The Path of No Compromise
“As you read this blog today along with listening to the teaching, I encourage you to read carefully the meanings of these words in the Greek and Hebrew language. It is important for us to understand the depths of the scriptures to fully understand His truth. Enjoy! ”
Hebrews 12:13 “make straight the paths of your feet so that the limb (body part) which is lame (cholos: cripple, halt – 1. To be in a state of uncertainty or doubt between alternate courses or choices. 2. To display weakness or imperfection.) may not be put out of joint (ektrepo: turned away, defleted) but may be healed (iaomai: made whole)…”
We are ALL the body of Christ, ONE body with many parts (limbs, eyes, ears, noses, togues, mouths, internals, etc.) – We can not keep allowing the lame to be out of joint!
rom 12:4-5 “For just as we have many members (melos: limb, part of the body) in one body and all the members (melos) do not have the same function (praxis: practice, deed, office, work), so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members (melos) one of another.”
col 2:19 “and not holding fast to the head, from whom the entire body, being supplied (epichoregdeo: ministered, nourished) and held together (symbibazo: knit together, unite, to drive together, prove, teach, instruct) by the joints (haphe: bon, connection… haptomai: to touch, to attach oneself to… hapto: set on fire, to kindle) and ligaments (syndesmos: joint tie, uniting principle, band… desmos: string or chain), grows (auxana: enlarges, gives increase) with a growth which is from God.”
eph 4:15-16 “but speaking the truth in love (agape), we are to grow up (auxano: cause to grow) in all [aspects (pas: all men, all manner, whatsoever, whosoever)] into Him who is the head, [even] Christ, from whom the whole (pas) body, being fitted (synarmologeo: fitly framed together, to render close-jointed together, organized compactly) and held together (symbibazo) by what every joint (haphe) supplies (epichorgia: contributes, ministers, nourishes), according to the proper (metron: measure, degree) working (energia: effectual working, operation… energes: powerful, active… superhuman power) of each individual part (meros: portion, a share), causes the growth (auxesis: increase) of the body for the building up (oikodome: edifying, architecture- oikos: house, home, temple + doma: house top, roof) of itself (themselves, our ownselves… the body builds itself up – WE ARE THE BODY – WE BUILD EACH OTHER UP AS ONE) in love (agape).”
1 cor 12:12-27 “For even as the body is one (heis: man, one another) and [yet] has many members (melos), and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ. For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether slaves or free, and we were all made to drink of one Spirit.
For the body is not one member, but many. If the foot says, "Because I am not a hand, I am not [a part] of the body," it is not for this reason any the less [a part] of the body. And if the ear says, "Because I am not an eye, I am not [a part] of the body," it is not for this reason any the less [a part] of the body.
If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired. If they were all one member, where would the body be? But now there are many members, but one body. And the eye cannot say to the hand, "I have no need of you"; or again the head to the feet, "I have no need of you." On the contrary, it is much truer that the members of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary; and those [members] of the body which we deem less honorable, on these we bestow more abundant honor, and our less presentable members become much more presentable, whereas our more presentable members have no need [of it.] But God has [so] composed the body, giving more abundant honor to that [member] which lacked, so that there may be no division in the body, but [that] the members may have the same care for one another.
And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if [one] member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. Now you are Christ's body, and individually members of it..”
There are some of our body parts (limbs, eyes, ears, internals, etc.) out there that have not discovered their place, there are many lost and unsaved, there are many in the body who are broken and haven’t discovered who they are in Christ… these are the lame. When we, as the Church, are not walking a straight path, we cause the lame to be put out of joint and therefore are not receiving their healing.
How have we allowed the lame to get out of joint (out of unity, become untied, disconnected)? We’ve become a stumbling block by allowing the lame to believe it’s okay to stay lame, to acclimate to the world and not have to walk a straight path…
We are warned against this so many times by Paul and James…
“But when I saw that they were not straightforward about the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas in the presence of all, "If you, being a Jew, live like the Gentiles and not like the Jews, how [is it that] you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews?” Gal. 2:14 – Not practicing what we are preaching causes others to stumble… Peter was telling one thing but living another.
“Brethren, even if anyone is caught in any trespass, you who are spiritual, restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness; [each one] looking to yourself, so that you too will not be tempted.” Gal. 6:1 – Help others, restore in gentleness but also keep your own path straight before God so you do not fall into the same temptation as the one you are restoring. We are to bring healing to the lame, not condemnation causing them to stumble even more.
