“And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward. But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly. But when ye pray, use not vain repetitions, as the heathen do: for they think that they shall be heard for their much speaking. Be not ye therefore like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before ye ask him.”
Matthew 6:5-8 KJV,https://bible.com/bible/1/mat.6.5-8.KJV
A Sacrifice of Praise
Have you ever thought about how your life brings pleasure to God? All throughout Scripture, we learn about how we can use our lives to please God. In fact, we were created for God’s pleasure.
Since we have been given new life in Christ, and we’ve experienced God’s grace, we should desire to please God. Since He has given us everything in life, we ought to give Him everything we are.
The writer of Hebrews tells us two distinct ways we can please God. The first is in Hebrews 13:15. The writer says that our first sacrifice to God is praising Him. This is what the Bible calls "worship."
Worship is the orientation of our entire life to live in awe of who God is and what He has done for us. We can worship God not only by the songs we sing, but also the way we live our lives.
Hebrews 13:16 tells us another way that we can please God: by loving others. When we love others, we are reflecting the love that God has for them. That is why it matters how we treat people.
Our ...