Integrity

Several years ago, when I was pastoring a church in North Louisiana, a worship pastor I knew at another local church was caught with a laptop full of pornography. Apparently the computer, which was church issued, had developed some kind of a technical glitch, and when the worship pastor had turned it over to the church’s I.T. guy for repair, all of this junk had been discovered. Even more disturbing was that the time signatures on some of this material indicated that the guy was looking at it in his office…during the worship service! In other words, he would go out on stage…lead a few hundred people in worship…then go to his office and look at smut while the senior pastor preached. He would then repeat the same process during the second worship service. To say the least, I was shocked! This was a guy who had a wonderful wife and several young children and all the promise in the world. On the outside…things looked perfect.

The leadership of this church responded by offering some grace. They did not embarrass the worship pastor in front of the whole church nor did they inform his family. Instead, he discreetly entered professional counseling and monitoring software was installed on his computer to be checked weekly by the senior pastor. Within a month, however, he had found a way around the monitoring software and was once again looking at porn…at work. This time there was little grace.

It seems to me that integrity is all about who you claim to be…in reference to whom you really are. The word itself derives from the Latin adjective “integer” meaning whole or complete. It’s about the full package and whether the public persona and the private life match up. It’s the perceived vs. the actual. In the case above, the man claimed to be a loving husband/father, dedicated follower of Christ, gifted worship leader…but, in reality, he also had a debilitating addiction that no one else was aware of. His integrity was seriously compromised and, eventually, everything came crashing down.

You should know that it is the enemy’s desire that your integrity be shattered. It is his wish that you create an intricate façade of a life for the purpose of hiding who you really are. Realize, however, that you can hide things from your wife…your friends…your coworkers, but NOTHING is hidden from God. The Apostle Paul writes:

Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant. Those who live only to satisfy their own sinful nature will harvest decay and death from that sinful nature. But those who live to please the Spirit will harvest everlasting life from the Spirit. So let’s not get tired of doing what is good. Galatians 6:7-9

Who are you for real? Are you what you claim to be or is there a life within a life of which no one except you is aware? Chances are, there are elements of your life that no one else knows about. Chances are, your integrity has some cracks.

One thing that you need to know is that being a follower of Jesus is all about drawing closer to Him. The problem ultimately isn’t the cracks…it’s living as if the cracks don’t exist. Jesus desires to heal our broken places. He desires to move you to a point where your exterior mirrors the interior. Don’t live a life of faux-righteousness where everything looks great on the outside…while your whole world is crumbling on the inside. Let go of your pride and allow Jesus to do a work within you. Only He can truly repair what has been broken.

Here are three elements that will undoubtedly aid you as you seek to live a life of integrity.

1. Daily time with God.
I think it can seem as if this is the generic fix-all for anything that ails you spiritually, but the importance and effect of a dedicated daily time engaging our God can never be underestimated or discounted. It does, however, take discipline and the results of a daily time can be quite convicting and unnerving…something many of us would like to avoid. The truth is, however, that Jesus said that truly following Him would never be easy. Jesus is never going to adjust to your schedule so that you can pencil Him in. You need to MAKE time to pray, study His Word and explore how you can apply that Word to your life. I’d encourage you to Google “Bible Reading Plan” and go from there.

2. Accountability Partner
If you struggle with a hidden sin that would potentially be life-shattering or destructive to your family, you desperately need an individual who can walk along side you in confidence to call you on the carpet and push you towards lifechange. Here at Rush Creek, we literally have dozens of people who can help hold you accountable in being a man of integrity. If you would be interested in talking with someone, feel free to email me at westonb@rushcreek.org.

3. Starve the Habit
The Bible talks about how we often make provision for sin. In other words, we make up our minds that we are going to sin and then we prepare to do it. The idea is simple. If you struggle with alcohol…don’t buy alcohol. If you struggle with what you are looking at online…don’t get on the computer…or get rid of your computer all together. Scripture counsels that if your right eye causes you to sin, gouge it out. Now, I realize that this is all easier said than done, but the principle is unavoidable. You must physically put distance between you and the particular sin that afflicts you. Your accountability partner can also keep you honest in this area.



Also note that you don’t have to live a life of perfection to live a life of integrity. In Matthew 5, Jesus says:

“Again, you have heard that it was said to the people long ago, ‘Do not break your oath, but keep the oaths you have made to the Lord.’ But I tell you, Do not swear at all: either by heaven, for it is God’s throne; or by the earth, for it is his footstool; or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the Great King. And do not swear by your head, for you cannot make even one hair white or black. Simply let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No’; anything beyond this comes from the evil one.” Matthew 5:33-37

In other words, recognize that you are in need of a Savior. You don’t have the power to defeat sin on your own. Jesus says, don’t vow to do anything…because ultimately you are powerless to do what you’ve vowed…and you’re just going to embarrass yourself. Instead, rely on the power of God and blessings that He has placed in your life (your family, church, mentors) to move you to be more like Him and to live a life of integrity under His authority.