One of my favorite passages in the Bible is Jonah 2:8-9. The version below is from the NIV about 10 years ago. It is very interesting because the verses in the most current NIV are different. I prefer the older version:
8 “Those who cling to worthless idols forfeit the grace that could be theirs.
9 But I, with a song of thanksgiving, will sacrifice to you.
What I have vowed I will make good. I will say, ‘Salvation comes from the Lord.’”
I love this because it is so descriptive and I love the terminology that is used – I can cling to worthless idols that this world has to offer OR I can cling to Christ – where there is grace! The word “cling” makes me think of a monkey clinging to a tree branch. It must let go of the tree branch to make the choice to do something different and go to a different tree. An idol is anything that gets our devotion or serves as an object of our worship. Simply put, it is a false god that we have chosen to seek after rather than Christ, who we were made to seek after. It is like the broken cisterns in Jeremiah 2 that we run to that I referenced in my very first post, “Broken Cisterns.” All of the energy, emotion, and time that we invest in running after worthless idols is wasted. So, what are these idols? The idols that we fall for and run after take many forms – money, food, sex, drugs, work, sleep, alcohol, etc. They would also include any object of addiction. They are so appealing to the eye but are poison to our souls. Maybe you don’t know what idols you struggle with. The vast majority are passed down through generations before us. You can also just look at where you invest most of your time, money, energy, and emotion.
What are the idols that you are running after today? What are these objects of your devotion that push God aside? How are they working for you? How satisfying are they really? The idols I have struggled with have never satisfied me or quenched my thirst. They just leave my barren soul empty! God created each one of us with needs that only He can meet and desires that only He can satisfy and thirst that only He can quench. He did this because He is God and He is the Creator and He desires that we are completely devoted to and dependent upon Him.
I choose today not to forfeit the grace that is mine in Christ Jesus!
