In this thought-provoking episode, we delve into the essence of integrity as depicted in the scriptures. Exploring passages from Ecclesiastes, we uncover how integrity influences our interactions with God and each other. This episode challenges listeners to assess whether their spiritual practices are sincere or merely routine. Join us as we examine the profound nature of vows and commitments, and why they should never be taken lightly. Discover the transformative power that a life of integrity can have on personal and communal spiritual growth.
You made a vow before God. It’s better not to vow than to pay. You better make sure when you get married, you’re saying a vow till death do us part. You made a vow. God holds us accountable for our commitments. I look at this and I say, what’s happened to us? We’ve lost our sense of accountability to God. We’ve forgotten who God is. Doesn’t make any difference anymore. We’re given token appreciation to the Lord of the universe who is in heaven above, who knows all things and whose sovereignty rules over all. These things are so serious.
SPEAKER 03 :
It’s a blessing to have you with us for this Thursday edition of Hope for Today. Words can be cheap. Promises get broken. And accountability, well, accountability is often the first thing to go and no one is watching. But Ecclesiastes chapter 5 reminds us of a truth we cannot escape. We are never just answerable to people. We stand before God. Every word, every vow, every motive. Today, David Hawking brings us day three of his message called, What Happened to Integrity? As God’s Word strips away the excuses and confronts us with what it means to live not for appearances, but under the eyes of the Lord himself. We’ll get into the Word in just a moment. First, remember that if you ever miss anything on Hope for Today or maybe miss a whole broadcast, you can listen again to our most recent programs at davidhawking.org. Go to davidhawking.org, click on the radio tab, and you’ll see our most recent programs there. And be sure to share that web address with a friend as well. We’ll turn to Ecclesiastes chapter 5 now, again, verses 1 through 7. And here’s David with day three of What Happened to Integrity?
SPEAKER 02 :
Do we have integrity in our spiritual lives? Or is it just a routine that we do? Or is it true that in the private place, when no one else knows, that that’s where you really are with God? Now some people have the ability because of experience and maturity to sound like they can really pray. And even that I hate. I don’t want to talk about sounds or words or how you pray. Sometimes I think that the prayers that sound messed up maybe are getting through. You know what I mean? Do you know that the arch enemy of our souls, the devil himself, is doing all he can to keep you superficial. To keep you plastic. Just surface stuff. To never really allow you to get a hold of the Lord in private. You see, if we’re going to be a praying group and really worship God and really have integrity, we need all of God’s people to understand this. There’s a war going on, a spiritual war. And we need to pray, not when anybody else can hear, but alone with God as Jesus did. As the examples are in the Bible. And to learn how to pray. And we need to be taught that. And not play games or assume it can happen. People need to be taught, taught on the basis of what the Bible says, how to pray. That must take place. It’s also my opinion that if we’re going to be a praying group of people, we need to pray more in small groups rather than large groups. People need to participate and we need the joint fellowship of prayer. And I believe that’s important. And there will be occasions when we can gather as a body to pray. I believe that too. But I think what Solomon is saying is very true. There’s a danger in public prayer. Public prayer. A great danger. We need to have integrity in our hearts. Are things right between us and God? Is there a conscious response toward God? Is there a controlled reluctance to speak that recognizes who God is, remembers His position, and also ours on earth? If that’s so, then keep reading in Matthew 6, 5. They love to pray in the standing in the synagogues on the corners of the streets. Why? That they may be seen by men. You see the danger in public praying, in public talking? It’s to be seen by men. And he said, assuredly, I say to you, they have their reward. What is the reward? You were seen of men. The point is, you got it. You’re not going to get anything from me. That’s something we all have to settle in our hearts, our personal motivations with God. Now look at verse 6. But you, when you pray, go into your room, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father who is in secret, in the secret place, and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. I don’t see how anything could be more clear from the lips of our Savior. We need to understand worship, praying, refraining from being too quick to speak in God’s presence, and remembering the position of God and man. And frankly, I think there’s a third thing that Solomon says when he says that there’s a danger in much words. That is that integrity results in few words. Integrity doesn’t extend the words out. Integrity results in few words. Let your words be few. Now, if you’re still in Matthew 6, look at verse 7. On the same point, prayer, coming to the Lord, worshiping Him. It says in verse 7, When you pray, do not use vain repetitions, empty repetitions, as the heathen do. Ever heard Eastern religion pray? Over and over and over and over and over again. Same things. Jesus said, don’t do that, for they think that they will be heard for their many words. And that is not true. We need integrity before God. It’s not many words that does it. My classic illustration, okay? Peter. Remember on the water, the Sea of Galilee? Now he’s walking on the water to go out to Jesus. And he takes his eyes off the Lord, and he starts to sink. Now, that, folks, is not the time for a long prayer. You