Truth, honesty, integrity

Honesty & Integrity aka…. why lie?

Billy Joel once said in his song  ‘Honesty’..

If you look for truthfulness you might as well be blind,

It always seems to be so hard to give..

Honesty, is such a lonely word; everyone is so untrue

Honesty, is hardly ever heard, but mostly what I need from you…

( you can find this on you tube)

Go back some in time, to an episode of the Honeymooners called "Mind Your Own Business" - you can find this on You tube as well - to a black and white sitcom starring Jackie Gleason et al. story line goes…

Ralph talks Ed into an "or else" move in demanding a promotion and a raise; Ed tries it - it backfires, and Ed gets fired! Alice hears about it and cannot believe who would lead Ed into such a thing, it's not like Ed. Ralph won't admit its him so he pretends he don’t know nothing. He lies. Ed comes in and says don’t feel bad Ralph - so Alice learns the truth!

Then Ed tries working as a door-to-door salesman. He's a flop at it, manages to sell one iron to his mom, but tells Ralph he made 40 bucks the first day! Ralph gets excited  and wants to sell irons too! Ed doesn’t want to tell the truth; he says some have it and some don’t. Ralph thinks Ed is hoarding a good opportunity!

And so it goes…truth is calling a spade a spade, whatever the consequence. Problem is we bend it whenever we don’t like what the consequence entails; and the end result never works out.

If we are to have reliable relationships, honesty is essential. The Commandments talk about "not bearing false witness." That is social exchange, taking its meaning from the good or harm between people. The philosopher Spinoza believed that truth in friendship was a great blessing, and that friendship was a celebration of and a sanctuary for the search for truth in our lives. For Spinoza, the goal of truth was a foremost goal - an ideal to be striven for, since in daily life certain truths might wax and wane with circumstance and knowledge. The standard of honesty has to reach beyond the facts we can know to our very desire to be clear and truthful with one another. Take a moment and think of what "Editing" amounts to, and how often you might have heard the word "expunged" used.

 

 

Alice Walker, Fathers. (Abbreviated)

Alice Walker's father understood the temptation to lie, and the importance of resisting it. As a result, she learned to favor truthfulness, which, as she found, pays off in greater personal strength and deeper ties with other people....

I recall a scene when I was only three or so in which my father questioned me about a fruit jar I had accidentally broken. I've never forgotten my feeling that he really wanted me to tell the truth. And because he seemed to desire it - and the moments during which he waited for my reply seemed quite out of time; I was only three - I confessed. I broke the jar, I said. I think he hugged me. I still feel as if he did, so embraced did I feel by the happy relief I noted on his face; he didn't punish me but seemed pleased with me. I think it was at that moment that I resolved to take my chances with the truth, although as the years rolled on I was to break more serious things in his scheme of things than fruit jars....

Hans Christian Anderson, The Emperor's New Clothes, adapted by Colin Greer.

One day, two swindlers came to a great town. They told everyone they were weavers and said they knew how to weave the most beautiful cloth. Not only were the colors and the patterns gorgeous, but the clothes that were made of this cloth had the quality of becoming invisible to every person who was not fit for the office he held or was impossibly stupid.

Those must be splendid clothes, said the Emperor. By wearing them I should be able to discover who in my kingdom are fit for their posts. I will be able to distinguish the wise from the fools. The Emperor paid the two swindlers cash in advance so they could begin work at once.

In a matter of weeks, the swindlers decided they were ready to bring the Emperor his new clothes. See, these are the trousers. This is the coat. This is the robe. Yes I see said the Emperor. Will your majesty be pleased to take off your clothes....said the swindlers. Then we may put the new ones on you.

The Emperor took off his clothes, and the weavers pretended to give him one article of dress after another. The Emperor's Courtiers then called for the Emperor to walk through the town so all of his subjects could see the beautiful new clothes the Emperor was wearing. Yes, said the Emperor. I am quite ready to show my new clothes to my people. Don't they fit well!

