Let’s play a little word game that came to mind during my time of “coffee with the Lord” today – matching a word with its “antonym” (its opposite)… Let me set you up – the word we’re matching with is “integrity” … Now think about it; what word would you choose as an antonym (an opposite word) for “integrity?”
The passage I was reading in my Bible that provoked this thinking was Job 27 – a passage where Job declares his commitment to personal “integrity.” In in, Job declares, “Till I die I will not put away my integrity from me! My righteousness I hold fast, I will not let it go! My heart shall not reproach me as long as I live!” (Job 27:4-5) In fact, all of Job 31 is a studied defense of his sustained integrity with the repeated phrase; “If I have…”
And Job was not the only one who defended and asserted his integrity – God did! Twice these words are declared by God to Satan (the “accuser”) regarding Job: “Have you considered My servant Job, that there is not like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil?” (Job 1:8) And then God’s assertion regarding Job’s integrity appears again in Job 2:3: “Have you considered My servant Job, that there is none like him on the earth, a blameless and upright man, one who fears God and shuns evil? And still he holds fast to his integrity, although you incited Me against him, to destroy him without cause!”
So… What is the “antonym” – the opposite of “integrity?” I would argue it is “HYPOCRISY!” …Claiming virtue, goodness, righteousness but hiding evil, perversion, dishonest, and bad behavior. Seeking to convince others by your actions that you’re good, holy, and a person of integrity but covering up bad behavior and character with deceit.
Hey, my guess is your list of people of integrity is a lot shorter than your list of hypocrites! I know mine is! Look around you in politics, business, entertainment, and leadership in general… plenty of hypocrites! Not a lot of people of genuine integrity!
God help me – I want to be a person of integrity – don’t you?
How can it happen? Well, I’m convinced (and the Bible teaches) it is an “inside-out” thing! I believe it begins by being “born again” – a Spiritual “rebirth” and having God plant His “spiritual DNA” within our lives! (John 3:6-8,16) Then, as we cooperate with what God, by His Spirit would do within our lives, integrity becomes a reality! (Romans 8:1-4; Galatians 2:19-25) And then there’s the important process of “being transformed by the renewing of our minds” daily with the help of God’s word and the Holy Spirit coupled with our will (Romans 12:1-2).
Oh, I want to be a person of integrity before God and others – “true-blue – inside-out!” Don’t you?
Coffee With The Lord 