Love, God’s Truth Detector

 

Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. Jn 17:17

Yes I do affirm the authority of scripture.  As a Christian I must accept the full Word of God.  There may be times that something that is taught is difficult for me.  If I do not submit to it and instead start down a path of self-determination then I only accept those teachings that I agree with.  Truth then becomes what I determine it to be. 

I also do not believe in the authority of my ideas about scripture.  In fact, elevating the authority of my ideas is no different than self-determination.  It is simply a more sophisticated version of believing what I want to believe.  Too often we elevate our own authority and with an error in thinking, claim “inerrancy” of our thoughts because our thoughts are about the Bible.  We mistakenly apply the doctrine of inerrancy to our thinking because our thinking (or we believe our thinking) is informed by the Bible.  As our mind is conformed to the truth of Scripture, we can make the claim of maturity of our thoughts.  As we apply the truth of Scripture, we can claim maturity of action.  But to jump from maturity to inerrancy of our own thoughts or actions is prideful leap into self-determination.

That is why love becomes such an important consideration when looking at what people are teaching about the bible.  It is a built-in truth detector of God’s word.  Consider:

If I speak human or angelic tongues but do not have love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so that I can move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing. 3 And if I give away all my possessions, and if I give over my body in order to boast but do not have love, I gain nothing. 1 Co 13:1–3

Notice speech without love is noise (i.e. lacking meaningful truth).  Prophetic words, knowledge, and faith without love is to say “I am nothing” (i.e. lacking internalized truth).  Charity and sacrifice without love is worthless action (i.e. lacking truth in action).  Don’t gloss over this.  Love is the central reality of the claim of truth.  If it is removed then the remaining religious system collapses into a pile of nothing. 

So when I or others make some claim of truth I encourage you to consider whether evidence of love is behind it. Without love you might be considering and contemplating “Nothing” which is a fruitless endeavor. 

One quick side note.  It is possible that someone who has a different point of view from you is loving.  Don’t miss this.  Love is not simple affirmation of what you believe.  This is a serious mistake in our modern culture.  Failing to affirm others’ “realities” or “truth” has become to be seen as an unloving act.  This error throws the world into chaos since not everyone can be true.  At some point even the most generous and accepting person will come to something that they say is not true. This affirm at all cost ultimately destroys truth for the sake of being accepting.  In the long run this may be the most unloving thing you can possibly do to or for another person.  For example, we know that affirming self-detractive behavior is enabling.  When we knowingly enable another’s path to destruction, we certainly cannot claim love.

If you find love then you can proceed to evaluate the claim of truth.  Is what being expressed meaningfully true?  Do they evidence that they believe the truth they are speaking?  Finally looking at their action do they act as if what they say is true. In summary, love is a divine test of integrity.  Does what they lovingly say (verse 1), match what they lovingly believe (verse 2), match what they lovingly do (verse 3)? Ultimately it is loving integrity that gives authority to what has been spoken about God’s word.  That is why Jesus reserved his most forceful criticism to those that lacked this loving integrity (See Matthew 23:1-36).

One caveat. We are all on the path toward perfection if we choose to love God and love others (see Matthew 22:34-40).  However, we are not yet perfected. 

For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror, but then face to face. Now I know in part, but then I will know fully, as I am fully known.1 Co 13:12

Integrity is a measure of the fullness of Christ in our message, beliefs, and actions.  However, perfection is evidence that we have passed from this life to eternal paradise. So on this side of death let’s give one another a huge amount of grace.  When we do we will evidence that God’s love is in us. 

But God proves his own love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Ro 5:8 

May God Richly Bless You

~BJ

Thankful for Friends that Make me Think and Help me with my Plank

I have got some feedback from friends that this sermon "The Time is Now" is a bit strong.  One has said that it is hypocritical for me to speak of such lofty things but not do what I say.  Another said that decent people hold the interpretation that the Bible says we are not to judge so I may be alienating them.  I am thankful for friends who are willing to ask me challenging questions and confront me if I have gone astray. 

