Integrity In The Life of the Believer, 2005

https://www.intouch.org/watch/sermons/integrity-in-the-life-of-the-believer

Can people rely upon your honesty and trustworthiness?

Do people see you as a person of integrity? Can they rely upon your honesty and trustworthiness?
Dr. Stanley states that your integrity is at the core of who you are. It defines your identity and the content
of your character. However, you can easily lose your integrity by compromising the truth or rationalizing
certain events. Fear of rejection, the avoidance of conflict, and selfishness are among the reasons for this
loss. But Dr. Stanley points to one more reason: an unwillingness to trust God. When you have the
assurance that He is in control, you have the courage to be upright, reliable, and trustworthy. Knowing
He can be trusted should give you reason to live in such a way that you can be trusted, too.
Sometimes you must be courageous and strong enough to suffer the consequences of doing the right
thing. This is how you can uphold your integrity while honoring the eternal standards of God's Holy
Word.
Can you believe what you hear or see in the news?
Saying what you mean, meaning what you say.
Psalm 15, Who Shall Abide in God’s Sanctuary?
1 
O Lord, who may abide in your tent?
    Who may dwell on your holy hill?
2 
Those who walk blamelessly, and do what is right,
    and speak the truth from their heart;
who do not slander with their tongue,
3 

    and do no evil to their friends,

    nor take up a reproach against their neighbors;
4 
in whose eyes the wicked are despised,
    but who honor those who fear the Lord;
who stand by their oath even to their hurt;
who do not lend money at interest,
5 

    and do not take a bribe against the innocent.

Those who do these things shall never be moved.
A person of integrity is willing to pay the consequences of his/her actions.
The people who know me, do they know me as a peson of integrity?
We must treat others the way we want to be treated.
Say what we need to say and do what we need to do.
HOW DO WE LOSE OUR INTEGRITY?
 Compromising the truth.
 Outright lying.
Consequences of lying:
 Begins to erode my own sense of myself. Disintegration of my core being.
 We become less capable of handling the circumstances of life.
Proverbs 2, The Value of Wisdom
 My child, if you accept my words
1

and treasure up my commandments within you,

making your ear attentive to wisdom
2 

and inclining your heart to understanding;

if you indeed cry out for insight,
3 

and raise your voice for understanding;

if you seek it like silver,
4 

and search for it as for hidden treasures—

5 
then you will understand the fear of the Lord
and find the knowledge of God.
For the Lord gives wisdom;
6 

from his mouth come knowledge and understanding;

he stores up sound wisdom for the upright;
7 

he is a shield to those who walk blamelessly,

guarding the paths of justice
8 

and preserving the way of his faithful ones.

Then you will understand righteousness and justice
9 

and equity, every good path;

for wisdom will come into your heart,
10 

and knowledge will be pleasant to your soul;

prudence will watch over you;
11 

and understanding will guard you.

12 
It will save you from the way of evil,
from those who speak perversely,
13 
who forsake the paths of uprightness
to walk in the ways of darkness,
who rejoice in doing evil
14 

and delight in the perverseness of evil;

those whose paths are crooked,
15 

and who are devious in their ways.

 Feeling guilt, panick attacks addictions.
 Strange from God.

What to do to restore or to impress integrity:

 Raise children to say the truth always, by saying the truth and not lying at all.
 Establish a set of convictions, none-negotiable.
 Do always my best at work, at home, at society at large.
 Submit and obey to God.
 Building relationships with other people that have integrity.
 Confess when you make a mistake, if I was wrong or misleading.
 Ammend your deceptions.
Proverbs 10,
9 
Whoever walks in integrity walks securely,
    but whoever follows perverse ways will be found out.