6/20/20 Man of integrity

Summary: The world needs men with integrity! It needs men who are incorruptible, complete, and honest.

Father’s Day - “Integrity”

INTRO

In the book “The Day America Told the Truth” (1991), the authors (James Patterson & Peter Kim) relate the stunning results of a question which was asked of Americans. The question was simply this: What are you willing to do for $10 million? 2/3 of those polled said they would do at least one of the following ... some said they would do several of the following:

- Would abandon their entire family (25%)

- Would abandon their church (25%)

- Would become prostitutes for a week or more (23%)

- Would give up their American citizenships (16%)

- Would leave their spouses (16%)

- Would withhold testimony and let a murderer go free (10%)

- Would kill a stranger (7%)

- Would put their children up for adoption (3%)

Why would people do such things? There are some obvious reasons. First of all, such a person could have no love or fear of God. Second, greed would obviously be a factor. There’s another that also tops the list with these - it’s “lack of integrity.”

Remember Tom Landry? He was the legendary coach of the Dallas Cowboys who passed away in February 2000. He was one of those rare sightings. His legacy is far more than just being the NFL’s third-winningest coach of all time. It’s far more than his two Super Bowl victories.

He was a man whose priorities were in order: God first, family second, football third. One person said, “Tom Landry provided significant leadership ... through a strength of character and faith with his priorities in tact. He knew that football was just a game and that integrity mattered on the field and off.” As former Cowboy Drew Pearson said, “Landry was a teacher. He taught a lot more than football.”

There have been many great football coaches - but being a great football coach is not the reason the USA Today ran the headline “Landry’s death leaves Texas-size legacy.” No - his legacy is that his career was marked with outstanding integrity.

Merriam-Webster’s Collegiate Dictionary says integrity is: “incorruptibility, soundness, and/or completeness.” It’s primary synonym is “honesty.”

Today, on Father’s Day, guys I want say this: the world needs men with integrity! It needs men who are incorruptible, complete, and honest. There’s 3 verses of Scripture I want us to think read this morning.

1. Integrity means incorruptibility (Prov 10:9).

“He who walks in integrity walks securely, But he who perverts his ways will be found out” (Prov 10:9).

That speaks to the fact that integrity means incorruptibility. And when you walk in that manner, you walk on good ground that keeps you standing upright.

In Chicago, 1929, a 26 year-old government agent named Eliot Ness formed an elite team of 9 incorruptible men to bring down Al Capone’s $120 million mob empire. At the time, Ness was making $2,800 a year working for the government. One day a young man walked into his office and handed Ness an envelope with 2 one thousand dollar bills and promised this weekly if he would lay off Capone.

Ness sent the money and the messenger back. Desiring to make a point, Ness called a press conference. Newspapers and newsreels from various agencies were in attendance. Ness told the story of Capone’s attempted bribe and his response to it. The next day, headlines read “Ness and his men are UNTOUCHABLE.”

As Christians, our morals must remain untouchable by this corrupt culture. We need to be people with integrity. For by doing so, we’ll not only please God - but we’ll also be among those rare sightings that people take notice of. And it’s when that happens - Jesus is lifted up for the world to see.

2. Integrity means completeness (Prov 2:7).

“He (God) stores up sound wisdom for the upright; He is a shield to those who walk in integrity” (Prov 2:7).

When I read that verse the other day, I said to myself, “Oh, now that speaks to the fact that integrity means completeness.”

Now I know what you’re thinking - “Scott’s crazy. I mean, integrity means completeness, but that verse has nothing to do with that definition.” Well, from a technical standpoint, that would be correct.

If you like science fiction stuff where guys are flying around trying to shoot each other’s crafts out of the air, you’ve surely heard a pilot or two say something about the integrity of the hull - and if it’s holding up or not. See, in that context, “integrity” refers to “soundness” or “completeness.” Is the hull breaking up, or is it in tact - complete? Is it still maintaining its integrity? That’s how the word integrity means completeness.

But as a Christian, I think integrity can mean completeness in another sense. The Scripture said, “He is a shield to those who walk in integrity.” Now let me substitute the word “completeness” there and read it again. “He is a shield to those who walk in completeness.”

How is it that a person can walk in completeness? And why is God a shield to those individuals who do?

Col 2:10 and in Christ you have been brought to fullness.

See, without Jesus in your life there is something missing. And without that missing element - your level of integrity is always compromised.

It’s when you clothe yourself in the completeness that God offers that true soundness is achieved. And when you walk in that integrity, God is your shield.

See, Christians can walk in integrity - integrity that comes from following Jesus Christ.

3. Integrity can be modeled and transmitted (Prov 20:7).

Prov 20: 7 The righteous lead blameless lives; blessed are their children after them.

That tells me this: integrity can be modeled and transmitted.

What are you passing on to your children?

Father’s need to be good examples and model integrity. Let me tell you of one who was.

Gayle Erwin tells of his father in his book “The Jesus Style.” This is what he said:

“When I was six years old, my father was severely injured in an airplane accident and was left partially paralyzed and brain damaged. My mother then became the breadwinner of the house. Since my mother was often ‘not there’ as she attempted to make a living and my dad was ‘not there’ physically or mentally, the stage was set for family failure. But our family did not fail!

Through difficult times, both parents stayed faithful to God and to us. Prayer, belief, steadfastness and love surrounded us -- money and fine homes didn’t. When my father died, my two brothers and I stood in front of his casket and made the following statement to the friends who had gathered for the funeral service:

‘Our father did not leave a financial empire for us to carry on. Many things that a dad normally does with his sons, our was unable to do. He was unable to teach us many things that a dad normally teaches. But he did leave us something that he had. He left us with a love of God, a love for the Bible, a love for people, an understanding of worship and an inability to hate. We feel that he has left us only those things that will last. So we stand here before you as his sons and declare publicly that we will follow his God.’”

That’s the kind of integrity I want to model - I want to leave behind.

CONCLUSION

In his book, “Living Above the Level of Mediocrity,” Chuck Swindoll says this:

THE WORLD NEEDS MEN...

who cannot be bought;

whose word is their bond;

who put Integrity above wealth;

whose ambitions are not confined to their own selfish desires;

who will not say they do it because everybody else does it;

who are not ashamed or afraid to stand for the truth when it is unpopular;

who can say “no” with emphasis, although all the rest of the world says “yes.”

And the conclusion to all of this is: the world needs men with integrity - the integrity found in Christ.