03/27/2024
Here goes...
Compromise doesn’t happen overnight. There are many seemingly harmless changes that occur before a person becomes a full-blown compromiser. Small, unimportant and irrelevant changes. The steps that are taken begin with following trends that lead to compromise. They are not “compromise” in and of themselves. But one thing is clear; more often than not, they lead there. Slowly but surely. I’ve studied it; watched it; analyzed it, and it is very real.
Instead of debating whether or not these small, “harmless” steps are biblical or unbiblical, maybe we should take a step back and look at the preachers and churches that abandoned clear, biblical truth for modern, ecumenical, contemporary, seeker-sensitive, worldly paths. One thing is crystal clear – I’ve never witnessed a church that jumped from using the King James, singing hymns, promoting holiness and practicing biblical modesty, and then suddenly became an NKJV, ESV, Hillsong and Bethel singing, gender-blurring worldly, carnal church overnight. I’ve never seen that happen. None of us have. It starts with an attitude of permissiveness, a strong emphasis on our liberty in Christ, a lot of “judge not” comments, ultra-heavy on God’s grace and being critical of those that have not changed. One thing leads to another, and before long, the church has gone liberal.
They changed their standards, they changed their “preferences”, they changed the crowd they run with, they changed their philosophy, they changed their approach to ministry, they changed their position on modesty, music, and manuscripts, and ultimately, they change their doctrine. It is a gradual but noticeable trend that I have personally witnessed in the 30 years I’ve been preaching. Over and over again, I have watched solid churches and solid men become liberal by following these gradual changes. And to this day, they insist that they have not “compromised.” They get offended at any criticism that they have “changed”, when in fact, not only did they change, they are unrecognizable. I’ve yet to meet a compromiser that admitted to being one. They just “grew.”
Instead of justifying and defending all the seemingly insignificant and subtle changes as irrelevant, maybe folks should take a long hard look at where those changes lead.
Make no mistake. You can make whatever changes you want to. You won’t give account to me or anybody else. You will give an account to God. You do whatever you want to do, and follow whatever path you feel is right. Just do us a favor. Don’t ask us to pretend that the trends are not real, and the end results are not always the same. They are. You and I may not be a full-blown compromiser today, but we will be if we take the same steps, make the same mistakes, ignore the same warnings and follow the same mindset that every other compromiser has made.
Instead of getting defensive, maybe you should give the guys that are trying to keep you from drifting a big hug. Instead of calling us critics and judgmental, thank us for caring enough to say something. It is my sincere opinion that the compromisers far outnumber the critics. If you’re going to bark at someone, bark at them.
And don’t tell me that you have to change the platform dress code, get rid of the pulpit, toss out the piano and organ and replace it with drums and keyboards in order to grow. Don’t tell me you have to bring in the praise teams and get rid of the hymn books and turn the lights down and fog the place up to get people saved.
Whatever you do, please don’t tell our church that. They don’t know any better. We’re seeing people saved every week, baptized, added to the church, discipled on a weekly basis, our Faith Promise Missions pledges just exceeded $440,000, having first-time visitors every service and believe it or not, we haven’t changed anything. God’s work done God’s way still yields God’s blessings.
I’m no expert. I’ve still got a lot to learn. But please don’t tell me that following these trends do not lead to compromise. I’ve watched it happen far too many times to be told that it is a figment of my imagination.
I love you! Let's keep standing and reach the world for Christ!
