God Dwells Where He Is Praised

As Christians, we have actually entered a new kingdom. Colossians 1:13 says “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love…”. Living in this new kingdom has many rights and privileges. One of the most awesome privileges is that he has made a way for us to build a dwelling place for him to actually reside in our lives.

Christians Are Eligible to be a Dwelling Place of God
Psalm 22:3 in the Amplified Translation reads: “But You are holy, O You Who dwell in the holy place where the praises of Israel are offered.” This verse tells us that God, the Holy One actually dwells in the place where the praises of Israel are offered. You may say, I’m not a Jew so this doesn’t apply to me, however if you’re a believer in Jesus Romans 11:17 says that you have been “grafted in” and have become a partaker of both the root and the fatness of the olive tree. The olive tree here refers to Israel. Jesus is a Jew, and one of the miracles of salvation is that we “gentiles” are grafted into the same tree of blessing that God intends for Israel.

What Kind of Dwelling Place Does God Have in You?
Now, if God dwells in the place where praise is offered, it follows that we can construct a dwelling place in our lives for God with praise as the building materials. And what kind of dwelling place should we build for God to dwell in? It seems to me that if we praise God in a small, reserved way, then we may be building him only a little shack to dwell in, but if we praise God in a large and extravagant way, we’re building Him a large and extravagant place in which to dwell in our lives.

Habitation or Visitation?
Not only that, but we also can determine whether God has a place of habitation or just a place of visitation in our lives. If praise is something we do only when we come together in church, praise is then just a place for God to come visit us in. Alternatively, if we develop a lifestyle of praise, constantly offering up praise to God all throughout our days and nights, then we are building God a place of habitation- a real place for him to dwell in our lives. I believe that this is God’s desire for each of us, and I find that the more I praise God throughout my everyday life, the more of His presence I sense and am aware of. Make God a large, extravagant dwelling place in your life by living a lifestyle of large and extravagant praise every day!

Your Walls Are Salvation, Your Gates Are Praise

We’ve been doing one of Chris Tomlin’s new songs, “My Deliverer” recently at ALC. It’s a great song, and the chorus lyrics are from Isaiah 60. (Your walls are salvation and your gates are praise.) I was thinking about these words; what do they mean exactly? In the context of the prophecy, Isaiah is looking forward to a time when Israel will be at peace, but could there be a meaning for us Gentiles today? Romans 11:24 speaks of us Gentile believers as being “grafted” into the tree, which is Israel. This being the case, we can be partakers of the blessings spoken of in Isaiah 60!

Your Walls Are Salvation.

Have you ever thought of your salvation as a wall? If salvation is a wall, what are the materials the wall is made up of? The Greek word for salvation is “Soteria” and means to save, deliver, protect, heal, preserve, to do well, be or make whole, and rescue or safety. Wow! So these words, “your walls are salvation” mean that a believer’s salvation creates walls made up of deliverance, protection, healing, preservation, well-being, wholeness, rescue and safety! Amazing! Salvation isn’t just a bus ticket to heaven, it’s the building of walls, and the very materials of those walls are deliverance, protection, healing, preservation, well-being, wholeness, rescue and safety!

Your Gates Are Praise.

What is a gate? It’s like a door or an access point to or from somewhere. In context, this gate or access point is through the walls of salvation. This means then, that the door, or access point to the walls of salvation is, quite literally, PRAISE. And, since the walls of salvation are constructed of deliverance, protection, healing, preservation, well-being, wholeness, rescue and safety, all these component “materials” of salvation are accessed through the gateway of PRAISE! This is awesome! Are you praising God on a regular basis? If you are, you have access to all that is included in salvation!

What Are Your Gates Made Of?

Just as salvation is made up of many wonderful “materials”, so too are gates made up of materials. Hebrews 13:15 says “let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of our lips giving thanks to his name.” In other words, the fruit of our lips are the materials that our gates are made of. If access to the walls of salvation is via gates of praise and thanks, then gates of gossip, complaining and thanklessness won’t give us access to the fullness of the walls of salvation. Only gates of thanksgiving and praise lead to and through the walls of salvation. In addition, how often do you access your walls of salvation? Hebrews 13:15 says “let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually”. Continual access to all the components of salvation requires a continual sacrifice of praise. Certainly Sunday morning at church is an appropriate time to offer the sacrifice of praise to God, but Hebrews 13:15 encourages us to offer this sacrificial praise continually. As a worship leader, it is readily apparent to me looking out over the congregation which people have been offering more than a passing sacrifice of praise. These people are exuding the component materials of salvation!

It’s my desire that more and more people take advantage of the fullness of their walls of salvation via their gates of praise. Sometimes praise doesn’t come easy, but the more we thank and praise God, the more we can access the fullness of our wonderful salvation in Christ Jesus!