Fruitful Living
Integrity in daily living
LORD, who may abide in Your tabernacle? Who may dwell in Your holy hill? He who walks uprightly, and works righteousness, and speaks the truth in his heart; He who does not backbite with his tongue; Nor does evil to his neighbour, nor does he take up a reproach against his friend; in whose eyes a vile person is despised. But he honours those who fear the Lord; He who swears to his own hurt and does not change; He who does not put out his money at usury, nor does he take a bribe against the innocent. He who does these things shall never be moved – Psalm 15 (New King James).
INTRODUCTION
Although we often hear this word integrity in personal and professional contexts, its meaning can be tricky to sum up. So here is a practical definition and some helpful examples of integrity in action. The convictions of a person of integrity determine what they will say and do at any given time. They intentionally direct their conduct according to their understanding of what is right and wrong. Authenticity marks the heart of integrity. Their internal character remains consistent regardless of external conditions.
Integrity includes the quality of being honest, but honesty does not always demonstrate integrity. The difference is the inner commitment to being trustworthy and communicating the truth without deception. An integrated person lives without duplicity and hypocrisy.
A person of integrity does not claim to be perfect. Instead, they are quick to acknowledge their own mistakes and faults. Their sincerity comes from a pure motivation to do what is right even when it might be inconvenient. Times of crisis particularly test a person’s integrity. What would it take for you to compromise your resolve to do what you believe is right?
Psalm 15 has several criteria for assessing our character. Significantly, almost all the marks of integrity listed in Psalm 15 relate to workplace issues. The qualities mentioned in the same Psalm extend to personal issues of integrity and honesty, our relationships with others and the way we handle our money. Our worship of God should not only be in terms of our inward, personal needs but also in light of our outward, public responsibilities. After all religion is a matter of character as well as conduct. Our walk must match our talk.
INVENTORY OF INTEGRITY
A person of Integrity is someone who:
1. WALKS UPRIGHTLY: – someone whose character is above reproach.
What about you? What is your basic ethical commitment? Are you out to honour the Lord or to serve yourself?
2. WORKS RIGHTEOUSNESS: – someone who does what is right all the time.
What is the end result of your work? Is your work self-serving or do you work to promote good in the nation? Do you make your light shine where you have been put in spite of difficulties and challenges or are you the complaining type, never satisfied with what you are being given?
3. TELLS THE TRUTH: – someone for whom truth-telling is second-nature.
Are you in the habit of telling lies – what you consider to be “little white lies” when it is necessary or convenient? Or do you tell the truth even when doing so is costly.
4. DOES NOT BACKBITE: – someone who does not slander others.
Do you tear down others behind their backs? Are you one of those who think that they can progress by destroying, tearing down others? Verbal murder is as serious as physical murder.
5. DOES NO EVIL TO A NEIGHBOUR: – someone who does not deliberately work against his colleagues
What is your policy on office politics? Do you do unto others what you would like done to you? Or do you believe in “doing unto others before they do unto you”?
6. DOES NOT TAKE UP A REPROACH AGAINST A FRIEND: – someone who stands by those he claims to be friends with.
What is the level of your loyalty? When people collude to bring down a colleague (even when the person has done no wrong) do you jump on the bandwagon? Or do you seek fair play and offer support to the one who is being unjustly treated.
7. HONOURS THOSE WHO FEAR THE LORD NOT THE UNGODLY: – someone who takes faith in the Lord seriously and shuns ungodly company.
What is the character of your best friends? What is their attitude towards God and the things of the Lord? Do people know your godliness by the type of friends you have?
8. KEEPS HIS WORD EVEN IF IT IS COSTLY: – someone who keeps his promise whatever the cost.
Do your family and friends consider you trustworthy and reliable? Do you keep your word? Are you known as one whose word is his bond? Or do people always wonder whether you will follow through on your promises?
9. DOES NOT PRACTISE USURY: – someone who does not take advantage of those who require their help
Do you make it harder or easier for those in need to gain the resources necessary to support themselves? Or do you take advantage of the poor and to make more profits?
