THE PROCESS & STRATEGY OF COMPROMISE

The main ideas from this information are: - The history of the Missouri Compromise, an agreement between slave-holding states and those opposed to slavery. - The principle of compromise and its role in settling conflicts and controversies. - Jesus' teachings on divorce and the importance of not putting asunder what God has joined together. - The hardness of heart and the importance of forgiveness in relationships. - The presence of conspirators and crime syndicates working against democracy. - The importance of doing the right thing in the sight of God and obeying government authorities. - The goal of forming a more perfect union in the United States, striving for continual improvement. Good afternoon. This is the subject of The Art of Compromise. It was taken from a message that was preached by Brother H. Hargrave, Sr., back in the 1990s. May we draw closer to God as we delve into this subject. Herein is an historical account of legislation from 1820 to 1854 called the Missouri Compromise. This was an agreement between slave-holding states and those that had a big hand in the Civil War that came to pass. Another time in history, the Congressman John Creighton wanted to re-enact the Missouri Compromise to admit states into the Union as to whether they had slaves or not. There was tension, pressure, and conflict. Herein lies a principle which is a source or a cause, a central truth, a law of nature. Some tried to take the Bible to mean that slavery was justified. By asking the slave if it was all right, there is a different story. States were made that the Negro was less than a human. Compromise, an agreement or an arrangement for the settlement of controversy, adjustment of conflict in views. Mutual concessions, often involving a partial surrender of purpose or principle. This is the habit of the spirit of concession. Turn with us to Matthew, the 19th chapter, the 3rd to the 11th verse in the King James Version. The question was not so much to get information or understanding. This was to find a point to hang Christ. This spirit is still alive. The Pharisees also came unto him, tempting him and saying unto him, Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause? And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read that he which made them the beginning made them male and female? And he said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother and shall cleave to his wife, and they twain shall be one flesh. Wherefore there are no more twain but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man put asunder. They say unto him, Why did Moses then command to give a writing of divorcement and to put her away? And he saith unto them, Moses, because the hardness of your heart suffered you to put away your wife, but from the beginning it was not so. And I say unto you, Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it be for fornication, and shall marry another, commit it adultery. And whoso married her which is put away doth commit adultery. His disciples said unto him, If the case of the man be so with his wife, it is not good to marry. But he said unto them, All men cannot receive this saying, save they to whom it is given. For there are some eunuchs which were so born from the mother's womb, and there are some eunuchs which were made eunuchs of men, and there be eunuchs which have made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake. He that is able to receive it, let him receive it. This was already a practice of giving your wife the writing of divorcement, and they knew it. Jesus knew of it. Men had become very comfortable with that kind of arrangement. Example, you don't like her, or something about her, give her a bill of divorce, and send her on her way. Men can get comfortable with that. Real comfortable. In searching this out, it was always the man giving the paper to the woman, never the woman divorcing him. Matthew 19 and 4. Have you not read what Jesus is saying here? Consider what you've been reading all along. Really consider. Jesus is answering the question, is it lawful? Now, the Bible does imply and infer that there is cause that a man could put a wife away. By the help of God, we want to understand how Jesus handled that answer. The answer that Jesus gave adjusted in a way to show them that it still wasn't God's plan. Matthew 19 and 3b. Now watch. Is it lawful for a man to put away his wife for every cause? They understood that there was definite Bible cause that she could be put away, but they were talking about every cause. Let us put it in the words of a faithful brother. Any cause that you want to put her away for anything that you don't like. They were attempting to broaden the scope and make it a lot of room, I mean a lot of comfort. Deuteronomy 24 and 1 to 4. This is a good view of what Moses taught. Jesus knew where they were, just like he knows where folks are today. When a man has taken a wife and married her, it comes to pass that she finds no favor in his eyes because he has found some uncleanness in her. Then let him write her a bill of deportion and give it in her hand and send her out of his house. And when she departed out of the house, she may go and be another man's wife. 34. And if the latter husband abominate her and write her a bill of deportion and give it in her hand and send her out of his house, or if the latter husband die, which took her to be his wife, her former husband which sent her away may not take her again to be his wife, after she is defiled. For that is abomination before the Lord, and thou shalt not call the land to sin, which the Lord thy God giveth thee for an inheritance. Moses teaching. We got to jump on this because we know what Jesus taught, Matthew 19, verse 4-6. And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female, and said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife, and they twain shall be one flesh. Wherefore, they are no more twain, but one flesh. But therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. The point is, when we make concessions compromising what the Lord has said and what the Lord is teaching us through his word, it makes problems. There will always be trouble. We'll never get it quite right to where it will fit and work out. Moses teaching had a lot of question marks in it. They came to Jesus with this kind of background. This is how they came to Jesus. They knew what was told them. Let's turn over to Genesis 1 and 27. So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him. Male and female created he them. Jesus took them back to Genesis in the beginning. Male and female. God brought Eve to Adam. There was no other woman around for him to have or go to. God could have given two, three, four, five, or six where the first came from. Marriage from the beginning is of God. So he made the rules and guidelines for them. He's answering the question, can you put her away? Matthew 19 and six. Wherefore they are no more twain but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder. He could have just said, let not Moses put asunder. We're not writing against Moses. Matthew 19 and seven. They said, why did Moses? Matthew 19 and eight. He says unto them, Moses because the hardness of your heart suffered you to put away your wife. From the beginning it was not so. Moses said, because of the hardness of your hearts. The hardness of living under a miserable condition of an unreasonable, uncaring, hard-hearted, harsh man. No tenderness, no care, no consideration. Treat her any kind of way. Mistreat her. That's a miserable place to live. A very undesirable