Have you ever thought about what praise and worship will be like in heaven? An evangelist asked all who wanted to go to heaven to raise their hands. Everyone in the audience did so, except for one older man sitting near the front of the auditorium. The preacher pointed his finger at him and said, ‘Sir, do you mean to tell us that you don’t want to go to heaven?’ ‘Sure I want to go, but the way you put the question, I figured you were getting up a busload for tonight!’¹ Heaven is the most wonderful place ever, and as a believer in Jesus, it is your eternal destination. And trust me, you want to go there. The praise and worship there is out of this world.

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Amazing Pointers on the Road to Lifting God Higher

[Tweet “We praise God for what He is doing or has done — we worship Him for who He is.”]

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You can view a basic transcript of this podcast at the bottom of this section.

Accept the Challenge

Each week’s podcast contains a call to action. The Word of God will not produce in your life unless you put it into operation.
This weeks call is:

Learn to balance off your prayer requests with offerings of praise, thanking God, as an act of faith, for the thing you are asking for.

Join the Conversation

Each week’s podcast also contains a question designed to encourage testimony. Testimony is vital to a believer’s life. We overcome by it (Rev. 12:11).
This week’s question is:

Share one story from your life where praise powered you to God-styled growth. Share your experience in the comments section below.

Episode Resources

You can find more information on the subject of Praise and Worship by clicking on the links above.

• #S6-048: Is Praise and Worship the Pillars of Your House [Encore Podcast]
• What’s Praise and Worship in Heaven Like?
• #S7-048: Why Thanking God Always Is the Right Way
• #S6-019: Worshiping God: Why the Hour Is Here
• #S6-020: More on Praising God: Why the Hour is Here
• Why We Must Not Confuse New Testament Worship with the Old
• How To Avoid One Of The Biggest Worship Mistakes Ever
• What is The Costly Foundation of Worship?
• Are You Making These Worship Mistakes?
• The Second Commandment: The Exclusive Necessity to Worship God

About Emery

Emery committed his life to the Lord Jesus Christ over 40 years ago and has served as both a full-time pastor and an itinerant minister. Both he and his wife Sharon of 35 years emphasize personal growth and development through the Word of God. The ministry of the Holy Spirit is both the focus and the hallmark of their mission. Read more about them here.

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If you enjoyed the podcast, please rate it on Stitcher Radio and leave a review. If you have a suggestion for a Bible topic you would like to see taught, or if you have a question, please e-mail me at emery@emeryhorvath.com.

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Podcast Notes

The First Sundry Lesson on Praise and Worship

Worship In Heaven Is at The Throne; Praise Is at the Gates

Psalm 100 (ESV) — A PSALM FOR GIVING THANKS. 1 Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth! 2 Serve the LORD with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! 3 Know that the LORD, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! 5 For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.’

Praise and Worship: Who is Psalm 100 Directed To?

• Who is Psalm 100 referencing?
• The answer to this question is found in verse one: ‘make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth.’
• So, the Psalm is not just to the nation of Israel but to all of the earth.
• Psalm 100 is a universal Psalm with a universal message, ‘All the earth should praise the Lord.’
• The inhabitants of humankind — the teeming multitudes of planet earth should enter His gates with thanksgiving and His courts with praise.

Praise and Worship: The Layout of the Tabernacle and Psalm 100

• With the universality of Psalm 100 in mind, let’s go ahead and ask the Question of the Day.
• Here is the question: have you ever thought of how heaven is laid out?
• Of course, we won’t know in exact detail except those who are already there.
• For us who are here, there are a few clues.
• For instance, heaven probably has a few things in common with the Tabernacle of the Old Testament.
• The Tabernacle had front gates through which one could enter.
• Those gates lead you into the outer courts.
• Behind the courts were the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place.
• The innermost portion is, of course, the Holy of Holies, where the Presence of God sits on the Mercy Seat.
• To get to the Presence, you must first go through the gates and then through the outer courts.

Praise and Worship: The Throne of God

• The Throne of God, located in the city of God, may have a similar layout to the Tabernacle.
• We know that a city exists because Revelation tells us so.

Revelation 21:10 (ESV) — 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God,

• When you go through the gates of the City of God, you won’t be right at the Throne.
• The Throne is probably at the center of the city.
• The Bible describes for us the twelve gates that surround the city.

