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The dictionary defines integrity as \u2018strict adherence to a code of moral values or other standards, complete sincerity or honesty.\u00a0 It is the state of being unimpaired; soundness.\u2019<\/p>\n
Integrity is keeping your word even when no one checks up on you.\u00a0 In addition, you have integrity if you keep your promises.\u00a0 A person of integrity keeps his words, and both his words and actions are attune, i.e. aligned and not far apart.<\/p>\n
As Christians, we are expected to be persons of integrity, as such, we must stand by and do what we say, we must always be apt and ready to defend our Christian profession and faith.\u00a0 We must purpose in our heart like Daniel not to be defiled by the pleasures that this world offers.\u00a0 It is such integrity as displayed by the four Hebrew friends, Daniel, Meshach, Shadrach and Abednego, that will make us not to crack when it means to stand alone. It should not crumble when pressure mounts.<\/p>\n
Integrity seems to be lost in our present day church and society.\u00a0 Today\u2019s crave and craze to make it fast and in a big way, is a major factor why the tenets of integrity are eroding by the day.\u00a0 Today, a lot of people believe that integrity will make its adherents lose out and make less money, lower grades, and climb the ladder of success more slowly.<\/p>\n
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In the dictionary, integrity means an unimpaired condition (i.e. soundness, wholeness), firm adherence to a code of moral values (i.e. being incorruptible or upright).\u00a0 It includes but is more than being honest and trustworthy.\u00a0 Integrity comprehends the whole moral character because it has reference to soundness, purity, perfection, etc.<\/p>\n
Integrity involves living by the word of God, seeking to please God and not men above self.\u00a0 In the days of Noah, Enoch, Job, Zechariah and Elizabeth, they all had the testimony of being perfect and just before God.<\/p>\n
Although the word integrity does not occur in the New Testament (KJV), its equivalent include sincerity, pure heart or good conscience towards God and men, Acts 24:16. As believers, God is our standard.\u00a0 He is the overall judge.\u00a0 We must strive to please God, walk perfectly before Him and seek to do His will at all times.<\/p>\n
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Job as a child of God, is a perfect example of integrity, Job 2:3.\u00a0 God was proud and made boast of Job and this was unknown to him.\u00a0 God our creator described Job as a perfect and upright man, who feared God and eschewed evil.\u00a0 A man who upheld his integrity; no better testimony is needed than such great commendation by God; even the reviling from his own wife did not dissuade Job from his integrity.\u00a0 He was resolute in his mind to uphold his integrity that he declared that until death he would not remove his integrity from him, Job 27:6.\u00a0 This is what integrity should mean to a child of God.\u00a0 A definite resolution in one\u2019s heart to uphold righteousness even in the face of death.<\/p>\n
It was integrity that made Joseph to resist the advances of Potiphar\u2019s wife, Genesis 39:8-12.\u00a0 Hebrews 13:5 is apt on what integrity should mean to a child of God stating that, our character should be free from the love of money, including greed, lust, craving for earthly possessions and that one be satisfied with your present circumstances and with what you have (amplified version).<\/p>\n
Integrity is not a virtue that could be hidden; it manifests over a period of time, and it appears to all, 1 Timothy 4:15.\u00a0 As a child of God, we are admonished to be careful in our lifestyle by taking heed to ourselves; Christianity and Christendom today is in a situation where every child of God must take heed to ensure their salvation.\u00a0 It is important for an individual to both ensure that he\/she is saved and to continue in the doctrine of the Word.<\/p>\n
Integrity also demands that a child of God should not be ostentatious, i.e. showy display, that all he does should be in secret, basically seeking to please God and not the praises of men, Matthew 6:1-8.\u00a0 In other words, we should not be men pleasers.\u00a0 In summary, integrity to a child of God entails maintaining godly principles and character wherever we are; we are to be content, diligent, seek only to please God and be holy in our secret places.<\/p>\n
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In Job 27, integrity was demonstrated in Job\u2019s life by a clear, defined declaration that, \u201cwhile he was alive, his lips shall not speak wickedness nor his tongue utter deceit\u201d.\u00a0 The ability to speak the truth at all times void of all manner of hypocrisy and eye service, is a trait and attribute of integrity.\u00a0 This is lacking in the lives of some Christians, as lies are spoken without caution.\u00a0 Sometimes, it becomes difficult to believe, what a fellow brother or sister in Christ tells you.\u00a0 As believers with integrity, our YES should be YES and our NO should be NO, not saying something from our mouth while the opposite is what is true and correct of the circumstance.\u00a0 We should always ask ourselves what the intent of lying is, most times it is to cover up a wrong done so as to escape punishment, incur favor, tarnish someone\u2019s image or perhaps trying to belong to a \u2018class\u2019.\u00a0 We might not be able to count all the reasons as they are innumerable.\u00a0 One thing is sure; lies are from the devil who is the father of all lies.\u00a0 We must not talk at all times because the scriptures admonished that, \u201cIn the multitude of words there wanteth not sin; but he that refraineth his lips is wise\u201d, Proverbs 10:19.\u00a0 It is better to keep quiet and choose not to talk than to talk and tell lies.<\/p>\n
