INTEGRITY - Mark Of A True Christian

2Cor 8:21
‘Providing for honest things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men’

The apostle Paul penned the words above in his second letter to the Corinthian Christians. A little background to why he said those words will be relayed here. He had requested a collection to be made for onward transfer to the Jerusalem Church to mitigate the sufferings those saints were facing due to persecution and famine(Acts 11:28-29, 2Cor 9:1, Gal 2:10). This contribution was being raised from all the Gentile churches Paul established and arrangements for taking it to Jerusalem were being made. Paul had to allow the churches to select other believers to accompany him on his journey bearing the gift to Jerusalem and this was done for the only reason that every body’s mind will be at rest that their contributions were being utilized for the purpose for which they were made (2Cor 8:18-22). The great apostle wanted all dealings to be plain. He did not want to wound the consciences of his people. He wanted his integrity to be displayed in plain sight. Of course he didn’t doubt his own integrity, God could attest to that but a loving and considerate Christian leader did not want the believers he suffered so much for to fall into sin on account of suspicions, side talks, rumors that might arise due to his sole handling of the monies collected. That is INTEGRITY.

The word Integrity comes from the root word integer which means whole, complete or entire. It is a firm adherence to a code of morals, values, and behavior. Integrity is uprightness of character, trustworthy action, and responsible commitment. Integrity is a refusal to be false to a trust, responsibility, or pledge. It is the quality of being honest and fair and It must be on display for all to see if we are truly Christians. Integrity should be the standard for the normal Christian life.

Christ asked us to let our light shine brightly before all men so they’ll see our good works (Matt 5:16) and a lifestyle of integrity is one way through which our light will shine and pierce through the lives of unbelievers all around us. A Christian must live a life of transparency; a life not afraid of scrutiny at anytime. It’s only those who walk dishonestly that fear and reject being scrutinized because they know their deeds are evil and unworthy of the name they are called by(John 3:20). If the world can affirm that ‘HONESTY IS THE BEST POLICY’, how much more we that are called by the name of the most holy God? Integrity is the hallmark of solid character and we Christians should be people of strong character if our Christian testimony is to be effective. Let us endeavor to be emulate Daniel who had a very valid testimony of integrity that his detractors confirmed it and had nothing to accuse him of except in his devotion to God (Dan 6:4-5). In the work place, in the home, in the Church INTEGRITY must be our guiding principle. A lot of attributes are associated with INTEGRITY. Among them we have CONSISTENCY and TRANSPARENCY. Consistency in our life makes us reliable people. How often do you change positions to fit into a particular mould? Do your words constitute your bond? Can people rely on the testimony of your mouth on issues you’re involved in? brethren, a consistent Christian is a reliable person. Transparency is the willingness to welcome scrutiny at any given time. We Christians must be ready to face the scrutiny of the world because that is when they can put our convictions to the test to ascertain what we claim we carry. All our dealings must be carried out in a way that allow people to see us for who we are. No hidden agenda whatsoever.

Our churches must be centers of integrity. No shady dealings should be allowed to becloud the testimony of the church. Probity, Prudence and accountability must guide our every move. From the clergy to the lay member, we must demand accountability from ourselves. There is nothing that destroys Integrity in this present world faster than the lure of mammon and what it can acquire. Christ told us we cannot serve God and mammon and we would do well to believe it. Let us be guided by the fact that our hope is based on a kingdom beyond this plain. Apostle Peter advised us to have our manner of living honest among the gentiles(1Pet 2:12). Our witness will be more effective thereby.

Let us end with this reminder from apostle Paul

Rom 12:17
‘Recompense to no man evil for evil, Provide things honest in the sight of all men’

God bless you richly

Love is the identifying mark of true Christians. With such unselfish love, all vices will be eliminated and peace and harmony will be the order of the day.

intergrity is the best link to prosperity

@OP,
Thanks for the continuation of this series and the word for today.

I see integrity based on the highly technical field I work with as ability to withstand, to be stable,not easily tossed to and fro by every wind. To be true to the purpose. Are external forces determinants of our internal or the other way round?

Jesus copiously showed this when he spoke about the house built on the rock and that built on sand...Matthew 7:24-29.
How easy it is to be swayed or buckle under pressure will reflect the level of integrity a person has. How strong is our anchor to Jesus no matter the buffetting we may receive from the world? What is our surety?

Proverbs 24:10 says if we faint in the day of adversity our strength is small.
How true are we to our words and how faithful, steadfast and planted are we?
May we remain steadfast in Christ.

1 Corinthians 15:58
Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.

Integrity stands in opposition to Hypocrisy.

uboma: Love is the identifying mark of true Christians. With such unselfish love, all vices will be eliminated and peace and harmony will be the order of the day.

Yeah love is the summary of the law according to Christ. He that loves his neighbour has fulfilled the law. Love will make us live honest lives as we avoid cheating or deceiving others.

