Can we live as a Christian without compromise? Daniel’s life in Babylon teaches us that we can live as a Christian without compromising our walk or our beliefs.
Do you remember as a child when there was a disagreement, and your parents taught you to compromise? It might have been about what you were going to play or how you were going to play. Or which of you would sit in the front seat?
Your parents taught each of you to give up something so you could play in harmony. The teaching of how to compromise continued throughout our growing up.
Once we get married, compromise is even more evident. Then we compromise on everything from a baby’s name to what color to paint the living room. Compromise is the key to two people living together. Our society runs on compromise, which is often good until it is abused.
Politics and Living Without Compromise
Definition of compromise: Compromise is when two parties each give up something so they can agree.
The Christian and Living Without Compromise
Compromise may be good in society, but it isn’t good in the believer’s life. We should never compromise who we are in Christ or our belief in what the Word says. Let me define this with examples to more clearly show what I am saying.
If a Pentecostal preaches in a Baptist church and doesn’t speak in tongues, that isn’t compromise; that is respect. The Pentecostal doesn’t deny their belief in their doctrine of speaking in tongues. They are just refraining out of respect for another person’s beliefs.
I pray over my meals because I believe it is important to give thanks for your food and, also, to ask God to bless my food. Before I eat lunch at work, I bow my head and silently pray. If I don’t pray over my lunch at work because it makes someone else uncomfortable, and they don’t like it, that is compromise and wrong. Praying over each meal is my strongly held belief. To not do it in order to please others is a compromise that is wrong.
We constantly face the choice of whether to compromise our Christian walk and beliefs.
Daniel: Politician, Prophet, and Adviser to Kings
Daniel advised five different kings during his lifetime and never compromised what he believed. In today’s current social and cultural climate, we can learn a lot from him.
In the United States, there is a continuing pressure for Christians to be publicly silent and inactive in their faith. There is public approval for all other religions and lifestyles to be vocal and visual about their beliefs, but they consider a Christian inappropriate and even offensive if they do the same.
In response to this, most Christians in the United States have bowed under the pressure of political, cultural, and societal beliefs that are espoused by a very vocal minority. What should be a lifestyle of living out Jesus commands, “walking in the Way” as the early Christians called it, has now been hidden behind the doors of their homes and churches.
Pray in public – how offensive! Speak the Word at work – politically incorrect! Let your child take a Bible to school – separation of church and state! Do not use the name of Jesus in public – unless it is used in vain!
In fear of persecution through public censorship, Christians have retreated into silence. They choose to “live” the life, but not preach the truth. Fear has overcome passion for the truth and compassion for the lost. Christians are succumbing to the increasing pressure to back off from their faith – to be quiet about it and keep it out of sight where it won’t bother anyone.
We need to ask ourselves, “What kind of Christian must I be today?”
Daniel’s Life Without Compromise
We will examine the life of Daniel and how he lived his life without compromise in a heathen nation. His life has much to say about the issues we face today. Daniel lived a life that caused the angel Gabriel to say to him, “At the beginning of your petitions an answer went out, and I have come to give it, for you are treasured by God.” (Daniel 9:23 CSB)
That is what I desire – to be treasured by God. What about you?
Daniel’s Path to Being Treasured by God:
1. He was born into the nobility of Israel – 1.3
2. He was handsome; well-built; intelligent – 1.4
3. As a young teenager, Daniel determined he would be faithful to God regardless of the cost to him personally – 1.8.
4. Because of his faithfulness, God granted Daniel favor – 1.9 & 1.17. This favor caused Daniel to be 10x better than all the king’s other advisors – 1.20.
5. Daniel knew the power of united prayer – 2.17-19. Daniel then immediately praised God for the answer, revealing Daniel’s heart of faithfulness and his attitude towards God – 2.20-23.
6. Daniel watched over his fellow believers – 2.49
7. God’s Spirit upon Daniel was visible to others – 4.8
8. Daniel had an extraordinary spirit, knowledge, and perception and the ability to interpret dreams, explain riddles, and solve problems – 5.12. Others recognized this extraordinary spirit. – 5.13 & 14.
9. Daniel had no interest in personal reward – 5.17
Daniel’s Faithfulness Is Why He Never Compromised
All nine of these attributes in Daniel’s life and character contributed to him being treasured by God and led to Daniel having an extraordinary spirit. Yet, the one-character trait of Daniel that led him to being treasured by God was his faithfulness.
From the time he was a young teenager at the time of captivity, Daniel was faithful to God, regardless of the circumstances. He was faithful in the small things, what he ate, to the important things, praying to God three times a day.
Each of us faces the choice of whether we truly want to be 100% faithful to God and live a life marked by faithfulness and trust in Him. We were placed in the world at this time for God’s purpose.