Praise and Worship: The Twelve Gates of God’s City

Revelation 21:10–16 (ESV) — 10 And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great, high mountain, and showed me the holy city Jerusalem coming down out of heaven from God, 11 having the glory of God, its radiance like a most rare jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal. 12 It had a great, high wall, with twelve gates, and at the gates twelve angels, and on the gates the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel were inscribed— 13 on the east three gates, on the north three gates, on the south three gates, and on the west three gates. 14 And the wall of the city had twelve foundations, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. 15 And the one who spoke with me had a measuring rod of gold to measure the city and its gates and walls. 16 The city lies foursquare, its length the same as its width. And he measured the city with his rod, 12,000 stadia. Its length and width and height are equal.

• I was going to highlight the twelve gates and how they are made out of one pearl, but this whole passage is so delightful to read that I couldn’t just help myself, so I included all of it.

Revelation 21:17–26 (ESV) — 17 He also measured its wall, 144 cubits by human measurement, which is also an angel’s measurement. 18 The wall was built of jasper, while the city was pure gold, like clear glass. 19 The foundations of the wall of the city were adorned with every kind of jewel. The first was jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, the fourth emerald, 20 the fifth onyx, the sixth carnelian, the seventh chrysolite, the eighth beryl, the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, the eleventh jacinth, the twelfth amethyst. 21 And the twelve gates were twelve pearls, each of the gates made of a single pearl, and the street of the city was pure gold, like transparent glass. 22 And I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. 23 And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and its lamp is the Lamb. 24 By its light will the nations walk, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it, 25 and its gates will never be shut by day—and there will be no night there. 26 They will bring into it the glory and the honor of the nations.

• My my is it not thrillingly fun to read?
• Think about what is described here, and then allow your mind to gravitate to what the Psalmist said.
• You enter the gates with thanksgiving and, when you get on the other side of the gates into the courts, praise should come out of your mouth.
• You enter His gates with Thanksgiving and into His courts with praise.
• Now, why is your mouth full of praise as you pass through the gates into the city?
• Well, for one, it’s probably because of what you see when inside the city.
• How magnificent and marvelous it must be.
• I mean, ‘Praise God, did you see that? — Wow, Glory to His Name — Blessed be the Lord — He is so Awesome — those words will just come flying out of your mouth.
• Worship doesn’t happen at the gates or the courts of God.
• It happens only at the Throne.
• Why is that?
• We praise God for what He is doing or has done — we worship Him for who He is.
• So this is one sundry Spirit Lesson on Praise and Worship for your everyday life.
• Now, let’s look at a second.

A Second Sundry Lesson on Praise and Worship: Work Is a Part of Your Praise and Worship Life

• And, with that thought, here is the Illustration of the day.

After attending church with his father one Sunday morning, before getting into bed that evening a little boy kneeled at his bedside and prayed, “Dear God, we had a good time at church today, but I wish you had been there. ²

• Wow, the wonderful wisdom of a child or, as Jesus said, ’Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings you have perfected praise (Matthew 21:16).
• Isn’t this a sad thought?
• You go to church to meet God, but it seems like He is not there.
• What the young boy is referencing is God’s manifest Presence.
• God is everywhere present — but He is not everywhere manifest.
• So, yes, He is there at church because He is everywhere, but there is no action from Him because there is no demand for Him to move.
• One of the most common worship mistakes we make is not being excellent in our work life.
• There is an element of work that constitutes worship.

Romans 12:1–2 (ESV) — I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. 2 Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

• Offering your bodies to God as a living sacrifice, carrying yourself in a holy manner constitutes spiritual worship.
• Working for God is foundational and of vital importance; make no mistake about it.
• ‘Work ethic,’ with some, is a lost art.

Our Foundation of Work: Work Ethic What It Is Before God

• Paul motivates Timothy, his young son in the gospel, using three ‘occupational’ pictures.

Picture No. 1: A soldier

2 Timothy 2:3–4 (ESV) 3 Share in suffering as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. 4 No soldier gets entangled in civilian pursuits, since his aim is to please the one who enlisted him.

• There are certain characteristics of a soldier that should be true of us as believers.
• Paul refers to endurance and lack of entanglement.
• Soldiers are soldiers, and they are nothing else.
• Ask yourself, ‘Do soldiers work hard?’
• Are weekend warriors really warriors?
• Is there such a thing as a highly-skilled casual soldier?
• That is, can you be in premium tip-top shape — a fighting machine and be apathetic in your approach?
• Do you want passionate people or indifferent people fighting for your freedom?

