Compromise is a word often bandied about in this "progressive" and so-called "enlightened" age. The secular "world" tells us that we need to compromise more (in much the same way the devil tempted Eve to compromise in the Garden). That God's standards are outdated or just mere "suggestions." That they are not "inclusive" enough (God help us). That what God says is good is now evil, and what is He calls evil is now good (Isaiah 5:20).
Likewise, we who serve in our God-ordained profession of law enforcement (Romans 13:1-4) are also being pressed to compromise on our long held standards of integrity, code and honor in order to be more "accepting" of lawlessness (take what is happening in Portland, or that one is now "racist" <sigh -- NOT> for enforcing the very laws we've taken a solemn oath to uphold.
But what does God have to say on the issue of compromise? In this week's study we'll explore this issue through the life of
one of the most successful kings in ancient Judah -- Uzziah. His name literally means "The Lord is my Strength" and much of his life illustrates the meaning of his name. Uzziah became Judah's eleventh king at age 16 and held the second longest tenure as Judah's monarchy (52 years).
Early in his career, Uzziah was victorious over all enemies. He strengthened his kingdom and improved the economic status of his nation.
An interesting fact about Uzziah is revealed in 2 Chronicles 26:15. The King was an exceptionally gifted (blessed and empowered by God) military tactician. God also empowered Uzziah to invent and construct incredible weapons, and he was a
superb organizer. Over time, his fame spread even to the mighty Egyptian dynasty.
During his monarchy the nation enjoyed a bright spot in the world's history: the original texts liken him as a PEACEKEEPER and keeper of the law (to wit, a kind of "cop"). Clearly, K
ing Uzziah, like Samson before him, should have been a resounding success story. Tragically his biography ends instead with infamous failure. Instead of being honorably buried in the sepulcher of the Kings in Jerusalem, he was placed in a simple cemetery outside the city. It is this ironic twist in Uzziah's career that deserves our concentration. One would expect marvelous accolades to be chiseled into Uzziah's grave marker. However, the eulogy is stated with four sad words, "He is a leper." So what happened?
Let's start with 2 Chronicles 26:1-5
: "And all the people of Judah took Uzziah, who was sixteen years old, and made him king instead of his father Amaziah. He built Eloth and restored it to Judah, after the king slept with his fathers. Uzziah was sixteen years old when he began to reign, and he reigned fifty-two years in Jerusalem. His mother's name was Jecoliah of Jerusalem. And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, according to all that his father Amaziah had done. He set himself to seek God in the days of Zechariah, who instructed him in the fear of God, and as long as he sought the Lord, God made him prosper.
Uzziah's early years were marked by the significant influences: his father was King Amaziah (2 Chron 26:4). The Holy Spirit-inspired author of Chronicles (Ezra) notes that Amaziah "did right in the sight of the Lord" (2 Chronicles 25:2). He was a father who was concerned with what God commanded. He would thus be a father whose example would be influential in guiding his son in God's will. "Right" refers to one recognizing that God's commands must be followed -- WITHOUT compromise! An interesting illustration of this decision to follow God's will is found in 2 Chronicles 25:6-9. Amaziah had organized a military expedition against Edom and gathered a large army from Judah. Unfortunately, he also compromised by hiring 100,000 Israeli mercenaries. God's prophet confronted Amaziah about this fellowship and bluntly told him it was unacceptable to God (25:7). The King dismissed those whom God refused to recognize (this situation is a valuable lesson itself and deserves additional study). Appropriately, there were still consequences for this compromise: the dismissed troops killed some 3000 of Amaziah's people while pillaging in anger.
Amaziah's influence on his young son was important. Sadly, there is a somber footnote to Amaziah's dedication to God with the rest of 2 Chronicles 25:2 -- "...yet not with a whole heart."
Even though he knew that God expected wholehearted devotion, he failed to do so. This compromise revealed that Amaziah did not recognize God's total sovereignty and this would subsequently have a drastic impact upon his son.
How many fathers since Amaziah have also admitted the need to "do right in the sight of the Lord" but then failed to do so with their whole heart? Consequently their children have been impacted for the worse! Historical tragedies are often repeated by those who refuse to embrace God's command in Deuteronomy 6:5: "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. Brothers and sisters, have you allowed God's sovereignty to control all of your life? Are you wholly surrendered to Him?
Then in 2 Chronicles 26:5, we see a key
to Uzziah's early success was his desire to seek God. It seems that the influence for this is attributable to the prophet Zachariah who was able to know, understand, and explain God's will so the King (and others) would understand and obey -- much like the need for Bible study and solid Bible teachers today (and thus, in part, the importance of being grounded in a solid, Bible-teaching church). What we find here is that so long as Uzziah was walking in obedience (without compromise) in accordance with God's will, he and the nation he led found success and happiness (compare with our own country when we were a nation that honored God).
Let's next move on to 2 Chronicles 26:6-15. What we find here is 3 main points about Uzziah's success:
(a) POLITICALLY:
Uzziah's godly leadership resulted in amazing successes. His armies were victorious (v. 6-8). His projects and programs were successful (v. 9-10). He could do nothing wrong! What an enviable position he had!
