AN ALTAR OF PRAISE June 2024
Scripture References: Exodus 15: 1-11
1.Then Moses and the children of Israel sang this song to the Lord, and spoke, saying: “I will sing to the Lord, for He has triumphed gloriously.! The horse and its rider He has thrown into the sea.! 2.The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation; He is my God, and I will praise him.; my father’s God, and I will exalt Him. 3.The Lord is a man of war; The Lord is His name. 4. Pharaoh’s chariots and his army He has cast into the sea; His chosen captains also are drowned in the Red Sea. 5. The depths have covered them.; They sank to the bottom like a stone. 6. Your right hand, O Lord, has become glorious in power; Your right hand, O Lord has dashed the enemy in pieces. 7. And in the greatness of your excellence you have overthrown those who rose against you; You sent forth your wrath.; It consumed them like stubble. 8. And with the blast of your nostrils the waters were gathered together; The floods stood upright like a heap; The depths congealed in the heart of the sea. 9.The enemy said, “I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoil; My desire shall be satisfied on them. I will draw my sword; my hand shall destroy them.” 10. You blew with your wind, the sea covered them; They sank like lead in the mighty waters. 11.“ Who is like You, O Lord, among the gods.? Who is like You, glorious in holiness, fearful in praises, doing wonders?
Hebrews 13:14-15
- For here we have no continuing city, but we seek the one to come. 15. Therefore, by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to His name.
Are you looking for an easy task? Well, building something may not be your first choice. Obtaining a place, materials and permits are a part of the process that requires patience. The blueprints, when approved, bring hope and the beautiful product can be visualized. This brings excitement and anticipation as to who will benefit from the finished project. Throughout the scriptures we read of various altars being built for varied reasons.
What constitutes an altar? It is a designated location for religious rituals. It may be represented by a monument, building, platform, or table. Altars may be found in either places of worship or personally in homes. They are considered permanent, sacred spaces where people gather to focus solely, on God. They may be described as “The Secret place of the Most High.”
Noah engineered an Ark of safety for everyone who would choose to believe his message. God had told him that prolonged rain was expected to flood the land, but those who entered the Ark would be safe. Noah and his family were the only ones who accepted the invitation. The flood came and they remained in the Ark from the second month of that year until the second month of the following year, (Genesis 7:11, and Genesis 8:14-16). Then Noah and his family emerged from the Ark, (Genesis 8:18-22), and he built an altar to offer sacrifices to God.
The year 2020 gave us a taste of what it felt like to be quarantined, forcibly. Family members, friends, the EMS, all experienced the feeling of loneliness and despair that comes with being restricted by the authorities. Cabin fever, depression, anxiety, and a yearning for freedom, all came with the territory.
Churches were not exempt from gathering as the dreaded COVID-19 virus was rampant globally. Believers had no choice but to resort to online methods of worship. One of the drawbacks was the lack of interpersonal fellowship.
Then came the time when the restriction was partially lifted, and we were somewhat free to gather again. We realized, afresh, the thrill of freedom. That day also came for Noah. So, Noah raised an altar. Little wonder that Noah desperately needed to erect one, (Genesis 8;20). The sacrificed animals produced a pleasant aroma to God. So, God decided that He would never again curse the ground nor destroy everything because of mankind’s evil ways.
Noah’s altar of gratitude resulted in God’s covenant with him and generations to come: times and seasons would be perpetual on Earth, (Genesis 8:22; Genesis 9:9). Noah’s ears were attuned to God in that he did whatever God told him, and God remembered him and blessed him, (Genesis 6:22).
Godly altars also highlight our relationship with God. We have the privilege of replicating what angels do. They focus on exalting God, sensing His presence, and experiencing one-on-one time with the Maker. How special is that!
One night when Jacob retired at Bethel, (Genesis 28:10-22) after he escaped his brother, Esau’s anger, his intent was just to use some stones as a pillow. He just wanted to sleep. However, as he laid down dreaming, he communicated with angels. The Lord appeared and reiterated that He was the covenant-keeping God of Father Abraham. Jacob then realized that unknown to him, God was in that place. So, he built an altar in recognition of his encounter with God.
