While all spiritual disciplines are essential, there are some that stand out as absolutely crucial to the Christian life. Practicing integrity is one such discipline (previous disciplines in this series dealt with the mind, devotion, prayer, and worship). Integrity means doing the right thing at all times and under all circumstances, whether or not anyone is watching. In other words, it is doing the right thing no matter what the consequences will be.
We need to know that no one is doing this instinctively. Integrity, like other virtues that build character, is not present in us naturally but it is developed through discipline over time. Sadly, it is a virtue that is experiencing a sharp decline in our society.
More and more, we hear about people behaving in a dishonest way. We can see this in sports, entertainment, education, business, politics and sadly even in Christian circles. An increasing number of people cannot resist the urge to cheat and lie for the sake of some sort of achievement.
The Bible defines integrity as wholeness, completeness, sincerity, uprightness, and soundness. God expects integrity and delights in it. We read about people like David and Job who understood the value of integrity and thus were committed to keep it.
Jesus also stood out as a man of integrity. When he was approached by the Pharisees at one point, even though they had a hidden agenda, they provided an accurate description of his reputation. “Teacher, we know that you are a man of integrity. You aren’t swayed by others, because you pay no attention to who they are; but you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth” (Mark 12:14).
In Hebrews, we read that he was tempted in every way, yet he maintained his integrity. In John 14:6, we read that he is the truth, which is why he always spoke the truth. It is this very thing, which eventually led to his crucifixion. Because he preached the truth and people did not want to accept it. They rejected it and wanted to silence him.
We see a great deal of men trying to suppress the truth in our day. They do not want to hear it because they would rather live in sin. So, they will seek to do whatever they can to suppress those who uphold the truth. They will ridicule, threaten, and eventually even punish those standing stubbornly for the truth.
Integrity comes at a price. Whether is the nature of this fallen world or the direct attacks of those who despise integrity, doing the righty thing in all circumstances is not easy. But it is certainly worth it. Here are four pledges that a person who is committed to integrity should be ready to embrace.
A man of integrity does not lie
“Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, but those who deal truthfully are His delight” (Prov 12:22). Lying is a sin and God does not like it. He expects us to be truthful and honest. Even if we are set to resist lying, the devil will try to convince us to accept some subtle lies, or white lies, the ones that don’t really seem like lies, lies that supposedly don’t hurt anyone and are meant for a good cause. We see this kind of thinking promoted by our society, that if the goal is a noble one a certain amount of dishonesty is permitted. This, of course, is unbiblical because God condemns all lies. Furthermore, we do not see Jesus ever allowing for exceptions in this area. He always spoke the truth. Of course, there is a kind way and a bad way to tell the truth. However, we should never go so far in our desire to be kind that we embrace lying.
A man of integrity does not cheat or steal
You don’t need to rob a bank or to be involved in some scheme that defrauds people of money to be guilty of this. Taking home things from work, ignoring copyright laws, claiming improper deductions on tax returns are just some examples that many people are comfortable doing without occurring to them that this is stealing. As it is with lying, people can come to accept doing all of these things by either diminishing their negative reputation or by completely redefining it to mean something good.
A man of integrity keeps his promises
Here too is important not to divide things into big or small. If we do that, we are more likely to break the smaller promises. We should only promise what we know that we are planning to see through. This is important because the circumstances might change in such a way that keeping our promise will not be in our benefit. One who has integrity will keep the promise regardless of such a change.
A man of integrity is a man of principle
This is about the courage to stick to our convictions, even if this will be costly to us. We might be expected to turn a blind eye to certain illegal things at work, or to acknowledge a certain sexual identity that contradicts biology.
To be a man of principle, one needs to stand by his/her principles. Doing so might results in being unpopular at work, or might even cost you your job, or your freedom and, in some very extreme situations, even your life. We see this in the life of Joseph. He had to spend a few years in prison because he refused to have an affair with his master’s wife. He was not willing to do that which he knew was wrong and he was ready to pay the price for his principles.
In short, being committed to integrity means that we don’t lie, that we don’t cheat or steal, that we keep our promises and that we have the courage to stand by our principles. It means that we are devoted to exercise the necessary discipline. While integrity is hard and requires some sacrifice, it is also well worth it.
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