Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise – the fruit of lips that openly profess his name. 

In one of John White’s many fine books, he spoke about Christian witness being about simple honesty. We are not in hiding. ‘This is who I am; this is what I believe. If you want to know, I’ll tell you. I’ll give you a reason for the hope I have’ (see 1 Peter 3:15,16).

In verses 15,16 of our chapter we have two further examples of what Christian worship entails. In the first place, it means praising God. But the implication seems to be that this is not restricted to ‘times of worship’ in Christian gatherings. It also involves the public acknowledgment of God and proclamation of His Name out in the world.

We need to remember that this exhortation was given to believers in a context of persecution, where such ”praise” would place them in the firing line and require enormous courage.

 “A good witness isn’t like a salesman, his emphasis is on a person rather than a product. A good witness is like a signpost. It doesn’t matter whether it is old, young, pretty, ugly; it has to point the right direction and be able to be understood. We are witnesses to Christ, we point to him.” John White