Integrity is also manifested by living right, walking in the ways of the Lord and not turning from them to do evil.\u00a0 Our hearts must not walk after our eyes, i.e. we must not be carried away by the things this vain world offers-the lust of the eyes, lust of the flesh and pride of life, 1 John 2:15-16.\u00a0 Our focus should rather be on the things of eternal value and spending eternity\u00a0with God.\u00a0 This would guide and guard us from sin and propel us to live righteously before the Lord.<\/p>\n
Another attribute of integrity can be seen in our associates.\u00a0 A man of integrity would not have fellowship with sinners, i.e. having sinners\/the unsaved person as their best friends (1 Corinthians 15:33) is apt on this, that evil communication corrupts good manners.\u00a0 Where a sinner becomes a Christian\u2019s best friend, without doubts and over time, some character of the sinner rubs off on the believer.<\/p>\n
A man of integrity cannot hide his identity.\u00a0 Integrity is not practiced in the secret, as it is known to people, it is noticeable.\u00a0 A man of integrity would not take a bribe nor run to do mischief.<\/p>\n
The attributes of integrity in summary are, the desire to seek God, being honest and trustworthy, being open to God about our lives, showing unfeigned and genuine concern for others while maintaining God\u2019s standards; treating others fairly and honestly, acting in sincerity and void of hypocrisy, living uprightly and in obedience to the word of God.<\/p>\n
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A lot of reasons abound why some Christians compromise their integrity.\u00a0 Some of them are as follows:<\/p>\n
-When Christians yield to negative pressures which could be from loved ones, society, peers, job,\u00a0financial gains and even from fellow Christians, we compromise our integrity.<\/p>\n
-Lack of the awareness of who we are in Christ Jesus is another reason.\u00a0 When a Christian fails to appreciate his stand in God, it results in loss of integrity, as he or she would not hold his salvation at great and high esteem hence would easily compromise God\u2019s standards.\u00a0 The class should mention others.<\/p>\n
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There are a lot of benefits when we maintain our integrity before God and men.\u00a0 These benefits accrue to the individual, the church and the society in general.\u00a0 The following are some of the benefits.<\/p>\n
God establishes those that uphold their integrity.\u00a0 He also preserves them.\u00a0 Integrity helps us to remain in our faith and be steadfast in the Lord by walking in the truth of God\u2019s Word.\u00a0 A child of God with integrity stands before the presence of God always with boldness.<\/p>\n
God protects and guides those, His children, that uphold their integrity.\u00a0 He protected Shedrach, Meshach, Abednego and Daniel both from the burning fiery furnace and from the Lion\u2019s den.<\/p>\n
Another benefit of maintaining our integrity is the feeling of internal joy and satisfaction by the individual, that is doing the right thing.\u00a0 Also the children and the posterity of a man of integrity are blessed.\u00a0 Integrity brings honor, and such a man is trusted by men, and lives in an atmosphere of peace.<\/p>\n
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There are things we can do to improve our integrity; some of them are:<\/p>\n
-We must be conscious of who we are in Christ; always remember we represent God and are the Christ that men see today.\u00a0 This should guide our character and attitude, towards life and issue of life in general.<\/p>\n
-We should also make our stand known.\u00a0 We are to stand by what we believe, even it it means that we are standing alone.\u00a0 We should be bold to make our faith known.<\/p>\n
-We should not make promises, vows and pledges that we cannot keep.\u00a0 We must try to keep promises, even when it is not convenient and we should not break truce, 2 Timothy 3:3; Psalm 15:4; Romans 1:31.<\/p>\n
-We must abstain from doing crooked and secret things, or things that are not straight-forward, if we are to improve our integrity.<\/p>\n
-Following people that have integrity is another way we can improve in our integrity, \u201cAs iron sharpeneth iron\u201d, Proverbs 27:17.<\/p>\n
The ability to control the tongue and our speeches to a large extent influences the level of our integrity.\u00a0 We must choose to be deliberately quiet at times, even when the issue of discussion is very familiar. Maintaining a quiet spirit will greatly enhance\u00a0our integrity.<\/p>\n
We should be moderate and let our moderation be known to all.\u00a0 The class should mention others.<\/p>\n
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As Christians, we should have integrity with the people around us.\u00a0 Also, we must have integrity with God.\u00a0 If you are honest, open, trustworthy and available to God, it will automatically produce integrity in everything else.\u00a0 Choose today to live right and maintain your integrity before God, the ultimate judge of all men.<\/p>\n
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Proverbs 11:3 \u2013 \u201cThe integrity of the upright will guide them, but the perversity of the unfaithful will destroy them.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Christian Virtue: Integrity Central Thought: The believer is to maintain Godly principles and character daily. Text: Genesis 20:5-6; 1 Kings 9:4-5; Job 2:3, 7-10, 27:1-7 The dictionary defines integrity as \u2018strict adherence to a code of moral values or other standards, complete sincerity or honesty.\u00a0 It is the state of being […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sundayschool"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/640","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=640"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/640\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":982,"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/640\/revisions\/982"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mzgtiglobal.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}