This thread is just about encouraging us to let the offshoots of love become evident in our lives.

God bless you

Divepen: intergrity is the best link to prosperity

My bro, thanks for your contribution. However are you talking of financial prosperity or prosperity of the inner man? Maintaining a life of integrity in a morally decadent world will cost you. Corruption will always fight back and mercilessly too.

Some might be lucky to see their integrity pay them back handsomely but its not the rule. Rather its the exception. People of integrity will always be persecuted and I doubt if this will lead to prosperity.

As Christians however, we must endeavour to display integrity every time at all cost. That is the way of the cross.

God bless you

Alwaystrue: @OP,
Thanks for the continuation of this series and the word for today.

I see integrity based on the highly technical field I work with as ability to withstand, to be stable,not easily tossed to and fro by every wind. To be true to the purpose. Are external forces determinants of our internal or the other way round?

Jesus copiously showed this when he spoke about the house built on the rock and that built on sand...Matthew 7:24-29.
How easy it is to be swayed or buckle under pressure will reflect the level of integrity a person has. How strong is our anchor to Jesus no matter the buffetting we may receive from the world? What is our surety?

Proverbs 24:10 says if we faint in the day of adversity our strength is small.
How true are we to our words and how faithful, steadfast and planted are we?
May we remain steadfast in Christ.

1 Corinthians 15:58
Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord.

Integrity stands in opposition to Hypocrisy.

Yes you're very correct. Integrity means standing firm on the truth irrespective of the opposition. It means a display of untainted honesty irrespective of whose ox is gored. Its being steadfast even at great personal cost.

A Christian with integrity is one who doesn't think of gain before speaking up. Whether the truth is popular or not, a man of integrity will stand by it.

This should be the creed by which Christians should live. God knows how to reward us eventually. May we receive grace to be steadfast indeed.

God bless you richly.

Candour:

My bro, thanks for your contribution. However are you talking of financial prosperity or prosperity of the inner man? Maintaining a life of integrity in a morally decadent world will cost you. Corruption will always fight back and mercilessly too.

Some might be lucky to see their integrity pay them back handsomely but its not the rule. Rather its the exception. People of integrity will always be persecuted and I doubt if this will lead to prosperity.

As Christians however, we must endeavour to display integrity every time at all cost. That is the way of the cross.

God bless you

You are right,sir, that intergrity make brings about persecution.
Yet,having intergrity is having a good link to prosperity as a christain.
Joseph in the book of Genesis 39 is a good story of intergrity.
If you followed the story of that brother, who saw a certain amount of money in his bank account, he returned the money and that made many people bless him.
Having intergrity is not only for the earth it is a form of holiness to God...
Stay blessed as we continue our heavenly race.
That alone is the

@ Candour

Indeed it is very neccesary that we be reminded of scriptures like this.

This was the scripture I quoted when I wrote my Pastor asking him of the need for the church to account for the finances that comes to them through tithes, offerings, seeds and vows. I was ignored and given the impression that I was "questioning God".

I am thankful to God they ignored me because it made me to question the scriptural basis of my giving to that assembly and the rest, like they say, is history. O yes, I stopped tithing.

I find it difficult to understand why men think they can be accountable to God they cannot see when they cannot account to men they can see. Apostle Paul showed us in that scripture that the mark of integrity is to show accountability to both God and men, and it is something our ministers can imitate today.

DrummaBoy: @ Candour

Indeed it is very neccesary that we be reminded of scriptures like this.

This was the scripture I quoted when I wrote my Pastor asking him of the need for the church to account for the finances that comes to them through tithes, offerings, seeds and vows. I was ignored and given the impression that I was "questioning God".

I am thankful to God they ignored me because it made me to question the scriptural basis of my giving to that assembly and the rest, like they say, is history. O yes, I stopped tithing.

I find it difficult to understand why men think they can be accountable to God they cannot see when they cannot account to men they can see. Apostle Paul showed us in that scripture that the mark of integrity is to show accountability to both God and men, and it is something our ministers can imitate today.

I agree with you bro. We have to remind ourselves about things like this regularly.

1John 4:20 calls us liars if we claim we love God but do not show that love to our brethren. In the same vein how can you claim to be transparent with God whom you cannot see when you refuse to be transparent before your brethren whom you see everyday? A Christian should not leave people to be guessing on matters of probity, prudence and accountability. They must be evident in our lives and in plain sight for folks to behold.

The secular world demands it of its people, how much more we Christians who claim ties with a holy God?

If we truly love God and our neighbours, INTEGRITY must be our manual for daily living.

Oga Drumma...do u mean uv stopped paying tithe now

Proveb10:9 Whoever walks in integrity walks securely,but whoever takes crooked paths will be found out.
Matt7:18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.
Great write-up bro!

i.chuka:
Proveb10:9 Whoever walks in integrity walks securely,but whoever takes crooked paths will be found out.
Matt7:18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Therefore by their fruits you will know them.
Great write-up bro!

