When everything proceeds without obstruction, it is natural to drift into ease and comfort. Yet this very ease often marks the true beginning of decline. To thrive in an ever-changing world demands constant vigilance—and the recognition that knowledge is never complete. History offers countless examples of once-mighty organisations that crumbled, not from ignorance, but from self-satisfaction.
The Hidden Cost of Success: Nokia and Rome
Nokia dominated the mobile phone industry, only to be overtaken by more innovative rivals. Its downfall did not stem from a lack of information, but from fatal complacency—an unwillingness to heed the signs of technological evolution. Indeed, the greatest threats often arise not from what is unknown, but from what we cease to question.
A nation is most vulnerable precisely when it basks in the glow of its own success. Paradoxically, a country embroiled in turmoil may invite criticism, yet it often holds more promise than one that appears problem-free.
The Roman Empire offers the same warning. Long regarded as the most enduring civilisation in Western history, it seemed invincible for centuries. Yet in 476 AD, the Empire was shaken to its core by barbarian invasions, an event that precipitated its eventual collapse. The root cause was not external might but internal blindness—a failure to grasp the dynamics of change, born of overconfidence. The barbarians had long been dismissed as incapable of posing a serious threat—until the moment of reckoning arrived.
No matter how enduring a power may seem, all can be reduced to nothing. The descendants of Rome’s most formidable emperors now live as ordinary people, remembered only in the pages of history. The sobering lesson is clear: even the mightiest can fall, not because they were ignorant, but because they were complacent.
This same principle explains why so many industries that once flourished have faded into obscurity. At the heart of such decline lies a form of arrogance—the assumption that past success guarantees future relevance.
The Biblical Warning: The Rich Young Man
Complacency breeds the belief that prosperity is permanent. This is the mindset that caused the rich young man in the ancient parable to turn away from something greater, unable to let go of his wealth and comfort.
Just then a man came up to Jesus and asked, “Teacher, what good thing must I do to get eternal life?”
“Why do you ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. If you want to enter life, keep the commandments.”
“Which ones?” he inquired.
Jesus replied, “‘You shall not murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not steal, you shall not give false testimony, honour your father and mother,’ and ‘love your neighbour as yourself.’”
“All these I have kept,” the young man said. “What do I still lack?”
Jesus answered, “If you want to be perfect, go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”
When the young man heard this, he went away sad, because he had great wealth. — Matthew 19:16–22, NIV.
The rich young man did not imagine that anything could take away his comfortable lifestyle, as long as he faithfully kept the commandments. This is a classic example of complacency: he assumed security in his physical possessions while remaining unaware of the transience of this world. He did not even consider the possibility of losing his physical life. That is how blinding complacency can be. Pride, which blinds a person to his or her own complacency, is always at the centre of it.
Many people live under the folly of assuming they will live forever in this world. Surprisingly, such people may have observed the deaths of loved ones, yet instead of drawing lessons from that reality, they continue to assume their fate will be different. The rich young man rejected the offer of God’s Kingdom because he assumed a different fate for himself. In his complacency, he thought his riches would be permitted in God’s Kingdom and identified himself as inseparable from his wealth.
The lives we now live are shaped by what remains of those who came before us, especially when we imitate their priorities. Their failure to grasp the need to avoid complacency has helped shape present conditions. They were people with goals and ambitions. But because they are no longer here, many of us tend to pursue the same goals they pursued. Some may be privileged to understand the aspirations of their forebears and continue from where those earlier generations left off—but it is only a matter of time before the inevitable comes to pass.
Every human being aims to live a better life. This is different from those who aim to make others live better lives. A person who aims only at living a better life in this world loses at the very point of attaining satisfaction, because satisfaction is what leads to complacency. However, when the focus is on the welfare of other people, life is purposeful and most satisfying, but not granting complacency, as the problems of humanity are ever in abundance.
The Rich Fool
“And he told them this parable: ‘The ground of a certain rich man yielded an abundant harvest. He thought to himself, ‘What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops.’
“Then he said, ‘This is what I’ll do. I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my surplus grain. And I’ll say to myself, ‘You have plenty of grain laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry.”’
“But God said to him, ‘You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yourself?’
“This is how it will be with whoever stores up things for themselves but is not rich toward God.” — Luke 12:16–21, NIV.
The idea of accumulating wealth appears innocent, even wise. But the product of complacency is the assumption that one has already achieved one’s destiny. Even if God had not demanded his life, the rich fool could have squandered everything to please his ego. When life is going well, a person may sit in the comfort of being blessed while forgetting the dangers of complacency. Nothing lasts; even one who seeks to correct past mistakes may also succumb to complacency.
The Alternative: Serving Others
The behaviour of complacent people is endemic. The only way to avoid this malady is to focus on serving others with a passion, rather than serving yourself. The question ought always to be: “How can I provide effective service to other people?” That mindset alone reflects the will of God. The rich young man who despised God’s Kingdom died, like everyone else.
A poor man may die without possessions to show for having lived in this world—a condition still typical of the proud, who seem oblivious to the reality of losing their lives. The rich person may die leaving behind sufficient inheritance for his children, but there is no guarantee they will be good stewards of the wealth left behind. The only marked difference at the burial of a rich person is the casket in which he is interred.
