Sacrifice of Praise

It has been a popular tune. "We bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the Lord." We clap our hands and sing joyfully ... and I'm not complaining. After all, it is praise.

Do not be led away by diverse and strange teachings, for it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by foods, which have not benefited those devoted to them. We have an altar from which those who serve the tent have no right to eat. For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the holy places by the high priest as a sacrifice for sin are burned outside the camp. So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood. Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured. For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come. Through him then let us continually offer up a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that acknowledge his name (Heb. 13:9-15).

I suspect, however, that we've missed the point of the phrase, "sacrifice of praise". You see, if things are going well and we're pleased with God and tell Him so, where's the sacrifice in that? In what sense is that a sacrifice?

So when would praise be a sacrifice? Praise becomes a sacrifice when you're struggling over a tough situation and, instead of fretting over it, you praise God for it. You see, at that point you've made a sacrifice -- the sacrifice of self-control. You've relinquished the problem and praised God for it and it's now something that is for the good rather than bad. Praise becomes a sacrifice when you don't feel like praising God and still do it. You operate perhaps on duty or perhaps on head-knowledge, but you know that He is worthy of praise and even if you don't feel like expressing it, you do. Read some of the Psalms. More than once David spends time complaining to God about His lack of action and how terrible things are and how he probably won't make it and ... God is worthy of praise. He always seems to end up there. That's a sacrifice of praise.

We need to bring the sacrifice of praise into the house of the Lord. It's good for us. It's good for Him. It's good for those around us. When things are uncomfortable (or worse), when you don't feel like it, when praise isn't the first thing that comes to mind, praise Him. It's well worth the sacrifice.