Then the Emperor walked in procession from his palace through the streets of the town. How beautiful the Emperor's clothes are! What a splendid gown! The townspeople called from the streets and windows. Nobody would let it appear that he or she could see nothing, for then they would not be fit for their posts....until a little boy cried out! 

 

Jesus said let your yes be yes, and your no be no. Tell it like it is. I forget who sang that one, but it’s a neat song. Some truth is happy, some truths are not. But they are the truth. Changing stuff only further complicates it. Some have talked about little white lies and the like, but every lie has a motive and therein lies the evil. Truth is reality, which we must all deal with. Politicians are not good at this, and it makes them very dangerous. The road to hell is still paved with the best of intentions. Stay well. Stay uncomplicated. Speak the simple truth always. And leave the rest in God's hands.

On what basis do we describe someone as being honest or as having integrity? We look at the correlation in their life between thought, word, and deed. It is where what you say is ratified by what you do. It is the action that makes the difference. Talk is easy, and talk can be cheap. Yet without words and written and verbal speech, how would we communicate? In the pages of history, both religious and political leaders have always used the emotive power of words to reach out. But oftentimes their walk is unable to catch up with their talk. Our actions demonstrate the truth of our integrity, or lack thereof.  

Language has valid motivational and inspiring functions. But words that are not followed with concrete positive actions quickly become manipulative. Understand then, that integrity and honesty are NOT tied to words, but to actions!!

Let’s look at some of Jesus’ teachings that relate to these aspects. Note that these are scriptures that most preachers will rarely preach on. Ask yourself why. And we begin with

1.Matthew 5:34-7, where Jesus says ‘You have heard that it was said to the men of old, “You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.”  But I say to you, do not swear at all. Let what you say be simply ‘yes’ or ‘no’.  Compare this if you will to Ecclesiastes 5:4-5, and James 5:12.  The followers of Jesus should be known as men and women of their word. Their life is their witness. Jesus is warning that whenever we deviate from this rule we enter into all sorts of manipulative intent, and no good will come of it. It is what it is. Trust the Lord and carry on.  Very clear, but so easy to go against because of the way the world works! But you are called to be different, and God will back you!

2.Matthew 5:28 where Jesus says   ‘everyone who has looked at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart.’ 

Good golly, what have we here? A saying that moves from LUSTFUL LOOK = IMAGINED SEX  = REAL ACTION.  Many might want to disagree. But the statement stands. Image in action = the real thing. This is very scary. Jesus is saying that what you imagine is the equivalent of real action! (think equi-valent as being of equal weight and value as in valency) So you had best control your imagination then! But how? We will come to this ‘mind-control’ more specifically as we move upwards.  There is a subtle distinction between mind and spirit, between that which is mental and that which is spiritual. Most of us live somewhere in-between! Make this notion part of your ongoing spiritual journey, and it will bear fruit as you go. 

All people have been created by God, and all are equally deserving of God’s love. This means we cannot make anyone into an object, be it of sex or something else. To do that would be demeaning to them.  Dehumanizing. It would not be treating others as you would like to be treated. And we become less in the process! We hurt our spiritual growth. More so, the forces that we have to contend with daily can objectify and demean our lives, so that we seem to become reduced in value and worth, and less than what we can and should be. One example – what happens when a poor person has to ask for help? Is that person treated with dignity? Or why are there so many single mothers, but so few single fathers? How did this state of affairs come to be? A child is not made by one person! This is why cultural norms and socio-political systems must always be subject to constant scrutiny. I have never given a damn for the norm. We must go beyond it. Customs, habits, and systems of structured order are created by people, and people are imperfect for the most part, no matter what position of leadership they might be in!  Ask The Lord to show you these things. You will find out as you grow. We move on.

3.Matthew 5:29 where Jesus says  ‘ If your right eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and throw it away; it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell.’

The good news is  - this is not a call to self-inflicted blindness! Jesus’ words are never easily interpreted. It is not the eye, but the mind’s eye! That is much harder to deal with. Maybe easier to put your eye out! So you have to clear (not clean) your mind out, and not your heart!! Why? Because when the mind is kept clear then only can the holy spirit lead you! Remember King David watching Bathsheba take a bath? Right! How to get around that kind of looking – and the thinking behind the looking? that is the question!  Where to start?

