Nov 10 – Today from Proverbs 10 we look at verse 9
"The man of integrity walks securely, but he who takes crooked paths will be found out."
Integrity is one of those terms that everyone kind of knows what it is, but hardly anyone can give a clear definition. In the past I have looked at this word and the best definition I could come up with is, "Doing the right thing for the right reason on a consistent basis." Doing 'the right thing for the right reason' still needs an objective basis from which one can determine what 'right' is. For a believer this objective source is the Word of God. Jesus says in John 17:17, "Your word is truth". Psalm 119:160 says, "All your words are true; all your righteous laws are eternal."
Here's the meat of this Proverb; "Truth is eternal. Everything else will be exposed and dealt with." If a person is honest, even to his own hurt, that person will be vindicated. But the person who tries to manipulate others and cover up their self-serving motives, that person will be found out. They may get away with it for awhile, but the truth will ultimately prevail because it is eternal.
1 Corinthians 11:31 says, "But if we judged ourselves, we would not come under judgment." That's what a person of integrity does - they constantly judge themselves. When a man of integrity finds himself guilty he keeps the account short by quickly confessing to God, make any restitution necessary, and turns away (repents) from such behavior. By doing this on a consistent basis, he grows and establishes himself in integrity. Conviction is not meant to bring condemnation. Romans eight is a chapter of incredible assurance for believers, and begins by stating that "there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." Why? 1 John 1:9 teaches that confession brings mercy. When we confess, the guilt is removed. Restitution is the evidence that our confession comes from a sincere conviction. Repentance keeps our heart toward God.
A person of integrity is not a person who never makes mistakes; it’s a person who properly deals with and learns from their shortcomings. The believer who can go to another and say, "I have done you wrong, and I am sorry. Is there anything I can do to make it up to you?" is a person of integrity. These kind of believers can walk securely - secure in the knowledge that they are accepted before God and secure that they need not fear anything hidden in the darkness of their soul which might be exposed at any moment by the light of truth. The old adage is true; "Confession is good for the soul."
A wise person is a person who walks in integrity.
Since Nov 08
About Me
- Ken
- While mentor-ing a couple of young men late in the year 2001 , I told them that if they agreed to read a chapter of Proverbs each week-day as a part of their devotions, I would choose one verse from the chapter and share a meditation by email. They agreed. I continued to write the meditations at my desk in my home for the next two and a half years. They began to forward them to their friends and I received requests from those friends to be placed on the email list. My personal email bundle was to about eighty people. Many of those people forwarded them to friends all over the country – and some over the world. Only the Lord knows how extensive the writings traveled. I am not a professional writer, and each meditation was spun off in a relatively short period of time during my own personal devotions in the morning. In April of 2004 I assembled 366 of the meditations into a calendar year. As I now bring up the Proverb of the Day to send on to my friends, I am surprised at how fresh each of them is to my own heart – and often how they speak to me in a completely different way than when I first wrote them. . . . . Ken Sweers
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