That being said in this case I do not believe I am going beyond the text.  A nice person can say "BJ you are judging me," but the contradiction is that they are judging by making the statement.  There is a so called belief that judging is wrong and to be avoided.  However, if you apply that belief to anyone you contradict the value of non-judging.  The belief is self-contradictory.  In fact I would go so far to say that those that hold the banner of tolerance with the greatest of zeal are some of the most judgmental people I know! 

What is at stake is the very idea of truth.  If there is truth then we must use our God-given ability to discern to arrive at truth.  Along the way that will require us to make some judgments (more likely a lot of judgments).  Holding the belief that one can live life without judging is simply saying "there is no truth" in disguise (or at least that truth is not knowable).  I call this evil, not out of a spirit of self-righteousness, but rather a position that there is no truth or that truth is unknowable is completely out of step with what the Bible teaches.  It is evil because it contradicts the Bible.  A nice person can say something that contradicts the Bible, I can say something that contradicts the Bible.  Either way the statement is evil, even when the person making the statement is a nice person. 

I have to be on guard though.  Such powerful statements about judging can lead me to become prideful or have others perceive that I am being prideful.  I have to be careful of this.  Spiritual Pride is destructive as saying there is no truth.  I can be right technically, but wrong relationally. 

If I have the gift of prophecy and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have all faith so that I can move mountains but do not have love, I am nothing. 1 Corinthians 13:2 (HCSB)

That is why I am working on my planks.  I recently added this picture on my computer desktop.   I put it there to remind me to check my own planks.  The eye in the plank makes me think of having a plank in my eye.  I figure if I am going to challenge others to live out authentic lives and put away evil in their lives then I ought to be doing that myself else I be a hypocrite.   I want to live out the truth of:

Hypocrite! First take the log out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.
Matthew 7:5 (HCSB)

Thank you to all of you who give me such wonderful feedback both on and off my blog.  I love each of you with the Love of Christ and hope that you would always feel that you can approach me with questions or concerns.  I also am open to the fact that even in this response I am off base.  If you believe that I am please let me know.  I will pray that God would help me get the plank out of my eye I that I may see clearly and help others.  What are your thoughts?

God Bless You All

Sermon: The Time is Now (7/11/10)

Here is my sermon from last Sunday.  I am working on some posts about anger.  But it is taking longer to develop than other posts.  I expect I will have some of them out by the weekends.  God bless you all.

Audio: The Time is Now

Text:

A recent letter to Reverend Billy Grahm reads

DEAR BILLY GRAHAM: Does anybody really believe in the devil anymore? You wrote something in your column recently that made me think you did, but I thought that kind of thinking went out with the Middle Ages. — R.C.L.

DEAR R.C.L.: It has been said that one of Satan's most successful strategies is to convince people that he doesn't even exist. Another surely must be to make people believe that he is simply a harmless, comic character (with, for example, a pitchfork and a red suit)...

...Yes, Satan is real, and we see evidence of his evil workings every day. How else can you explain the irrational acts of violence and terrorism that ravage our world? How else can you explain the way we fall for his temptations, although we know they'll only bring us disaster?

Read more: http://www.kansascity.com/2010/07/09/2073663/billy-graham-satan-is-real-and.html#ixzz0tNoq6t49

Evil Exists

We should not be surprised when we hear of evil things and evil people. We are often shocked and terrorized by evil. However evil permeates our very existence. Laws are not made for people who keep the law, but for those that break the law. The reality of evil is so strong that we do not even need to get beyond ourselves to come face to face with the reality of evil.

