New Wine Church ~ Worship

We exist to celebrate God's presence.

"Worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only." ~ Matthew 4:10

"The Father seeks worshipers...and His worshipers must worship Him in spirit and in truth." ~ John 4:23-24

"Praise the Lord! Sing to the Lord a new song, His praise in the assembly of the saints. Let Israel rejoice in their Maker; Let the people of Zion be glad in their King. Let them praise His Name with dancing and make music to Him with tambourine and harp. For the Lord takes delight in His people."
~ Psalm 149:1-4

Praise & Worship

"Praise" is used in the Bible 293 times: 254 times in the Old Testament and 39 times in the New Testament.

"Worship" is used in the Bible 153 times: 109 times in the Old Testament and 44 times in the New Testament.

To praise and to worship... must be pretty important to have been mentioned so often. We'll take a look at the Greek and Hebrew definitions of these two words to find out what they really mean, and how we can apply them as we worship the Lord.

The English definition of Praise:

The act of expressing approval or admiration; commendation; laudation.
The offering of grateful homage in words or song, as an act of worship: a hymn of praise to God.
Archaic - a ground for praise, or a merit.
To express approval or admiration of; commend; extol.
To offer grateful homage to (God or a deity), as in words or song.
Sing someone's praises, to praise someone publicly and enthusiastically: He is always singing his wife's praises.

Source:
American Psychological Association (APA):
Praise. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.0.1). Retrieved December 09, 2006, from Dictionary.com website

Modern Language Association (MLA):
"Praise." Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.0.1). Random House, Inc. 09 Dec. 2006. Dictionary.com

Chicago Manual Style (CMS):
Praise. Dictionary.com. Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.0.1). Random House, Inc. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Praise (accessed: December 09, 2006).

Seven Hebrew Words For Praise

Halal:: 1. to shine, to rave; 2. to praise, to boast; 3. to be clamourously foolish; 4. to act madly
Yadah:: 1. to revere or worship, to give thanks or praise (with extended hands); 2. to lift the hands
Barak:: 1. to bless, to kneel, to salute
Tehillah: 1. a song or a hymn of praise; 2. spontaneous expression of spiritual song
Zamar: 1. to make music, to sing praise; 2. to play a musical instrument; 3. to pluck and twang
Towdah: 1. confession, praise, thanksgiving
Shabach: 1. to exclaim, to shout; 2. to laud, praise, commend