Leadership Issues: Compromise
Negotiation Can Lead To-Joshua 9:1-27
When Israel negotiated with the Gibeonites and ignored God’s order to destroy the city, they allowed compromise to jeopardize their mission. While negotiation is not wrong in itself, leaders must never negotiate their convictions, direct orders, or core values. When we start negotiating these, we compromise our mission.
Values to Goals-Judges 1:21-36
Disregarding God’s directions, Israel decided to negotiate some deals and compromise with the inhabitants of Canaan. The people hoped that by doing so they could make friends and avoid confrontation.
Compromising their values lead to compromising their goals, with tragic results:
| Compromise | Consequences |
| 1. Benjamin failed to drive out Jebusites | 1. Mixed marriages and diluted faith |
| 2. Manasseh failed to drive out Canaanites | 2. Spiritual apathy |
| 3. Ephraim failed to drive at Canaanites | 3. Spiritual division |
| 4. Zebulun failed to drive out those in Kitron | 4. Tribal strife |
| 5. Dan failed to drive out Amorites | 5. Defeat and lack of protection |
| 6. Asher failed to drive out those in Acco | 6. Inhabitants became a snare |
| 7. Asher failed to drive out Canaanites | 7. Failure to live in the land God had planned for them |
| 8. Naphtali failed to drive out Bethshemesh |
Consequences-1 Kings 13:11-24
An unnamed, elderly prophet illustrates both the power of a leader living by his convictions, and how compromise can steal away conviction. He triumphed when he stood but perished when he turned back. Just so, we gain when we stand strong, but can lose it all when we slip.
Join me next time for The Law of the Inner Circle Part 1
