Compromise or Not Compromise: That Is the Question

What do you do when small issues at work force you to consider whether to compromise some of your beliefs to advance and succeed? How do you deal with bosses who don’t understand your worldview or Bible-based convictions? Is there a way out?

These are some of the questions Immanuel Tan, a Seventh-day Adventist professional from Malaysia and president of the Adventist-laymen’s Services and Industries (ASi) in the Malaysia Union Mission, tried to answer on August 30. During the 2025 convention of ASi in the Southern Asia-Pacific Division, in Phuket, Thailand, he led a breakout session titled “Uncompromising Ambition: Rising to the Top Without Selling Out.”

Challenges in the Labor Market

Tan recounted the time he found an important job in a Japanese international company in Malaysia. “It’s a self-driven job, with databases of contacts you are supposed to build and performance targets you strive to achieve every month,” he said.

He explained that “in Japanese culture it’s very important that you show from the very beginning of the day that you are excited and motivated to work. They value punctuality and meeting to do business while drinking,” he noted. “For you to build your relationship with your colleagues you are supposed to meet with them often in the evenings to bond over alcohol.”

It wasn’t long before Tan learned that his managing director wanted everyone on his team to meet on Friday evenings to bond over alcoholic drinks. “To him, this was the best way to build rapport with everyone else and build a cohesive team,” he said. Tan added, “If you don’t attend, they will think you are not cooperative and not a team player.”

Tan soon contacted his boss to explain that as an Adventist he didn’t drink or do work-related things on Friday evenings. “When I said this, his face went black,” Tan shared. “And from then on he was not happy when every Friday I would leave at 6:00 p.m. while the rest kept working.”

Tan said he was confused by the whole situation. After all, he had prayed about getting this job, and now was wondering why God had allowed him to experience such challenging circumstances. “I need Your help, Lord,” Tan told God. “If You brought me here, You have to get me out of this situation.”

A Promotion and an Award

Tan continued to pray, and soon he began to reach and exceed his monthly targets. “On the fourth month I discovered that my boss’s attitude had changed. On the ninth month I was promoted. I became the youngest team manager in the company,” he shared.

He then said that by the tenth month he had become the top salesperson in the company. He was the only representative of the Malaysian branch to be at the annual award meeting in Tokyo. “It’s marvelous, amazing, what God can do for us when we put our trust in Him despite all the challenges we may face,” he said. He quoted Philippians 4:19, a Bible verse he says he treasures: “My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus.”

Tan also shared that after 15 months in the company he left to pursue graduate studies in the U.S. “My boss, however, kept in touch with me,” he said. “Even today we still keep in touch.” Recently Tan was invited to the company anniversary celebration. “Whatever circumstances we face, if we focus on God and not on man, we can be assured that God is powerful to lead us to triumph,” Tan said.

Facing Compromise

According to Tan, compromise often presents itself, not as an outright evil, but as a “necessary” or “pragmatic” choice. In his case, he explained, he faced “the pressure to meet a deadline by working on the Sabbath, to slightly inflate a sales figure, or to participate in after-work drinking sessions to ‘fit in.’ The core issue is prioritizing worldly gain or acceptance over divine principles,” Tan said.

He explained that often the fear of unemployment is a powerful motivator. We also aspire to be seen as a team player. “We fear being labeled as difficult, uncooperative, or a ‘troublemaker.’ The desire for a promotion, a good performance review, or simply to gain favor with a superior can lead us to compromise our integrity.”

Tan emphasized that we don’t usually want to be seen as odd, judgmental, or socially awkward. “The pressure to conform is immense,” he acknowledged. “It can be easier to take a small sip [of an alcoholic drink] or tell a lie than to explain and defend our beliefs.”

What Happens if We Compromise

Compromising our beliefs has practical consequences in real life, Tan suggested, adding that when we compromise our beliefs, we lose our moral authority. “Colleagues who see us bending the rules for convenience will not trust our witness about Christ,” he said. “Our hypocrisy undermines the very message we are called to share.”

Tan referenced the example that Jesus gave us. Jesus “never purchased peace and friendship by compromise with evil,” he read, quoting Adventist Church cofounder Ellen G. White.*

Overcoming a Crisis of Faith

According to Tan, the temptation to compromise has a spiritual root. “We are tempted to compromise because our faith in God is not strong enough,” he said. Choosing the worldly option, Tan added, shows that “we have a deeper trust in our own ability to secure our future over God’s ability to provide.”

It’s all about nourishing our faith daily, he suggested, believing that God is faithful. When we refuse to compromise, we create an opportunity to share our faith. “As Matthew 5:16 says, when people see our good works, they will glorify God,” Tan said. “Our ‘good works’—including our refusal to compromise—are meant to draw others to God, which is the ultimate victory.”

*In Signs of the Times, Mar. 22, 1910.