SpiritsWord Daily Devotional - Hold on to Integrity

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Today's Devotional

Hold on to Integrity

by Simon Whitton

7 So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD and afflicted Job with painful sores from the soles of his feet to the top of his head.

8 Then Job took a piece of broken pottery and scraped himself with it as he sat among the ashes.

9 His wife said to him, "Are you still holding on to your integrity? Curse God and die!"

10 He replied, "You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?" In all this, Job did not sin in what he said.

Job 2:7-10 (NIV)

You may not be tempted to ‘curse God’ when everything goes wrong, but when it seems like God is against you, or things aren’t going your way, perhaps you are more tempted by other sins. We are vulnerable at times like this and we may look for comfort where we shouldn’t, or maybe we start complaining and blaming. Job did not do this. He may have lost everything else, but he held on to his integrity.

Better a poor man whose walk is blameless than a fool whose lips are perverse.

Prov 19:1(NIV)

Possibly the most attractive thing about the Lord is His integrity, He is upright and blameless. He deserves our devotion for this quality alone, though He has many others. The Lord understands the immense worth of integrity, and so it’s something that He wants us to have.

We should greatly desire the integrity of the Lord. The peace of a clear conscience is of inestimable value. The knowledge that the Lord is for you and not against you is great comfort. Integrity is like righteousness, it brings freedom from the consequences of sin. He personally protects the blameless, allowing only those troubles that He sees as necessary for the development of your character and His eternal purposes.

A righteous man may have many troubles, but the LORD delivers him from them all;

Ps 34:19 (NIV)

As the righteous suffer, they have no need to fear, but can wait for the Lord’s deliverance with confidence and find shelter and peace in Him.

But now trouble comes to you, and you are discouraged; it strikes you, and you are dismayed. Should not your piety be your confidence and your blameless ways your hope? "Consider now: Who, being innocent, has ever perished? Where were the upright ever destroyed?

Job 4:5-7 (NIV)

Jesus suffered, but He was innocent and upright, and because of that, He did not perish. They were not able to destroy Him. However, not one of us is innocent; but when we trust in Christ, His righteousness becomes ours, His integrity is ours. And this is gained through faith in Christ, not by works. It’s His integrity that we must hold on to, not our own.

Our faith provides us with complete innocence in Christ, but then we should walk in it. King David sinned, but he made his heart right with God, turned from his sin and walked in obedience.

walk before me in integrity of heart and uprightness, as David your father did, and do all I command and observe my decrees and laws,

IKing 9:4b (NIV)

Spend some time in prayer, and be thankful that God has made you innocent through faith in Christ. Pray that whatever challenges, trials or difficulties come your way, that you will hold on to the Lord’s integrity, find comfort in it, and that you will walk in obedience.

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