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Compromise

Quick Look: This article explores Jesus's third temptation, where Satan offered Him rulership over all worldly kingdoms in exchange for worship—essentially proposing a shortcut to power without suffering. The temptation represented choosing compromise over obedience, immediate gratification over God's perfect timing. Satan's offers always contain hidden agendas and ultimately lead to spiritual destruction. Like Jesus, who responded with "It is written," believers must stand firm on God's Word, maintaining proper worship priorities.

As we have seen, the first temptation was to act independently of God, and the second temptation was to act in presumption—the third temptation centres around having a higher priority than God, to compromise for success.

Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendour.

“All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”

Jesus said to him, “Away from me, Satan! For it is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God, and serve him only.’”

Then the devil left him, and angels came and attended him. Matt. 4:8-11, NIV. Also see Luke 4:5-8

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By the time Jesus was baptized, He knew Who He was and what His mission was. He knew that He was the Son of God and that to save rebellious humanity, He would need to suffer a cruel and painful death. He knew that would involve reaching the depths of mental, emotional, spiritual and physical pain. He also knew that after successfully completing His mission, He would become the King of kings and the Lord of lords forever.

Now Satan was offering Jesus a way to accomplish the end goal, but to bypass all the pain and suffering. The temptation to rule the world without cost would have been great. He could have it all for just one little compromise.

Jesus never disputed Satan’s claim to be able to give Him authority and rulership over all the kingdoms of the world. While God always retained ownership over all His creation, Adam did hand over his authority to Satan in the Garden. Now Satan was offering to give it to Jesus. All Jesus had to do was realign His priorities to compromise for success. It was servanthood vs. rulership.

Satan’s offers always sound good, but they have hidden agendas. Yes, Jesus could have ruled the world, but it would always have been under Satan, not under God. Plus, He would never have achieved His mission of bringing salvation to mankind. We would have been forever hopelessly under Satan’s control and have spent eternity in Hell with him.

Jesus knew that the easy way was not God’s way. God had a specific mission for Him that involved being a “man of sorrows” so that we could move from the kingdom of darkness to the kingdom of light. No deviation, shortcuts, or compromises were permissible.

In our own lives, Satan comes up with “good” ideas. They sound wonderful. They would help us get what we want without all the character-building activity of the Holy Spirit. It is the easy way. It is rusty metal painted gold, when God wants to give us pure gold.

In this temptation to take the easy way out, Jesus was asked simply to worship Satan one time. One little compromise to gain all the kingdoms of the world. Think of all the good He could do when He was in control…

Satan always wanted to be God. That was his downfall. Now he wants to receive worship as if he were God. He wants us to validate his claim to Godhood. He desires to get us to worship someone or something other than the only One Who deserves our worship. He will hold out easy [and short-term] pleasure if we worship a movie star or sports or sex or drugs or our family or… He will hold out achievements if we cheat or lie or compromise…just a little one - you understand - but think of all the good you can do, all the people you can help…

Like Jesus, Who answered, “It is written,” we must stand on the Word of God. We must walk in obedience. We cannot allow ourselves to be distracted. God alone is worthy of worship. We must keep our priorities straight. Compromising on essentials - like worship - will never achieve good things in the long run. We are deceiving ourselves if we think it will. Stay the course Jesus has laid out for you, and you [and others] will be the winners in the end.

Compromise
Frequently Asked Questions

Question: How Can We Distinguish Between God's Opportunities And Satan's Deceptive Shortcuts In Our Daily Lives?

Answer: Often, we know within our spirits what is right and wrong, making this a question of obedience or disobedience. In cases where we are unclear, we need to pray about it, read the Bible for guidance, and get counsel from mature, Godly people. We need to consider whether it is unethical or will lead to an unethical situation. We also need to keep in mind that "ends do not justify the means." Both must be right in the eyes of God. An example of deceptive compromise is Christians who compromise the Gospel in hopes that by making it less offensive and more acceptable, they might win converts.

Question: What Does It Mean That Adam "Handed Over His Authority To Satan" In The Garden Of Eden?

Answer: God gave Adam and Eve dominion over the Earth, with the authority to rule it under God and for God's glory. When they rebelled, the use of their authority became Satan's plaything for destruction instead of dominion.

Question: Why Didn't Jesus Dispute Satan's Claim To Have Authority Over The World's Kingdoms?

Answer: Arguing with the devil is a dangerous waste of time. It doesn't matter if he is right or wrong on the point in question; he is evil and to be resisted in the Name of Jesus. Arguing will most often result in our own defeat.

Question: How Do We Identify When We're Being Tempted To Compromise Our Worship And Devotion To God?

Answer: Anytime anyone or anything becomes more important to us than God, then we are worshiping a false God. A more subtle temptation is when we ignore characteristics of God that we don't like [like His Wrath]. Without realizing it, we craft a God of our own making and liking and worship him, still believing that we are worshiping the God of the Bible.

For more information about Glenn Davis, see our About Glenn page or visit Glenn Davis Books.

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