Don’t Play Past The Bike (Common Sense Theology)

Recently my 4-year-old son was happily playing outside when I noticed that he had drifted down to the end of our driveway precariously close to the road. Hastily, I ran to him full of worry induced anger, and loudly reminded him that he is not allowed to play near the road. During my lecture, I noticed that his bike was conveniently located about halfway down the driveway between the house and the road.  In a moment of inspiration, I yelled, “Bubs, don’t play past the bike!” I repeated myself several times for emphasis and stepped away confident that he would stay on the right side of the bike, safely away from the dangers of the road. Not more than five minutes passed before I checked on him a second time and was shocked to see him standing at the edge of the driveway yet again. Frustrated that he had ignored my instructions and fearing for his safety I yelled, “Son, what do you think you are doing?  I said not to play past the bike.” He looked at me with big, innocent eyes and said defensively, “Daddy, I didn’t play past the bike!” It was then I noticed that technically, he had not played past the bike. Rather, he had cleverly moved it to the road keeping it in front of him the whole time.

My son had found what he thought to be an acceptable loophole in the system. In his mind, he had found a clever plan to get his way and keep me happy too. At the very least, he hoped to avoid getting in big trouble. I appeared to be the mean Daddy who didn’t want him to have any fun. But he forgot that there was a very important reason for the bike boundary; safety. My responsibility as a parent is to keep him safe first and happy second.

Like my son, we too try to cleverly move the boundaries that God has placed in our lives. We don’t want to be in direct defiance against God so we passively aggressively pick up the boundaries and carry them with us right into the very danger zone that God was trying to keep us from entering in the first place. It’s important to remember that God loves us (Click to read 7 Inspiring Verses About God’s Love For Us). When God places boundaries in our lives He does it out of love. When God tells us to forgive our enemies (Matthew 5:44, Romans 12:17-21) it’s not meant to harm us; God knows that hatred and bitterness are cancers that will destroy our lives. When God commands us not to commit adultery (1 Corinthians 6:9, Matthew 5:27-28) and to maintain moral purity (Click to read 55 Verses About Moral Purity) He is not trying to keep us from happiness; He knows that immorality produces great heartache and faithfulness and commitment bring a lifetime of joy.Most of the time we know deep down that moving the landmark isn’t ok, but we do it anyway hoping that God won’t notice our disobedience. As we move into a new year let’s commit to obeying the voice of God rather than playing around with technicalities and looking for clever loopholes. Let’s remember the biblical admonition, “Remove not the ancient landmark, which thy fathers have set (Proverbs 22:28).”

What’s the Difference Between Praise & Worship?

Understanding the difference between praise and worship brings a new depth to the way we honor the Lord. Throughout the Bible, we are commanded to praise the Lord. Angels and the heavenly hosts are commanded to praise the Lord (Psalms 103:20, Psalm 19:1). All inhabitants of the earth are instructed to praise the Lord (Psalm 150:6). We can praise Him with singing, and with shouting, and with the dance, and with musical instruments of all types. We are even instructed to make a joyful noise (Psalm 98:4). However, the Bible seems to imply that sometimes singing just isn’t enough, sometimes shouting just isn’t adequate, sometimes dancing is out of the question, sometimes words fail, and in those moments, you should simply make a joyful noise.

Praise: from the Hebrew verb HALAL (where we get the word hallelujah), means to praise, celebrate, glory, sing, or boast. Praise is, in fact, the joyful recounting of all that God has done for us. It’s closely intertwined with thanksgiving as we offer back to God appreciation for His mighty works on our behalf. Praise is universal and can be applied to other relationships as well. We can praise our family, our friends, our boss, and on and on. Worship, however, comes from a different place within our spirits. Worship should be reserved for God alone (Luke 4:8). Praise can be a part of worship, but worship goes beyond praise. Praise is easy; worship is not. Worship gets to the heart of who we are. To truly worship God, we must let go of our self-worship. Worshipers humble themselves before God, surrender every part of their lives to His control, and adore Him for who He is, not just what He has done. Worship is a lifestyle, not an occasional activity. Jesus said, “…the Father is seeking those who will worship Him in spirit and in truth” (John 4:23).

In Scripture, praise is usually presented as boisterous, joyful, and uninhibited. God invites praise of all kinds from His creation. Jesus said that if people don’t praise God, even the “stones will cry out” (Luke 19:40). But when the Bible mentions worship, the tone changes. We read verses like, “Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness” (Psalm 96:9).  And, “Come let us worship and bow down” (Psalm 95:6). Often, worship is coupled with the act of bowing or kneeling, which shows humility and contrition. Through true worship, we invite the Holy Spirit to speak to us, convict us, and comfort us. We realign our priorities with God and acknowledge Him once more as the rightful Lord of our lives through worship. Praise is intertwined with thanksgiving. Worship is intertwined with surrender. It is impossible to worship God and anything else at the same time (Luke 4:8). The physical acts often associated with worship—bowing, kneeling, lifting hands—help create the attitude of humility required for real worship.

The differences between praise and worship are often described in this way: Praise is about God, and worship is to God. Praise is opening up. Worship is entering in. Praise is boldly declaring. Worship is humbly bowing in the presence of a Holy God. Praise applauds what God has done. Worship is honoring God for who He is. Worship is an attitude of the heart. A person can go through the outward motions of praise and not be worshiping. God sees the heart, and He desires and deserves sincere, heartfelt praise and worship.