We Were Made for Limits
Teaching Notes
In a world that celebrates limitlessness, we often view boundaries as restrictive rather than protective. Yet the truth is that the limits God places on our lives aren't meant to confine us—they're designed to help us flourish. When we understand the purpose behind God's boundaries, we discover that true freedom isn't found in doing whatever we want, but in living within the wise limits established by our Creator.
Why Do We Struggle With Limits in the Digital Age?
Our digital devices have created an unprecedented challenge to living within healthy boundaries. With smartphones in our pockets, we have access to unlimited information, constant connection, and endless entertainment. But this technological breakthrough has led many of us to ask an important question: Are we consuming content, or is the content consuming us?
As author John Eldredge notes, "Weary disciple of the Internet, your soul has been conditioned to take in massive amounts of content every day, far beyond the soul's ability to absorb. You think it's normal, but it's not. Precious truths are washed away every hour by waves of incoming content."
This digital fast is an opportunity to pay attention to what we're paying attention to. It's not about abandoning technology completely, but about removing the apps and habits that distract us from what truly matters.
What Can We Learn From the First Boundary in Scripture?
The very first limit God established appears in Genesis 2, when He placed Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden. God provided abundantly for them, giving them access to every tree in the garden except one—the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. This wasn't an arbitrary restriction; it was a loving boundary with a clear warning: "For in the day that you eat of it, you will surely die."
When the serpent tempted Eve, his strategy was to question God's goodness and suggest that God was withholding something valuable: "You will be like God, knowing good and evil." This same temptation—to reject God's limits and pursue godlike knowledge and power—continues to drive our unhealthy relationship with technology today.
What Is the Purpose of God's Limits?
1. Limits Humble Us and Remind Us We're Not God
Our devices give us a taste of divine attributes that only God was meant to possess
Omniscience (all-knowing): Through search engines and AI, we have access to virtually unlimited information. Yet unlike God, we weren't designed to handle the knowledge of good and evil without being corrupted by it.
Omnipresence (everywhere-present): Video calls and social media create the illusion that we can be present everywhere at once. But this often steals our ability to be fully present where we physically are.
Omnipotence (all-powerful): Technology amplifies our power, allowing us to order products that arrive within hours or broadcast opinions to millions instantly. This convenience can make us forget our natural limitations.
The root of our struggle is the same temptation Adam and Eve faced: "Will I trust the God who made me, or invent a God who agrees with me? Will I surrender to God's image or remake God in mine?"
2. Limits Guard Us From Ourselves
Just as parents set boundaries to protect their children from harm, God establishes limits to protect us from our own destructive tendencies. The good gifts God has given us—food, work, entertainment, sex, alcohol—can quickly become harmful when used beyond their intended limits.
Love always draws boundaries not to confine, but to guard and protect what matters most.
3. Limits Lead Us to Real Freedom
Contrary to popular belief, freedom isn't the absence of limits—it's the presence of wisdom to choose what brings life. In Scripture, sin is described as slavery, while salvation is the beginning of freedom.
Real freedom is not the power to indulge every desire; it's the power to deny the desires that threaten to destroy our souls, our relationships, and our calling.
4. Limits Invite Us Into Abundant Life
Our devices have often numbed, sedated, distracted, exhausted, isolated, and disconnected us from reality. Like Narcissus in Greek mythology who stared at his reflection until he died, we can become so fixated on the perfectly curated reflection of ourselves in our digital feeds that we miss the abundant life God offers.
5. Limits Guide Us to Everlasting Life
In Eden, God placed both the tree of knowledge and the tree of life. When Adam and Eve crossed God's boundary by eating from the forbidden tree, death entered the world. But God didn't leave us without hope—He provided one way back to life through Jesus Christ.
As Jesus said in John 14:6, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." While we often look to our devices for satisfaction, purpose, and joy, Jesus invites us: "Come to me, all who are weary and thirsty, and receive drink and rest for your soul."
Life Application
During this digital fast, consider taking these practical steps:
Evaluate your relationship with your devices: Are they tools that serve you, or have they become masters that control you
Set intentional boundaries: Remove distraction apps from your phone for a season. Turn it into a utility device rather than an entertainment center.
Be present where you are: When you're with family or friends, be fully there. Put your phone away and engage with the people God has placed in your life.
Turn to Jesus as your source of life: Instead of looking to your devices for satisfaction, turn to Christ who offers living water to all who are thirsty.
Ask yourself these questions:
What limits do I need to establish in my digital life to protect what matters most?
In what ways have I been striving to be limitless like God instead of embracing my human limitations?
How might my relationship with Jesus grow deeper if I removed some of the digital distractions competing for my attention?
Remember, we were made for limits. The boundaries God establishes aren't meant to restrict us but to free us to live the abundant life He designed us to enjoy.
Setlist
WFC Lenexa + WFC Anywhere
Goodbye Yesterday- Elevation Rhythm and Gracie Binion
Glorious Day- Passion and Kristian Stanfill
Love of God- Brandon Lake and Phil Wickham
WFC Speedway
Promises- Maverick City and Naomi Raine
Abide- New Life Worship
A Thousand Hallelujahs- Brooke Ligertwood
Wothy of it All- CeCe Winans
Be sure to save our Spotify Worship Playlist, updated weekly with the upcoming Sunday’s set!