So I discover this principle: When I want to do what is good, evil is with me.
Romans 7:21 (HCSB)

However Paul gives a cure for this:

All those led by God's Spirit are God's sons.
Romans 8:14 (HCSB)

Being led by the Spirit of God is our cure for evil. However, there are many who reject the offer of salvation through Christ that do not have the Spirit of the living God. For them evil is a very present reality that holds the the distinct possibility that their actions will be at least influenced by, and often controlled by evil. Over time we are lulled to sleep by those in power making us unaware of this very present evil that touches us everyday. The evil exists. It exists in many forms! We can not be unaware of this fact.

We also cannot be fearful of this fact. That evil exists there can be no question, but fearing evil can be equally damaging to our calling and mission. If you fear evil you will be sidelined and ineffective for God. God has a plan and purpose for your life. If you fear evil you will never accomplish that purpose in my opinion. Ours is fearless pursuit or at least it should be.

Don't get me wrong there is fear, but not of evil. We ought to fear God. God is awesome in power. He strengthens the feeble. He appoints the rising and falling of nations. His power sustains our very existence. We are held in the palm of His hands. We are here out of the goodness of His grace. The blast of His breath would completely annihilate all of existence. His power, His Majesty, His righteousness, His piercing knowledge is what we ought to fear. These minor evils that so hold our attention are nothing absolutely nothing compared to the awesome power of almighty God.

Jesus said:

Don't fear those who kill the body but are not able to kill the soul; rather, fear Him who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
Matthew 10:28 (HCSB)

Yes we ought to fear God and not evil.

So how can we deal with evil? First we must realize that there is not only evil, but there are evil men as well. That is not to say all that do evil are hopelessly evil there is time to repent and turn to God. There are a class of men that have given themselves to evil. That is to say they have embraced evil with the full knowledge of evil. They are not deceived as much as they are simply rebellious. These men and women come from all walks of life. Some are poor, some are rich, some are pleasant and nice, some are mean and gruff, some will flatter you with pleasant sayings, some will curse you with vulgar words, Some will look like the very image of perfect love, some will pour out venomous hate. These men and women are destined for destruction. They have an appetite for violence. This violence is not always physical, at times it is emotional, psychological, but it is always spiritual. Spiritual violence is there creed. They twist the goodness of God in order that God would be seen as evil and man as good. At times they are very stealthy and proclaim God, but upon closer examination the God they claim is not really God, but simply and extension of the evil that is in their souls.

Sometimes this special class of evil humans penetrate the very walls of our churches.

But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them, and will bring swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their unrestrained ways, and the way of truth will be blasphemed because of them. They will exploit you in their greed with deceptive words. Their condemnation, pronounced long ago, is not idle, and their destruction does not sleep.
2 Peter 2:1-3 (HCSB)

These false prophets and false teachers will lead many astray. It is not those lead astray that bear the greater guilt of evil committed, but those that are especially evil and false that will face greater destruction in God's judgment. It is hard though, because at times the false teachers and false prophets seem like the nicest people in the world. How could they do so much good and yet be false. Their intent is not on leading others to the Lord, but rather on a personal lust for money, power, or praise of men. It looks good on the surface, but in their hearts is a great wickedness. We cannot be for one moment be held in the captivating speeches of these evil men and women. We must be with great clarity of thought, strength of wisdom, recognize the very lies that pour from their mouths. The sewage that is their teachings cannot be tolerated no matter how sweet they make it sound. Sewage is sewage no matter how sweet.

We must at first be willing to break with all that is false in ourselves. But there is a great lie, great deception that seeks to destroy the very core of God's Church, to destroy the foundation of this living body, to soil the wedding garment of the Bride of Christ. My dear friends if you did not know it already we are are war with this evil. Its desire is to destroy us. Evil knows that if good is out of the way then it will reign. The deception is quite simple. It is a dagger pulled from the very scriptures themselves. It his put on by these hateful, deceiving lying murderous evil men and women. Yet is sounds a pure as the whitest of whites. Do you want to know what it is?

God teaches us to not judge others.