10. DOES NOT TAKE BRIBES: – someone who does not demand money to do the work for which he is paid.
Is it said of you that under no circumstances will you compromise yourself by taking bribes? Can people confidently say of you that you will never take bribes? Or do you accept kickbacks because everybody does it?
SELF ANALYSIS
How do you stand in the light of this integrity inventory? It is said that reputation is what you do when everybody is watching; character is what you do when no one is watching. Do people perceive you as one who has a reputation for integrity when in truth it is all a façade because behind the scenes you are always compromising? Daniel was different. We read in Daniel 1:8: But Daniel resolved not to defile himself with the royal food and wine, and he asked the chief official for permission not to defile himself this way. Daniel and his three friends made up their minds to stand for godly values even though they lived in the midst of very ungodly they took a stand not to defile themselves.
RESOLVE TO DO THE RIGHT
This is the time in our nation’s history when we all need to reveal our true character. As people of God we have great opportunity to influence those around us through our ethics and morality in our workplaces. We must refuse to go along with what everybody is doing. That is the real challenge of workplace ethics. Occasionally we may struggle to discern the right from the wrong but most of the time, we will have to summon the conviction and the courage to do what we know is right. In the final analysis the truth we know in our hearts – the truth based on Biblical principles – is what we need to do or not do. Like Daniel and his friends we can settle in our hearts to do what is right and carry out our plans with tough-minded resolve.
As we face ethical choices in our workplaces, we can choose to stand for the right. It may be costly, but God will give us the strength to handle whatever consequences come our way. Scripture never encourages us to close our eyes to wrongdoing. Instead we are to “hate what is wrong and stand on the side of the good” – Rom. 12:9(New Living Translation). This may involve speaking out publicly about hidden wrongs with which we are familiar. We need not be afraid in such circumstances for it is better to pursue justice even if it means “blowing the whistle” on some people.
May our Lord Jesus Christ Himself and God our Father, who loved us and by His grace gave us eternal encouragement and good hope, encourage your hearts and strengthen you in every good deed and word – 2 Thess. 2: 16-17.
Stay blessed!
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By Dr Joyce Aryee, the author
4. Correct the falsehood
If someone misrepresents Muhammad (pbuh), teach people who Muhammad (pbuh) really was.
Tell them about his mercy.
Tell them about his justice.
Tell them about his patience.
Tell them about his forgiveness.
5. Report genuine offences
Use lawful channels.
The Muslim does not become the police, prosecutor, judge and executioner.
6. Protect the innocent
If one Christian insults Islam, do not attack another Christian who knows nothing about it.
If one Muslim makes an offensive statement, do not blame all Muslims.
7. Restore peace
After the controversy, bring responsible Muslim and Christian leaders together.
Talk.
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Clarify.
Forgive where forgiveness is appropriate.
And rebuild trust.
Ghana must not become a battlefield of religious provocation
My dear brothers and sisters in Islam,
Let us look around Ghana.
Muslims and Christians have lived together for generations.
We have Muslim fathers with Christian in-laws.
Christian mothers with Muslim sons-in-law.
Muslim and Christian business partners.
Muslim and Christian neighbours.
Muslim and Christian classmates.
Muslims and Christians serving together in the military, police, public service, universities, hospitals, markets and businesses.
This is Ghana.
We must protect this peace.
Religious freedom is precious.
But religious freedom comes with religious responsibility.
A microphone is not a weapon.
A pulpit is not a battlefield.
A smartphone is not a licence to spread hatred.
A viral video is not a fatwa (religious decree).
And anger is not evidence.
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A word to Muslim scholars
To my fellow Imams and Islamic scholars:
Allah has placed a trust upon our shoulders. You are the best of generations selected for the guidance of mankind. Quran chapter 3:110.
When people are angry, we must calm them.
When people are confused, we must educate them.
When people want revenge, we must teach justice.
When people want violence, we must remind them of Allah.
Our microphone should extinguish fire—not pour petrol upon it.
The Prophet said:ِ
لَيْس َ الشَّدِيد ُ بِالصُّرَعَةِ، إِنَّمَا الشَّدِيد ُ الَّذِي يَمْلِك ُ نَفْسَه ُ عِنْد َ الْغَضَب
“The strong man is not the one who can overpower others; rather, the strong man is the one who controls himself when angry.” (Sahih al-Bukhari, 6114; Sahih Muslim, 2609)
This is strength.
