RECAP
Intro: What it Means to be
Blessed
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God gives us
blessings, produces blessings, and promises blessings.
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We as people
tend to focus on material blessings more than God does.
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God has given
us blessings, but how much stuff we have is not the best way for us to measure
God’s blessing in our life.
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The truth is
that we ARE blessed— blessed with every spiritual blessing.
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We have access
to the blessing of God.
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However, we
must walk in them in order to experience His blessings the way He intended for
us.
Part 1: Delighting in God’s
Word
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There is a
blessing when we delight in God’s Word.
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Blessed is the
man who refuses to listen to the voice of the world.
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Blessed is the
man who delights (values) God’s Word
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Blessed is the
man who meditates on God’s Word
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Blessed is the
man who obeys God’s Word
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That person
will be blessed: stable, sustained, fruitful, enduring, and prosperous.
- Walking in God’s ways is the closest thing to heaven on this side of it.
INTRODUCTION
In 2009, a New York City taxi driver named Mohammad Asadujjaman picked up an Italian tourist and dropped her off at her destination. Sometime later, he discovered that she had accidentally left a handbag in the back of his taxi. Inside the bag was more than $21,000 in cash, along with jewelry and other valuables. When the woman realized what had happened, she contacted police, but she was told not to get her hopes up about ever seeing the money again.
And you can understand why. He was a taxi driver. Nobody was there watching him. Nobody knew what was in the back of that cab except him. He could have taken the money, thrown the bag away, and probably no one would have ever known. But instead, he began trying to track down the woman who had left it. He eventually found her and drove more than 50 miles to return the bag—with all of the money and valuables still inside.
People were stunned by his honesty. The story made news because what he did was so unexpected. The woman and her family were overwhelmed with gratitude, and they even offered him a reward, but he refused it. When asked about what he had done, he simply said, “I’m needy, but I’m not greedy.”
That is integrity.
What strikes me most is that we live in a society where true integrity is “surprising.” That just seems so sad to me.
WHAT IS INTEGRITY?
Before we define what integrity is, I believe it is important to discuss what integrity is not. Integrity is not:
•
Perfection — People imagine that if you make a mistake then you
lack integrity. However, that is just expecting someone to be perfect. When a
person of integrity fails and makes a mistake, they own it, repent if it, and
then make it right. They don’t cover it up.
•
Image
Management — Integrity is not asking
ourselves, “how will this make me look?” Instead, integrity asks the question,
“what is the right thing to do?” Image management cares about appearing to be
righteous. Integrity cares about actually being righteous.
• Reputation — Reputation is who people think you are. Integrity is who you really are. You can have a great reputation publicly while living completely different in private. There is no security in that kind of life.
So then what is integrity?
Integrity comes from the idea of one having an integrated life. In other words, that they are the same person wherever they go. Integrity also comes from the word “integer,” which of course is a whole number. It carries the idea of being a “whole person.” In other words it means to be “one.”
Integrity (Tom) = Completeness, wholeness, innocence, being undivided.
[Image 1]
Integrity = Being the same person publicly and privately.
It’s when your private life is consistent with your public life. Integrity means God does not just get one slice of my life, He gets the whole person. It means that we allow Jesus to lead every part of our life and for the Holy Spirit to clean us from the inside out.
LIFE PARABLE: THE RETIRING
CARPENTER
There is a well circulated parable of a man who was a master carpenter. He worked for his company his whole life and was preparing to retire. So he made the announcement to the company and to the owner. His employer hated to lose such an experienced worker, so he asked him for one final favor: build just one more house.
The carpenter agreed, but his heart was no longer in the work. Because he knew he was almost finished, he began cutting corners. He used cheaper materials, rushed parts of the construction, and accepted workmanship that he ordinarily would never have allowed. Instead of finishing his career with excellence, he simply wanted to get the job done.
When the house was finally completed, the employer came to inspect it. Then, rather than preparing to sell it, he handed the carpenter the keys and told him that the house was his—a retirement gift in appreciation for all his years of service.
The builder was stunned. If he had known that he as building this house for himself, he would have done a better job. And the fact is that through integrity, you and I are building the house that we will live in the rest of your life. Through our words, our actions, how we treat people, how we talk about people, etc. The house we are building is the house we will be living in the rest of our lives.
Therefore, integrity is incredibly important. In fact, its so important that God tells us that there is a blessing available for the person who walks in integrity. The person who walks in integrity is a candidate for the blessing of God over their life. In fact, we are going to discuss three blessings found in scripture that are tied to walking in integrity.
1.
Integrity brings God’s favor upon our life
Psalm 84:11 — “For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD
bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk
uprightly.”
God
withholds no good thing from the person who walks upright before the Lord. To
walk upright means to be a person of integrity. That person God honors and
bestows favor on their life. It may seem easier to get further along on the
front end by compromising or cutting corners. Sometimes dishonesty appears to
create a quicker opportunity. Sometimes bending your convictions may seem like
the easier path. Sometimes doing things the wrong way may even seem to produce
faster results.
A person of
integrity understands that he does not have to manipulate an outcome or abandon
their convictions to receive what God has for them. If something is good for
us, Psalm 84:11 says that God will make a way for it in His way and in His
timing.
Never
sacrifice what God can give you for something that compromise can get you.
2. Integrity allows God to vindicate you
Psalm 24:3-5 — “Who may ascend the mountain of the Lord? Who may
stand in His holy place? The one who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does
not trust in an idol or swear by a false god. They will receive blessing from
the Lord and vindication from God their Savior.”
There
are times when we can do everything right and be treated as if we were the ones
who did something wrong. In those moments we may feel like we need to say
something or do something in order to validate your case. However, here it is
saying that the person who walks in integrity has God on their side to do their
vindicating. Integrity frees you from having to prove yourself. As you protect
your integrity, God will protect your name and reputation.
We
see this with Joseph. He refused to go against God’s Word and walked upright in
every situation. Even though he experienced hardship due to the falsehood of
others, the truth was found out and God delivered Him. Not only did He deliver
him, but God exalted Joseph as well in the end.
Value
having clean hands and a pure heart above everything else. That is what God
values as well. As the famous saying goes:
If you have integrity, nothing else matters.
If you don’t have integrity, nothing else matters.
3. Integrity Produces a Generational Blessing
Proverbs 20:7 — “The righteous man walks with integrity; blessed
are his children after him.”
The
Bible says that the sins of the father visit his children and the generations
afterward. Well, the same truth can be said concerning a man’s integrity. While
sin and compromise can bring a curse upon our children, integrity brings a
blessing upon our children and the generations afterward. In other words, the
decisions we make today can create a foundation for the generations coming
after us.
By
walking in integrity, our children can inherit:
•
A good example
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A trustworthy name
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Healthy patterns
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Spiritual stability
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Safe upbringing
•
Etc
• The
integrity that you are building today will become a blessing your that children
will live under tomorrow.
If you have integrity, nothing else matters.
If you don’t have integrity, nothing else matters.
TAKEAWAYS:
I.
Through
integrity, you are shaping the house you will live in
II.
Never
sacrifice what God promised you tomorrow for something that compromise can get
for you today.
III.
Integrity
promises a blessing not just for you, but for the generations after you.
IV.
If
you have integrity, nothing else matters. If you don’t have integrity, nothing
else matters.
