While driving down the road one day I saw a large church sign,
The intent was good as church signs should, but its opinion wasn’t mine.
It said that Hallelujah is the highest form of praise,
But I have my own message and my protest I must raise.
Hallelujah means to praise the Lord beseeching others to join in,
A joyous proclamation, to Christ’s royal throne ascends.
So sing it from the rooftops, sing it loud and clear,
It must be pleasing to our God and pleasing to His ear.
But it’s the fruit of lips and a service of that alone,
It does not reveal the heart of man, of which to God is known.
Words are good, but talk is cheap, we’ve a better gift to give,
Works done in love and obedience, in the way we live.
Actions they speak louder than words, by a hundred fold,
And when they’re done in love, they’re worth the world’s great weight in gold.
“Hallelujah, praise the Lord” won’t feed and clothe the poor,
Won’t save the lost and lonely when they’re knocking at your door.
They will not heal a broken heart or free those bound by sin,
They do not love a child or the widows do defend.
They have their place and that is good for God deserves all praise,
But to a deaf man it’s meaningless, his soul it does not phase.
Your hands and feet make love complete, so get out of that chair,
You are no exception; you have a cross to bear.
Jesus’ words are golden and quoting Him is too,
But, folks, you have to back them up in everything you do.
Blessed is the woman Mary who gave birth to our Lord Christ,
Who with her breast she nursed Him and sustained His Holy life.
But Jesus said more blessed is the one who hears God’s word,
And puts it into practice, every syllable he has heard.
The highest compliment to a man is to copy all his ways,
So we must live like Jesus all our life and every day.
“Hallelujah, praise the Lord,” to say this is so great,
But what we do and live before men’s eyes carries so much weight.
Tell Him that you love Him, but to show Him is even better,
Everyone around the world knows a gift does beat a letter.
“Hallelujah, Jesus, I love you,” you know, Lord, this is true,
But I’ll put my money where my mouth is, in everything I do.
Tertius
These people honor me with their lips,
but their hearts are far from me.
Matthew 15:8
Hallelujah! O my soul, praise GOD!
All my life long I’ll praise GOD,
singing songs to my God as long as I live.
Psalm 146:1-2
A note about “Hardlynuya”: While driving down the road a few miles from home I saw a church sign that said, “Halleluiah is the highest form of praise.” While saying, singing, or writing “Halleluiah” is bound to please God, (only if one’s heart is right) I believe the higher form of praise is obedience. I finished the poem before the sign was changed and left it on the threshold of the front door of the church. After doing this I got back in my car, but it came to me to leave my name and phone number on the poem. I did this in case someone found my Bible-based opinion objectionable. I did not get a call. I think we all can agree that giving birth to Jesus would be a higher form of praise than a simple “halleluiah.” So to close my argument see Luke 11:27-28.