Getting Rid Of The “Yets”

Yet the high places were not taken away; the people continued sacrificing and burning incense on the high places. – 2 Kings 15.35, CSB

The temptation to settle for less than the Lord is strong. So, we can easily make one small compromise because the “yet” is very attractive. But the problem with this is that one compromise usually leads to another, and then another. What we see as “not that big of a deal” ultimately gets us off course entirely. For example. If a pilot wanted to travel from Los Angeles to New York, and were off course by only 1 degree, he/she would find that they would finish their journey in Connecticut or New Jersey. They would still be on the East Coast, but miles away from where they wanted to be.**

In Judah’s history, many kings would do what was pleasing in the Lord’s sight. Yet, the high places weren’t removed. “The high places serve as a symbol of Israel’s recurring temptation to stray from exclusive worship of Yahweh. They represent the tension between cultural assimilation and covenant faithfulness. The prophets frequently condemned the high places, associating them with spiritual adultery and calling the people back to pure worship.”* There were even times when child sacrifices would occur in worship to false gods, an act that God never commanded nor even thought to command because of how abhorrent they were to him (Jeremiah 7.31). 

Are there any “yets” in your life that you must confess? Are there any “yets” that were, at first, small compromises that caused you to make even more compromises and left you defeated and feeling trapped by your sin? Are there parts of your life that you have not fully surrendered to the Lord because you enjoy them, or they have entangled you for so long that you are now enslaved to them? What if you finish reading this and then stop? What if you sit quietly before the Lord and ask him to reveal those “yets” in your life that you must destroy to enjoy the abundant life that Jesus offers you fully? We must sacrifice those things on the altar before the Lord, confessing and repenting from them, as our praise offering to him. We need to be honest with the Lord about them, not justifying our “yets” as “not that bad” or things we think we need, and admit that they keep us from fully following Jesus.

God, would you please reveal to us any “yets” that we need to sacrifice so that we are fully devoted to you? We don’t want anything that is not from you. Help us recognize our compromises and get rid of them so that we might fully worship you and receive all you desire.

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*“Topical Bible: The Significance of High Places.” Biblehub.com, 2025, biblehub.com/topical/t/the_significance_of_high_places.htm. Accessed 3 May 2025.

** “Getting Your Heading Right: The Outsized Power of One Degree – Ben Guttmann’s Blog.” Benguttmann.com, 2022, http://www.benguttmann.com/blog/getting-your-heading-right-the-outsized-power-of-one-degree.