Self-control is strength.
Restraint is strength.
Wisdom is strength.
Justice is strength.
A word to Christian preachers
And to our Christian brothers and sisters, especially those who preach:
We Muslims deeply revere Jesus (peace be upon him)
He is not an ordinary man in Islam.
He is ʿĪsā ibn Maryam عليه السالم, a mighty Messenger of Allah.
The author is the Chief Imam of Katamanso Municipal and Certified Counsellor and Governance Expert.
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When Paul tells us that our “attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus,” he had summarized in the previous two verses what such an attitude was: selflessness, humility, and service. “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others” – Philippians 2:3-4.
In other words, the attitude a Christian should reflect is one that focuses on the needs and interests of others. Without question, that does not come naturally to us. When Christ came into the world, He established a whole new attitude to relationships with others. One day when His disciples were arguing among themselves regarding who was to be greatest in His kingdom, Jesus said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their high officials exercise authority over them. Not so with you.
Instead, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to be first must be your slave – just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” – Matthew 20:25-28. Jesus is teaching us that, when we become preoccupied with our own things, it can cause conflicts and other problems with people we know. Instead, God wants us to have an attitude of serious, caring involvement in the concerns of others.
Paul speaks more about this Christ-like attitude in his letter to the church in Ephesus: “that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.– Ephesians 4:22-24. Many religions of today, including the New Age philosophies, promote the old lie that we are divine or that we can become gods. But the truth of the matter is that we will never become God, or even a god. Satan’s oldest lie was promising Adam and Eve that, if they followed his advice, “- and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” Genesis 3:5, NKJV.
Each time we try to control our circumstances, our future, and the people around us, we’re only demonstrating that we want to be a god. But we must understand that, as creatures, we will never be the Creator. God doesn’t want us to try to become gods. Instead, He wants us to become like Him, taking on His values, His attitudes, and His character. We are meant to “be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness” – Ephesians 4:23-24.
Finally, we must always keep in mind that God’s ultimate goal for His children is not our comfort, but the transformation of our minds into the attitude of godliness. He wants us to grow spiritually, to become like Christ. This doesn’t mean losing our personalities or becoming mindless clones. Christlikeness is all about transforming our minds. Again, Paul tells us, “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will” – Romans 12:2.
It is God’s will that we develop the kind of mindset described in the Beatitudes of Jesus – Matthew 5:1-12, that we exhibit the fruit of the Spirit – Galatians 5:22-23, that we emulate the principles in Paul’s great chapter on love – 1 Corinthians 13, and that we strive to pattern our lives after Peter’s characteristics of an effective and productive life – 2 Peter 1:5-8.
Establishing our actions in righteousness
Every person is commanded to live up to divine standards.
a. In the words of Jesus
“ For I say to you, that unless your righteousness exceeds the righteousness of the scribes and Pharisees, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Be ye, therefore, perfect, even as your Father, who is in heaven, is perfect” – Mt. 5:20, 48.
Every person in the world is required to live up to that standard. You say, “You’ve got to be kidding!” No, I’m not. You are obligated to live up to that standard with a pure inside as well as a right outside. But you say, “I can’t!” You are absolutely right. That’s why we are given the solution…
b. In the words of Paul
As it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one; But now the righteousness of God apart from the law is revealed, being witnessed by the Law and the Prophets, even the righteousness of God, through faith in Jesus Christ, to all and on all who believe. For there is no difference;– Rom. 3:10, 21-22a.
Though you can’t obtain on your own the righteous standard Christ set, you can receive His righteousness if you are one of those who believe. Isn’t that great? God set the holy standard. And when you acknowledge that you can’t live up to it, He says, “My Son is not only the Lawgiver, but He is the Redeemer as well, who makes it possible for you to live on that level.” Beloved, it’s a fantastic thing! The standard is so high we can’t obtain it. But Christ met that standard and imputes to us His righteousness. Oh, what a blessed thing!
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