching and admonishing one another with psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” Again the teaching and singing is for the saints for our - encouragement, but our hearts are toward God. God is spirit. We commune, worship, connect with God in spirit. Our souls manifest something outward that others can see and even participate in. Our spirit (and heart) is something hidden that only God sees; it is our personal spirit link to God. “He that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.” (I Cor. 6:17)
One further point: man can manipulate, enhance and influence praise (through music, audio and visual tools, pauses, crescendos, etc). All of that is enjoyable to our souls and can be very uplifting and may usher us into worship. However, worship cannot be manipulated. Worship happens. {In the book of Revelation, John was on the Isle of Patmos, but he was in spirit when He saw the Lord}. Worship is not something we can willfully control. We can quickly slip in and out of our spirit and into our soul (or even our flesh). Worship is a spiritual connection that can happen unexpectedly and end abruptly. When we transcend to a higher plane in spirit (the soul caught in the middle, between body and spirit), we are resonating in spirit with God alone. That is spiritual worship.
In Lk. 1:46-47, Mary says, “my soul magnifies the Lord…” Elizabeth could see that and could join in with Mary in praise, but Mary also said, “…my spirit rejoices.” We may be rejoicing in spirit and no one knows, but God does. We may be grieved in spirit, troubled in spirit, rejoicing in spirit but outwardly no one could know, but God certainly does. Hannah was pouring her heart out to God, but Eli thought she was drunk. Hannah said she was oppressed in spirit (I Sam.1:15).
Another important aspect of worship is that God is actively seeking true worshippers. He is longing to have an intimate mutual relationship with us. That is why He wants to connect with us in spirit and worship is a way of doing so. It can take the form of prayer, song, meditation, or a spontaneous revealing of Himself in some way at any moment in our day to day life. It could be through nature: a sunset, rainbow, a tree, an animal. God is very creative in how He surprises us, but when He manifests Himself in whatever we He chooses, and we “see,” at that moment worship happens. God set it up and initiated it, and we became drawn and connected with Him in spirit in that instant. That “worship moments” might last a few milli-seconds or hours.
God wants us to be connected in spirit so much that He comes seeking worshippers. Some may just hear thunder, others (in their spirit) hear God. Isn’t that wonderful? Every day brings new opportunities for us to watch and listen for Him to seek us out and manifest Himself to us in a hidden way so we can worship. God is seeking worshippers.
