To gain the world...

Let’s begin with a definition:

Com-pro-mise - “To reduce the quality, value or degree of something” OR “The terms of a settlement” OR “Something midway between 2 or more different things”

Hold unto that word, we’ll come back to it in a bit.

Everyone strives to be something, everyone strives to get somewhere. Everyone hopes for the best in life and at least at one point we are have been so determined we’ll get there regardless of the odds. We are so high in the clouds, and nothing can stop us. We are equipped with our hi-tech inspector “go-go” gadgets, ready to tackle any obstacle that dares get in our way. We’ll fight to the end! But sadly, more often than not a dream remains a dream. Why? Well I’m sure there are many feasible reasons, but there are also reasons that are more like excuses e.g. laziness, the “I’m bothered one day & I can’t be bothered the next day” attitude etc. So no brownie points for the one this blog will be focusing on?! ...You’ve got it: COMPROMISE

“A father and son were raking leaves when they noticed something darting in and out of the piles. After careful effort they uncovered a chameleon. It was difficult to see among the brown leaves. It had blended with them by turning brown, too. After catching the little creature, they put it in a jar of green grass, where it immediately turned green. When they added some red berries, the chameleon began to take on that colour. Some people are chameleons in character; wherever you put them, they turn that colour. Their thinking and their behaviour depend on their environment”¹

Compromise is something we deal with on a daily basis, and it is not always a bad thing! It can be used in sensible decision making for example agreeing on a place and time to meet up with a friend who has a really busy schedule. On the other hand sometimes compromise means that we let go of what we know is actually good for us to reach out and grab what we feel, at the time is the ‘best’ decision for us.

The bible asks this simple question: “What do you benefit if you gain the whole world but lose your soul?” (Mark 8:36). In other words it’s saying you can choose to compromise your soul (which is of eternal value) and chase after/dedicate all your time to what living a life outside of Christ has to offer (which is of temporary value), but what good will it be for you (who is an eternal and not temporary being)? What things do we compromise on and how can we live a life without negotiating when it comes to our faith?

There are a few factors that come into play when dealing with compromise:

1. We have to devalue the things we compromise.

In Philippians 3:8 Paul writes “...Everything else is worthless when compared with the infinite value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For His sake I have discarded everything else, counting it all as garbage, so that I could gain Christ”.  

2. We have to have the willingness to let go.

Its one thing to know that what we compromise on is of no value, but it’s another thing to apply this in our lives and let go!! Pray and ask God for a change of heart towards those things, for the strength to loosen your grip on what is valued above Him.

3. Stability &Integrity

A sure mind is a stable mind. Knowing something beyond doubt implies faith. Trust that God, who holds us, will give us the confidence to be constant in our decisions to uniquely stand out from our common world for Him. Alongside this is the need to remain integral (i.e. being who you say you are no matter who, or who is not, watching and no matter the situation faced). They are hard standards to achieve and it doesn’t take one day to develop such character, but stick at it, they are useful traits that can carry us through the many phases of life.  

Final words: Please realise salvation is no joke. We get saved from the dangers of this world that appear so beautifully scented we can't even tell we're roaming in the gutter! We get saved: our eyes see and our lips taste the TRUTH, yet we walk back to the same old scene - "homesick" because we never really took time to settle in and enjoy the wonders of our new life - we indulge in the sugar-coated poisons, backward walking - never progressing! *GodGiveUsGrace* We have got to let our minds, hearts and lives be a TRUE reflection of Christ - Servanthood, Submission & Sacrifice #NoMoreCompromise

References

1. Sermoncentral.com