by R. L. Rodenbush
The enemy of our soul seeks relentless accommodation, and is never sated. Sadly, over the past few decades we have witnessed fellow ministers and believers make slight concessions to the Apostolic message, incremental changes to doctrine, loosen up just a bit on holiness or separation from the world – but for the enemy it’s never enough.
Through the years, I have heard my father lament, as once stalwart friends of the faith made this slight compromise or that little concession erroneously believing the result would be great revival, larger crowds or financial blessing.
“Remember, Son,” he would say, his voice breaking under the weight of his love for the Apostolic message and sorrow for those who were altering the course of not just their future but the heritage of their future generations, “no one ever moves just an inch.”
How is it that in the face of repeated contrary historical evidence, Satan is able to convince some from every generation that they can bridge the gap, can compromise without cost, make concessions without loss of ground, believe that things haven’t changed that much, that nothing of real spiritual value or eternal consequence is given up.
It is easy to hope that eventually it will all be okay, that we will be able to find the common ground. We pray that the subtle concessions are just superficial, that the core “message” won’t be given up. But, time and again, history has proven that the first inch was merely the first outward display of a prodigious internal shift. The enemy has successfully argued and convinced too many that a small compromise for a greater good is noble, and that we can all eventually still end up on the same side.
As an attorney, I have sat many times at the negotiation table trying to mediate to settle a case. In such a setting, the best result is a mutually beneficial solution to solve the problem – where the goal of both sides is to find a win-win solution to the dispute.
But the current battle is not just a misunderstanding of opinion, an alternative interpretation or a different view of semantics. A win-win solution is impossible where the term is eternity, and the end result is heaven or hell. Satan knows this and has no interest in a win-win solution. His strategy is to drag as many as he can, our children and grandchildren, to hell for eternity.
The compromise Satan demands is not without consequence. It is not just some generational conflict about methodology, the timeless new versus old debate. We understand that the world has changed and that changes in method can be beneficial and may be necessary, but never at the cost or compromise of the message. This battle determines our eternal destiny, and whether we will be a part of the Apostolic revival that will take place in the last days.
Remember, no one ever moves just an inch.