If you have sympathy for this statement, then let me tell you as plainly as I can, "Repent or be destroyed by this utterly false belief." If you do not feel a sense of revulsion at the belief that "God teaches us to not judge others" then I say it is time to wake up, open your eyes, and get angry! The devil has had a great sway over the church in this one belief. It has become the center piece of Christianity in the United States. Yet the premise to not judge is completely illogical. I would go so far as to say the only way to not judge is to be dead. Our brains are completely incapable of not judging. You might find a few Buddhists that will claim that they have achieved this state, and yet if you spend any time with them at all you will find they too judge. Judging is a very core of conscious awareness. So why would Jesus make such an outrageous statement to not judge? The plain truth is that he did not. In fact the passage that is most often quoted as the central teaching of "do not judge" is not really about judging, it is about hypocrisy.

This is what the false teacher will say to you:

Do not judge, so that you won't be judged (Matthew 7:1).

Seems pretty straight forward. It is Christ saying plainly to not judge. What the problem is that the verse has been taken out of context. What these false teachers will conveniently leave out is in verse five.

Hypocrite! First take the log out of your eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye.
Matthew 7:5 (HCSB)

Jesus was not condemning judging. It was hypocrisy that was his focus. Jesus is plainly saying that to judge others you must have first examined your own life and got that right. Once you have examined and removed sin from your own life, then you will be able to help others with sin in their own lives. You see Jesus turns judgement into a loving act in which you take care of your sin in order that you can help others. Strange that we do the exact opposite. In our effort to avoid being judgmental we avoid helping others. You see that is the trick. If you do not judge, you do not see, if you do not see, you cannot help, If you do not help you cannot love. Love is the way. Jesus loves you too much too leave you in sin. We ought to do likewise.

Shocking isn't it. If you are brave enough can you raise your hands if at any point in your life you believed that the Bible taught us to not judge others. I know I have. Yet this is just one teaching among many that these evil false prophets and teachers are pouring out into mainstream Christianity in the United States and around the world.

I want to draw your attention to one more thing before moving on. In this same passage that is often quoted as saying God teaches us to not judge Jesus says:

Don't give what is holy to dogs or toss your pearls before pigs, or they will trample them with their feet, turn, and tear you to pieces.
Matthew 7:6 (HCSB)

Two things:

One, if God teaches us to not judge then how in the world can we determine if someone is a dog or a pig. The teaching contradicts itself and is therefore complete nonsense.

Two, Jesus seems to be saying that our judgment ought to be reserved for those that are like us seeking to get sin out of our lives. Those that are dogs and pigs ought to be avoided all together.

Evil can also manifest itself in government. You see government is the power over people. And evil power hungry people will use government to carry out their evil plans. We need to recognize that it is not the government itself that is evil, but rather becomes evil when disreputable men usurp it's authority. When these men and women hold positions of power we are not to fear. We are called to witness.

You will even be brought before governors and kings because of Me, to bear witness to them and to the nations. But when they hand you over, don't worry about how or what you should speak. For you will be given what to say at that hour, because you are not speaking, but the Spirit of your Father is speaking through you.
Matthew 10:18-20 (HCSB)

When evil men use government to destroy us their intent is overcome. Why? By bringing us to the public square we have been given a greater audience than if we simply remained quiet in our homes. Government is the servant of God, so when evil men use it to advance their agenda it will always fail. Our job as believers is to stick to the message and not be turned. We do this by trusting in God. I think of the Prophet Daniel at this point. There were evil men that intended to use the government to destroy him by setting him up. How did Daniel respond? He kept on doing what he had always done and trusted God. As a result he was given a platform to speak the words of God that was much wider than he had before these evil hateful murderers started. He even may have had the opportunity to witness to the king in the process.

The wonderful truth in all of this is that the Holy Spirit of God is there with us giving us the words to speak when that time comes. We are simply a vessel that carries God's message to the nations. He never leaves or forsakes us. If they mock us then we will draw the attention of others, if they fine us we will see a flood of financial support, if they take us to court Christ will be our attorney and they will stand condemned. If they imprison us our followers will grow in number. If they murder us our voice will scream from the grave robbing our enemies of sleep and encouraging the faithful to greater works that we could imagine doing on our own.

