Compromise is the partial waiving of principle for the sake of reaching agreement. It is always a backward step when we consent to lower our standards, and all too often this is involved in arriving at a compromise. It nearly always involves a scaling down of standards.

The epic contest of Moses with Pharaoh affords a classic example of the progressive temptation to compromise. When Pharaoh discerned Moses' inflexible purpose to take Israel out of Egypt to worship Jehovah, he used all his wiles to frustrate him. "Worship God if you will," was the first suggestion, "but there is no need to leave Egypt to do it. Worship God where you are." The modern counterpart would be: "Don't neglect religion. But there is no need to be narrow and make a complete break with the world."

"˜Spiritual Leadership,' J. Oswald Sanders