To procrastinate is to evade critical action, but there is another way to avoid taking critical action that may be even more problematic. Let me call it the comfortable compromise. Comfortable compromise is difficult to define because, as with critical action, it will mean different things in different scenarios. Perhaps the best way to understand the distinction is by contrast. While critical action is the most direct and effective action possible, placing the success of the mission ahead of personal well-being (security, comfort, and convenience), the comfortable compromise is a willingness to settle for a less effective action in the interest of self-preservation. Critical action almost always involves putting boots on the ground, taking risks and interacting with people in a way that makes one vulnerable. Critical action will almost always mean paying some price and sticking your neck out in some way. The comfortable compromise, on the other hand, always consists of more talking than walking. It allows us to stay safe, makes us feel good about ourselves, and keeps us busy, but it produces very few actual results. Simply put, the comfortable compromise is an action that serves as a substitute for the critical action. It is a cheap imitation, a second-rate alternative; an easy way out. I say that comfortable compromise is more problematic than procrastination because when we procrastinate, at least we know that something is still lacking. But the comfortable compromise allows us to pacify our conscience, feeling as though we have fulfilled our obligation though in reality we have accomplished only a fraction of our potential, or perhaps none at all. Because I am an evangelist, the examples that come most readily to mind are those having to do with soul-winning. So please allow me to get on my soapbox for a moment. There is no more important or urgent matter in the universe than the salvation of the lost. Its no wonder Jesuss last words on earth were instructions to take the Gospel to the ends of the world. This divine directive is commonly known as the Great Commission, and it is perhaps most clearly stated in Mark 16:15, Go ye into all the world, and preach the Gospel to every creature. With so much at stake it is not surprising that Jesuss command here is extremely clear and direct. It contains two explicit critical actions: go and preach. Had Jesus simply said, Be sure to make a positive impact on the world, we would never have known exactly what action to take. But Jesus knew the salvation of the lost depended on two specific critical actions, going and preaching. Ive heard it taught that the most effective way to win the lost is simply by living a good life, being kind to your neighbor, and letting your light shine wherever you are. While these are all good things, if they become a substitute for going and preaching, they are nothing more than comfortable compromises. It amazes me the incredibly creative things people come up with to try to impact the world and society without having to go and preach the gospel. Churches and ministries spend enormous amounts of time, money, and energy every year on programs and activities through which they hope to reach the lost without taking the two critical actions Jesus commanded. Yet for all the multiplied billions of dollars spent in American churches each year, attendance continues to fall and very little fruit remains. Even in the high-tech, modern age in which we live, when it comes to the salvation of the lost, the critical actions remain the same as they were two thousand years ago when Jesus first commanded them. More effective actions will never be devised. The original ones, though foolish in their simplicity, will forever remain the most efficient and effective way to win the world go and preach the Gospel!
Posted on: Tue, 09 Dec 2014 08:23:46 +0000
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