Philippians 2:14-16 “Do everything without grumbling and arguing, 15 so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God who are faultless in a crooked and perverted generation, among whom you shine like stars in the world. 16 Hold firmly the message of life. Then I can boast in the day of Christ that I didn’t run in vain or labor for nothing.” (CSB)
God knew beforehand the New Testament believers would be living in a perverse and crooked generation and that it would get worse as we draw nearer to Christ’s return.
You can read about Daniel’s friends in my article:
Live By Faith: Your Bold Call to Live A Wild And Courageous Life
God Placed Us in a Specific Place and Time to Live In
Scripture tells us that God chose the specific time and place we live in purposefully. God chose and equipped you to live in this time and in the place where you live.
Acts 17:26 “From one man he has made every nationality to live over the whole earth and has determined their appointed times and the boundaries of where they live.” (CSB)
God placed us to be the light in the darkness of our culture. Are you truly an uncompromising light in this generation? Are you the light of truth in a perverse and morally bankrupt culture? Are you faithful to God in the small things and the big things?
What is our world like?
2 Timothy 3:1-5 “But know this: Hard times will come in the last days. 2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, proud, demeaning, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, 3 unloving, irreconcilable, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, without love for what is good, 4 traitors, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 5 holding to the form of godliness but denying its power. Avoid these people.” (CSB)
This is a fully accurate description of the current culture here in the United States. Our current culture is diving headlong into an amoral attitude that contains no truth. Whatever you believe is right is right, and culture has no sense of right and wrong. The devil is leading our society into the attitude of protecting everyone’s right to be what they want to be, unless you are a true Christian. As a Christian, you have no rights.
The Continuing Battle Against Faithful Christians
Satan is projecting into society’s thinking if you are a true Christian, then you must hate sinners – especially gay people and Muslims. A true Christian is a fanatic that relies on an ancient book of writings that carries no value for today. True Christians spout hate speech they call Scripture. A true Christian lives a boring life that holds no fun or enjoyment because they live a moral life.
This false imprint of a true Christian is being propagated by the father of lies upon the psyche of our society, causing it to persecute Christians concerning these false beliefs. In response, most Christians are retreating into silence, therefore removing their Christian influence from society. Christians have been sold on the idea that it is better to retreat than to possibly offend someone with the Truth.
As the believers retreat, they are putting a basket over their light and can no longer influence this generation. As Christian influence retreats into hiding to not offend anyone, our society slides into deeper and deeper darkness.
I don’t have to pray in public – I can do it in private with complete freedom! I don’t need to tell others the scriptural reasons for living my life the way I do – I will just live my life and let my light shine! I can hang around the break-room while my co-workers tell off-color stories. They know what I believe. Poppycock! Lies propagated by satan, the evil one!
Daniel’s Faithfulness led to a Life Without Compromise
Let’s look at an incident in Daniel’s life and the choice he made about whether to let his light shine.
Daniel 5.30 – 6.2: Darius appoints leaders in the nations
That very night Belshazzar the king of the Chaldeans was killed, and Darius the Mede received the kingdom at the age of sixty-two. 6.1 Darius decided to appoint 120 satraps over the kingdom, stationed throughout the realm, 2 and over them three administrators, including Daniel. These satraps would be accountable to them so that the king would not be defrauded.
Daniel 6.3: The favor of God was upon Daniel. The power of the Holy Spirit combined with Daniel’s choice of faithfulness to God, provided Daniel with an extraordinary spirit. This caused Daniel to rise above all the other advisers.
Daniel distinguished himself above the administrators and satraps because he had an extraordinary spirit, so the king planned to set him over the whole realm.
Daniel 6.4-5: Daniel’s commitment to God and His Word caused him to live a life that did no wrong. Unlike the other politicians, Daniel was a righteous man that lived a truly holy life. The other politicians knew of Daniel’s faith and commitment to the Lord because of Daniel living out his faith in public and his publicly giving scriptural reasons for his holy life. There was no apology from Daniel for his beliefs and he wasn’t afraid to offend others because of his belief.
v. 4 The administrators and satraps, therefore, kept trying to find a charge against Daniel regarding the kingdom. But they could find no charge or corruption, for he was trustworthy, and no negligence or corruption was found in him. v. 5 Then these men said, “We will never find any charge against this Daniel unless we find something against him concerning the law of his God.”
Daniel 6.6-9: Darius is tricked into passing an irrevocable law.
