Sermon Tone Analysis

Your Praise Has Benefits

And when they had laid many stripes upon them, they cast them into prison, charging the jailor to keep them safely: 24 Who, having received such a charge, thrust them into the inner prison, and made their feet fast in the stocks.

25 And at midnight Paul and Silas prayed, and sang praises unto God: and the prisoners heard them.

26 And suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken: and immediately all the doors were opened, and every one’s bands were loosed.

23 And when they had laid many stripes on them, they threw them into prison, commanding the jailer to keep them securely.

24 Having received such a charge, he put them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in the stocks.

The Philippian Jailer Saved

25 But at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.

26 Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened and everyone’s chains were loosed.

27 And the keeper of the prison, awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open, supposing the prisoners had fled, drew his sword and was about to kill himself.

28 But Paul called with a loud voice, saying, “Do yourself no harm, for we are all here.”

29 Then he called for a light, ran in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas.

30 And he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

31 So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

32 Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house.

33 And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes.

And immediately he and all his family were baptized.

34 Now when he had brought them into his house, he set food before them; and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household.

27 And the keeper of the prison, awaking from sleep and seeing the prison doors open, supposing the prisoners had fled, drew his sword and was about to kill himself.

28 But Paul called with a loud voice, saying, “Do yourself no harm, for we are all here.”

29 Then he called for a light, ran in, and fell down trembling before Paul and Silas.

30 And he brought them out and said, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

31 So they said, “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household.”

32 Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house.

33 And he took them the same hour of the night and washed their stripes.

And immediately he and all his family were baptized.

34 Now when he had brought them into his house, he set food before them; and he rejoiced, having believed in God with all his household.

Intro

In the world today there are many types of benefits.

you have employee benefits, social security benefits, fringe benefits, some of us have even had had friends with benefits.

But I want to let you know that your praise has benefits.

Living a life of praise is not only enjoyable, but is also one of the most powerful ways to bring change to your life.

In Acts chapter 16 verses 23-26, The author ( Luke ) tells the story of Paul and Silas and how they were arrested for doing the work of the lord.

He tells of how they were beaten, and thrown into the deepest darkest dungeon in the jail.

The trauma of the beating was not enough.They also were chained and shackled in such a way ,that it caused pain, cramps and loss of circulation.

Look at the atmosphere: Dark, Stench ridden, no place for the bodily waste, depression and the moans and groans of all the other prisoners who had been tortured and beat for their crimes.

Have you ever been in that place.

Some might be in that place right now.

But I come to let you know that Paul and Silas had a secret .

They Had something that they wasn’t suppose to have.

They smuggled in some contraband , some paraphernalia that the other prisoners didn’t know.

And at midnight ,in spite of all of all of their infirmities, in spite of their disheartening atmosphere, at midnight Paul and Silas pulled out the key to their escape.

They pulled out a praise that shook the prison, flung open the doors, and loosed them and everyone else from the very thing that had them bond.

High five your neighbor and tell them “Your praise has Benefits”.

What is Praise and Worship ?

The English word praise occurs 248 times in the King James Bible translation.

Not surprisingly, it shows up most often in the book of Psalms (155+ times).

, which is only six verses long, repeats the word thirteen times!

The word worship can be found at least 108 times in the KJV, most notably in the book of Psalms and Revelation, where it is found fifteen times each.

Now, let us review a dictionary definition of the words worship and praise.

Webster's Dictionary states that worship is "The act or feeling of adoration or homage; the paying of religious reverence, as in prayer, praise, etc."

It can also be "The act or feeling of deference, respect, or honor toward virtue, power, or the like."

Praise, as a verb, means "To express approval and commendation of; applaud, eulogize and to express adoration of; glorify (God, etc)."

As a noun, the word means "Thanksgiving for blessings conferred; laudation to God; worship expressed in song.

3. The object, ground, reason, or subject of praise."

By comparing the two definitions, we can first see that praise is part of our worship of Almighty God.

We express our approval, thankfulness, and respect for Almighty God by offering praises to Him.

This kind of thankfulness then becomes part of our worship of the Great God.

In such an act, we show our love through obeying His commandments, living the way of life He has revealed through His written word, the Bible, communicating with Him in prayer, meeting and fellowshipping with other believers, and in offering thanks to Him.

When we think of praising God, probably the first thing that comes to mind is singing.

There are "praise bands" at church and "praise songs," so we might associate praise with singing.

Singing can be a great way to praise God, but it isn’t the only way we can praise Him.

When our friends do something for us and we tell them how helpful they’ve been, we are praising them for what they have done.

So when we pray and thank God for all the wonderful things He does for us, we’re praising Him!

When we tell others about how good God has been to us, we’re praising God as we praise Him before other people.

We can also sing praise songs to Jesus that remind us and others of His love, mercy, and salvation.

God loves to hear our voices praising Him!

Finally, when we live our lives in the way God wants us to, we are praising God with our actions.

There are many temptations that come our way every day, and when people see us choose God’s way instead, it shows others our love and respect of God’s ways.

How Do I Praise God?

We praise God when we say or show how wonderful we think He is.

How can you bring praise to God? What can you do to make it an integral part of your life?

Praise can be expressed in song, in verse, or in prayer and it is to be done continuously!

instructs, "I will extol the LORD at all times; his praise will always be on my lips."

says, "From birth I have relied on you; you brought me forth from my mother's womb.

I will ever praise you."

Praise to God is expressed outwardly through our everyday actions, as well as inwardly in our thoughts.

Praise is an act of Christian worship.

"Where do I begin?" you may ask.

"How do I start praising God?"

If praising God is new to you, try praising God for who He is to you, personally.

Proclaim that God's goodness is without measure; it is abundant and overflowing!

Here are some ways to get started:

Praise God for His holiness, mercy, and justice (, ).Praise God for His grace ().Praise Him for His goodness ().Praise God for His kindness ().Praise God for His salvation ()Praise to God can be offered anywhere!

In time, it will become as normal as taking a breath.

Sometimes we praise God inwardly as in , "I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High."

Other times we have opportunity to give glory and praise to our God publicly.

says, "I will declare your name to my brothers; in the congregation I will praise you."

Search out opportunities to bring praise to God!

The importance of remembering

Remembering should lead to rejoicing Ps 13:5-6 See also Dt 26:4-11; Ps 66:5-6

Remembering should lead to repentance Rev 3:3 See also Eze 16:59-63; Mt 5:23-24; 26:75 pp Mk 14:72 pp Lk 22:61-62; Rev 2:5

Remembering should lead to understanding Lk 24:6-8 See also Jn 15:20; 16:1-4; Ac 11:15-18

Remembering should produce hope for the future La 3:21-24 See also Ps 42:4-11; 103:1-2; Heb 10:32-36

As we look back to the story of Paul and Silas we find that there place of praise was not one that you would think praising God should happen.

But When i think about the goodness of Jesus and all he has done for me my soul cries out Hallelujah , Thank God for saving me.

Thanks be to God who has given me the victory.

Remembrance is important element of Praise.

The importance of Remembering.

Tell your neighbor “ Its important to remember”