PREACHING OF DECEMBER 01, 2024:

Pastor Antonio Russo

THE POWER OF PRAISE PART 2

We are addressing the topic of “The Power of Praise,” and today we will focus on how it influences our personal, family, and community lives, leading us to understand the importance of offering “High Praises” to our wonderful Father. We have seen that the origin of praise is in God: “He is the author and source of praise.” But why is praise so important? Because it affirms who God is and what He does His works. Every time we proclaim His works in our lives, we are praising our wonderful Father. Additionally, we have learned that praise shapes the spiritual atmosphere. The level of praise in a person, home, or church reflects their spiritual state, like a heartbeat that measures the vitality of spiritual life. We must not be spectators in praise and worship but active participants who are fully engaged. When we find ourselves immersed in unbelief, fear, or doubt, we must transform the atmosphere through praise, worship, and intercession, for change happens through the words we proclaim. God Himself, when He created the world, spoke, and everything came into existence: Then GOD said, "Let there be light!" And there was light. (Genesis 1:3). On that occasion, the Holy Spirit was present, but a declaration was needed. Similarly, we must speak to the "darkness" in our lives by proclaiming what God says in His Word. When we praise and declare the wonders of God, we create a supernatural atmosphere of miracles. In other words, what we put into the atmosphere is what we will find. Indeed, we are the result of the atmosphere we create with our words, prayers, praise, and worship. Therefore, we cannot blame others for our difficulties but must take responsibility for what we say and do. Praise and complaint cannot coexist: either we choose praise, or we live in complaint. If we want to see miracles and healings, we must declare and proclaim them with faith. When we declare, "Lord Jesus, You are great!" we fill the atmosphere with God's greatness. When we proclaim, "You are the Eternal One who heals me!" we fill the atmosphere with healings and miracles. We must be mindful of the words we speak: those who declare negativity, fear, and anxiety create a toxic atmosphere that poisons their life and their family's life. Here’s a concrete example: a family of four siblings, three of whom were divorced, and the fourth, a believer, was about to separate. God revealed to her that their atmosphere had been filled with arguments and separations. She realized she needed to change her words, began declaring blessings, and worked with God to create a new atmosphere in her home. As a result, her marriage was restored. Let us remember: God never fails! We have seen together that praise is a sacrifice, meaning that even in difficult situations such as illness, financial struggles, or unemployment, we must not agree with those conditions. Instead, we must open our mouths and proclaim with faith who God is, going against what we perceive in the natural. Since praise is a sacrifice, it also involves our bodies: we cannot praise while remaining still and silent, because that is not praise. Look at what the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews says:

Hebrews 13:15; 15 By him therefore let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.

Through whom? What do we do? We offer a sacrifice of praise, that is, the fruit of lips that do not align with circumstances but confess who He is and declare His name. That praise is a sacrifice becomes evident when, in praising, we might feel uncomfortable clapping our hands, raising our arms, or dancing in His presence. However, the Bible does not allow us to remain stuck in our habits but calls us to change. Perhaps those observing us might think we are crazy, but being "crazy for Jesus" is an honor because we belong to our wonderful God.

John 4:24; 24 God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.

Worship and praise are not the same: Worship is a deep relationship, an intimate moment where we humble ourselves in His presence, recognizing His holiness, goodness, and faithfulness. Praise, on the other hand, involves not only the heart and lips but also our body. “Lifting our hands” is an act of thanksgiving, as the Bible teaches us in the book of Psalms:

Psalm 134:2; 2 Lift up your hands in the sanctuary, and bless the Lord. 3 The Lord that made heaven and earth bless thee out of Zion.

“Waving our hands” has a prophetic meaning: removing sicknesses, infirmities, and works of darkness. Every time we do it, we declare God’s work, proclaim healing and victory, and the power in the name of Jesus. The shout of joy and clapping of hands are also acts of praise.

Psalm 47:1; 1 O clap your hands, all ye people; shout unto God with the voice of triumph.