You must know (be honest with) yourself, first. Then you must intend and will (your own motivation of will and determination) the giving up of such desire, because it is an attachment that will keep you chained and unable to move towards the Kingdom.  You must want to be free. And that can only happen if you have the Kingdom of God first in your heart. Above all others. Remember Jesus talking to the rich young man about ’go and sell all you have and come and follow me.’  Not doable, unless you can put the kingdom first. If you do not, it cannot happen, no matter how hard you try. Because spiritual growth IS NOT ABOUT TRYING! When you are right with God, it just happens. And you are always right with God when you put God first! There are no levels where one human being is a better moral person than another. They just seem to be, from what is known about them in public. And more often than not that is just a sociological presentation. An image, as we like to say. 

Modern psychology says you are only human. Lust is natural. Yup. It is natural to the human  state. Whether it becomes sinful or not depends on us! But you don’t have to stay there. Jesus says so. This is why Jesus is the ‘prototokos’  - the prototype of what we can and should be! While we make of him an exception, he is saying to us, ‘no, you can do what I can!’ Read John Chs. 14 – 15! We keep saying ‘Christ, Lord, Son of God’, and Jesus is pleading with us – ‘come ‘up’ here with me, you can do it!’ This is why Church worship struggles to make a difference. It cannot be more sociological than spiritual!

Understand that the ‘prototokos’ notion of the New Testament is very unique and is something that many steer clear of. Why? Because it teaches that you don’t need anyone. You are not a sheep. It says that you can be strong, and different, and good, and right, and can overcome! Isn’t that wonderful? Isn’t that the real good news? And it is not about religion or politics! It is about spirituality! OK, now you begin to get the picture. And in order to get moving, you must first begin to train your mind as the mind of Christ! Only then can your spirit use your mind, so that the holy Spirit can speak clearly to you and through you. The things that distract you are all satanic in origin. Know this. And be careful. And this brings us to a final text:

4.Luke 14:26 says ‘If any one comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.’

 A little like having to pluck out a naughty eye, no? But once again, not a literal interpretation! It is a call not to allow anyone or anything to prevent you from getting into the kingdom of God. That would be obstructing your spiritual progress. And in that case, should you hate them? No. rather, it means you must get around the obstruction that they represent. Avoid them, ignore them, do whatever it takes when you need to. Keep your responsibilities to them.   Here, hate = move around that which obstructs! Stay focused on your destination and keep moving. Don’t argue, don’t get into a fight or a debate. Don’t waste your energy and get dragged into negativity. Leave them/it alone. Disengage.

If hate is at all involved, it is about being aware of what is behind the obstruction – the root cause, which is none other than Satan. Even a sincere person can be used without realizing it! How come? Simply because being a nice person does not = a spiritually mature person. There is a huge difference that derives from true awareness and perceptive ability. There is no protective magic in being called a Christian. You must always be a discerning practitioner of the Christian walk.

This is why when Peter attempts to persuade Jesus in Mark 8:33, that the mission is not about going up to Jerusalem to be crucified, Jesus’ answer is ‘Get thee behind me, Satan!’ Jesus is pointing out just how easily we all might be used!

So be at peace. But be on your guard. Always. False notions of morality and being ‘good’ are everywhere, and are freely touted by structured religion. Jesus is different. Getting into the Kingdom of God is not about being good. Or being good enough. You can try that road forever and it will never work. It is just about being loving.

To love God is to develop a real (not imaginary, as in ‘by faith’) relationship with Jesus. To talk about faith is to be barking up the wrong tree! People can sing ‘and he walks with me and he talks with me and he tells me I am his own’ but it needs to be more than something to sing about, which anyone can join in for the fun of the song! Yup. Singing songs is great. We all love music. Socializing in church is wonderful; not much spiritual about it, though! Take care of yourself. There is much more to come and much work to be done. Blessings always in Jesus, G.