Do you get it dear friends? There is nothing that evil can do to triumph over us when God is on our side. There is no thing that can silence the Holy Spirit of God from taking the message to the world. We have nothing to fear. However:

If you do nothing in a difficult time, your strength is limited.
Proverbs 24:10 (HCSB)

Doing nothing is limiting according to God's Word. He has a plan for us we are to:

Rescue those being taken off to death, and save those stumbling toward slaughter.
Proverbs 24:11 (HCSB)

We are on a mission to rescue lost, dying, deceived souls. We have a responsibility to love hurting and suffering people. Their very lives depend on our faithfulness to the cause. We have a high responsibility to accomplish the task. Ignorance is no excuse:

If you say, "But we didn't know about this," won't He (God) who weighs hearts consider it? Won't He who protects your life know? Won't He repay a person according to his work?
Proverbs 24:12 (HCSB)

Brother's Sisters it is time to get out of our complacency, our comfort, our easy living. Wake up there is a war going on here and our time to act is now. No excuses.

"No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom of God."
Luke 9:62 (HCSB)

What is to be our response to evil? Jesus said:

Therefore be as shrewd as serpents and as harmless as doves.
Matthew 10:16 (HCSB)

The serpent always symbolizes Satan from the beginning of the Bible to the end. It seems a strange thing for Jesus to say that we need to be like Satan in some way. However, if you have any military background at all you will understand that Jesus is saying that we must think like our enemy. It is not a pleasant exercise, but we must begin to think if I was evil, what would be the best way in infiltrate and destroy my life, the life of my family, the life of my church, the power structure of education, government, religion. You many not want to bear the thought, but the fact is that the Satan and the forces of evil in this world are planning your, our destruction. He is actively looking for a way to either destroy you, sideline you, or render your walk with God ineffective. When Jesus says to be as shrewd as serpents" He is plainly telling us to think like the enemy. We need to understand his ways. Why? If we do not then we will be caught unaware in evil's trap.

Yet harmless as doves. The Dove in the New Testament is a very obvious symbol of the Holy Spirit. In our understanding the enemy and nature of evil there is a risk of becoming like them. Our protection is the connection to the Holy Spirit of God. We cannot fall into using evil to overcome evil. That also is a trick of the Devil. If evil can sway you to act evil then it will gladly sacrifice itself for the greater victory of having you destroyed, sidelined, or ineffective. We must allow the love of God to flow through us by His Spirit. Our understanding needs to be as wise as our evil enemy, yet holding on the righteousness of God. Our knowledge of good and evil needs to be an awareness of evil yet unmoved to join it, but rather be in the place of guidance by the goodness of God. This is the work of the Holy Spirit in our hearts and lives. The word harmless in the Greek is a-ke-rai-os. The "a" prefix means "not." The keraios means mingled or filled. So in understanding this statement Jesus appears to be saying to understand evil as Satan understands evil, not mingling or filled with it even as the Holy Spirit understands evil yet is not mingling with or filled with it.

My dear friends. We cannot miss this point. That we are to understand evil yet be separate from it is of highest important. We can lose the battle at two points. If we do not understand evil then we will be ambushed by it. When we understand evil then we can see it coming and plan a Holy Spirit directed counter attack. We can also loose this battle at another point. We cannot We must not we have to determine in our hearts that we will not mingle with or be filled with evil. We need to turn from, remove, kill, destroy the evil that is in our lives.

Are you ready? Are you willing?

