1. The importance of individual integrity
2. The implication of individual integrity
3. The intentionality of individual integrity
4. The incentive of individual integrity
This Wednesday night, American TV is hitting a new low. It’s almost hard to say that with all the trash that’s on TV these days, but it’s true. For years, Hollywood has played on our fallen, sinful tendencies. They have exploited our physical lusts with provocative, sexually charged images. They have fed our violent tendencies with increasingly brutal and graphic images. And they have profited from our covetous greed with a constant barrage of products that we “need”. But now, they’re going to tap into a sin they haven’t exploited as of yet. Now they’re going to glamorize something that nearly everyone claims to hate. Nearly everyone claims to hate a liar. But now good liars will have a chance to win a half-million dollars each week on TV. The show is called “The Moment of Truth.” Contestants will be asked a list of very personal, invasive questions before they come on the show. When they’re asked those questions, they will be hooked up to a lie detector. When they go on the show, they will be asked those same questions again—only this time in front of family and friends. It is possible for two kinds of people to be rewarded in that show. People who are completely honest—or people who are complete, unconscionable liars. Who do you think will be the contestants they’ll pick to be on the show? Which kind of person do you think will generate the highest ratings? Lying—a sin that was once repudiated by society is now going to be rewarded on TV. But is that really any surprise? A few years ago, the media was openly praising our President for how well he was able to lie. The thing that makes it so shocking is not that lying happens. Lying has always happened. It’s just that it is now becoming increasingly accepted as normal—even praiseworthy. Within a single generation, lying has gone from something that was universally scorned, to the White House, to a spectator sport. But just because acceptable lying is making it’s primetime debut on TV, doesn’t mean that it is acceptable. As a matter of fact, lying of any kind is completely unacceptable in God’s eyes. God demands that His children be people of integrity. People who are honest and reliable. This morning we’re looking at the next-to-last test of faith that James gives us. Remember that so far throughout this letter, he’s given us 7 tests that we can take to see if our faith is real or not. He’s given us the Bible test, the preference test, the works test, the tongue test, the wisdom test, the pride test and the patience test. This morning he gives us the integrity test. Like all the other tests we’ve looked at, this one is a pass / fail test. It’s not graded on the curve and it’s not multiple choice. But unlike the previous tests, this one is only one verse. It is short, sweet and to the point. And it is ever so convicting. This morning, I want each of us to be able to pass the integrity test. I want people to see us a people who are honest and reliable. In order to do that, we’re going to look at four issues involving individual integrity. The first issue is the importance of individual integrity.
Notice how James starts this verse. He starts by saying, “but above all things.” That phrase has given students of the Bible fits over the years. It’s given them fits, because it begs the question—“where does this verse fit?” “Above all WHAT things?” Is this verse a part of the verses that make up the patience test we talked about last week? If so, why is he saying that we need to be people of integrity over and above all the traits of being patient? It’s important to ask yourself those types of questions when you’re doing your Bible study. Because one of the most important keys to understanding passages in the Bible is understanding them in context. There is a very good saying about studying Bible verses in context. It says, “a TEXT without a CONTEXT is a PRETEXT.” In other words, you can make a verse say a whole lot of things it doesn’t say if you don’t keep it in the context it was written in. Well, when you do that and place this verse in its proper context, you see what the “all things” he’s talking about are. He’s saying that your personal integrity is above all the things he’s talked about so far in his letter. In other words, of the seven test of faith James has given us so far, this one is “above all.” That brings up the next question. What does he mean by above all? Is he saying that, of all those seven tests—the Bible test, the preference test, the works test, the tongue test, the wisdom test, the pride test and the patience test—is he saying that, of all those tests, this is the first one you take care of? Is it the most important? If you take care of this one and slip up on some of the others, are you OK? No, by commanding us to “above all” be people of integrity, James is telling us that our personal integrity is preeminent. It is the king that rules over the other seven