Quick Praise (1 Chron. 23:30)

They are to stand every morning to thank and to praise the Lord, and likewise at evening...(1 Chronicles 23:30)(NASB)


Worship the Lord when you wake up and when you lie down.

Sons of God

"For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God" (Romans 8:14)(ASV)

As we celebrate Father's Day, let's not forget that God is our Heavenly Father. (Matt. 6:14, 6:26, 6:32, 15:13, 18:35, Lk. 11:13)(NKJV) As you read this short devotional by Dr. George W. Linhart, remember that we can worship God and cry out "Abba, Father", because He has adopted us into the family of God and made us His sons and daughters.

Sons of God

Here we are introduced to the legal family status and the intimate family life of the Christian.

Believers sometimes live like spiritual paupers. But we are sons in the Family of God. Being a son of God involves BIRTH (vv.16,17). We are children of God, born ones of God (John 1:12,13).

It also involves ADOPTION (v. 15). Normally this idea is simply the voluntary taking of one into a family, like Pharoah's daughter and Moses (Ex. 2:10). However, in the Roman homes of Paul's day this was vastly different. An heir in a Roman family, as long as a child, was no better than a servant, supervised by tutors (Gal. 4:1-3). When he came of age, at a public ceremony, he was given the robe of manhood, and became an adult member of the family. This was called adoption--placing as a son. He was a full grown son with all the rights, responsibilities and privileges of his family (Gal. 4:4-7). For the believer, this placement comes at the moment of salvation! There is no childhood period recognized in the Christian experience.

Being a son of God involves HEIRSHIP (v. 17). The very purpose for adoption is heirship. A born-again person, adopted, must inherit as a son of God. In Jewish law the eldest son received a double inheritance. In Greek law, sons shared equally. The believer in Christ is joint-heir with the Savior!

As sons of God, we are led of the Holy Spirit (v. 14); at liberty by the Holy Spirit (v. 15); witnessed to by the Spirit (v. 16); and we have an inheritance under the keeping of heaven (v. 17).

"Having predestined us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will" (Ephesians 1:5)

Quick Praise (Ps. 30:4-5)

Sing to the Lord, you His faithful ones, and praise His holy name. For His anger lasts only a moment, but His favor, a lifetime. Weeping may spend the night, but there is joy in the morning. (Psalm 30:4-5)(HCSB)

Be faithful through the sorrows of night, for lasting joy comes in the morning.

Quick Praise (Ps. 28:6)

May the Lord be praised, for He has heard the sound of my pleading. (Psalm 28:6)(HCSB)


Praise God for He hears your cries for help.

Free Justification

"Being jutisfied freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus" (Romans 3:24)(ASV)

I'm sure some of you have seen the saying, maybe on a church marquis----Justified---Just as if I'd never sinned. Well, here is a devotional from the book of Romans by Dr. George W. Linhart about being justified or the process we call justification:


Free Justification

The psalmist has written, "...for in thy sight shall no man living be justified" (Psalm 143:2). To regain the lost glory of Adam is not within the bounds of man. It just cannot be done! Christ must do it for us. The how of this is related to us here in our verse.

What is Justification? The Westminster Shorter Catechism says, "Justification is an act of God's free grace, wherein he pardoneth all our sins, and accepteth us as righteous in his sight, only for the righteousness of Christ, imputed to us and received by faith alone."

Is justification mere pardon or forgiveness? It is true that none are forgiven who are not justified, and none are justified who are not forgiven. But forgiveness is mere subtraction, while justification is addition. It is to be made or declared forever right and acceptable to God. It is not man satisfying a deficit which he owes God, for God rejects all that man has done and gives him something new and different; and He does this forever.

In the Bible sense justification is instantaneous, covering man's whole being in the totality of his existence, and unchangeable since the ground upon which it rests is secure forever (Romans 8:33). Justification involves a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17), the old things are not just habits or past failures, but relate to our position; being made the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21); perfected forever (Hebrews 10:14); and the enjoyment of the fullness of Christ (Jn. 1:16; Col. 1:19; 2:9,10). We are sinners, but God by grace pronounces that we are forgiven. To us this means remission of penalty, no lake of fire, no just desserts by virtue of our sin. To God it means much more, for the blood of Christ cleanses us, and we stand before Him dressed in Christ's righteousness.

"...so by the righteousness of one the free gift came upon all men unto justification of life" 
(Romans 3:18)(ASV)

Quick Praise (Ps. 47:1-2)

Clap your hands, all you peoples; shout to God with a jubilant cry. For the Lord Most High is awe-inspiring, a great King over all the earth. (Psalm 47:1-2)(HCSB)

The Lord, our great King, is awesome. He deserves a round of applause!

The Levites

[Solomon] also assigned the Levites to lead the people in praise and to assist the priests in their daily duties. (2 Chronicles 8:14)(NLT)

The following is a worship profile from the Praise and Worship Study Bible published by Tyndale House Publishers. I highly recommend this study bible for anyone who wants to learn more about biblical worship. Let's see what we can learn from the example of the Levites:

The Levites

Corporate worship almost always requires some logistical preparation. Microphones need to be tested, music rehearsed, lighting adjusted. Many of these tasks go unnoticed by the people who gather, yet if these duties were not carried out, we would have difficulty focusing on worship during the service. In Old Testament times, the Levites assisted the priests as they prepared for the worship that took place at the Tabernacle and Temple. They assisted with worship at the Tabernacle by offering incense and grain offerings and expanded to include . celebrating with music, duties much like our worship leaders have today. The Levites' attention to the many tasks surrounding worship freed the rest of the people to focus on God.

The Levites as Worshipers

The Levites performed many of the ritual duties of worship (the offering of incense and assisting the priests in the sacrifices) and led the people in praise when they came together.

The Lord infused the Levites' praise and worship with great power. As Jehoshaphat's soldiers marched against his enemies, the Levites walked ahead of the army, singing praises to God. The enemy soldiers then turned on each other and fled in confusion.

Learning from the Levites

True worship involves both the physical (what we think and do) and the spiritual (what we feel or experience).

We can find joy and purpose in the seemingly mundane tasks that allow corporate worship to flourish. Even though few may notice or appreciate such work, our heavenly Father sees and is pleased with these offerings.

While the Levites teach us that there is a place for orderly worship, there is also a place for spontaneous praise. We need to be open to both expressions of worship and not view them as mutually exclusive.

Following the Example

The Levites' primary responsibilities were to praise the Lord and to assist the people in praising Him as well. How can we, like the Levites, help others worship God? (1) Worship leaders should incorporate new ways to honor the Lord in their worship service. This may involve reinstituting and old, yet meaningful, tradition or introducing a contemporary worship song that celebrates some facet of God's character.(2) Worship leaders should pay attention to the "mechanics" of corporate worship. Could better preparation or new ideas help worshipers focus more intently on God during the service?

Remember that worship is a verb as well as a noun; it is something we actively do. We should seek to help others worship God through their daily lives as well as during their time at church.