Honesty is a critical factor
To pursue integrity, we must continuously walk in honesty. We are expected to speak truthfully; we cannot twist words to our advantage by exaggeration, drama, or concealing important information that could shed a different light into the situation. An honest person avoids even the slightest appearance of evil because they don’t want any shadow of doubt over them!
Honesty cannot be a compartment in life, neither can it be followed only when it is convenient. To be honest requires a commitment to the Lord, and it takes courage. There are going to be times that we will be tested in life; in our finances, and in our relationships, and honesty will cost us something.
Let not mercy and truth forsake you; Bind them around your neck, Write them on the tablet of your heart. Proverbs 3:3
The picture that this scripture paints is beautiful. Besides having our wedding rings, a necklace is another jewelry item that represents what we love or what was given to us as a gift from someone close to us. Truth should be seen as precious jewelry that we get to wear around our neck. The Lord himself is full of truth and honesty, so when we have truth around our neck we show that we belong to him and we look like Him! To write truth on the tablet of our heart means that anything that is not the truth will not have permission to enter.Truth and mercy are the gatekeeper to what comes into the heart and what comes out.
Years ago when I was single, my brother and I decided to purchase a house for our parents. We were hoping that purchasing a house in the U.S. would help them to settle down and live comfortably after having immigrated here for a couple of years. My brother was already married, so this would have been considered a second house/rental property for him, meaning a higher interest rate. I didn’t own a house at that time, so my two options were to either declare it as my primary residence or declare it as a rental property which, just like my brother, was putting us at a higher interest rate. Since the house was about 100 miles away from my home in San Jose, I knew there was no way for me to commute during the week, so calling it my primary residence was not the truth. I was encouraged by some to just call it my primary residence so that I could have a better interest rate for myself and my brother. I had a resolve to go with the higher interest rate; to be truthful and just pay the higher rate although we weren’t charging my parents any rent.
As we were getting ready to sign the escrow papers, I got laid off from my job. I was disappointed, but I knew that the Lord was going to provide for me. As a result, we went ahead with signing the papers and purchasing the property. I was laid off for a few months before I found a similar job I used to do. There were some tough moments, but looking back at those few months the Lord did not stop providing for me through a temporary job and severance pay. The great report about this house was that my brother, his wife, & I owned that house for 13 years. God’s provision was always there. Nothing broke, or required fixing and remodeling. We did not have a single argument or disagreement over this house. It was finally my father who asked us to sell it. After the loss of my mother and my father’s aging, he wanted to move into a senior community. Doing it right was worth it all the way and God blessed it!
Then the Lord said to Satan, “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?” Job 1:8
Job was an upright and blameless man that God knew he could trust. When his own friends were giving him so called “counsel”, they accused him of sinning & wickedness. They said a lot of things, but they couldn’t pin point what he did wrong because he hadn’t done anything wrong. On the other hand, when Nathan came to David, Nathan was direct with David’s sin and David did not deny his sin.
When someone is upright and honest, there may be accusations swirling around them. Many times, these are gray and generic accusations. At the end of the day, nothing can stick to the person because they are upright and honest.
Honesty is about doing it right and being right with the Lord all the time. Whether someone watches us, or catches us is irrelevant. This is an important character issue!