If this sermon seems militant to you it is because it is militant. I will not apologize for the forcefulness. If this word is too hard for you then please try to stay out of the way. We have precious little time to be spreading the gospel of God accepts you just the way you are and God teaches us to not judge other. Don't you get it? There is no power in that gospel. Those that preach it do so to there own destruction. The true power of the Gospel is in trusting in Jesus Christ turning from your wickedness and getting active in advancing the kingdom of God. Jesus' loving sacrifice was for you. He died that we might live. We do not fight a battle of flesh and blood, but we do fight a battle that seeks to destroy the spiritual forces of darkness. This sermon is a call to arms to any that would listen to it. Even if no one in this room will stand with me I will stand for the Lord our God. I am tired of seeing the enemy and evil men taking territory in our lives. We have to have the love of God that overcomes the dark evil days that we live in. Will you shine that love before men? Will you stand with me?

Meditation: Love, Love, and Obey

Passage
1 John 5:2

Context
John is finishing a section on love.  He is summarizing that we are to love others and to love God through obedience. 

Key Words
know, love, God's Children, obey, commands

Message
There is an interesting convergence when we love.   Jesus said that the two greatest commandments are to love God (Matthew 22:36-37) and to love others (Matthew 22:39).  John is pointing out that you cannot have one without the other.  Just a few verses back (1 John 4:20) he calls those that say they love God while hating a brother "a Liar."  Then in this verse he says that we know that we love other's (children of God) when we "love God and obey His commands."  Christian integrity demands then that we love others, love God, and obey his commands.  

Have a wonderful week.

Meditation: Put Off the Old

Passage
Colossians 3:5-11

Context
Paul is discussing the new order of things when a Christian has given their life to Christ. 

Key Words
Put to death, Worldly, Once walked, put away, put off, put on

Message
Putting to death the things of the flesh seems like a perfectly natural thing for a Christian to do.  However, there is nothing natural about it what so ever.  It is a spiritual discipline through and through.  If you attempt to do as some sort of works based religion you will not succeed (See Romans 7).  With that being said there is work to be done.  Putting these things to death requires your active participation.  The Spirit of God does not merely wipe this away in one sweep.  Though I believe at times we would prefer that He did.  No there is a active putting to death, putting away, and putting off of the ungodly.  This list is a good starting place of things that we ought to put off.  It is time to take the old off and put the new on.  It also seems that this is a process rather than an event.  Interestingly the old self is referred to in the past tense (perhaps Paul is helping us how to see to it that we are putting these off).  However in verse 10 he writes "You are being renewed in knowledge according to the image of your Creator."  It seems to me that this process is on going to accomplish it's purpose of being renewed into the image of God.

Meditation: A Vow of Integrity (Part II)

Passage
Psalm 101:5-8

Context
David continues to express his vow.

Keywords
Destroy, Secret slander, Cannot tolerate, Haughty Eyes, Arrogant Heart, faithful, way of integrity, deceitfully, lies, wicked, evildoers

Message
The second half of Psalm 101 is hard for me.  I am neither in the authority nor the position to do what David is vowing to do here.  So I wrestle to understand how this passage applies to me.  Never the less God always has something He wants us to learn from his word. 

This passage shows me the seriousness of the lack of integrity from God's perspective.  David is saying he has no tolerance for those that do evil.  The list is: slanderers, snobs, arrogant, deceitful, liars, wicked, and evildoers.  These are the ones that have no place in "the LORD's city" nor in the dwelling place of David.  As I think about this list I imagine what would happen to me taking a vow of integrity while not avoiding these type of people.  If I am around slanders am I not participating in some way even if I do not speak a word?  If I hang out with snobs or arrogant people is not a passive approval of them looking down on others?  If I interact with deceitful people and liars don't I risk becoming hurt by their ways?  If evildoers and wicked are with me then don't I stand against God and his righteousness?  Or worse do I not become like them? 

A vow of integrity is a break from personal evil, but also a break from external evil as well.  This seems a very difficult (dare I say impossible) thing to do as we live in an evil world.  I can scarcely imagine that David went through and destroyed anyone that ever engaged in these things.  If he had then he would have had no one but himself left.  So what is this getting at? 

