These are the proverbs of Solomon, David’s son, king of Israel. Their purpose is to teach people wisdom and discipline, to help them understand the insights of the wise. Their purpose is to teach people to live disciplined and successful lives, to help them do what is right, just, and fair. [Proverbs 1.1-3]
I heard an eye-opening sermon yesterday about compromise.
As I read this passage (and all of today's OYCB reading from Proverbs 1-4), I could not help but imagine that compromise is the opposite of discipline.
Think about it, compromise requires no discipline - in fact, it erodes discipline. Discipline, on the other hand, cannot compromise, or else it would not be discipline at all.
Let me insert here that discipline only works with wisdom. Wisdom only comes from God. God gives wisdom through His Word.
I know we all want to cry out, "Grace, grace!" ...but I think we who have submitted to the call of God's Holy Spirit to trust Jesus and be saved all share the same disdain when we "sin again." I think true believers genuinely want to walk in the power of God - that power demonstrated by Jesus - but find it beyond their reach most of the time. Why?
Why indeed!
The only reason God's power is not manifest is because God is not manifest. When we quench the Spirit of God, we effectively drive Him out and away from the circumstances in which we find ourselves.
Why did not every person alive get healed when Jesus walked the earth? Because He did not attend to each and every person! He only performed miracles for those with whom He can into contact! And, that 'contact' indeed involved faith. However, the lack of faith effectively turned Jesus away from certain areas.
When our deceitful hearts to allow us to compromise, we allow ourselves to be removed from the power and presence of God. How do we know we have compromised? Because we do not see the same works Jesus did in our lives! We cannot forget that our hearts are deceitful in all things and desperately wicked... Why else would Jesus declare for those crucifying Him, "Father, forgive them, they do not know what they are doing..."?
The thing is, compromise doesn't look all that bad at first. It is only after we 'have the blood of Jesus on our hands' that we realize how far we have gone astray. Everything Solomon says in Proverbs supports this warning: a little sin ALWAYS leads to a LOT MORE.
To allow ourselves to sin (calling it "grace") is to entirely miss the point of Jesus' crucifixion on the cross - it is compromise.
Discipline is the only remedy for compromise. Discipline starts with repentance but does not stop there! Discipline makes changes. Discipline is constantly seeking change for the better. Discipline is never content with sin or anything that even remotely looks like sin. Discipline is always learning. Discipline is always growing. Discipline is always praying. Discipline is always seeking God's Kingdom first. Discipline is always feeding and meditating on God's Word. Discipline seeks out and devours compromise. Discipline may witness our fall (seven times even) but will ALWAYS witness us getting back up!
We need discipline as much as we don't need compromise. To think we just need to find a 'happy balance somewhere in between' is, in fact, compromise...
Father, I have so bought in to compromise in my life. I see now the grave error of my ways - much too late in some cases. Please forgive me for trusting my deceitful and desperately wicked heart instead of trusting Your Spirit and Your Word. I know I cannot be perfect... but I know compromise only makes it worse!
No comments:
Post a Comment