Jude 1:11 (NLT)
“They deceived people for money.”
The future of the Church is not in doubt. Christ promised that the gates of hell would not overcome it. What is always in question is the faithfulness of the people inside it. Scripture shows that God’s work is rarely undone by open attack. It is weakened when influence is allowed where it does not belong.
Evil never arrives loudly. It comes quietly. Not by force, but by permission. It enters when watchfulness fades and discernment gives way to convenience. What should be guarded is left unattended. What should be tested is accepted.
Nehemiah shows us how this happens. While he was away, the man who opposed the rebuilding of Jerusalem was given a place inside the temple. Tobiah was not forced in. He was welcomed. A room meant for worship was cleared so his influence could settle in, and something holy was displaced.
This is how compromise begins. Rarely through open rebellion, but through tolerance. What once stood outside is invited in. What once raised concern is explained away. The people were not ignorant. They knew Tobiah’s history. What failed was resolve. When vigilance leaves, influence takes its seat. As Charles Spurgeon warned, “Truth is usually the first casualty when compromise becomes a virtue.”
Jude warns that this danger follows God’s people through every age. They deceived people for money. Truth is bent for gain. Influence is traded for approval. What begins as compromise slowly reshapes the heart, until deception no longer feels dangerous. It feels normal.
The same pattern appears in the church today. Influence does not arrive unannounced. It is invited. The church is called to welcome people, but welcoming people is not the same as giving them a voice. There is a difference between coming to be changed and being allowed to shape what others believe. When popularity becomes the goal, faithfulness is quietly pushed aside. As A. W. Tozer said, “A church that is content to be popular will never be prophetic.”
The danger is not collapse, but comfort. Truth is still spoken, but less obeyed. Worship continues, but reverence thins. Structure remains, but spiritual authority weakens. The church keeps its form, while its power slowly drains away.
The church does not regain power by becoming louder, trendier, or more accepted. Power returns through repentance, obedience, and the removal of compromise. Nehemiah did not restore Jerusalem with better ideas, but with decisive action. He cleansed the temple. He restored order. He called the people back to obedience. When purity returned, power followed.
The Church will endure. Christ has secured that. But the strength of the church in any generation depends on the faithfulness of its people. When compromise is removed, truth regains its place. When truth is restored, power follows. This is how the church regains the influence God always intended.