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1 Corinthians 15:58

THE INTEGRITY OF GOD
When There is Nothing Else to Hold On To, You can Trust GOD

Luke 8:22-25 One of those days He and His disciples got into a boat, and He said to them, let us go across to the other side of the lake. So they put off to sea. 23) But as they were sailing, He fell off to sleep. And a whirlwind revolving from below upwards, swept down on the lake, and the boat was filling up with water, and they were in great danger.24) And the disciples came and woke Him saying, “Master, Master, we are perishing!” And He being thoroughly awakened, censured and blamed and rebuked the wind and the raging waves; and they ceased, and there came a calm.

25) And He said to them, (Why are you so fearful?) Where is your FAITH - your trust, your confidence in Me, [in My ferocity and My integrity]? And they were seized with alarm and profound and reverent dread, and they marveled, saying to one another, Who then is this, that He commands even wind and sea, that they obey Him?      Before I begin,let me add that in verse 23,Luke uses the Greek term for “whirl wind” yet Mark, when describing this storm in Mark 4:37, uses a Greek word for describing a storm “of hurricane proportion.” This was not just another little every-day storm, and Jesus took this time to speak to His disciples about their FAITH and His integrity.       Your “WORD” (what you say) is who you are, and Jesus knew God’s WORD is Who  He was and is to come. Jesus trusted the integrity of God’s commitment to Him. God had given Jesus a mission, and therefore Jesus understood  He could not die in a storm until His mission was completed.       God’s Integrity is the character of God that describes His full intention  to keep His Word (He is not a man that he can lie). What storm in your life has caused you to surrender your FAITH or call God’s integrity into question? Always remember the integrity of God is the foundation that Christianity  is built on. Just as Jesus’ life could not be destroyed until  He accomplished God’s plan for His life, neither can your life be destroyed until you  have accomplished God’s plan and purpose for your life.       Christianity is a relationship not a religion. Your FAITH will never grow any greater than your understanding of God’s integrity. God is too loving to be unkind. God is too wise to not have a plan and a purpose for your life and everything that comes into your life.      Again I want to take you back to Mark’s Gospel just  for a moment to show you something else you may have missed. In Mark 4:36 the scripture records that “and others’ boats were with Him.” When Jesus said, “Stop it!”  to the winds and the storm ceased, the people in the “other boats” enjoyed Jesus’ miracle as much as the disciples did.       The integrity of God in your and my life should flow over into the lives of those around us. Integrity is the attribute of God that allowed the Old Testament and New Testament saints to trust and believe the covenant God made with Abraham, no matter what they saw, what they felt or what they heard. They still trusted Him. The integrity of God was what would enable these men and women of God to live their lives with such holy fervor & divine FAITH, and through it all obtain a holy testimony.       The Integrity of God is so uniquely different from anything else the world has to offer. All the religions of the world that claim to worship God, by whatever name these worshippers call Him, can best be described as Man reaching up to God. The Integrity of God, through Jesus Christ, has allowed God to create a relationship with man that enables God to reach down to man, with God’s integrity totally unbroken.       Too often man’s “integrity” is bought and sold for power, fame and the almighty dollar. Webster’s New Explorer Dictionary says the definition of “integrity” is soundness; adherence to a code of values; completeness. In a world where integrity is sold so cheaply from the pulpit to the marketplace, I thank God for His integrity.

Romans 8:28 says, "We are assured and know that [God being a partner in their labor] all things work together and are [fitting into a plan] for good to those who love God and are called according to [His] design and purpose.” The Amplified Bible.       If there is something God should be doing, He is doing it. God’s miracles confirm God’s integrity. You will never be able to believe, trust, and have FAITH in the promises of God until you completely trust and believe in the integrity of God.       God is perfect integrity. Jesus, when describing God said in Luke 18:19, “Jesus said to him, Why do you call Me (essentially and perfectly morally) good? No one is (essentially and perfectly morally) good except God only.” The Amplified Bible.       Jesus Christ was God in the flesh. While on this earth Jesus was perfect honesty, perfect truth, perfect ferocity, perfect obedience to the Father, perfect reliability and perfect uprightness. Jesus was integrity personified.       If I were to ask you to name someone you know with integrity, whose name would come to mind?  Would it be your dad or maybe your mother? How about your grandfather or grandmother? Whoever you named would speak volumes about you and them. You spent time with them and you watched what they said and what they did. There is an old saying, “a man’s word is his bond” or “a man is as good as his word.” Do you know that is still true today?        If a person has integrity, that person’s word, promise or commitment means something to them. That’s integrity. God’s integrity is very important to God. If God said He would do something, He did.       While on this earth, Jesus’ integrity meant something to Him. He made very sure His integrity never came into question. Jesus’ was sinless perfection. He could have never been crucified as the “Lamb Of God” and paid the price for our sins if He was not sinless and perfect -- perfect integrity.       When my son, Mark, was a young teenager he asked me to give him an example of integrity. I never will forget what I told him. I said, “Son, integrity is when you are tempted to do something that breaks God’s law, you are all alone and there is not any possible way you can be caught and you still choose to do what is right.” That is integrity.       Many of you know I’m a real Texan. That means I was born and reared there. Do you know that men and women from Texas use to make million dollar deals on a “hand shake?” These were men and women of integrity. The two parties knew the other could take the agreements and commitments that person said to the bank. I don’t know if you know this, but there never was a contract between Elvis Presley and his manager Colonel Tom Parker. Elvis had integrity when it came to that verbal contract.       Think about that kind of integrity between now and the next issue, when we’re starting the NEW YEAR, and purpose in your heart to be a man or woman of Godly integrity. Take on that characteristic of your Heavenly Father and your Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, which is His perfect desire for you. And until next time and next year,                                  GARY