Avoid spiritual compromise and live by God’s Word

Imagine a man who lives 30 miles from the nearest gas station. He forgot to fill up on his way home, and today he needs to take a trip. The low fuel light has been on for two days—there’s no way he’s going to make it five miles, let alone 30. So he gets an idea: he’ll siphon some propane from his backyard tank and put it in his car. The owner’s manual clearly warns that only 87-octane gasoline should be used, but he shrugs it off. “Fuel is fuel,” he reasons. “What could go wrong?”

As ridiculous as that sounds, many believers today are doing something similar—ignoring God’s owner’s manual, the Bible, and mixing in compromising and harmful elements into their spiritual lives.

The apostle Paul warned the Colossians, “Don’t let anyone capture you with empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world rather than from Christ.” Compromise to a Christian is what propane is to a gasoline-powered car—it may look like fuel, but it will destroy the engine.

Paul also writes in Ephesians, “Among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, any kind of impurity, or greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people. Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving.” Notice how he lists dirty jokes and obscenities alongside sexual immorality and greed. We tend to rank sins—some as “big” and others as “minor”—but God groups them together.

In 1 Corinthians 6, Paul reminds us, “Don’t you realize that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, because God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with every part of your body.”

So how do we keep from putting “compromising fuel” into our spiritual tank? The apostle Peter gives us the answer: “Like newborn babies, crave the pure spiritual milk of God’s Word, so that by it you may grow up in your salvation.”

God’s Word is timeless. It’s the owner’s manual that never changes and must not be mixed with worldly philosophies that lead us astray. Scripture isn’t optional for anyone who calls themselves a Christian—it’s essential fuel for living.

Jesus said it best: “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”

Ken Staley is pastor of Faith Church of Pleasant Grove (9:30 a.m.) and Harrisville Methodist Church (11 a.m.), both Global Methodist congregations. Text him at 918-852-9797.