by Franklin Graham
ntegrity seems to
be on the downslide in America.
The public is bombarded with stories
that smack of lack of
integrity from Wall
Street to Washington, D.C., from
professional sports to college athletics. It seems we learn of another
case of lying, stealing or cheating
every day. As Christians involved in
ministry, it’s easy to become arrogant and judgmental about these
secular examples, but sadly, the
people of God who are held to a
higher standard have not been
immune from breaches of integrity.
The Bible warns, “Like a muddied
fountain and a polluted spring is
a righteous man who yields, falls
down, and compromises his
integrity before [the world]”
(Proverbs 25:26 AMP).
People throughout history
have sought riches, fame, and success from the reservoirs of human
ingenuity to define themselves.
Few search for wisdom and
integrity from God’s unfathomable reserves to establish who
they are. Why is this?
Many strive for personal
achievement to gain recognition,
many times under-stepping even
the secular standard of integrity:
character, honesty, and moral
virtue. The dictionary defines
integrity as the “firm adherence to
a code of especially moral values
and incorruptibility.” Followers of
the Lord Jesus Christ, who is the
high standard of integrity, have
access to His unlimited resources
that empower us to exhibit such
characteristics.
I
Three questions come to mind.
Who has integrity? How does one
obtain integrity? What does
integrity exhibit?
Psalm 119:1 answers all three
questions,“Joyful are people of
integrity, who follow the instructions of the Lord” (NLT). This
statement tells us who has
integrity (people who follow),
how they obtained integrity (by
godly instruction), and what the
result of integrity is (joy).
The next question to consider
is what are the instructions of the
Lord? While many Scripture
passages can be highlighted,
Few search for wisdom
and integrity from God’s
unfathomable reserves.
Philippians 2:14 comes to mind
[my comments in brackets].
“Do all things without complaining and disputing, that
you may become blameless and
harmless, children of God
[who] without fault in the midst
of a crooked and perverse generation, among whom you shine
as lights in the world, holding
fast the word of life [how]; so
that I may rejoice [what] in
the day of Christ that I have not
run in vain or labored in vain”
(NKJV).
The apostle Paul further
states: “Brethren, whatever
things are true, whatever things
are noble, whatever things are
just, whatever things are pure,
whatever things are lovely,
whatever things are of good
report, if there is any virtue and
if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.
The things which you learned
and received and heard and saw
… these things do, and the God
of peace will be with you”
(Philippians 4:8-9 NKJV).
True ministry done in the name
of the Lord Jesus Christ must hold
to the standard set forth in the
Word of God if it is to shine in truth
and light. As the church is the
embodiment of Christ on earth
today, so is the work it administers. The church is made up not of
organizations but of God’s people.
His instruction is given to individuals to follow. “Receive instruction
in wise dealing and the
discipline of wise thoughtfulness,
righteousness,
justice
and
integrity” (Proverbs 1:3 AMP). You
ask, whom should we follow; what
should we follow? The answer: the
Lord Jesus Christ and His Word.
We learn the principles of
right living from our Father in
heaven. I have also learned from
my earthly father the importance
of putting God’s Word into
action. As an internationally recognized evangelist and preacher,
Billy Graham has always been
concerned that he and his organization exemplify the elements of
integrity as a testimony to those
carefully watching, up close and
from afar. He has stated, “God’s
standard is expressed in the
Bible, and the ultimate example
of that standard is Jesus Christ.
When we live by truth, we possess integrity. Integrity means
that if our private life was suddenly exposed, we’d have no reason to be ashamed or embarrassed.” Integrity means our
outward life is consistent with
our inner convictions.
The lack of integrity tells sordid stories. The Bible does not
shy away from revealing the
absence of integrity played out
in the lives under the watchful
eye of Almighty God. The Old
Testament patriarch Abraham
compromised integrity when he
lied to Egypt’s pharaoh, yet God
did not withdraw His promise to
make him the father of many
nations.
The apostle Peter compromised his integrity when he
denied that he was a follower of
Christ even though earlier he
proclaimed that he would never
cease from following Jesus, yet
the Lord did not turn His back on
the one who would go on to proclaim the Gospel to the world.
Though we are the recipients
of God’s forgiveness when we sin,
we live with the consequences of
our sin. But God fully displays
His integrity and is faithful to
His Word. He fulfills all of His
promises.
King David, because of his sin,
cried out to the Lord to restore
the joy of salvation (Psalm 51:12).
The believers in the church in
this reason that he helped establish ECFA, a monitoring agency
that strives to help nonprofit
Christian ministries maintain the
highest ethical standards. These
standards naturally are based
upon the principles of Scripture
and are given to guide individuals
along life’s pathways. The Bible
instructs Christ’s followers to
exhibit “a pattern of good works;
in doctrine showing integrity,
reverence, incorruptibility” (Titus
2:7-8 NKJV). May God’s people
strive to attain such a mark worthy
of the Lord’s calling.
God will bless those who live
out their lives exhibiting integrity
in all things so that we can
preach Christ’s truth with
integrity. His blessings will
empower us to shine His light in
a darkened world with joy and
effectiveness.
Franklin Graham is president and
CEO of Samaritan’s Purse in Boone,
NC, and Billy Graham Evangelistic
Association in Charlotte, NC.
Integrity means
our outward life is consistent
with our inner convictions.
Ephesus were warned that sin
grieves the Holy Spirit’s effectiveness in their lives (Ephesians
4:30). Paul disciplined himself
into subjection so that he would
not become disqualified from
preaching the Word of God to
others (1 Corinthians 9:27).
While we all fall short of God’s
standard from time to time, we
take refuge in the fact that He
knows the motives of our hearts,
for when we are in tune with
God’s Word, He will help us
through our times of failure and
He will bless us when we uphold
His standard of right living.
Early in my father’s ministry he
understood this concept. It was for
Reprinted from
FOCUS on Accountability
ECFA
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