We Are Being Watched

I grew up in an age of "science fiction". As a young boy, I was ready to believe that we humans, on planet Earth, were being watched by alien creatures from a far-distant planet. Thankfully, I did "grow up", and no longer accept that proposition!

However, I have come to realise that I am "being watched"! Not by extra-terrestial beings, but by people all around me! What are they looking for? I suspect that they are looking for what we used to refer to as "integrity"! It's a word I don't hear very often these days. So what is it?

Integrity is a high standard of living based on a personal code of morality that doesn't succumb to the whim of the moment or the dictates of the majority. Integrity is to personal character what health is to the body, or 20/20 vision is to the eyes. People of integrity are whole; their lives are put together. People with integrity have nothing to hide and nothing to fear. Their lives are open books. They say to a watching world, "Go ahead and look. My behavior will match my beliefs. My walk will match my talk. My character will match my confession."

Integrity is not reputation - what others think of us. It is not success - what we have accomplished. Integrity embodies the sum total of our being and our actions. It originates in who we are as believers in Jesus Christ - accepted, valued, capable, and forgiven - but it expresses itself in the way we live and behave, no matter whether we are in church on Sunday or at work on Monday or in a lonely hotel room on Tuesday or suffering in a hospital bed on Thursday.

Unfortunately, as I have suggested above, integrity is in short supply and seems to be diminishing everyday. All too frequently our integrity is discarded upon the altar of fame, or fortune, or political opportunism. Sadly, what we want to achieve is more important than what we are to be. Integrity is lost when we focus on expedience  more than excellence, on progress more than purity, on riches more than righteousness.

People are watching. They watch to see if our behaviour matches our belief, if our walk matches our talk, and if our character matches our confession. In a word, they watch to see if we have integrity.

Solomon wrote: "He who walks in integrity walks securely, but he who perverts his ways will be found out." (Proverbs 10:9).

How secure is your walk? How secure is mine? Others are watching!

Loving my enemy!

First of all, an apology to anyone who may have expected to receive this mailing yesterday! My wife and I are currently visiting dear friends south of Paris and, last evening, we got into a deep discussion on the thorny topic of divorce and remarriage! I shall endeavour to ensure that the next post - on the third Sunday of the month, will be sent out on time!

Last time, we looked at the parable of the Prodigal Son (or the Loving Father), as one of the best-known of the stories that Jesus of Nazareth told.

Another of those parables that is well-known even by those who make no claim to be followers of Jesus, is the parable of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10).  Indeed, this parable has, at least in its name, become part and parcel of everyday language.  How often have you heard someone say (or maybe even said yourself) that, in a particular situation, “[Name] was a good Samaritan.”  What is usually meant is that the person helped out in what may even have been a rather insignificant way.

However, the parable goes much more deeply than that!  

The man who was travelling down the tortuous mountain road from Jerusalem to Jericho, was a Jew.  After he had been attacked, robbed, stripped, and left for dead, the first person to come along the road was a Jewish priest.  It would appear that he was travelling up the road towards Jerusalem, presumably to take up his duties in the Temple.  He saw the man, but “passed by on the other side” because, if he had touched a dead body, he would have been barred from the Temple service.  Then came a Levite – another Temple worker – and, for the same reason, he too “passed by on the other side”.

The poor man, who may have managed, through barely-opened eyelids, to see these fellow-Jews; these ‘pillars of society’; these religious personages; pass by, must have been in deep despair.  Suddenly, he heard the clip-clop of a donkey.  He peered through his bruised eyes and, to his horror, saw a Samaritan! 

Now, to understand his reaction, we must realise that Jews and Samaritans, in that culture, hated each other with a passion that would have made the feelings of certain football club supporters towards one another seem like genuine fondness by comparison!  What would this man do?  Would he take advantage of the situation, and ‘kick the man while he was down’?  How amazed the victim would have been to be so gently, and carefully, tended to by this member of a hated ethnicity!  Not only that, but when they reached the next inn, the Samaritan paid for him to stay there until he had recovered – and assured the innkeeper that if the injured man needed to stay longer than had been paid for, he would settle the account on his next trip!  By the way, he must have had a good reputation to be thus trusted!

Of course, this is what Jesus had taught in what we usually refer to as "the Sermon on the Mount" (Matt. 5-7) where we read: «You have heard that it was said, 'You shall love your neighbour and hate your enemy.' But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you salute only your brethren, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? You, therefore, must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.» (Matt 5:43-48).

The priest and the Levite allowed duty, even "religious" duty, to get in the way of helping a fellow-man.  The Samaritan helped his fellow-man, even ‘though it meant overcoming ethnic hatred.

I wonder what you or I would have done – or would do – in a similar situation.

It’s a thought! 