Praise begins with the lips, extends through the hands, and culminates in dancing as a joyful expression of celebration for our King. In this way, we testify to what God has done for us how He has saved, delivered, and healed us praising His name, exalting, and glorifying our wonderful God. Let us not forget that praise can transform difficult situations, and in a season like December, when many people suffer from depression and anxiety, it has the power to dispel all darkness and create an atmosphere of joy, peace, and hope. Declaring that this will be a blessed and glorious month can transform our attitude and circumstances. Now, we want to talk about "High Praises," a deeper and more powerful level of praise characterized by raising our voices fervently and extending them over time. You see, praise is not practiced only with instruments but primarily with our voices, where the mystery of the original sound, the anointing, and the power of God resides. By lifting our voices in high praises, we release a power that demolishes the strongholds of darkness, for high praises were designed by God to manifest His glory. High praises go beyond proclamation, and when accompanied by speaking in other tongues, extraordinary things happen. While praise is good, high praises are glorious! For this reason, we must not limit ourselves to being spectators but actively participate in praise, glorifying and exalting our God. We cannot remain silent while praising the King. Let us remember that God created all things by speaking, and we are made in His image and likeness. Therefore, we must align ourselves with God and His Word, allowing Him to work through our voices. We must not replace our voices with musical instruments, because while it is wonderful to have instruments and singers, we cannot delegate our praise to them. We cannot call a worship leader and ask them to sing to deliver us from depression or difficulties; we must be the ones to praise and exalt God in every circumstance. When we lift high praises to Him, He manifests His power. High praises are not limited to speaking but involve shouting and proclaiming with force and intensity. For example, a simple “Glory to God” is good, but shouting “GLORY TO GOD” is something completely different. High praises bring about a profound spiritual change and produce four extraordinary effects.

1. High praises break the sound barrier.

A practical example is the Concorde, a supersonic airplane that exceeded the speed of sound, producing a sonic boom that symbolized the breaking of an invisible barrier. Similarly, when we lift high praises, a boom is heard in the spirit: walls fall, strongholds are destroyed, and the barriers that prevented us from receiving God’s promises collapse.

2. High praises destroy demonic powers.

If we want to see the devil and his works destroyed in our lives, we must lift high praises because Jesus triumphed over the devil, making a public spectacle of him (Colossians 2:15) and crushing his head, rendering him powerless.

Psalm 149:6; 6 Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a twoedged sword in their hand;

This sword represents the Word of God, and when we proclaim it in faith, God Himself fights for us. He binds demonic kings with chains and spiritual nobles with iron shackles (Psalm 149:8), tearing down every stronghold and declaring that the devil is defeated.

3. High praises break through the spiritual containment wall.

Imagine a containment wall raised by the devil, behind which lie God’s promises and blessings for us. Often, we praise God without going beyond that wall. High praises enable us to push through and completely break this barrier. That’s why we must continue to praise and proclaim with strength until the wall collapses, granting us access to God’s promises. In worship gatherings where thousands of people raised their voices in unity, extraordinary miracles have occurred. Visible tumors literally fell to the ground, destroyed by the power of God’s presence, while diseases and infirmities were swept away. This is the power of high praises, which in our mouths destroy cancer, oppression, and every work of evil in the name of Jesus. The devil hates high praises because they bring destruction to his kingdom. Therefore, we must lift our voices, exalting the King of kings and proclaiming Jesus’ victory. Let us not stop at yesterday’s praises but respond today to God’s call to a higher level. High praises are not just an act of worship but a prophetic proclamation that breaks barriers, releases promises, and brings heaven to earth. The people of God must be trained to break barriers, destroy containment walls, and demolish demonic powers.

