There’s No Compromising In Salvation

Word-Of-The-Day: ‘(19) Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, (20) and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”’ (Matthew 28:19-20); ‘For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.’ (Hebrews 4:12)

We have, like everyone else, opinions – political, current events, music, sports, cars – and our opinions may not agree even with those in our own families or social circles.  But every once in a while, we must clash; once a year is ‘Ohio State vs. Michigan’ (I have no dog in this fight, but I know someone who does), or in the car it’s either ‘Air Supply or Metallica’ (I like my music to be fast and loud, so you can guess my side on this one).  Some folks adore sports cars like Corvettes, while others don’t see the appeal.  There are some things we can clash about, providing we do so with an understanding to ‘agree to disagree’ and even perhaps look for compromise (turning the radio to a ‘Hall & Oates’ or ‘Seals & Croft’ song, for example). 

It is a belief of most Christians that we need to share the Gospel message of Salvation to others, and for many we do so without reservation – if it doesn’t result in a confrontation.  This is human nature and we don’t want to provoke confrontation by our own volition.  I will say as a Christian we should not provoke confrontations by our own actions or words.

But neither in the cause of Christ should we ever compromise.  It is our duty as Christians, as commanded by Jesus in the Great Commission (Matthew 28:16-20) to go share the Gospel message.  It is for everyone, as God promised the availability of Jesus to the whole world, and Salvation to those who accept Him as Lord (John 3:16).  Where the Christian often fails in the Great Commission is to address the ‘why’; the people of the world need Salvation from sin.  All have sinned and thus fall short of the fulfillment of God, His Law, and His Holiness (Romans 3:23) and thus need to accept the sacrifice of Jesus, on the cross, to gain the gift of Salvation He made available (Romans 3:24).

This is the point where Christians often fail; we like to share the Gospel’s Salvation message without addressing the need of repentance.  We compromise (or worse, cave-in) and fail to address the ‘elephant in the room’, the sin.  But Paul addresses, in Hebrews 4:12, that the Word is like a double-edged sword, an instrument that is to be used to surgically remove the sinful aspects we attempt to live in.  The Lord has given us the Holy Spirit to address the need of repentance, so His Word can remove it, but we often fail to speak of this need.  Many then pray for Salvation without repenting their sins.  They may say, ‘Forgive me of my sins’, but do they themselves recognize what sin they need to repent of? 

In John 4, Jesus encounters the Samaritan woman at the well, and without accusation or condemnation draws out her own admission of an adulterous lifestyle, so she can realize her sin and repent of it.  It is certain the man (or men) who had relations with this woman did not appreciate her repentance, unless they too had to then admit their sinful lifestyle and repent as well.  If not, it would be they who would then hate Christians (or in this case, Jesus Himself) for forcing them to confront their own sinful nature. 

As Jesus did with this woman in a passive way (asking her to go speak to the husband she did not have), or as He did to the Pharisees directly (in calling them a ‘brood of vipers’ in Matthew 12:34), we should not be afraid to point out known sins to allow people to recognize what their sin is and allow them to decide whether to repent of it in order to accept Christ.

No one likes confrontation, even if one is on the ‘winning’ side if it causes consternation or hatred.  There are people who don’t like a statement a pastor or Life Group leader makes if it goes against their personal likes or dislikes; however this is almost always an internal confrontation of their beliefs, their sinful nature, and the Truth of the Word.  It is not you the Christian they hate, but the Word of the Lord confronting their nature.  This often results in you being hated, or even persecuted – to the point of execution, as was the case of John the Baptist when he told Herod his adulterous relationship with his brother’s wife was wrong (Matthew 14).

We must, however, stand firm in the Truth, be not afraid to speak the Truth, and accept we are not here to be accepted by the world but by our Lord, Jesus.  Pray for those who are confronted with the Truth to understand we provide them with the Truth not to hurt them but to show them our love for them, and the love Jesus has for them.