areas. Your integrity will rule over how you view the Bible. A person with no integrity will see the Bible as something to twist and contort into something that suits them or makes them feel better. Your integrity rules over whether you show preference to people or not. A person with no integrity will show favoritism and form cliques and hold themselves in judgment over others. Your integrity rules over how you perform good works. A person with no integrity will do good works for personal recognition or for what they can get out of it. Your integrity rules over how you use your tongue. A person with no integrity will use their tongue to control and manipulate and consume and condemn people. Your integrity rules over your wisdom. A person with no integrity seeks and possesses wisdom that is earthly, sensual and of the devil. Wisdom that only results in strife and confusion and evil works. Your integrity rules over your pride. A person with no integrity is selfish. They are presumptive. And they are greedy. Finally, your integrity rules over how you practice patience. A person with no integrity cannot patiently endure because they have no rock to anchor to. But not only is our individual integrity preeminent over those 7 areas, it is pervasive. In other words, it runs through and through each of those other seven areas. Passing those previous seven tests will insure that we are people of integrity. But at the same time, we cannot pass those tests without “above all” being people of integrity. Individual integrity isn’t just the next thing to accomplish on your to-do list. If your individual integrity isn’t “above all”, you can’t pass any of these tests we’ve been talking about for the last few months. That’s how important it is. Individual integrity is that important. The first issue involving individual integrity is the importance of individual integrity. The second issue is the implication of individual integrity. Look a little bit farther in verse 12.
JAMES 5:12a, b “…neither by any other oath…”
Now, let’s get something clear right off the bat. When the Bible uses the word “swear” here, it’s not using it like we would sometimes. If we think of someone swearing or using swear words, what are we talking about? Someone cussing. Using profanity. Using bad language. Using the words that used to not be able to be used on TV. But that’s not how the Bible uses it. There are plenty of places where the Bible forbids that kind of language, just not here. Here, the Bible talks about swearing like swearing an oath. But it’s even more than that really. Jesus said pretty much the same thing in His Sermon on the Mount. As a matter of fact, that is probably what James is referring to here. Turn with me to Matthew 5.
MATTHEW 5:33-37
So, what is this kind of swearing that Jesus and James are forbidding us to do? In order to figure that out, we have to take a look at the Jewish customs of the day. By the time of the New Testament, the Jews had developed an extremely complex system of swearing oaths. In many ways, it was similar to our legal system today. It was extremely complex and there was almost always a loophole. So because of the complexity of the system, there were people who would find ways to get out of nearly everything. They would swear an oath to do something with the full intention of wriggling their way out of it. It was done the same way that some shady businesses use contracts today. The contract has all the good stuff in big, bold print. But all the loopholes and legal jargon is in super fine print that you need a magnifying glass to read. Developing a deceitful contract like that would be like the kind of swearing Jesus and James are talking about. Any kind of swearing you do where you acknowledge the possibility of eventually trying to get out of it. Some people enter marriage with that type of attitude, don’t they? Well, if it doesn’t work out, we’ll just get a divorce. Making solemn wedding vows before the Lord with that escape clause in mind is just the kind of swearing this passage is talking about. It is the kind that is forbidden. With that in mind, it should make you think before you make a vow of any kind, shouldn’t it? See, the implication of this statement really has more to do with your individual integrity than it does with whatever vows or oaths or promises you make. If you make a promise with the intention of breaking that promise, it doesn’t matter what kind of contract it’s on. Even if you intend to keep the promise, but intentionally leave yourself a loophole—that means your promise is worthless. No matter if you’ve sworn it with the heavens and the earth as your witness and collateral. And if your promise is worthless, your word is worthless. And if your word is worthless, your integrity is worthless—above all things. There are implications to your individual integrity. The implications are that if you make promises with even the slightest intention of breaking them, you have no integrity. The second issue involving individual integrity is the implication of individual integrity. The third is the intentionality of individual integrity. Continue on with me in verse 12:
