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“Are we people of integrity?”
Psalm 32:1-11
Would people say you have integrity? Do people put their trust in you? Are you who you seem to be? Integrity, at its heart, is simply wholeness. When something or someone has integrity, it means there is nothing false in them. Everything's authentic. It's the same inside and out.
Frank Lloyd Wright, the master architect, once said, "What is needed most in architecture today is the very thing that is most needed in life, integrity."
We certainly want integrity in our buildings and in our bridges, don't we? We don't want some hidden part that's made from shoddy and inferior parts. We want to be able to trust that when we get into an elevator, it will take us to the top floor without plunging us into the basement. We want to trust the bridge to take us safely across.
We want integrity in the things we own and the things we use. We also want it in the people we live with and work with. And we need to look for it in our own hearts. It's important that we have integrity, that what we are on the outside is an accurate reflection of who we are on the inside.
God is a God of integrity. That's where it all begins. In II Timothy 2:13 Paul says, "If we are faithless, (God) will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself." God cannot be false to His own nature. Just as God is a God of integrity, You and I are to be people of integrity.
Integrity has nothing to hide. Sometimes you and I fall short of that standard. In fact, most of us have developed a sophisticated ability to rationalize, to lie, to hide, to pretend we have our act together. That's why our society is so into appearances: they distract us from the inner turmoil many of us hide every day.
When Adam and Eve fall victim to the serpent's persuasive skills and eat the fruit from the tree of knowledge their eyes are opened, and they realize they're naked. What do they do next? They run and hide. But not from each other, from God.
Integrity has nothing to hide.
In Psalm 32 David tells us,
1 Blessed is the one whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.
2 Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord does not count against them and in whose spirit is no deceit.
No deceit! No hiding from God or from others! Many of us are hiding in broad daylight. We're hiding our sins, our spiritual struggles, our doubts, and fears about God. We're hiding our need to always be in control of our own lives. Or we may be hiding a life that's out of control.
In verse 9 David warns, "Do not be like the horse or the mule, which have no understanding but must be controlled by bit and bridle or they will not come to you . . ."
That's us! We're like a horse, or in some instances a mule that must be controlled by a bit and bridle. There's no inner control, no spiritual compass that leads us to follow God's will.
3 When I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long.
4 For day and night your hand was heavy on me; my strength was sapped as in the heat of summer.
David was affected both spiritually and physically by his estrangement from God. Hiding from God is serious business.
We don't want our leaders to hide what they do from us. We want our leaders to be transparent, to work out in the open where we can see that they are leading with integrity. We want them to be accountable. All of us need someone to whom we are accountable. Of course, we hide nothing from God. But we need to live with such integrity so that if everyone knew our every secret, there'd be nothing that would embarrass us.
5 Then I acknowledged my sin to you and did not cover up my iniquity. I said, "I will confess my transgressions to the LORD," and you forgave the guilt of my sin . . .
There's great power in confession. Roman Catholics understand this. Psychiatrists and psychologists understand this. You and I cannot be all God intends us to be while trying to harbor dirty little secrets.
There's power in living with nothing to hide. There's power in learning to confess to God, and in some cases, to other people, when we've done wrong. Living with transparency, accountability, integrity can be real sources of strength.
Integrity starts with being honest with God. When we can confess, "We will not hide our humanness. We are flawed and broken, and we need God to guide us in paths of righteousness, because we'll never make it on our own," then we can be set free from inner turmoil. We can find our way out.
It's true, confession is good for the soul, whether made to God or to another human being. The act is liberating. That's something Mendoza discovered. In the powerful movie, The Mission, starring Robert De Niro, De Niro plays the role of Captain Mendoza, a character so thoroughly vile, selfish, and brutal there seems to be no hope for him. Among other things, he captures Indians and sells them as slaves. He even kills his own brother. When he decides to repent, a priest suggests Mendoza accompany him to an Indian village on a surrounding mountain top. As penance, the priest takes a large net and fills it with heavy armor and weapons. He ties this burden to the shoulders of Mendoza who must pull it up a steep and slick bluff adjacent to a mammoth waterfall. The heavy burden makes the treacherous climb even more difficult and dangerous. Many times, he nearly loses his footing and falls.
When they finally reach the village, the Indians, fully aware of what Mendoza had done to their brothers, have pity on him. Suddenly, the chief of the tribe takes out his knife. Mendoza fears he'll be killed, but instead the knife slashes the rope that's bound him to his burden. He's free. At this, Mendoza breaks down and cries with deep sobs of relief and gratitude for the mercy and grace extended by the very people against whom the atrocities had been committed.
That's a picture of the freedom that can come to us when we confess our sins, both to God and to a brother or sister in Christ. Dietrich Bonhoeffer once put it this way: "A man who confesses his sins in the presence of a brother knows that he is no longer alone with himself; he experiences the presence of God in the reality of the other person. As long as I am by myself in the confession of my sins everything remains in the dark, but in the presence of a brother the sin has to be brought into the light."
So, let's come out of hiding, live transparently, and get rid of the baggage from the past we've been hiding. In 2 Corinthians 3:17 Paul tells us, "Now the Lord is Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." This is the way out. We don't have to let sin and deceit bind us any longer. As new creations in Christ, our freedom comes from spiritual integrity, from living out the identity and the purposes of God. When we do that, we can say with David:
10 . . . the Lord's unfailing love surrounds the one who trusts in him.
11 Rejoice in the Lord and be glad, you righteous; sing, all you who are upright in heart.
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Rev. Charles Eldredge is a member of Maitland Church of the Brethren. He has a Facebook page and can be contacted by email: ce1133 @verizon.net.