place. Moses spoke in a place about the hardness of the children of Israel. This takes us right back to the point of the hardness of the way that they considered their companions. So, how did Moses handle it? Now we're coming down to our thought. Compromise. Which would be worse? To live there and be psychologically abused? No, he doesn't lay a hand on me. I never see him. No, he doesn't brutalize me that way. But I am in a place where it's hard for me to get my equilibrium and know just where I fit. Moses had that on a large scale. What are we going to do? Don't you think it would be better if they'd be separated and she'd go her way and he'd go his way? Than to live under that? This is a perfect example of human reasoning. Matthew 19 and 8. He says under them, Moses, because of the hardness of your heart, suffered you to put away your wives, but from the beginning it was not so. From the beginning it was not so. In the Church of God, this is the Bible teaching. Things may get shady and cloudy sometimes, but the Bible teaching is you may not put your companion away at all. This is pointing out some reasons, but it points to the hardness of heart. Since there is no hardness of heart, there would be forgiveness. There would be a willingness to see things worked out. Speaking of the present, there are conspirators and co-conspirators who have undertaken schemes in high levels of government which form crime syndicates to fight against democracy and overthrow the more decent principles this country was founded on. There is an art of compromise and the enemy is the chief factor behind it. Satan works as folks experience tension, stress, pressure, and uncomfortableness. But we must not give up doing the right thing in the sight of God. Believing that the government is ordained of God, the Bible says in Romans 13, 1-5, let every soul be subject unto the higher powers, for there is no power but of God. The power is that thee are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God, and they that resist shall receive to themselves damnation. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? Do that which is good, and thou shall have praise of the same. For he is a minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid, for he bears not the sword in vain. For he is the minister of God, a revenger, to execute wrath upon him that doeth evil. The firmness of the Constitution of the United States penned the phrase, in order to form a more perfect union, that has been construed as referring to the shift to the Constitution from the Articles of Confederation. The contemporaneous meaning of the word perfect was complete, finished, fully informed, confident, assertive. This referring to the idea that the United States was striving to continually improve the union of states that make up the nation. What does Jefferson mean by all men are created equal? What he really meant was that the American colonists, as people that had the same rights of self-government as other peoples, and hence could declare independence, create new governments and assume their separate and equal stations among other nations. What did Jefferson say about slavery? His attitude towards slavery called it a moral depravity and a hideous blot, but continued to hold human beings as property his entire adult life. Lincoln spoke of equality in natural rights, life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness, says Abraham Lincoln in American Slavery. That's why slavery is wrong and why people have an equal right to the fruit of their labor. Efforts to remove sanctions on Russia and the Key to Trump deal is exposed. The duty of many that are in official capacities have accepted and have been bribed to keep their mouths shut concerning aforementioned leaks in government of several states. In Deuteronomy 16 and 19, thou shalt not rest judgment. Thou should not respect persons. Neither take a gift or a gift that blind the eyes of the wise and perverted the words of the righteous. This is one of the reasons the Word of God exhorts us to pray for rulers and for all that are in authority. In 1 Timothy 2, 1-4, I exhort you, therefore, that first of all supplications, prayers, intercession, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings, and for all that are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceful life in all godliness and honesty. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who would have all men to be saved and to come unto the knowledge of the truth. Psalms 9 and 17. The wicked shall be turned into hell and all the nations that forget God. Proverbs 18 and 5. It is not good to accept the persons of the wicked to overthrow the righteous in judgment. This justly condemned those who, being employed in the administration of justice, pervert judgment by conniving in men's crimes and countenancing the oppression and violence because of their dignity or wealth or some personal kindness they have for them. Whatever excuse men may make for it, certainly it is not good thus to accept the persons of the wicked. It is an offense to God, an affront to justice, a wrong to mankind, and a real disservice done to the kingdom of God. The merits of the cause must be regarded, not the person. By giving a cause against justice and equity, because the person is poor and low in the world or not of the same party or persuasion or a stranger of another country, this is overthrowing the righteous in judgment who ought to be supported, whom God will make to stand. Was America founded as a Christian nation? That question has served a variety of political causes since July 4th, 1776, from legalizing persecution and aiding runaway slaves to fight the Nazis and Communists. Scholars have spent years reflecting on the intersection of American religion and nationalism. Their answers to the question invite us to examine the motivations behind the controversy. Why did so many people think the country's Christian history is so important? Take a look at the impact of spiritual and constitutional compromises on us today. The spirit of compromise. This is a poem written by a lady named Sherry. When two paths meet compromise, you must immediately assess intent, because the underlying reason exposed will allow all to invent solutions, conclusions, resolutions. Sin in its essence and conception must be nipped at the bud. Allowing any fruition cannot lead to any good. Simplicity, duplicity, toxicity. With Solomon adding a second wife, the seed, adding the third to 700, showed immeasurable grief. Seduction, corruption, disruption, worldly influence brought idolatry, introducing other gods, bringing corrupted pathways God never wished us to try, enticing, reprising, sacrificing, preparing for heaven, reaching God's expectations, living the golden rule, and three generations, confiding, residing, abiding in his grace. Salvation doesn't come from going through the motions. Proudful villages, redemption, repentance, and devotion, predicated, dedicated, consecrated. Beware of your leaders, as corrupted they become. Be vigilant, prepared, and reactive, remembering voting can be redone. Situation, investigate, castration. Human nature puts us naturally in a tug-of-war. Spiritual awareness and the temptation we explore. Indecision, revision, decisions. Love means that his will, not ours, be done. Forever reverent with knowledge, he is the only one. Who comforts, saves, offers eternal life, elevating us clearly out of daily strife, back into his embrace, renewed in a blessed state of eternal grace, saved from a spirit of compromise by Sherry Lynn. Thank you for your time and attention.