Integrity

One of the things that is lacking, unfortunately, in our country and even in many of our churches, is a spirit of Integrity. This is a word that you don't hear used often these days, but it's still a big priority with God. If people expect to be blessed, and if this country expects to be blessed, then we must learn to operate and function within a spirit of Integrity. Integrity doesn't mean you're going to always do the right thing (Romans 3). It doesn't mean you're faultless. But what it does mean is that there's a certain character and approach that you take to life, dealing with others, and most importantly, how you choose to relate to God. If a person or a nation does not operate with Integrity, then everything else is negotiable and basically unstable.

What is Integrity? There are multiple definitions one could use. But the one I would like to propose today is having a basic standard of values and ethics for which one's behavior and attitude is regulated. When you're operating in Integrity, there's a Moral Code for which you operate, even if you don't perfectly keep it. You're not operating by the philosophy of "anything goes". No. There are certain values and beliefs that regulate and determine what you do and why you do it. America has gotten away from that. And so have many of our churches. We've been swept away by popular culture, which says, if everybody's doing it, then it must be alright. No, that's all wrong. Our conduct and behavior can't be regulated by "the crowd". No my friends. There's no Integrity in that. That's part of the problem right now with the mainstream church. We won't take a stand against same-sex marriage because "the majority of Americans" think it's ok. So what! Does God think it's ok? That's a question of Integrity. Integrity says, I must be true to the values and beliefs that I have adopted, whether they go along with the majority or the crowd or not. We must re-establish a Standard for our churches and for our Nation (Isaiah 59).

When you're operating in Integrity, when you mess up (and you will), you own up to it and acknowledge that what you did was wrong. Once again, people sometimes think that operating with Integrity means that you're immune from making mistakes or doing something that's wrong. This is incorrect. Everybody makes mistakes and is prone to human error. The distinction with Integrity is that you acknowledge that you're wrong and you admit your mistake. Why is this Integrity? Because you never put yourself above the Standard that you've adopted and identified with to set the tone for your character. This is where the Witness of the church gets lost so many times. People in the world would have more respect for the church if we would just admit that we're wrong just like them. The world and the unchurched, by and large, doesn't have a problem with the message that we promote; their problem is when they see us deviate from that message and then still want to condemn them for "being sinners". There's no Integrity in that. The beautiful thing about Grace is that we can confess our sins, knowing that we have an Advocate with the Father (1John 1). So we don't "have" to "cover up". We don't have to "pretend" like we're something or someone that we're not. That doesn't mean we're condoning the wrong that we may be involved in, but we have the Integrity to say that we're not living up to the Standard that the Lord has set for His children. That's Integrity.

The Standard for the Body of Christ that establishes the Integrity for the church is the Word of God. Bottom line is, if the Word says it, that settles it. Now mind you, I know there are different "interpretations" of certain things in the Word, and sometimes things are taken out of context. But some things are just basic. Sex outside of marriage, fornication, is wrong. Homosexuality, two people of the same sex being romantically involved, is wrong. Lying, not telling the truth, is wrong. Same-sex marriage, two people of the same sex being married, is wrong. The only reason I'm listing these particular sins is because our society has reached a point where a lot of these things are normal. And because America no longer operates by the Standard of the Word and Will of God, a lot of people, including people in the church, think that some of these things are ok. Wrong! If it's against the Word and Will of God, it's not ok. And the church has got to start saying that! "Our" Integrity is on the line. What is the church going to stand for? When are we going to speak up and say Enough Is Enough. No, we won't be perfect, and no we won't be right all the time. But we can at least be a church that when God is looking for a Voice to represent Him in the earth, He doesn't have to look far to find a church with Integrity.