I.        INTRODUCTION

A.      Did you ever say to yourself, “I know I shouldn’t do this,” and then you did it anyway?  Did you justify yourself in your own mind, even though you knew in your heart you were wrong?  Did you compare yourself with someone else and decide that you were not all that bad?

B.      This kind of reasoning is spiritual compromise, and it is an ever-present and dangerous temptation for all Christians.

                                                             1.      God does not allow us to make compromises with His will, for He demands complete commitment by His children.

                                                             2.      Therefore, let us consider our own commitment to God and the temptations of Satan to compromise that commitment.

II.      THE DEMAND FOR COMMITMENT

A.      Throughout every dispensation of time, God has always demanded that man be completely committed unto Him.

                                                             1.      In the beginning, Adam was required to keep the commandments of God (Gen. 1:28-30; 2:15-17).

                                                             2.      After the flood, Noah and his family were expected to obey God (Gen. 9:1-7).

                                                             3.      Abraham and his descendants were required to keep the covenant established by God (Gen. 17).

                                                             4.      The nation of Israel was required to obey God through the Law of Moses (Ex. 19:3-8).

                                                             5.      Solomon said that the whole purpose of man is to fear God and keep His commandments (Eccl. 12:13).

                                                             6.      Jesus said that the greatest commandment in the Law of Moses was to love God with all of one’s heart, soul, and mind, which is to be fully committed unto God (Matt. 22:37).

                                                             7.      Today, Christ demands the highest level of commitment from His disciples.

a.       Our first priority as Christians is to seek the kingdom of God and His righteousness (Matt. 6:33).

b.       Our love for Christ must exceed our love for anyone or anything else (Matt. 10:37-39; Luke 9:23-24; 14:26-33).

c.        We are to present our bodies as living sacrifices in the service of the Lord (Rom. 12:1-2).

d.       Even if our commitment to Christ will result in our suffering or death, we are still expected to be committed unto Him (2Tim. 3:12; 4:6-8; Rev. 2:10).

B.      This expectation by God is completely reasonable, for He is completely committed unto man.

                                                             1.      God is the Creator of man who continuously works to sustain us (Acts 17:25, 28; Heb. 1:3; Rev. 4:11).

                                                             2.      All of God’s demands for commitment from man are accompanied by God’s commitment to bless man in this world and for eternity.  Just as He told Joshua, so He also tells us, “I will never desert you, nor will I ever forsake you” (Josh. 1:5; Heb. 13:5).

                                                             3.      The ultimate commitment that God made to man was to give His only begotten Son as a ransom for us so that our sins may be forgiven (Matt. 20:28; John 3:16; 1John 2:1-2).

                                                             4.      Therefore, it is not unreasonable for God to expect us to return to Him a debt of gratitude and service for the commitment that He has shown to us.

III.   THE TEMPTATION TO COMPROMISE

A.      Let us understand what compromise means.

                                                             1.      An examination of the two parts of the word “compromise” reveals its simple meaning.

a.       Com – This prefix means “together,” “mutual,” or “joint.”

b.       Promise – This word means “assurance,” “vow,” or “commitment.”

c.        Therefore, the word “compromise” means “a mutual commitment.”  It is an agreement between two conflicting parties or purposes to commit to the middle.

                                                             2.      In matters of opinion, business, or other neutral issues, compromise is often very good.  Someone who always has to have his way in such things is typically unreasonable, immature, and unpopular.

                                                             3.      However, compromise is never good in spiritual matters.

a.       In spiritual matters, the conflicting parties are God and Satan.  Because God is always right and Satan is always wrong, it is never good to compromise God’s will in any issue.

b.       The products of spiritual compromise are weakness, worldliness, shallow and worthless religion, false teaching, apathy, sin, and spiritual failure.

c.        Yet spiritual compromise is the accepted way of most religion today.  This is evident in that there are few accepted standards of right and wrong, situation ethics is the norm, and the worst offense one can make is to be judgmental or committed about the truth.

B.      Compromising between God’s will and the world is a tempting choice because Satan deceives us into believing that we can have it both ways.

                                                             1.      The original temptation of Eve was accomplished through Satan’s lie, “You surely shall not die” (Gen. 3:4).  He convinced Eve that she could disobey God and still live in the manner that she had previously known.

                                                             2.      Likewise, Satan still works through his devices to convince us now that we can compromise God’s will and still reap the rewards of obedience to God.  Consider some examples:

a.       Satan has convinced many churches that they can serve God’s purpose to make disciples for Christ without using the means that God has commanded.  Therefore, rather than preaching the gospel of Christ (Matt. 28:18-20; Rom. 1:16), they attract people by means of entertainment, food, and other unscriptural methods.

b.       Satan has deceived many families into believing that they can have godly households without following God’s commandments.  As a result, in many so-called Christian homes husbands despise their wives (Eph. 5:22-29), wives rebel against their husbands (Eph. 5:22-24), fathers have little to do with raising children (Eph. 6:4), mothers neglect their children in favor of careers (Tit. 2:4-5), and children disobey their parents (Eph. 6:1).

c.        Satan has convinced many Christians that they can give half-hearted service to God and still expect the full benefits of fellowship with Him.  This results in sporadic attendance in the assemblies of the church (Heb. 10:25), little or no interest in Bible study (2Tim. 3:16-17), fellowship with sinners (1Cor. 15:33), failure to pray (Phil. 4:6), and commission of sin (Gal. 5:19-21).

C.      This is why God’s messengers have often pleaded with God’s people to make a commitment to God and stand by it.

                                                             1.      Moses called upon Israel to commit themselves to God through His law (Ex. 19:3-8).

                                                             2.      Joshua called upon Israel to choose once and for all whether they would serve God or idols (Josh. 24:14-16).

                                                             3.      Elijah called upon Israel to choose once and for all between God and Baal (1Ki. 18:21).

                                                             4.      Christ calls upon us now to choose Him and not look back to the ways of the world (Luke 9:62).

D.      In truth, spiritual compromise is a weak and cowardly choice that is tantamount to rebellion against God.

                                                             1.      There are several possible reasons that one may choose to compromise God’s will.

a.       It may be that he thinks that he knows better than God

b.       It may be that he thinks that he can find an easier way that God’s way.

c.        It may be that he is afraid of the consequences from the world if he follows God’s will.

d.       It may be that he thinks that his minor sin will be of no consequence.

                                                             2.      In any case, when one rejects God in favor of Satan, it is rebellion, and its effects are the same as overt sin, for the destination of the cowardly and unbelieving is represented by “the lake that burns with fire and brimstone” (Rev. 21:8).

                                                             3.      Even though one may deceive others and even himself by his spiritual compromise, God will not be deceived, for every man will reap according to how he has sown (Gal.  6:7).

IV.    CONCLUSION

A.      If you have compromised a previous commitment that you made to God, then take advantage of God’s grace and renew your commitment to Him in Christ Jesus today (1John 1:8-10).

B.      If you have never committed to God in Christ, then take the opportunity afforded to you by God to make that commitment through obedience to the gospel of Christ and receive forgiveness of your sins (Acts 2:38).

C.      If you are committed to God through Christ, then be on guard against the schemes of Satan and do not compromise your firm stand for the truth.