The Ten Words (3)

The third commandment is simple and straightforward: "You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain; for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain." (Ex 20:7).

The most obvious - and, sadly, frequent - way in which this commandment is broken by so many is in the use of the title 'God' as an expletive, or swear-word.  Of course, there is a tendency at the present time, to think that one is getting around that by using initials.  So I notice, on many social media pages the letters "OMG".  Indeed, I recently noticed those same letters as part of the name of a shop!  I doubt that any reader of this post needs me to 'translate'.

A more recent translation renders this commandment as: “You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not acquit anyone who misuses His name.” (NRSV).  Such a translation emphasises that such thoughtless use of 'God' is unacceptable.  Of course, for the disciple of Jesus, who believes that He is God the Son, it is just as unacceptable to use His name or, indeed, His title (the Christ) in an irreverent manner.

It's all to do with respect!  One modern commentator on these words writes: "If God is the greatest Being in the universe, then His name is the greatest name, and must be honoured (respected)." (Warren Wiersbe).  Respect is the cornerstone of good relationships. The quality of our relationship with God depends on both the love and regard we have for Him; and on the way we express respect for Him in the presence of others. We are expected always to honour Who and What He is. Conversely, the use of God's name in a flippant, degrading or in any way disrespectful manner expresses an attitude of disdaining the relationship we are supposed to have with Him.

Then again, one's name is not only that which is written on one's birth certificate.  We also use the expression to refer to a person's character.  Thus, it may be said of a particular man that "He's got a bad name".  This is not suggesting that John, or Harry, or Timothy, or whatever, is somehow inherently bad.  It is stating that the person in question has a bad reputation.  It is a warning that the person is one who is not to be trusted.  When we use the name of any of the Personae in the Godhead, in an unworthy manner we are, in effect, impugning His character - making Him out to be less than He is!

In the end, it is not enough just to avoid misusing God's name. He wants us to love and respect Him in every way.  Such honouring of Him begins in our thoughts. We must know Who and What He is. We must know what He requires of us and why. We should admire His attributes - His wisdom, love, fairness, and justice. We need to stand in awe of His power and recognise that our very existence depends on His goodness. We should talk with Him in prayer every day, giving Him thanks and praise; openly expressing our appreciation for all that He gives us. We should read His word as a means of getting to know Him better.  We should acknowledge His greatness. We should ask Him to create in us His way of thinking and character. We should request the power of His Spirit to enable us to obey and serve Him "with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind." (Matt 22:37)

We honour God most of all by loving Him so much that we desire above all things to be like Him and to accurately represent Him to everyone who sees or knows us. If we have that mind in us, then even the thought of ever misrepresenting or disgracing His name will be repulsive to us. It will then be our strongest resolve to never, but never, take His name in vain!

Integrity.

How often have I written in a character reference for someone, that the person involved is someone of "integrity".  I knew what I meant when I used that word, and I assumed that the prospective employer would understand also.  However, if I had been asked to provide a full definition of the word, I would have been reaching for my dictionary - and discovering that, although the connection may be obvious, it only appears as a derivative from 'integer'! 

So I was delighted to receive the following in my e-mail Inbox today.  It came from Tyndale House Publishers, who regularly main a Leadership Devotional.  I commend it to everyone as an excellent summary of what integrity really is - particularly as it applies to those of us who claim to be disciples of Jesus!

"People with integritywalk safely, but those who follow crooked paths will slip and fall."  Proverbs 10:9

 Integrity is a high standard of living based on a personal code of morality that doesn't succumb to the whim of the moment or the dictates of the majority. Integrity is to personal character what health is to the body or 20/20 vision is to the eyes. People of integrity are whole; their lives are put together. People with integrity have nothing to hide and nothing to fear. Their lives are open books. They say to a watching world, "Go ahead and look. My behavior will match my beliefs. My walk will match my talk. My character will match my confession."

Integrity is not reputation--what others think of us. It is not success--what we have accomplished. Integrity embodies the sum total of our being and our actions. It originates in who we are as believers in Jesus Christ--accepted, valued, capable, and forgiven--but it expresses itself in the way we live and behave, no matter whether we are in church on Sunday or at work on Monday or in a lonely hotel room on Tuesday or suffering in a hospital bed on Thursday.

Unfortunately, integrity is in short supply and seems to be diminishing everyday. All too frequently our integrity is discarded upon the altar of fame or fortune. Sadly, what we want to achieve is more important than what we are to be. Integrity is lost when we focus on expedience more than excellence, on progress more than purity, on riches more than righteousness.

People are watching. They watch to see if our behavior matches our belief, if our walk matches our talk, and if our character matches our confession. In a word, they watch to see if we have integrity.

How secure is your walk? Others are watching.