The Lord is awe-inspiring, fearsome, fascinating, intriguing, majestic, and full of splendor: breathtaking! Here is what I saw of him and what came to my mind and heart in Jonah 1:9-11,
"'I am a Hebrew and I worship the Lord, the God of heaven, who made the sea and the land.' This terrified them and they asked, 'What have you done?' (They knew he was running away from the Lord, because he had already told them so.) The sea was getting rougher and rougher. So they asked him, 'What should we do to you to make the sea calm down for us?' 'Pick me up and throw me into the sea,' he replied, and it will become calm. I know that it is my fault that this great storm has come upon you.'"
Jonah acknowledged he worshipped the Lord. He proclaimed the Lord was the God of heaven, the Maker of the sea and the land. And, yet, here Jonah is, running away from him, the One he claimed to worship. Jonah even knew he was at odds with the Lord and confessed he was the cause of a great storm that threatened the lives of all aboard the ship Jonah was fleeing the Lord on.
Merriam-Webster's online dictionary defines "flirting" as to move erratically; to behave amorously without serious intent; to show superficial or casual interest or liking; to come close to reaching or experiencing something.
Jonah certainly did experience something. Something I suspect he had no idea was coming his way. He was thrown overboard and found himself inside the belly of a great fish for three days and three nights. This, it seems to me, due to Jonah flirting with the Lord. Jonah was a worshipper of God, and yet, when God expressed what he wanted and asked Jonah to do it, Jonah's ardor for the Lord as a worshipper was found to be less than a full commitment - hence, in my estimation, more of a flirtation with the Lord.
I myself can't be too hard on Jonah, however. I don't know how many times in my life I subordinated what I knew the Lord's desire to be in favor of what I desired. As opposed to a full commitment, I've flirted with the Lord at times over the years. Today I am reminded of what the Lord said in Matthew 10:37-39, "Anyone who loves his father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; anyone who loves his son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and anyone who does not take his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Whoever finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find it." This to me, speaks of commitment.
For me, I find this commitment expressed best in how I spend my time, my talents, my treasure. If I claim to love the Lord, if I claim to worship him, how much effort to I expend to get to know him? Do I immerse myself in a fellowship that seeks him? Do I avail myself of the things he wants me to know of him in the pages of Scripture? Do I meditate on what he has said, what he has revealed of himself? Do I invest what he has given me in the things he pursues? Do I bring my thoughts and concerns to him in prayer?
As anyone else, the best expression of my worship of the Lord resides in what I did last week, not what I think I might be doing this week. How much time did I spend with him in Scripture and prayer? What did I do to further his agenda of redemption: did I share the gospel with anyone? What I have done, not what I purpose to do, demonstrates whether I worship God or just flirt with him.
A synonym for "flirt" in the dictionary is "trifle". Unless I can lay claim to finding expression for my worship of God, I'm afraid I'm simply trifling with him. Jonah trifled with God and look at what happened to him! God is not to be trifled with! "It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God." Hebrews 10:31.
Anything of the Lord capture your heart from Scripture today? Share your thoughts of worship with us from your Bible reading today. We'd love to hear from you!
Trevor Fisk
trevor.fisk@gmail.com
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