When we go to our place of meeting with God, we should ask for an awareness of His presence. Sometimes the very thing that created hardships for us, (Jacob’s pillow) may just be the thing to be used as a memorial of God’s faithfulness and promises. So, Jacob made a commitment to God: if God provided for him and spared his life, he would serve him as Yahweh.
The Psalmist, David, (Psalm 22: 3) tells us that God dwells in our praise. Moses knew that very well. The Israelites had been enslaved for over four hundred years, and God sent Moses to lead them from Egypt to Canaan, (Israel, Jordan, Southern Syria, Lebanon, the West Bank, and Gaza), The Promised Land. Pharaoh had second thoughts about freeing them, so he pursued them after they left Egypt. God miraculously drowned those enemies in the Red Sea.
Upon this event, Moses and the Israelites prepared an altar of celebration in Exodus 15. Easily, they reflected on God’s goodness in freeing them from slavery and destroying their enemies. Such joyous recollection brought out free-spirited, effortless worship in song.
This joy caused God’s people to realize they were no longer weak, burdened, and in captivity. They had been the recipients of their bosses’ whips across their backs. Hunger and long hours of hard labor were not strange to them. Now, they witnessed the demise of their enemies, just when they were on the brink of being recaptured.
Similarly, God snatched Joseph from the enemy’s grip, just in time when his brothers left him in a pit, (Genesis 37: 23-37). Joseph must have lamented his journey, since he could not foresee everything working together for good. He was later rescued by Ishmaelites, (his relatives), and propelled to the path of becoming governor of Egypt. He showed gratitude to God, by having an attitude of forgiveness for his brothers.
Let us reflect on occasions when God manifested Himself on our behalf. We have multiple reasons to create an altar of praise. At those times we did not need anyone’s permission to build our altar of praise. It became as spontaneous as water flowing from a faucet.
It was not so, for Jehoshaphat. In Second Chronicles 20:17-22, he saw his army outnumbered by the enemy. Naturally, he became afraid. He realized his insufficiency and need for dependence on the God of Heaven, whom he served.
All the military might that Jehoshaphat acquired was no match for the enemy’s arsenal. It was time for him to present strategies to his army so that the foes would be conquered. With all eyes on the king and all ears alert to hear Jehoshaphat’s next steps to attack, Jehoshaphat presented an unconventional plan: an altar of praise.
Can we hear his soldiers saying, “This is no time to sing. This is war!” Jehoshaphat, a mighty leader whom the people regarded highly, told the praise team to sing some worship songs. Then they all focused on the LORD, not on the threat of defeat. What a time to build an altar of praise and adore God’s holiness, majesty, and mercy!
The naysayers had to be ignored because Jehoshaphat had already told God that his hands were tied, but his eyes were on Him. It was difficult to worship God instead of walking by sight.
The reality of the difficulties we face create a wall around us, thus hemming us in with anger, discouragement, and fear. On the other hand, it blocks our vision of God’s might, and the reputation He has with us. We must choose our focus, so that is why Jehoshaphat, and his choir sang praises to God. What the soldiers did not know was that praise confuses the enemy.
That altar was difficult to build. The permits of perseverance, positive recall, and confidence in God, are all needed to erect such an altar in the face of seeming impossibility. That altar became a weapon of mass destruction, (Psalm 149:6-9); an endorphin (brain chemical, Romans 12: 2); a means of transportation into God’s presence, (Psalm 100: 2); and a dwelling place for God, (Psalm 22: 3).
When we redirect our focus from the problem to the mighty God, we have many reasons to construct an altar of praise. In the book of Hebrews, we are told to offer the sacrifice of praise, which is the fruit of our lips, giving thanks to God.
The enemy expects us to be weighted down with care, so much so that we lose sight of God’s sustaining grace. Who is this God that we are trusting? The Maker, Creator of the ends of Earth, the Everlasting God, can never lose a battle. He fights for us, wins the battle and hands us the victory.
With that knowledge, may we project the victorious outcome of our difficulties, discard everything that fights against God’s reputation with us, sing Moses and the Israelites’ song, (Exodus 15:2-3) thus building our altar of praise.
Dr. O. A. James
REFLECTION
Sing Exodus 15:11