Psalm 101:6 (YLT) I think holds the key.  David is saying his eyes are on the faithful of the land.  It seems that our heart is drawn to those things that we put our eyes on (Job 31:7).  If I surround myself with the ungodly then my heart is drawn to the ungodly.  If I set my eyes on the faithful then my heart is drawn to the faithful.  What is more who I sit (dwell) with will affect my behavior (Ps 1:1, NKJV).  David chooses those that are choosing the way of integrity.  Those are the ones that serve God with him. 

So then the condemnation of the wicked is not so much standing is place of judgment as it is a statement of self-preservation.  God desires that I take my vow of integrity seriously which would include eliminating influences that would lead me to break my vow.

Thank you Lord for Your Word.  Even those passages that are hard.  Thank you for your Holy Spirit which will guide us into all truth.  In Jesus Name AMEN

Meditation: Integrity Between the Message and Messenger

Passage
2 Corinthians 4:2

Context
Paul is sharing the context of the gospel to his generation.  He is explaining that the gospel is veiled to those that do not believe, but the veil is removed for those that do believe.  He adds that he is a minister of this message. 

Key words
Renounced, Not walking in deceit, not distorting, commending, open, truth

Message
Paul is saying that they have renounced those things that are evil done in secret.  Secret sin destroys the messenger and makes them unavailable to share the message of Christ.  He also is saying that the Gospel is an open book.  There is not a need for marketing, deception, or distortion to get people to believe.  What is needed is a commendable messenger to bring the open message.  It is a display of God's truth that the world needs not cleaver argument or persuasive words.  If the messenger and the message do not match then there is something seriously wrong. And most will reject the message without giving it a second thought.  What is more they will remain veiled to the truth and the lack of integrity of the messenger will be another layer on that veil.  We have a high responsibility to live holy lives.  Others depends on it.  Fortunately we have the spirit of God that will empower us for this glorious mission. 

God Bless You

Meditation: A Vow of Integrity

Passage
Psalm 101:1-4

Context
A Psalm of David during one of his "high points" of his life.  He is making the commitment to God to live a life that honors God.

Key Words
Sing, Pay attention, Integrity, worthless, Hate, involved

Message
Psalm 101:2 has "the way of integrity" (tamin derek) the namesake of my site.  It is important that we pay attention to this way.  At times we casually walk along in life without paying attention to where we are going let alone where we are stepping.  David starts with a song.  Praise and worship of God is a good starting place to walk the way of integrity.  There is something about a praise and worship song that centers the soul and brings peace to the spirit. 

Integrity is an inside to outside phenomena.  A person may have an appearance of integrity that fools most if not all people.  However, that person is internally in turmoil and certainly does not fool God.  "I will live with a heart of integrity..." in Psalm 101:2 seems to capture this idea.  From the heart must flow this integrity.  It has to be a heart change, a repentant heart, and a committed heart that leads to integrity.  It makes me think of the definition of integrity that I heard once.  What I believe (in my heart) aligns with what I say aligns with what I do.  Integrity then is measured to the degree that these three align. 

Lord break my heart for you (Ps 51:17).  Take my heart of stone and give me a heart of flesh (Ezekiel 36:26).  I long for Your integrity in my heart (2 Chronicles 19:9).

Integrity means making some choices to put away and avoid certain things that this life offers.  It starts with what we put in front of our eyes.  What we look at must not be worthless.  The measure of worth is from God.  Does this think honor God.  Nothing no matter what pleasure it may bring us is has worth if it displeases God.  A man of integrity will honor this truth.

Breaking God's Law is also not an option.  It must not even "cling" to you.  We must shake disobedience off like a poisonous scorpion that has climbed up on our garment. 

If God is gracious enough to give us a heart of flesh filled with integrity then we must guard it from perverting and crooked desires of the flesh.  This must be far from us. 

This is our commitment Lord "I will not be involved in evil."

May God richly bless you and grant you a heart of integrity.