JAMES 5:12a-c “…but let your yea be yea; and your nay, nay…”
It’s really that simple, isn’t it? Let your yes always mean yes and your no always mean no. I hear people always talk about the good old days when a man’s word was his bond. How deals were sealed on a handshake and that was good enough. In many cases it was. But ever since Adam and Eve were cast out of the Garden of Eden, we have lived in a fallen world. And the reasons we have so much paperwork and contracts today is because people didn’t always honor their word. Sometime, somebody didn’t honor their handshake agreement. Sometime that trusting person who took somebody at their word got burned. So the next time, he required a little bit more than a handshake. He required a little bit more than a simple “yea” or “nay”. That is the way this fallen world is. It is full of deceit and lies and schemes and dishonor. But Christian, you are to have no part of that. Yes, you will still have to sign contracts. You will still have to write contracts. You will still be required to put up collateral and have credit checks and background checks and all those things that come from living in this world. But your yes is still to always mean yes. Your no is still to always mean no. You are to be a person of your word. And the only way to do that is to be intentional about it. Be purposeful about it. If you tell someone you’re going to do something—do it. If you say you’re going to be somewhere—be there. I think that this is something that many of us—including me—struggle with this morning. How many times have you told your kids, “I’ll be at your game.” And then something comes up at work and you can’t make it. How many times have you told your husband or wife that you would help them do something, and then left them to do it by themselves—because of something more important? How many times have you committed to doing something at church or at home or at work and then not followed through with it? How many times have you made promises to yourself and not followed through with it? Be intentional. Let your yea be yea. What about when you say “no”? Do you mean it? When you tell your child or grandchild, “no”, can they pester and pester until your “no” becomes a “yes”? When your buddies at work or the kids at school try to get you to do something you know you shouldn’t do—does your no mean no? Or do you give in to the pressure? Be intentional. Let your nay be nay. If you say you’re going to do something—do it. If you say you’re not going to do something—don’t do it. The third issue involving individual integrity is the intentionality of individual integrity. The fourth is the incentive of individual integrity. Let’s read the whole thing now.
JAMES 5:12
So, what’s the big deal, anyway? Why is individual integrity such an important issue? Well, for one thing, it’s commanded. Ephesians 4:25 says, “Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another.” It’s commanded because of the impact it has on each other. When Jesus saves us, He saves us into His body, the local church. And as the body of Christ, we are members of one another. And lying and dishonesty is like a cancer that destroys that body. Colossians 3:9 says, “Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds.” When Jesus saves us, our old lying nature is nailed to His cross. It is put to death with Him. And just like Him, we are raised to walk in newness of life. That newness shouldn’t include the deeds of deadness. It shouldn’t include lying and deceit and false testimony. Because where does the Bible say those things come from? In John 8:44, as Jesus was talking to the Pharisees, He said, “Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.” Satan is a liar and the father of lies. So why is integrity so important? Because when we do things to destroy our integrity. Things like lying and deceiving and not following through on our commitments. When we do those things, we are acting as if we are of the devil. And I’ve got news for you. If your life is marked by a continual pattern of a lack of integrity—you need to check your heart. Because that is an indication you are of your father the devil. If Satan is the father of lies, and you consistently lie like he does, then odds are, he’s your father. And if he’s your father, you have fallen into condemnation. It’s harsh, but it’s true. How do I know? Because in this Bible, I have before me pure truth. And that truth testifies to Jesus Christ as the Way, the Truth, and the Life. This morning, if you have failed this integrity test—if this test has shown that you have such a problem with integrity that the truth is not in you—He can be. You see, truth is a person. And I know Him. And He lives in me. And He clothes me in His integrity. So that even when I stumble. Even when I sometimes fail. He is my integrity. Do you know the Truth this morning? Do you know Jesus Christ as your Way, as your Truth, and your Life this morning? If you don’t, you can.