“But take care that this liberty of yours does not somehow become a stumbling block to the weak. For if someone sees you, who have knowledge, dining in an idol's temple, will not his conscience, if he is weak, be strengthened to eat things sacrificed to idols? For through your knowledge he who is weak is ruined, the brother for whose sake Christ died. And so, by sinning against the brethren and wounding their conscience when it is weak, you sin against Christ. Therefore, if food causes my brother to stumble, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause my brother to stumble.” 1 Cor. 8:9-13 – Your freedom should never be a stumbling block to someone else. What you believe is okay for you, isn’t always okay and for sure not for another person. (side note: This is where relationships and accountability come in. Have someone in your life to speak truth to you!) This form of stumbling block can be in many forms… ministry – trying to make someone just like you, they may be weak and unable to find their place yet, so they are taken advantage of. Alcohol… being drunk or a drunkard is a sin, if a person can’t control their alcohol consumption and you, a Christian, are drinking in front of them telling them it’s okay, they may fall back into addiction because they are weak… My theory is this… if it is questionable in the life of a believer, throw it out! The season of riding the fence is over, those leading people astray are being held accountable this very hour – by God. The so called Church has been a stumbling block for long enough.
“Therefore, let us not judge (krino: condemn, punish) one another anymore, but rather determine this--not to put an obstacle or a stumbling block in a brother's way.” Romans 14:13 Even Paul said, “If me eating meat causes a man to stumble, I won’t eat meat!” Self-sacrifice is key in not being a stumbling block!
“Therefore, confess your sins to one another, and pray for one another so that you may be healed. The effective prayer of a righteous man can accomplish much.” James 5:16 – When you realize you’ve done wrong… repent! Be restored and healed!
“Let your eyes look directly ahead And let your gaze be fixed straight in front of you. Watch the path of your feet And all your ways will be established. Do not turn to the right nor to the left; Turn your foot from evil.” Proverbs 4:25-27 – keep your paths straight! This starts with our gaze being fixed straight in front of us!
How have our paths become crooked instead of straight? We got our gaze of the ONE and allowed COMPROMISE!
Just as compromise weakened the children of Israel, compromise has weakened the Church of the Living God! Slowly we’ve allowed the things of the worlds culture to leak into the church life. The Church has built covenant with many of the world’s ways for convenience.
They’ve stopped asking God what He thinks before they bring stuff in and as they bring it in, they fluff it up, fancy it up and claim that it’s “God” yet it’s not. They attempt to put a stamp of approval on it because people are drawn to it, it must be God! Well, the people are drawn to the world and all that’s in it because they can’t tell a difference between what’s God and what’s not anymore. Just as Joshua chose not to seek God first and made a covenant with the liars of Gibeon and allowed them to participate in their lives. The Church has done the same.
We often wonder why the Church is not bringing true change. It’s because our path isn’t straight, our gaze isn’t set. We’ve allowed the lame to be put out of joint instead of be healed. The Church has become a stumbling block instead of a place of restoration and transformation. There is no transformation when everything is the same, where compromise exists – change will not happen, there must be something different in a person’s life for a transformation to take place.
As I have been thinking about compromise in the children of God I think of how we try to doll up our idols, our wants, etc. and it will be okay. I think about how I’ve said so many times and we’ve heard from many others, the stage of man must go and the altar of God must return. I began to see the stage, thinking about how we could make it look like an altar with like a fake stone wall or something… I quickly heard “no matter how you doll it up, it’s still a stage, not an altar”… again… no matter how much we compromise and attempt to fix up our wrongs in order to make them look good, they are still wrongs! They are still stumbling blocks… The stage is still a stage! The ‘stage’, metaphorically, has become a stumbling block to the body of Christ. Eyes have been set on the one of the stage instead of the ONE, the Rock, the Foundations, Jesus Christ!
Altars were built from stones unworked by human hands or tools – no chisels, no changes – only natural, unbroken stones… not blocks created by man’s hands, these are stumbling blocks, compromise, they are a false representation of what God truly said to do.
God, reveal to us all the stumbling blocks we have created in Your Church in an attempt to appeal to the culture, please man and pool in the numbers. Holy Spirit instruct us in how to eradicate the blocks and rebuild Your altar in our midst…
The place where the fire falls!
The place where covenant is made!
The place where sanctification happens!
The place where self is sacrificed!
The place where You are truly worshiped!
The place where You arrive and life transformation takes place!
Let us be a revival fire! A fire that brings healing to the lame, no longer throwing them out of joint because we chose a crooked path of compromise and stumbling blocks!