来十三15　所以我们应当借着耶稣，常常向神献上赞美的祭，这就是承认主名之嘴唇的果子。

　　徒十六25　约在半夜，保罗和西拉祷告唱诗赞美神，众囚犯也侧耳听他们。
　　赞美在神面前的性质……乃是一个祭，一个牺牲〔来十三5〕。换句话说，赞美乃是从艰苦困难中出来的。……什么叫作祭？祭就是牺牲。……本来这一只牛、这一只羊是你的，今天你拿去献祭，你就牺牲了这一只牛，牺牲了这一只羊。献祭不是有所得，献祭乃是有所失。圣徒献上赞美的时候，就是损失了东西来将一个祭献上给神。……神要祂的儿女自己有所损失，而来赞美祂。不是有所得的时候才来赞美。有所得的时候的赞美，虽是赞美，却不是祭。祭的原则乃是根据于损失。……神要我们虽然受损失，仍然能赞美，那就是祭了（初信造就上册，二九三至二九四页）。

　　Heb. 13:15 Through Him then let us offer up a sacrifice of praise continually to God, that is, the fruit of lips confessing His name.
　　Acts 16:25 And about midnight Paul and Silas, while praying, sang hymns of praise to God; and the prisoners were listening to them.

　　In the eyes of God...the nature of praise is an offering, a sacrifice [Heb. 13:15]. In other words, praise comes from pain and suffering....What is a sacrifice? A sacrifice is an offering....The bull and the lamb are yours. When you offer them up, you are sacrificing them. To offer up something does not mean to gain anything; it means to suffer a loss. When a person offers up his praise, he is losing something; he is offering a sacrifice to God....God wants His children to praise Him in the midst of their sufferings. We should not praise only when there is gain. Although praise offered as a result of gain is praise, it cannot be considered an offering. The principle of offering is based on loss....God wants us to praise Him in the midst of our loss. This makes a real offering. (CWWN, vol. 48, "Messages for Building Up New Believers (1)," pp. 248-249)

　　赞美乃是我们属灵争战得胜的方法。我们常听见人说，撒但最怕的是神儿女祷告，什么时候神的儿女跪下来祷告，也就在什么时候撒但逃跑；所以，撒但常常攻击神的儿女，使他们不能祷告。这是一个很普通的攻击。这里我们再说一句话：撒但最攻击的，还不是祷告；撒但最攻击的，乃是赞美。这不是说，撒但不攻击祷告。基督徒一祷告，撒但就要来攻击。所以，和人讲话是很容易的，一祷告就难；往往撒但给你难处，叫你觉得祷告没有那样容易，这的确是事实。可是，撒但不只攻击祷告，撒但更攻击神儿女们的赞美。如果能把赞美神的话都堵住，那是撒但最盼望的。祷告，在许多时候是争战，而赞美乃是得胜。祷告乃是属灵的争战，赞美乃是属灵的夸胜。什么时候我们能够赞美，也就在那个时候撒但一定要逃跑。所以赞美是他最恨的事，若是可能，他要尽他所有的力量使我们不能赞美。神的儿女愚昧的时候，就看自己的处境，看自己的感觉，停止了赞美。神的儿女如果越认识神，就越要看见，连腓立比的监牢也是可唱诗的地方（徒十六25）。保罗、西拉在里面赞美神，结果，把监牢的门都打开了。……锁链脱落，禁卒就在那一天信主了，全家都得救了，都快乐了（19~34）。在那里，有人在监牢里献上赞美的祭。身上的伤痕还没有好，疼痛还没有止，并且两脚上了木狗，关在罗马的内监里，有什么可喜乐的呢？有什么可歌唱的呢？但是，在那里有两个人，他们的灵是爬得高的，是超过一切的；他们看见神是坐在天上，没有改变。虽然他们会改变；他们的处境会改变，他们的感觉会改变，他们的身体正在受苦，但是神仍然坐在宝座之上，祂仍然是配得着他们的称颂的神。在那里，我们的弟兄保罗和西拉就祷告唱诗赞美神。这一种的赞美是从他们的痛苦和损失中发出来的，这一种的赞美是祭。这一种的赞美也就是得胜。
　　当你祷告的时候，你乃是在那个遭遇里；当你赞美的时候，你是爬到那个遭遇的上面去。当我们在那里祷告、在那里苦求的时候，我们还是在那一件事情里面，还没有出去。你在神面前越苦求，就越看见你被那一件事情捆住了，那一件事情压在你的上面。……保罗和西拉……被神带到一个地步，监牢不成问题，羞辱不成问题，痛苦也不成问题，他们在神面前就能够赞美。当他们那样赞美的时候，监门全开，锁链松落，连禁卒也得救了（初信造就上册，二九六至二九八页）。
　　参读：初信造就，第十六篇。

　　Praising is the way to overcome spiritual attacks. Many people say that Satan is afraid of the prayers of God's children; he flees whenever God's children kneel down to pray. This is why he often attacks God's children and frustrates them from praying. This is a common attack. But we will point out another fact: Satan's greatest attacks are not aimed at prayers; his greatest attacks are aimed at praise. This does not mean that Satan does not attack prayers. The moment a Christian prays, Satan begins to attack. It is very easy to talk to people, but the moment one prays, Satan comes with problems. He will make one feel that it is hard to pray. This is a fact. But Satan does not attack just prayer; he also attacks the praise of God's children. The ultimate goal of Satan is to stop all praises to God. Prayer is a warfare, but praise is a victory. Prayer signifies spiritual warfare, but praise signifies spiritual victory. Whenever we praise, Satan flees. Therefore, Satan hates our praising the most. He will use all his strength to stop our praising. God's children are foolish if they stop praising when they suffer under adverse environments and downtrodden feelings. But as they come to know God more, they will find that even a Philippian jail can become a place of songs (Acts 16:25). Paul and Silas were praising God inside the jail cell. Their praise broke loose all the jail doors...and the chains broke. The jailer believed in the Lord on that day, and his whole family was saved in a joyful way (16:19-34). Paul and Silas offered the sacrifice of praise in the jail. The wounds on their bodies were not yet healed; their pain was not soothed. Their feet were in the stocks, and they were shut in an inner jail of the Roman Empire. What was there to be joyful about? What was there to sing about? But there were two persons with transcendent spirits, who had surpassed everything. They saw that God was still sitting in the heavens; He had not changed at all. They themselves might have changed, their environment might have changed, their feelings might have changed, and their bodies might have been suffering, but God was still sitting on the throne. He was still worthy of their blessings. Our brothers, Paul and Silas, were praying, singing, and praising God. This kind of praise, which arises out of pain and loss, is a sacrifice of praise. This kind of praise is a victory.

　　When you pray, you are still in the midst of your situation. But when you praise, you soar above your situation. While you are praying and pleading, you are bound by your affairs; you are not out of them. The more you plead, the more you find yourself bound and pressed....Paul and Silas...were brought by God to the point where the jail, the shame, and the pain were no longer a problem to them. They could praise God. When they praised in such a way, the doors of the jail opened, the chains fell off, and even the jailer was saved. (CWWN, vol. 48, "Messages for Building Up New Believers (1)," pp. 250-251)

　　Further Reading: CWWN, vol. 48, "Messages for Building Up New Believers (1)," ch. 16