An Ol' Broad's Ramblings
Faith on the Field
When did God become a sports fan?
Franklin, the UFC fighter, says he doesn’t know if God cared if he knocked out Travis “The Serial Killer” Lutter in Montreal, Canada. But “it doesn’t hurt to ask.”
“Win or lose, I always thank God for what he’s given me,” says Franklin, an evangelical Christian.
Franklin says he thanks God after victories because he has felt God’s presence in the midst of mixed martial arts battle.
(…)
Athletes who publicly thank God for victory are often calling more attention to themselves than their faith, says William J. Baker, author of “Playing with God.”
They are selling their goodness, and their brand of faith, to a captive audience, says Baker, who describes himself as a Christian.
“I don’t think it’s the right place and it’s not the right gesture,” says Baker, a former high school quarterback. “It’s an athlete using a moment to sell a product, like soap.”
When did the media become so ignorant? Any place, and EVERY place, is the RIGHT place to thank God, and sing his praises!
2 Samuel 22:50 Therefore I will give thanks unto thee, O LORD, among the heathen, and I will sing praises unto thy name.
Psalm 50:14 Offer unto God thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the most High:
Psalm 69:30 I will praise the name of God with a song, and will magnify him with thanksgiving.
Matthew 28:19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
2 Timothy 4:2 Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine.
2 Timothy 4:5 But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.
Galatians 6:6 Let him that is taught in the word communicate unto him that teacheth in all good things.
Mark 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
Romans 7:25 I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin.
And that’s just a few examples. We are instructed, by God, to share the Word, to praise him, to proclaim before all, and these people are questioning what players do on the field? Well, I guess it just proves that some folks haven’t bothered to read the Book. Kind of like they pass judgments on bills they haven’t read. 
Matthew 19:26
But Jesus beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is impossible; but with God all things are possible.
OB, I think the point that was being made by Baker is this:
Matthew 6:6 But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.
There are many who were there Christianity on their coat sleeves that it may be seen by others, so that they may be considered special. In that regard, I think Baker is correct.
There is no doubt but that all your citations are also correct. The conflict is in the nature of the application. Everyone of us has to be mindful of both sides of these commands and seek to obey them both.
Granted, there are way too many who shout to the rooftops to impress everyone but Who they should be impressing. People thank God in public all the time, of course since we aren’t sports figures, or famous in any way, no one really pays attention. Don’t see anything wrong with someone giving thanks for blessings, survival being one of them, when it comes to sports folks.
Of course, if their actions are insincere, then there’s One who will know.
My understanding of the passage you shared concerns those yahoos that were so hypocritical in the Temple, ‘serving two masters’. I may off base though.