Thriving In Babylon By Larry OsborneSample

Blind Spots

Compromise isn’t a dirty word.

It can be.

But it isn’t always.

Unfortunately, for many of us, compromise carries a negative connotation. We see it as something the weak and the disobedient do. But in reality, it’s something the wise do as well. They know what battles they can win and what battles need to be fought later.

Daniel obviously had to make some tough calls in regard to what he participated in and what he avoided. If we could go back and be flies on the wall, I’m not sure we would agree with every decision he made. We might even see some as inappropriate compromises. But the important thing is that God was good with them. He knew Daniel’s heart, so he blessed his decisions, even if some were a bit sketchy.

This is something that fear-based Christianity misses. It tends to see God as an angry god looking for reasons to nail us. It forgets that Jesus was nailed to the cross for our benefit. He’s not looking for reasons to punish us. He’s looking for reasons to bless us. He values mercy over sacrifice.

When it comes to navigating the tough calls of life, fear-based faith is terrified of making a mistake. That’s why it has all those extra rules and boundaries. It’s convinced that any accidental misstep or compromise will be dealt with harshly.

The fact is, we all have blind spots. And while the important commands of Scripture are crystal clear, there are plenty of things in Scripture that are far more nuanced and hard to understand.

Anyone who has ever changed his mind about a biblical or theological issue has by definition corrected a blind spot. And unless we want to claim we now know it all and will never again be corrected or shown anything new, we have to admit we still have some blind spots we’re unaware of.

Daniel didn’t worry about what he didn’t know. He worried about obeying what he knew. In situations where God spoke clearly, he did what God said. In those areas where it was less clear, he did what seemed best. He understood that there are some areas where God doesn’t care what path we choose. He cares how we walk the path.

*Have you ever come across a blind spot of your own? What was it?