Picture No. 2: An Athlete

2 Timothy 2:5 (ESV) — 5 An athlete is not crowned unless he competes according to the rules.

• The second picture that Paul offers up for us is that of an Olympic athlete.
• Ask yourself, ‘Do athletes who reach Olympic level performances work hard to achieve those levels of excellence?’
• Malcolm Gladwell defined this concept in his book Outliers: The Story of Success, studying the rise of Bill Gates, Tiger Woods, the Beatles, and other phenomenal success stories. To become a master at your craft, he determined that you have to dedicate at least 10,000 hours through his research. This is the minimum threshold of focused experience that will set you apart from amateurs and the rest of the world.

We see this phenomenon clearly in the elite athlete community. Michael Phelps started swimming competitively at age 7, and already held a national record for his age group in the 100-meter butterfly by age 10. According to his coach, Bob Bowman, Phelps didn’t miss a morning practice from the age of 11 through 16 years-old. He would practice on Sundays, birthdays and Christmas mornings to keep his competitive edge. At an average of four hours per day in the pool, this meant Phelps had already shattered the 10,000 hour rule by the time he competed in his first Olympics at Sydney in 2000, as the youngest male to make a U.S. Olympic swim team in 68 years.³

• The 10,000-hour rule – what do you think of that?
• Is there a correlation to spirit life here?
• Remember, Paul is tying these images from everyday life in the first century to believers in Jesus.
• Jesus followers should have some of the discipline levels of Olympic athletes.
• When you offer your body up in this way, the Lord sees it as worship.
• Now make no mistake about it, salvation is not by works, but after you get saved, and Jesus come into your heart, you ought to work!
• There are certain characteristics of an athlete that should be true of us as believers.
• Paul continues this thought with yet a third picture, that of a hard-working farmer.

Picture No. 3: A Hard-Working Farmer

2 Timothy 2:6 (ESV) — 6 It is the hard-working farmer who ought to have the first share of the crops. 7 Think over what I say, for the Lord will give you understanding in everything.

• With that thought, here is the Definition of the Day.

The Greek word hard-working means to exert oneself physically, mentally, or spiritually, work hard, toil, strive, struggle. It means to become weary or tired.⁴

• Weary or tired because of the amount of your work for God. Does this describe you?
• A farmer is a laborer, a hard worker.
• At the end of the day, he is tired and whipped.
• He is weary from the toils of the day.
• There is no laziness in farming.
• It is hard and tedious work.
• Paul tells Timothy, his son in the gospel, to model himself after this image.
• Work for Jesus.
• Not just work — work hard for Jesus.
• Spend yourself.
• Give everything you have until you are whipped at the end of the day.
• If Jesus walked into your room if you had a spiritual vision of Him and in this vision, He said to you, “Go work for me today.” What would you do?
• What would your workday be like?
• How would you fill your day?
• Jesus said, “The harvest is ripe,” listen to the word now, “But the LABORERS are few.
• Laborers are not loungers.
• Laborers are not pleasure seekers.
• Laborers are not lazy, uncommitted, ‘got to beg them to get anything done’ kind of people.
• A farmer has to stay with his field and stay with his seed.
• He cannot plant the seed and run off and leave it.
• He has to stay in place and water the seed, and cultivate the seed.
• It does not matter what the weather is like.
• It does not matter what the economy is like.
• It does not matter what his personal life is like.
• He has to stay committed to the seed.
• I am talking about work ethic here.
• A farmer must stay put and see the seed to the end!
• He must see it all the way to harvest.
• If he lets up at all, he risks getting no fruit.
• No fruit, no harvest is a terrible thing for a farmer.
• Are you working for God like this?
• What is your work ethic for Him?
• Do you work as hard for Him as you do in your personal endeavors?
• How hard are you tending to the seed of the Word of God in your heart?
• How hard are you working at the Word?
• How hard are you working at ministering to others?
• Here is a quote from Rick Renner along this line.

If you keep operating at your current level of production, will you reach the goals God has given for your life?

• Amazingly, some of us understand the 10,000 rule naturally, but spiritually we get confused and think it is something different.
• Do you think Paul, in his ministry, reached the 10,000-hour mark?
• Yes, he blew it away.

