"Enter into His gates with thanksgiving (Towdah) and into His courts with praise (Tehillah)" Psalm 100:4.
The entrance into the court or His presence is through the gate, Towdah - confession. But the perceived manifested presence of the Father is in the court - Tehillah.
When Solomon completed all the work for the house of the Lord, the singers and musicians "...were as one to make one sound to be heard in praising (Halah) and thanking (Yadah) the Lord, and when they lifted their voice with the trumpets and symbols and instruments of music, and praise (Halah) the Lord, ... the glory of the Lord filled the house of God." 2 Chronicles 5:1,13,14.
In other words when they gave Tehillah, which means to sing Halah, the presence of God manifested and filled the Temple. It was while they were ministering; singing and playing music in praise, that God manifested Himself through His glory.
The glory of the Lord is the Holy Spirit. For "...Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Lord." Romans 6:4. And Romans 8:11 says that it was "...the spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead." So we understand that the glory of the Lord is the Holy Spirit. If you are a Christian then the Holy Spirit, the glory of God, is in you. Romans 8:9. Jesus said He would give us the Spirit to abide with us forever. That He would never leave or forsake us. John 14:16,17; Hebrews 13:5. Again we are told that our body is the temple of the Holy Spirit. I Corinthians 3:16; 6:19. Could it be that if we give Tehillah to the Father that He will reveal or manifest Himself so that we perceive His presence? YES! Tehillah is about the manifested presence of God through His Spirit in you and me.
The word Tehillah shows up 56 times in the Old Testament. A simple way to think of Simple for us is that Tehillah means a song or hymn of praise. Vocally, we express worship. While halal gave us the view of being in public and acting fooling, Tehillah specifically is describing us singing and vocalizing our praise. With halal, praise is seen. With Tehillah, it is heard! Praise is not only heard, but the idea is that we are louder for our God than we would be for ourselves. Our song declares the name and traits of the one we love and worship. In our culture, the celebrity is worshiped the same way the word Tehillah connotes. The screams of preteens at a Justin Beiber concert could be a cultural equivalent. Or, how about the crowds lined up to wave and call out to the Queen of England as her motorcade passes?
The power of Tehillah expresses itself vocally so that there is no doubt who the star in the room is. In our worship services, do our songs have this effect? Do they make it clear that our noise is about honoring our God? We can make noise, and it feels great, even at a rock concert. But, if praise is not directed to God, even our songs can potentially be idolatrous. Shouldn't our worship for the One who created and saved us be louder than that of a mere celebrity? Today in your own worship, begin to praise the only One deserving of it with more praise than some mere celebrity.