4. High praises are an extraordinary, powerful, and necessary spiritual weapon for spiritual warfare.

Many Christians are unaware that high praises are a weapon of war, but we must allow these praises, not weak ones, to fill our mouths. Through high praises intense, elevated, and shouted with strength we release thanksgiving and honor directly to our Lord Jesus, exalting Him and singing directly to Him, not just about Him. This change in our worship triggers His manifestation: He comes with His magnificence, His majesty, and His glory. Let’s remember what King Jehoshaphat did: He placed before him the singers and musicians who proclaimed, "You are good, You are worthy, You are the Almighty." When we lift high praises, as described in Psalm 149:6-9, a double-edged sword is automatically activated in our hands. This sword is the Word of God, which serves to take vengeance on the nations, punish the enemies, bind demonic powers, and execute the written judgment upon them. When we raise high praises to the heavens, God’s glory descends, rendering powerless every infirmity, disease, poverty, and lack, and all enemies must bow before the mighty name of Jesus Christ. High praises manifest the joyful sound that David describes in the Psalms.

Psalm 89:15; 15 Blessed is the people that know the joyful sound: they shall walk, O Lord, in the light of thy countenance.

This joyful sound does not arise from the absence of problems, but from the awareness that God is the solution. In the joyful sound, God's friends rejoice all day long because the Lord is their strength, and they can walk with their faces turned toward Him without shame. The holy warrior worshipers are those who raise high praises and, like David, are inaccessible to their enemies. David was a man after God's own heart, and his enemies could not reach him because he dwelled in a spiritual dimension protected by the Lord's presence. An example in the New Testament that demonstrates the power of high praises is the story of Paul and Silas, two men who were used by God in extraordinary ways. Upon arriving in Philippi, Paul met Silas, to whom the Holy Spirit told to follow him; from that moment, they began collaborating in the work of the Lord. Now, during the preaching of the gospel, Lydia, a seller of purple goods, was converted. Meanwhile, a young slave girl, exploited by her masters for profit, began following them, proclaiming that Paul and Silas were servants of God and preached the truth. Although her words were true, it was a diabolical strategy: declaring the truth to confuse and maintain control once Paul and Silas were gone. After several days, Paul, disturbed, cast out the evil spirit from the girl, and from that moment on, she could no longer practice magic. This enraged her masters, who lost their source of income and, thanks to their influence over the local authorities, accused Paul and Silas of causing trouble in the city. Thus, Paul and Silas were arrested, beaten, and thrown into the deepest part of the prison, their feet locked in stocks. Around midnight, in the darkest and most difficult moment, they began praying and singing high praises to God. The other prisoners heard them, and while their mouths proclaimed high praises, an earthquake shook the foundations of the prison: the doors opened, and everyone's chains were loosened (Acts 16:25-26). This episode teaches us that when we raise high praises, God intervenes supernaturally. Our mouth becomes a double-edged sword that destroys the works of evil and sets God's people free. No matter how difficult the circumstances, high praises open doors, break chains, and lead us to the victory promised by God. Let us raise high praises to God, exalt the Lord, the King of kings, for, like Paul and Silas, we too are called to sing with joy and victory, not with sadness or resignation. Why? Because we know that the God we serve is the Almighty, the One who reigns over every circumstance and intervenes on our behalf. We must wisely choose the people we surround ourselves with, avoiding the company of those who live in suspicion or constant complaining. Instead, we should seek men and women who praise God, for their example will encourage us and help us glorify the Lord even in the most difficult times. Being with people who exalt God teaches us to do so with all our hearts and to recognize His sovereignty in every situation. The Scripture reminds us: "Blessed is the people who know the joyful sound; they walk, O Lord, in the light of Your countenance." We too can live this blessing, walking in the light of God's presence, strengthened by our praise. You know, it is crucial not to give space to the devil, who tries to steal this truth from our hearts because he wants us to remain depressed, sick, and discouraged, unable to react when facing trials. But it is precisely in those moments that we must raise and exalt the King of kings, for high praises are the key to victory. By praising God, we renew our faith and declare His greatness, knowing that He is always by our side. Let us not allow difficulties to rob us of the joy of worshiping our Lord, but let us exalt with confidence the Almighty God, certain that in His presence we will find strength, healing, and victory.