The first memory I have of making an active decision to compromise something was when I was around 12 or 13. I was watching the TV show “Grey’s Anatomy,” and two of the main characters were having an affair. I remember actively cheering for the man to leave his wife just so he could stay with the woman he was having an affair with (Like..what?!?). As I watched this unfold, I remember thinking to myself: “Am I really cheering for adultery?” - and being torn between what is right and what felt good to watch, but I kept dismissing it because their story looked so exciting and romantic. “It’s just TV” is what I would tell myself. It felt good to watch two people fall in love, even if that meant infidelity. I compromised my morals and values for the sake of watching something that felt good. 

The trick with compromising the “small” day-to-day decisions is that if you do it long enough, the lines start getting blurred in every area of your life. And blurred lines lead to tolerated sin. And tolerated sin leads to an idol embraced. I do want to point out there are good and bad types of compromises. Good compromise happens when people decide to agree on something even if it means that someone will have to make a sacrifice. Bad compromise happens when someone chooses to live below the standards they know to be true. We compromise when we make excuses and accommodations for our less than godly behaviors. Many people walk this road of compromise. Myself included. We love God, but honestly, we also love our secret sins. And yet, I’ve found that when we try to live in both worlds, we just end up living miserable lives. 

Everybody’s doing it!

It’s just this one time!

It’s not that important!

James 4:4 says, “Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.”

Can the devil persuade us into thinking what we are choosing to compromise is not a sin? Can he trick us into thinking our behaviors are justified because it's not “that big of a deal”? Can he steal our joy and keep us focused on ourselves and on what feels good? Unfortunately, in many cases, the answer is yes. If we give him an inch, he’ll take a mile, so that’s what he’s looking for—a little tiny crack in our convictions. A small compromise that will turn into a gateway for destruction. 

Compromise is a slow process.  It is a thousand small decisions in the heart and mind that eventually take us away from the truth. No one wakes up one day and says, “I’m going to compromise the principles of God’s Word upon which I’ve built my life upon today!” It’s a slow process that gets out of balance and eventually becomes a habit that is hard to break.

So how can we fill those cracks in our divided hearts? Personally, the only answer I have found to this question is by making Jesus my ultimate and only absolute delight. The answer to a world without compromise is loving Jesus more than your desire to compromise. It’s loving Jesus more than temporary satisfaction. It’s a simple truth, but one that is so packed with freedom and righteousness. Love Jesus, keep the truth of the Word of God in front of you DAILY and surround yourself with GOOD friends who are not afraid to call you out when they see you living beneath the life God has called you to live.

“The chief danger of the Church today is that it is trying to get on the same side as the world, instead of turning the world upside down. Our Master expects us to accomplish results, even if they bring opposition and conflict. Anything is better than compromise, apathy, and paralysis. God, give to us an intense cry for the old-time power of the Gospel and the Holy Ghost!” - A.B. Simpson

Posted 7/15/2022