2 Corinthians 11:23–28 — 23 Are they servants of Christ? I am a better one—I am talking like a madman—with far greater labors, far more imprisonments, with countless beatings, and often near death. 24 Five times I received at the hands of the Jews the forty lashes less one. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked; a night and a day I was adrift at sea; 26 on frequent journeys, in danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the wilderness, danger at sea, danger from false brothers; 27 in toil and hardship, through many a sleepless night, in hunger and thirst, often without food, in cold and exposure. 28 And, apart from other things, there is the daily pressure on me of my anxiety for all the churches.

• You have to be led by the Spirit of God as to what you are to do, but when you finally find it out, you will have to add the ‘work hard’ component to get where you are going.
• Another quote from Rick Renner along this line.

If you want to achieve something great and significant, you will have to put a lot of hard work and effort into making it happen. To achieve the true greatness God desires for you, you must be committed to do anything necessary to accomplish what He has for you. – Rick Renner

• The following letter, which speaks for itself, was circulated in a large congregation trying to find people to get some work done in the church:
• Dear Friend:
• Our church membership … 1400
• Nonresident members … 75
• Balance left to do the work … 1325
• Elderly who have done their share … 25
• Balance left to do the work … 1300
• Sick and shut-ins … 25
• Balance left to do the work … 1275
• Members who do not give … 350
• Balance left to do the work … 925
• Christmas and Easter members … 300
• Balance left to do the work … 625
• Overworked members… 300
• Balance left to do the work … 325
• Members with excuses … 200
• Balance left to do the work … 125
• Members too busy with other things … 123
• Balance left to do the work … 2
• Just you and me, friend, and you had better get busy because it’s too much for me! [2]
• Okay, so now we understand that there is a ‘hard work’ component to our earth life that the Lord considers worship.

Praise and Worship Admonitions

• Worship is the highest and noblest act that any person can do.
• When men worship, God is satisfied.
• When you worship, you are fulfilled.
• It’s one reason why Jesus came.
• He came to make worshipers out of rebels.
• Think about the change that must occur in an unregenerate human being to get a person to the point of becoming a worshiper.
• People, in general, are self-centered.
• We who were once self-centered have to be completely changed to shift our attention outside of ourselves and become able to worship Him.
• Jesus came to make you who were self-centered, God-centered.
• If we haven’t learned to be worshipers, does it really matter how well we do anything else?
• Does it matter how much we accomplish if we lose sight of who we are working for?
• The word worship is a shortened form of the old word worth-ship, which means showing God the worth he holds in your life.
• When you worship God, you show Him what He is worth in your life.
• Worship is a valuable thing for a believer – it’s foundational – it is a costly stone.
• The Roman general Pompey noticed how the Jews fought to defend their temple.
• He was anxious to see what was in their most sacred room, the Holy of Holies. He was surprised to see that it was empty.
• He wondered why they fought so hard to defend an empty room.
• He didn’t understand their concept of a God “eternal, immortal, invisible.”
• He didn’t understand that worship is costly and of great value.
• Jesus must be properly worshiped.
• You cannot expect the superior results that come from the Holy Spirit manifesting Himself if you come into His presence without worship.
• Much in the New Testament is connected to and centered around worship.
• Worship is tied to the healing anointing.
• Many people who were healed came and worshiped Jesus.

Matthew 8:2 (KJV) — 2 And, behold, there came a leper and worshiped him, saying, Lord, if thou wilt, thou canst make me clean.

Matthew 9:18 (KJV) — 18 While he spake these things unto them, behold, there came a certain ruler, and worshiped him, saying, My daughter is even now dead: but come and lay thy hand upon her, and she shall live.

Matthew 15:22,25 (KJV) — 22 And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts, and cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou Son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil. 25 Then came she and worshiped him, saying, Lord, help me.

Mark 5:2, 6 (KJV) — 2 And when he was come out of the ship, immediately there met him out of the tombs a man with an unclean spirit, 6 But when he saw Jesus afar off, he ran and worshiped him,

• Load this thought into your mind as we get ready to close.
• If a man with 6000 demons as constant companions can fall at Jesus’ feet and worship, we should have no trouble worshiping because of the person standing next to us.
• Make worship a priority.
• Worship God with your face bowed before His Throne.
• Tell Him what He means to you.
• And then, work for Him.
• Praise Him and then engage in Kingdom affairs.
• Connect with Him first and then go out and change the world.

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