Sermonic Theme: Integrity
Introduction:
Just what is integrity? Webster’s dictionary says that integrity is the possession of firm principles: the quality of possessing and steadfastly adhering to high moral principles or professional standards. And with that note that brings me to my first and only point.
Development:
First Point: Where Is Your Integrity?
I promise not to be long, but when we look at Job. He sets the standards for us with integrity. Here he is, a man that has a body covered with sores, he has lost all of his livestock, he has lost all of his servants, he was lost all of his children, and his so called friends have turned their backs on him.
When he turns to look for comfort from his wife, he finds out that his wife has turned on him as well. She asks him, Are you still holding on to your integrity? Why don’t you curse God and die?
My brothers and my sisters this message is not only to the three being ordained today, this message is for the entire body of Jesus the Christ.
The question I pose to you is Where is your integrity? There are going to be times when you are tired and just don’t feel like serving. Are you still willing to serve when you truly don’t feel like it? Where is your integrity?
Do you pray for those that come to you and ask you for prayer or do you just brush them off and tell them that you will pray for them. Where is your integrity?
When it’s your turn to minister at the nursing home or shelters do you go or do you go shopping, or take a bus trip to Atlantic City to play the One Armed Bandit? Where is your integrity?
When the Pastor needs volunteers to help him with projects around the church and you may have planned to go to the movies to see Transformers, knowing that you can go see the movie at another time, but you make an excuse to the Pastor and go to the movies. Where is your integrity?
What about when someone tells you something in confidence or invites you over to their home and they share private things with you that you promised that you would keep it in strict confidence. But on you way home in the car you grab the cell phone and start running your mouth.
Their house may not be up to par and you’re running your mouth about the condition of their home and their situation. Where’s your integrity?
The Bible calls those type of people “double-tongued.” You as elevated leaders in Christ must not be double-tongued. You must not be bearing tales or in other words telling lies, gossiping, saying one thing to one person and something different to another [person].
Donald Guthrie, in his book called The Pastoral Epistles says, saying one thing to a person’s face and something else behind his back, there is no more of a descriptive word that could be chosen than "double-tongued.
It is important not to be double-tongued. As a leader in Christ, going from house to house in visitation, you may be tempted to gossip or say one thing to one person and something else to another person.
You may also tempted to evade or smooth talk issues. Therefore, you must be a man/woman of integrity, a man/woman who speaks the straight truth, not compromising the Word of God.
Job held on to a high level of integrity. He did not waver. He held on to God’s unchanging hand. My brothers and my sisters, when the rubber meets the road, Where is your integrity?
Conclusion:
Just before I take my seat, I just want to say that I know we are not perfect. I know that we are going to fall short of integrity. I know that we may say some thing s that we should not say, and we are going to do some things that we should not do.
I got some good news. There’s a man named Jesus the Christ. He said in 1 John 1:9 that If we confess our sins He is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.
I know this is true because he took that walk to the Hill of the Skull. He hung there and suffered.
Just as death was about to enter His body, one of the thieves confessed of his sins. Jesus had to put death on hold. Just like when you press the hold button on a DVD player and the movie stops in a still frame. Jesus heard his plea, and said to him On this day, you will be with me in paradise.
Jesus shortly after hung His head and died. Jesus is the king of integrity. He refused to come down from that old rugged cross. His death had two meanings.
His death was Retroactive: meaning that Jesus looked back into the Old Testament saints that had faith in redemption.
His death was also Retrospective: meaning that Jesus looked into the future to those saints that have faith in redemption.
Jesus is the King of Integrity. But on the third day, early that morning, Jesus got up with all power in His hands.