Thanks bro.

I pray God helps us to truly shine the light of integrity so we can be a beacon of light in a corrupt world.

God bless

@Candour, since i saw this thread, i've been thinking from which angle to contribute. Nice thread though, but ip has really troubled me and make me to ask questions like - what happened to Nigerian christianiy? Is there anything like 'a true christian' and 'a false christian? How are we ever going to get it back considering what is obtained in our churches today. Do you know that if you av opportunity and you refuse to steal, ur village, family, wife/husband, children, church members and especially ur pastor will call you a fool n even curse you. Do you know, if u steal, u'd be celebrated, given awards by universities, govts, associations etc, communities fighting to give u chieftaincy, churches will make u pastor and men will dash u their daughters, pastor's wife will give u even fellow members wives/daughters, bros, i've seen n heard so much dat i remain a christian today bc of God's grace do u know, in MOST churches, if they know dat u are a man of integrity, u'd nt b given any post, and they will tag u 'holier than thou'. How many time au you heard in this forum the following: 1. Don't judge, 2. Are u d God dat call him? 3. Touch nt my annointed, 4. If pastor steal church money, u should nt ask questions, 5. Smbody steals money n give to a church, d pastor refuse to return d money n d church members ask u, is he d only thief?- i tell u a story, in 2009, our senior pastor's wife bought a baby n d Daddy GO announced to us on sunday dat d mummy we saw on tuesday with flat tummy has just put to birth on sunday, bros i've never seen such a miracle in my life, when every hypocrite went n greeted mummy n thanked God for save delivery, when i could nt join d fray, i was marked dawn, accused of hating mummy n eventually made to leave d church. Bros forget integrity in naija church. Is A pastor who ask u to pay for a devotional for evangelism n turn round to sell d same book for ppl dat supposf to get it free, or d pastor who sells a ministry material clearly n boldly marked NOT FOR SALE, bros, pray for our pastors to repent, let God touch their hearts and then hopefully integrity will return. God bless sir.

christemmbassey: @Candour, since i saw this thread, i've been thinking from which angle to contribute. Nice thread though, but ip has really troubled me and make me to ask questions like - what happened to Nigerian christianiy? Is there anything like 'a true christian' and 'a false christian? How are we ever going to get it back considering what is obtained in our churches today. Do you know that if you av opportunity and you refuse to steal, ur village, family, wife/husband, children, church members and especially ur pastor will call you a fool n even curse you. Do you know, if u steal, u'd be celebrated, given awards by universities, govts, associations etc, communities fighting to give u chieftaincy, churches will make u pastor and men will dash u their daughters, pastor's wife will give u even fellow members wives/daughters, bros, i've seen n heard so much dat i remain a christian today bc of God's grace do u know, in MOST churches, if they know dat u are a man of integrity, u'd nt b given any post, and they will tag u 'holier than thou'. How many time au you heard in this forum the following: 1. Don't judge, 2. Are u d God dat call him? 3. Touch nt my annointed, 4. If pastor steal church money, u should nt ask questions, 5. Smbody steals money n give to a church, d pastor refuse to return d money n d church members ask u, is he d only thief?- i tell u a story, in 2009, our senior pastor's wife bought a baby n d Daddy GO announced to us on sunday dat d mummy we saw on tuesday with flat tummy has just put to birth on sunday, bros i've never seen such a miracle in my life, when every hypocrite went n greeted mummy n thanked God for save delivery, when i could nt join d fray, i was marked dawn, accused of hating mummy n eventually made to leave d church. Bros forget integrity in naija church. Is A pastor who ask u to pay for a devotional for evangelism n turn round to sell d same book for ppl dat supposf to get it free, or d pastor who sells a ministry material clearly n boldly marked NOT FOR SALE, bros, pray for our pastors to repent, let God touch their hearts and then hopefully integrity will return. God bless sir.

You're right my bro.

This is where all Christians need to do an introspection and make corrections to our value system. A situation where success is prized above integrity will not augur well for our efforts to win the world for Christ. All we will succeed in doing is filling our pews with people with no interest in things of eternal value.

We have to make individual decisions to change before we all get lost in the maze of corruption and decadence in the world.

God bless you plenty

Falsification of CVs is another action of zero integrity that Christians practice. Know several of them that do this and consider it a norm. God help us!

made2fit: Falsification of CVs is another action of zero integrity that Christians practice. Know several of them that do this and consider it a norm. God help us!

May God help us indeed. Christians should light bearers but how can we be if we compromise because of pecuniary gains? Let the world accuse us of plenty things but we shouldn't give them a reason to accuse us of dishonesty or malpractice of any sort because that will do great harm to our christian testimony.

God bless u sister.