We cannot imagine what it was like during the Holocaust and what life was like for those who were forced into the concentration camp. The guards were ruthless. Always screaming, always berating, always demanding, always inflicting pain. Some was physical pain but a lot was mental. One of the goals of these guards was to break the peoples’ spirits. If their spirits were broken, they would be much more compliant and much easier to manipulate. Satan was behind all of it. Satan was the one driving the Nazi’s to do horrible things. Here’s the thing… Satan still operates the same way. He’s always trying to break us… break our trust in God, break our beliefs, break our faithfulness, and… break our INTEGRITY.
Why would he want to break our integrity? Because this is one thing that stands out in the world… God’s people who walk in integrity. And throughout Scripture, including our key verse, we learn that God honors integrity. Paul said to his young protégé, Timothy: “Be an example to all believers in what you say, in the way you live, in your love, your faith, and your purity” (1 Timothy 4:12). Hence, Paul was teaching this young pastor to ALWAYS walk in integrity… in every area of life. If Satan succeeds at breaking our integrity, we begin down a steep slope… a slope of compromise, sin, and rebellion to the Word of God.
So, let’s talk about integrity for a minute. We don’t have time to do a deep dive here, but let’s examine three things that biblical integrity would include:
1) Adherence to truth! It’s not enough to just know truth, but we are to live by it. I talk about this a lot… not just because God has called me to speak about living by truth, but because it’s one of the most important things we should do as Christians. Truth is one vital piece of the armor we are to put on. A belt holds things up… truth does the same. There is great compromise in the church today so imagine the favor of God that is poured out onto all those who adhere to truth.
2) Moral in character! My pastor said that character needs to trump charisma. Our lives need to reflect the fruit of the Spirit: “Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23). Jesus warned the Pharisees to make sure to clean the inside not just the outside. I think sometimes we spend more time on the outside and less time on the inside. That needs to flip around for sure. Our character should reflect Jesus.
3) Righteous in behavior! Integrity should carry over into our behavior. John writes in 1 John 3:18: “Dear children, let’s not merely say that we love each other; let us show the truth by our actions.” Righteous behavior means that we always try to do the right thing. Doing the right thing may not be easy but it’s an outpouring of integrity. James speaks extensively about this when he writes: “Faith without works is dead” (James 2:17). We are saved by faith alone, but good works should be an outpouring of that faith. If not, then our faith has no value.
Don’t let Satan break your integrity. Be strong… always adhering to truth, moral in character, and righteous in behavior.