(b) MILITARILY:
Uzziah's leadership was superb (v. 11-15). He was an amazing military mind -- organized, prepared, and inventive. Everyone studied his maneuvers and learned brilliant strategies of warfare.
(c) PERSONALLY:
Uzziah's fame spread throughout what was then the entire known world. He was famous and recognized. His "strength" (God) was envied by other Kings (v. 8, 15).
Uzziah's compromise (rebellion, sin): "But when he was strong, he grew proud, to his destruction. For he was unfaithful to the Lord his God and entered the temple of the Lord to burn incense on the altar of incense. 17 But Azariah the priest went in after him, with eighty priests of the Lord who were men of valor, 18 and they withstood King Uzziah and said to him, "It is not for you, Uzziah, to burn incense to the Lord, but for the priests, the sons of Aaron, who are consecrated to burn incense. Go out of the sanctuary, for you have done wrong, and it will bring you no honor from the Lord God." (2 Chronicles 26:16-18, added emphasis mine
).
The slippery slope of decline began when Uzziah allowed his father's "heart problem" (compromise) to interfere with his devotion to God. What happened? The King's took his eyes off God and onto himself. Perhaps Zechariah died and the godly instruction ceased (a lack of time in God's Word and iron sharpens iron fellowship with other mature believers and a loving, Bible-teaching pastor). Whatever initiated the problem, the result is one cited by ancient history (Deuteronomy 8:11-20). Prosperity and success blurred the King's vision and he failed to see that God was the cause for his success (and that he was pridefully [sin] personally responsible for it)!
The tragedy is stated in 2 Chronicles 26:15 (NIV) -- "
In Jerusalem he made devices invented for use on the towers and on the corner defenses so that soldiers could shoot arrows and hurl large stones from the walls. His fame spread far and wide, for he was greatly helped until he became powerful.
The word "
until
" (or "til" in other translations) here is the point of apostasy and compromise. The King lost focus that God was responsible for his success and his pride blinded him to the need for repentance and humility (v. 16).
What caused him to compromise in "illegally" entering the Temple and offering incense (v. 16)? We are not told and it is not necessary to know. What we do know is that the King knew he was doing wrong. The priests knew the King was doing wrong. The entire nation knew their King was doing wrong. Pride could not make a wrong action "right." Whenever we try to compromise on God's statutes or seek to justify our sin, we're going to run into serious consequences!
In his famous work, Mere Christianity, C.S. Lewis wrote,
"It was through Pride that the devil became the devil: Pride leads to every other vice: it is the complete anti-God state of mind... As long as you are proud you cannot know God. A proud man is always looking down on things and people: and, of course, as long as you are looking down, you cannot see something that is above you."
Great successes, world renown, fantastic prosperity all were lost because Uzziah pridefully COMPROMISED against God (rebellion, sin) by refusing to follow His laws. Moreover, as with Samson's story, we also find no evidence that Uzziah repented (a 180, a change of heart). As a consequence (sin always brings consequences), God caused Uzziah to become a leper (2 Chronicles 26:19-23)! He started strong, but because of compromise (sin), he didn't finish well. How many cops do you know who likewise didn't finish well because of issues of pride and compromise? What an awful eulogy and legacy!
Moreover, we see that the compromise of pride "...
is an abomination to the LORD" (
Proverbs 16:5). Especially for us who serve in law enforcement, compromise and yes, pride, are very present issues. How can we overcome them? How can we finish well?
Praise God, His Word gives us wonderful instruction on how to avoid becoming another Uzziah and otherwise be victorious over the sin of compromise. For example, He tells us in Joshua 1:7-8
,
"Be strong and very courageous. Be careful to obey all the law my servant Moses gave you; do not turn from it to the right or to the left, that you may be successful wherever you go. Keep this Book of the Law always on your lips; meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do everything written in it. Then you will be prosperous and successful." Likewise, God's word speaks to us about the importance of Bible study, prayer and believer's fellowship/discipleship.
So how can we do that? First, we must be willing to put aside our own strength and instead "
repent and believe" (
Mark 1:15) in Christ as Lord and Savior. Doing so also means that, as
born again believers (
John 3:1-21 -- a Christian as God defines it), we have access to something Uzziah did not: the
indwelling power of the Holy Spirit (not to mention the instruction of God's word, the Bible) to help us stand firm on the Rock against compromise, temptation, deception and sin in general.
As stated, the Uzziah's story is but one example of the consequences of compromise. For more, I can't encourage you enough to dig into this wholly biblical resource from our friends at Got Questions Ministries:
Finally, understand that part of repentance as a believer means that God will forgive our failings (compromise). Yes, there
are still consequences for our sin, but, for the genuine believer, we have the sure hope of forgiveness and the promise of spending eternity with God in heaven (versus a just sentence in hell).
So do you have that? Are you sure? If not, I implore you to consider the following:
