Unimpeachable Integrity

Unlike so many, we do not peddle the word of God for profit. On the contrary, in Christ we speak before God with sincerity, as those sent from God.

2 Corinthians 2:17

The fourth mark of genuine Christianity is found here. It has great application to pastors and others in the ministry, but its primary reference is to common, ordinary Christians who have learned the secret of authentic Christianity.

Christians are not to be peddlers. The word means a huckster, a street salesman. Christians are not meant to be salespeople for God. Much Christian preaching and witnessing can be described that way. People select certain attractive features from the Scriptures and use these as selling points. Healing is a case in point. It is a legitimate subject for study and practice, but when singled out and harped on continually, especially when a pitch for large, sacrificial offerings is linked to it, healing can quickly lead to hucksterism. Paul says authentic Christianity does not hawk its truth like a peddler selling goods in the street.

Our integrity as authentic Christians is characterized by four qualities, according to this passage. First, we speak with sincerity. We are to be honest people. We must mean what we say. The world admires sincerity and feels it is the ultimate expression of character — but according to Paul, sincerity is just the beginning of character, God's bare-minimum expectation of authentic Christians. The very least we should expect from ourselves as Christians is that we thoroughly believe and practice what we say.

Second, we are sent from God. This speaks of our purpose as authentic Christians. We are not to be idle dreamers with no definite objective in view. We have been commissioned as military officers are commissioned. We have been given a definite task and specific assignments that constitute our purpose in life and in ministry. We have an end in view, an object to attain, a goal to accomplish, and we do not merely preach or witness as though that were a goal in itself.

Third, we do all this before God. This indicates an attitude of transparency. To walk in the sight of other people permits us to hide our sins behind a facade, but to walk in the sight of God requires total honesty with Him and ourselves, because nothing can be hidden from God's sight. A person who walks in the sight of God is more interested in his inner reality than his outer reputation. He can be completely trusted. You can even believe his golf score and the size of the trout he caught. If you can teach your young people to live in the sight of God, you will even be able to trust them in the back seat of a car.

Fourth, we speak in Christ. What quality does that indicate? Authority! Paul states it clearly in 2 Corinthians 5:20 — We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us. Ambassadors are authorized spokesmen; they have power to act and make covenants on behalf of others. Authentic Christians are not powerless servants. We speak words and deliver messages which heaven honors.

All of these qualities add up to unimpeachable integrity. People of sincerity, purpose, transparency, and authority are utterly trustworthy. Their word is their bond, and they can be counted on to come through. They are responsible and faithful individuals.

Lord, thank you for this compelling word from the lips of the great apostle. Thank you that, though twenty-one centuries have rolled away since those days, you have not changed; your power is as manifest and as powerful today as ever, and you can handle this age as well as you did any age, or any place, or any time. Amen.