1 Better is a poor person who walks in his integrity
than one who is crooked in speech and is a fool.
2 Desire without knowledge is not good,
and whoever makes haste with his feet misses his way.
3 When a man's folly brings his way to ruin,
his heart rages against the Lord.
8 Whoever gets sense loves his own soul;
he who keeps understanding will discover good.
11 Good sense makes one slow to anger,
and it is his glory to overlook an offense.
16 Whoever keeps the commandment keeps his life;
he who despises his ways will die.
21 Many are the plans in the mind of a man,
but it is the purpose of the Lord that will stand.
23 The fear of the Lord leads to life,
and whoever has it rests satisfied;
he will not be visited by harm.
(Proverbs 19:1-3,8,11,16,21,23 ESV)
What does it mean to walk in (or with) integrity? It means that we are people who are walking (in conduct, in practice) in honesty, honor, reliability, moral purity, faithfulness, decency and uprightness. We are people who can be trusted to be who we claim to be, who are not fake, not pretentious, and who are not chameleons who blend in with their environment. We have strong moral values which we live by because we take God and his word to heart and we believe what his word teaches us.
Sadly, it appears that not many people these days professing faith in Jesus Christ are walking in/with integrity. For so many professing Christians, here in America, anyway, have compromised with the world and with the worldly market-driven and flesh-driven “churches” of today. Lying, cheating, and committing adultery have become so commonplace and so widely accepted as the norm, even among professers of Christianity, and sexual immorality is running rampant and is being pampered in so much of “the church.”
And if you take the Lord and his word to heart, and so you teach (or share) what the Scriptures teach on the subject of integrity and moral purity, you may not have huge followings. For those whose lives are not surrendered to the Lord Jesus Christ, to walking in his ways and in his truth, but who are living quasi-moral lives, do not want to hear what the Scriptures teach on moral purity and uprightness and integrity, but rather they want to bless themselves with promises of forgiveness of sins and of heaven as home.
But whoever gets sense loves his own soul. Whoever listens to the Lord and to the teachings of Jesus Christ and of his NT apostles, and who heeds their words and puts them into practice loves his own soul because our Lord requires of us obedience to his commands and holy living and the forsaking of our sins if we are to be his true followers, and if we are to have heaven as our eternal destiny and salvation from our sins. For if we claim to be in fellowship with the Lord but we walk in sin, then we are liars (1 John 1:6).
What commandments today must believers in Jesus Christ obey? We do not have to obey any of the Old Covenant liturgical, ceremonial, sacrificial, purification, and dietary laws and restrictions that the Jews of old had to obey. And circumcision is no longer required of God’s people who are those who are following Jesus Christ with their lives. But we have to obey all of God’s moral laws taught to us in the New Testament by Jesus and by his NT apostles. And we must cease with living in sin and for self.
And faith in Jesus Christ is not something that we get to make up, to create for ourselves which fits with sinful lifestyles. For the faith required for salvation from sin is authored and perfected by Jesus Christ (Hebrews 12:1-2), it is persuaded of God (the meaning of faith) (John 6:44) and it is gifted to us by God, and it is not of our own doing – not of the will nor of the flesh of man (Ephesians 2:8-10; John 1:12-13). So since this faith comes from God it is going to align with God’s will and purpose for our lives.
See also: [Matthew 7:21-23; Luke 9:23-26; Romans 2:6-8; Romans 6:1-23; Romans 8:1-14; Romans 12:1-2; 1 Corinthians 6:9-10,19-20; 2 Corinthians 5:15; Galatians 5:16-21; Galatians 6:7-8; Ephesians 4:17-32; Ephesians 5:3-6; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 10:23-31; 1 Peter 2:24; 1 Jn 1:5-10; 1 Jn 2:3-6; 1 Jn 3:4-10; 1 Co 10:1-22; Heb 3:1-19; Heb 4:1-13]
For it is the fear of the Lord that leads to life. And to fear the Lord is to honor, value, respect, reverence, submit to, worship and obey him. And to fear him means to believe him and his word, and to put his word into practice in our daily lives. And it is to make it our goal to please our Lord in every way in doing all that he asks of us to do, and all that he requires. So, if we are walking in the fear of the Lord, we are taking his word to heart and we are walking in obedience to his commands and no longer in sin.
[Matt 10:28; Luke 1:50; Acts 9:31; Acts 10:34-35; Rom 3:10-18; Rom 12:1-2; 2 Co 5:6-11; 2 Co 7:1; Php 2:12-13; Heb 5:7; Heb 12:28-29; Rev 11:18; Rev 14:7; Rev 15:4]
As the Deer
By Martin J. Nystrom
Based off Psalm 42:1
As the deer panteth for the water
So my soul longeth after You
You alone are my heart's desire
And I long to worship You
You alone are my strength, my shield
To You alone may my spirit yield
You alone are my heart's desire
And I long to worship You
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