So the administrators and satraps went together to the king and said to him, “May King Darius live forever. v. 7 All the administrators of the kingdom—the prefects, satraps, advisers, and governors—have agreed that the king should establish an ordinance and enforce an edict that, for thirty days, anyone who petitions any god or man except you, the king, will be thrown into the lions’ den. v. 8 Therefore, Your Majesty, establish the edict and sign the document so that, as a law of the Medes and Persians, it is irrevocable and cannot be changed.” v. 9 So King Darius signed the written edict.
Daniel 6.10: Daniel’s response when he learned the law was passed.
When Daniel learned that the document had been signed, he went into his house. The windows in its upstairs room opened toward Jerusalem, and three times a day he got down on his knees, prayed, and gave thanks to his God, just as he had done before.
1. Daniel chose a room that had windows facing west towards Jerusalem, like always.
2. Continued to pray three times a day, just as he has always done – no compromise!
3. He could have shut his window. God doesn’t need an open window to hear your prayers. Yet Daniel kept his window open as always. No compromise!
Daniel 6.16: It was public knowledge that Daniel served God 100%.
So the king gave the order, and they brought Daniel and threw him into the lions’ den. The king said to Daniel, “May your God, whom you continually serve, rescue you!”
Daniel 6.22: Daniel was innocent before God and men.
My God sent his angel and shut the lions’ mouths; and they haven’t harmed me, for I was found innocent before him. And also before you, Your Majesty, I have not done harm.”
Remember Philippians 2:15 “So that you may be blameless and pure, children of God who are faultless in a crooked and perverted generation…”
Daniel 6.24: God, not Daniel, avenged Daniel of his enemies
The king then gave the command, and those men who had maliciously accused Daniel, were brought and thrown into the lions’ den…”
Daniel 6.25-27: The king called the whole nation into worship and reverence of The Lord Jehovah.
Then King Darius wrote to those of every people, nation, and language who live on the whole earth: “May your prosperity abound. 26 I issue a decree that in all my royal dominion, people must tremble in fear before the God of Daniel: For he is the living God, and he endures forever; his kingdom will never be destroyed, and his dominion has no end. 27 He rescues and delivers; he performs signs and wonders in the heavens and on the earth, for he has rescued Daniel from the power of the lions.”
Daniel was the reason why the king commanded everyone in the land to honor God.
Our Path to a Life Without Compromise
Do you want to live a life of knowing you are treasured by God? A life of His favor that brings honor to God first, and then to you? There is a sure path to that life of no compromise.
We find the first step in Mark 12:30. “And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.” Loving God with everything you are is the first step to faithfulness and a life of no compromise.
Loving God in this way is a choice. You make a choice to love God with everything you are, then never back down from it.
We find the second step in Matthew 6:33. “But seek first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness…” You must seek the Kingdom of God, the place where God reigns. That means you must live in the Kingdom of God. What do I mean by that?
I mean, God must reign in your life. It is only then that all things work out for good in your life. (see Romans 8:28)
The next part of step two is to seek God’s righteousness. That means to seek God’s way of doing and being right.
Oral Roberts: What you compromise to keep, you’ll eventually end up losing. Be faithful to God’s Word and don’t compromise.
Daniel’s Stand of No Compromise Led to Greater Honor
Daniel’s decision to never compromise what God says led to him being the third most powerful ruler in Babylon. Every king he advised gave him honor. He was a politician that never compromised.
Daniel is our example of a life of no compromise. He shows how a life of no compromise leads us to be treasured by God.
5 Rules to Achieving a Life Without Compromise
- Follow the example of Daniel, who lived his faith boldly amid a heathen nation.
- As a joint heir with Jesus and part of His ministry, you have an excellent spirit, too.
- An excellent spirit is faithful in doing what God says in every situation, just as Daniel did.
- As you stand on The WORD and refuse to compromise, instead of getting weaker under pressure, you get bolder in your walk with God.
- Stay connected to God by faith and even in the most impossible situations, He’ll make you a winner every time.
The Challenge to Live a Life Without Compromise
I challenge you to take the steps necessary to live a life of no compromise. The reward in heaven is worth the effort. Yet, as you live a life of no compromise, you will achieve greater honor with God and man.
Step One
Mark 12:30. “And you must love the LORD your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.” Loving God with everything you are is the first step to faithfulness and a life of no compromise.
Step Two
Matthew 6:33. “But seek first the kingdom of God, and his righteousness…” Let God rule and reign in your life and seek to live by doing what God says is right.
Will you pay a price for living this way? Most likely. Will the price be worth it in the light of eternity? Absolutely. I dare you, no, I double-dog dare you to live your life this way. The rewards are supernatural.
Here are other articles I wrote that will help you:
Let Go Of The Past: You Can Forget The Past And Build A New You
Christian Goal Setting: The Secret To Building An Unshakable Faith
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