Why Praise is Your Greatest Spiritual Weapon Against Sin

They say that we can't have a negative thought when we are feeling grateful.   That being the case, gratitude is the antidote for negativity.   Negativity effects not only our own Christian walk and well-being, but it also brings those around us down which is a very poor testimony.  There is something else that reflects a very poor testimony, and that is when we are actively sinning against God.  In our fallen state, we WILL sin.  Yet much like how gratitude squashes negative thoughts, we have a spiritual weapon within our arsenal that acts in a similar fashion against sin - PRAISE!  Praising God has the power to squash sin in a Believer's life.  Let's look deeper into why praise is our greatest spiritual weapon against sin.   

Praise as a Weapon of Warfare

First we must look to Scripture to understand what spiritual warfare is...

For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, 

against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, 

against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.

Ephesians 6:12

For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 

We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, 

and take every thought captive to obey Christ.

2 Corinthians 10:3-5

There is an ongoing spiritual battle for the hearts of men as satan wants to turn the focus away from  God. But for those who have accepted Jesus as their Lord and Savior, the battle is already won as Christ overcame sin and death when He died on the cross and then rose from the dead. 

When we remember God's great salvation through Jesus Christ, our Joy in the Lord and subsequent praise becomes a weapon of warfare, and I would argue our greatest spiritual weapon against our own sinful bents here on earth.

My mouth speaks boldly against my enemies,

Because I rejoice in Your salvation.

1 Samuel 2:1b

Here we see how joy (praising God for His great salvation) is a powerful weapon against sin and satan.  When we are tempted by sin or actively sinning, it seems counter to rejoice and praise God in the midst of that sin.  But here we are not talking about the praise that comes from inner happiness, we are talking about joy in the Lord, remembering that great salvation that saved us from our sin, that removed our sins as far as the East is from the West.

In this way, our praises to God will silence the enemy within that is tempting us in all manner of sin, and will give us strength to turn away from that sin.  An attitude of praise creates an atmosphere for the Holy Spirit to work within and without in a powerful way.

“Through the praise of children and infants you have established a stronghold against your enemies,

 to silence the foe and the avenger.” 

Psalm 8:2 

The Spiritual Weapon of Praise Ignites our Faith

As we talked about earlier, we don't feel like praising God when we are in the thick of the battle.  Typically in those situations our focus is upon the battle before us, whether it is dealing with the sin of someone else or dealing with the battle that rages inside of us against sin, a battle that seems like a losing one at times...

But when we praise God in the battle, our spiritual weapon of praise will ignite our faith.  

“Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.” 

1 Timothy 6:12 

Here we see again the power of the cross fighting sin as we navigate these earthly lives.  When we praise God, our faith in the salvation that we received at the foot of the cross will ignite and will remind us that Jesus' salvation is ours every minute of every day.  This Faith will fight for us with assurance from the ever-present Helper to destroy the sin that so easily entangles us in our earthly lives.  Rejoicing in our salvation is the best defense against Satan's schemes.

The Spiritual Weapon of Praise Invites God into the Situation

When we activate the spiritual weapon of praise, we are essentially inviting God into our circumstances.  It may seem like the last thing one would want to do ESPECIALLY in the midst of sin and especially if we are liking that sin, but if we develop the habit of praising God for His salvation, which already removed our sin at the cross, we will experience the power of God to overcome sin in our lives, right in the moment, and the stronghold of Satan will be broken.

The trumpeters and singers performed together in unison to praise and give thanks to the LORD. Accompanied by trumpets, cymbals, and other instruments, they raised their voices and praised the LORD with these words: “He is good! His faithful love endures forever!

2 Chronicles 5:13

When we rejoice in His goodness and faithful love, Perfect Love will cast out the fear or the shame we might feel about our sin and God will meet us in our sinful situation while He looks at us through the veil of Jesus' blood.  The battle against sin has already been won by Jesus and He will fight for us here on earth and give us victory over sin.  When we are convicted of sin and offer the Lord praise for what He has already done for us on the cross, He comes into our sinful situation, leads us to repentance and redeems it.

The Spiritual Weapon of Praise Causes the Enemy to Flee

When we take up the spiritual weapon of praise, we are submitting ourselves to the Lord and His power thereby resisting the devil which causes him to flee. Satan hates having attention taken away from him  and put onto the Lord.  So much so that he doesn't want to be in the presence of any offering of praise to the Lord. 

Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 

James 4:7 

And whenever the tormenting spirit from God troubled Saul, David would play the harp. Then Saul would feel better, and the tormenting spirit would go away.

1 Samuel 16:23 

The next time you are struggling with sin, take the focus off of self and your selfish desire to sin and place it back on the cross.  As you meditate upon the cross, remember how Jesus took upon Himself an excruciating punishment for YOUR sins and rose again from the dead.  Remember this wonderful act of love on the cross which already removed your sins on the day of your conversion.  The old sinful man has died, the new man has already been born again.  Praise God for your salvation and you will deploy your greatest weapon against sin which will ignite your faith, invite God into the situation and cause the enemy to flee!  Now THAT is a three-pronged offensive!

For similar posts, please click on the following:

How Does God Use My Failure?

The Antidote for Feeling like a Failure

A Key Scripture Verse that Will Make You an Overcomer in the New Year

Giving Yourself Grace: A Biblical Perspective

You might find me on these link-ups:

Grace & Truth, Woman to Woman Ministries, Inspire Me Monday, A Wise Women Builds Her Home, Spiritual Sundays, Soul Survival,  Good Morning Mondays, Tell His Story, Faith & Fellowship Blog Hop,   Tuesday Talk,    Faith 'N Friends,  Sitting Among Friends   House to Home  ,Wonderful Wednesday , Literacy Musings Mondays,Imparting Grace, Dance with Jesus,  Booknificent Thursdays ,  Fresh Market Friday Moments of Hope Wonderful Wednesdays , Tea & Word Tuesday Heart Encouragement Thursday Hearts for Home Messy Marriage Link-up Friday at the Fire Station Link-up Tune In Thursday Faith on Fire Link-up, Sunday Scripture Blessings Link-up, Sunday Thoughts, Writer Wednesday, Faith Filled Friday God Sized Dreams Link-Up Sitting Among Friends Be Thee Inspired Graceful Tuesday Link-up Aprons & Pearls Link-up Trekkingthru Link-up  Encouraging Word Wednesday  Grace Moments Link-up  Encouraging Hearts and Home Worth Beyond Rubies Seeking Sabbath Scripture and a Snapshot IHeart Verse Welcome Heart Kingdom Bloggers Outdoorsy Mommy Anchored Truth Tuesdays IHeart Verse InstaEncouragements Remember Me Mondays

Recharge Wednesdays Kingdom Bloggers