The Danger of Compromise: Ease

An Easy Danger

One of the greatest temptations facing the church as she battles with the world is the desire to compromise. This danger is subtle and deadly, destroying the very foundation of what the church is meant to be one earth.

In this article we will conclude our look at compromise with the compromise of ease.

The Most Important Part of Life

The Christian walk is the most important part of one’s life and, like anything else of value in life, requires real effort. There is always temptation to avoid such effort and to take the path of least resistance when confronted with difficulty. This temptation is manifest in several different forms.

Laziness

There is the manifestation of laziness. When the labor becomes difficult or is challenged by the world, one can develop the philosophy that the effort itself is without value. Such a person may be very active in laboring for Christ when no conflict exists or when the efforts are perceived well, but will choose to abandon such labor when it becomes difficult. Some may not see such a choice as compromise, but by choosing to labor or not labor based on the world’s perception, one is letting the world dictate how the church should labor on earth, not the other way around.

Hypocrisy

There is the manifestation of hypocrisy. A famous example of such behavior can be found in Galatians Chapter 2 with the acts of Peter. Peter’s actions were not dictated by God’s Word or even his own moral standing; they were dictated by his peers. When no peers were present to challenge his eating with Gentiles, he was amiable to the practice (Gal. 2:12a). When peers critical to eating with Gentiles arrived, he changed his behavior to please their sensibility (Gal. 2:12bf). Such behavior is compromise to the opinion of man, not the command of God.

Ambivalence

There is the manifestation of ambivalence. This describes an attitude which seeks to avoid conflict at whatever cost. This philosophy can be described as choosing not to “rock the boat” for differing purposes – commonly the sake of “peace” or “fellowship”. The reality is that this is in fact compromise, choosing to avoid conflict when it is the most necessary. There is a time and place for confrontation in the body of Christ, and when the Word of God or commands of God are challenged, such is a paramount opportunity. It is at these times that the need to teach is most important, the worst possible time to avoid confrontation. Such ambivalence is usually the manifestation of cowardice more than anything else.

A Simple Idea

The compromise of ease takes many forms, but can be broken down into one simple idea. Those who do not which to make a hard stand, but instead take the path of least resistance will always choose the easy path. This attitude, however, was not the attitude of Christ when He faced challenge. What if Christ decided that preaching was not worth the trouble? What if Christ spoke words that pleased every crowd He was with? What if Christ decided to back down from His role as Savior? Why would we ever think Christ would want us to follow the easy path?