There is wealth whose purpose is show, and there is wealth that changes people’s lives for the better. The two types of people who display such wealth are differentiated in this way: one is soon forgotten, while the other is remembered for many years to come. A person who has focused on serving others lives longer, even after losing the physical body. The New Testament gives us the example of Dorcas, also called Tabitha.
“In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha (in Greek her name is Dorcas); she was always doing good and helping the poor. About that time she became sick and died, and her body was washed and placed in an upstairs room. Lydda was near Joppa; so when the disciples heard that Peter was in Lydda, they sent two men to him and urged him, “Please come at once!”
“Peter went with them, and when he arrived he was taken upstairs to the room. All the widows stood around him, crying and showing him the robes and other clothing that Dorcas had made while she was still with them.
“Peter sent them all out of the room; then he got down on his knees and prayed. Turning toward the dead woman, he said, “Tabitha, get up.” She opened her eyes and, seeing Peter she sat up. He took her by the hand and helped her to her feet. Then he called for the believers, especially the widows, and presented her to them alive. This became known all over Joppa, and many people believed in the Lord.” — Acts 9:36–42, NIV
The name of Dorcas continues to reverberate across the world nearly two thousand years later. Most people assume their current wealth will protect them from future disasters. Life, however, is a journey whose destination is unpredictable. The illusion of complacency is that all is well—until the moment of death reveals that nothing is well after all.
The Illusion of Security: Zimbabwe and Laodicea
In Zimbabwe, we bought several insurance policies that made us feel comfortable, assuming the future was secure. But life became what the entire nation never expected. We lost everything, and most people of my generation now live without pensions to sustain their old age. The best an older person can do in the remainder of life is to share these experiences with the younger generation.
Hope is possible only when we find ourselves in a wretched condition. Nothing remains to be hoped for when one is living comfortably. A person may have received the truth and come to understand marvellous things that others are not privileged to understand. This can grant spiritual comfort that leads to complacency. There is freedom in truth, and that freedom may bring a comfortable lifestyle. It is precisely at that point that complacency creeps in.
“To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realise that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich, and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness, and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see.” — Revelation 3:14–18, NIV
This passage shows that the cold are not in the same spiritual danger as the lukewarm, similarly to how rich people become complacent, assuming that the easy life in wealth saves. Such Scriptures are a blessing to true believers. There is freedom in truth, yet there is also danger in being complacent in such freedom. No one has ever reached the level of success accomplished by Jesus, who gave us the supreme lesson on avoiding complacency.
The Example of Christ
Jesus was the most successful individual among those who ever lived, yet he is erroneously viewed by some as having lost everything, including his physical life on the cross. Jesus remains dominant even after approximately two thousand years since his departure. Unknowingly, many people remain stuck on his death at the cross. But no one would still be speaking of a dead person as the living Lord, currently worshipped throughout the world. There was no room for complacency in Jesus, who occupied Himself with what to His physical death on our behalf. He stayed focused on what would happen in the future.
“In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth.” — Philippians 2:5–10, NIV
Guarding Against Complacency in Ministry
Commendably, there are great preachers in the world today, but the majority are betrayed by complacency. The people around them often encourage complacency, making them feel indomitable. It is true that many people testify to having been brought to Christ through the ministry of spiritually powerful personalities. But that is precisely where the danger of complacency secretly enters.
To avoid complacency, success should not invite celebration, but a sober consideration of what lies ahead, as long as one remains alive. Spiritual blessings that attract the adulation of ordinary people should not be celebrated by truthful men and women of God. Such admiration should serve as a warning signal of the danger ahead. The only time a Christian should celebrate and rejoice in this world is when receiving persecution. Jesus was very clear on this.
“Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for, in the same way, they persecuted the prophets who were before you.” — Matthew 5:10–12, NIV
We should bear in mind that a Christian is one who has committed everything to follow Christ (Luke 14:25–33), leaving nothing to be proud of. Complacency is the one limiting factor whose impact the world may still struggle to understand. The good things of this world, in whatever form, can hinder entry into God’s Kingdom. Christ said no one can be his follower unless he or she is willing to surrender everything.
Sadly, some people remain stubborn even after receiving such warnings. The warmth that comes with the admiration of others is highly deceptive. God’s work requires a high sense of vigilance, being certain of the fact that the knowledge of God’s Kingdom can never be exhausted.
Conclusion
The enemies of a Christian may not necessarily be flesh and blood; one of the greatest enemies is complacency. The only open window for the enemy of true men and women of God—leading to Satan’s invasion—is complacency. In the end, vigilance is the price of survival. To remain alert, to question success, and to embrace continuous learning is not merely prudent; it is essential. For while ignorance can be remedied, complacency often proves fatal, because it is sustained by self-assurance and therefore causing spiritual blindness.
Andrew Masuku is the author of Dimensions of a New Civilisation, laying down standards for uplifting Zimbabwe from the current state of economic depression into a model for other nations worldwide. A decaying tree provides an opportunity for a blossoming sprout. Written from a Christian perspective, the book is a product of inspiration, relieving those who have witnessed the strings of unworkable solutions, leading to the current economic and social decay. Most Zimbabweans should find the book to be a long-awaited providential oasis of hope, in a simple conversational tone.
The Print copy is now available at Amazon.com for $13.99
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