understand what I mean? When he said, Lord, save me, he might have even had one too many words there. I’m not sure. I’m trying to think about it. But anyway, Lord, save me. I mean, he won it. And Jesus reached out his hand and grabbed him. Now, to go on with, oh, great divine architect, you know, he’d be drowned before he could get the words out. Let your words be few, God says. Why? Because he is God. We don’t need to inform him of things. He already knows everything. Prayer is more our benefit than his. I think this is important to understand because it involves integrity. The next step, first we start with a cautious response toward God. That leads to a controlled reluctance to speak before God. Now third, in verse 4 and 5, integrity is a clear resolve to fulfill your commitments. If your heart really worships God, it’s really coming to God right, there’s really a relationship between you and the Lord, then integrity is a clear resolve to fulfill your commitments, whatever you said you would do. Look at verse 4 and 5 again of Ecclesiastes 5. He says, when you make a vow to God, do not delay to pay it. For he has no pleasure in fools. Pay what you have vowed. It is better not to vow than to vow and not pay. A couple of things here I want you to see. One, integrity refuses to delay doing what you promised. If I have a clear resolve, commitment, decision in my heart to fulfill my commitments, then I don’t delay. God helping me, I don’t put it off. That’s what integrity is. Why are people complaining in business about putting things off? They say, oh, everybody does. That doesn’t matter. I’ll pay them later. Where are the people that say, but if it’s due in 30 days, it’s due. If you don’t have the money, then go talk to them and tell you don’t have the money. Try and work it out. Use integrity. But why is it that people let things go on and on and on? Months go by. If you don’t have a job you can’t pay for, tell them. Work out something. I believe that integrity would win the day every time if we could restore it to our culture. I really do. Even when you can’t pay your bills. And you say, look, all I could pay is $5 a week. Great, then do that. Let’s see how long you’ll do that. Well, it’ll take 30 years to pay it off. Do it. Integrity. And be on time. Whatever you can do. Where is integrity in the world? Integrity is a clear resolve in your heart. Businessmen, this ought to come back in the business world. And don’t come and give me all the implications and ramifications of this problem. I don’t even want to discuss it. I want to come back with forthright statements about integrity. I don’t care what it takes. Let’s get it back. Let’s get it back in our personal lives and in our public lives, in our business life. Let’s restore it. Why? Because God is the one to whom we’re accountable. It’s a clear resolve to fulfill our commitments. It refuses to delay doing what you have promised. He said, don’t delay to pay it. And secondly, it reaffirms your obligation to pay. Half the problem as to why people aren’t paying. And we often think of that word financially, and it is involved. But it’s more than that. Even promises we make verbally. Half the reason why we don’t pay what we have vowed to pay is because there’s no integrity in the heart. There’s no clear resolve that it is God’s will for me to fulfill this commitment. And I should never refuse to delay doing it. And I should reaffirm my obligation to pay because of who he is. Psalm 76, 11 says… Make vows to the Lord your God and pay them. Let all who are around him bring presents or offerings to him who ought to be feared. You see, the reason why I pay my vow, I do what my commitment is, is because I’m accountable to God. And that’s why I say that one thing wrong in our culture is the lack of accountability in response to God. Therefore, there’s no controlling factor as to what I should do. Every man kind of fends for himself and does what he wants to do. It’s doing your own thing. Do what feels good. Instead of sensing my accountability to God, pay what you avow. James 5.12, great verse. It says, swear not at all. Ever wonder about that? Swear not at all. Instead it says, let your yes be yes and your no, no. It says, don’t swear by heaven, don’t swear by the earth, don’t swear by anything at all. Now, we go into court and they ask us to swear. They used to have us put our hands on the Bible. Some of them still do, as you know. You put your hand on the Bible and you are going to swear. What are you going to do? You’re going to say, because my hand’s on the Bible, that means I’m going to tell the truth. It’s amazing what people say. They say, hey, look, swear to God, I’m telling you the truth. I’m telling you the truth. What does that mean? Sometimes you don’t. God says, let your yes be yes and your no, no. You see, integrity is something much more than what we’re giving credit for. I swear in a stack of Bibles. Hey, forget the Bibles and just tell me the truth. Let your yes be yes and your no, no. See, integrity is a matter of the heart, a relationship between you and God that’s clear. And you sense your accountability. I do what I’m supposed to do, not because you called me three times this week asking me to do it, but because I know I should do it before God. I made a promise. I made a commitment. The Bible speaks about it even when you make a verbal promise to anyone. It might be to your kids or your family. And you’re not able to keep it. Boy, it tells you rigmaroles to go through to somehow deliver yourself from the trap you have now gotten in in terms of integrity. It tells you how to ask for forgiveness and how to get it straightened out. And a lot of us just bypass that. We act like it’s not important. You promise to be in a certain class to help in a Sunday school. And you promise you didn’t show up and you don’t say anything about it. You’re violating Scripture. You’re hindering your worship and praise to God. A lot of us don’t even want to talk about it. We think it’s silly. We think it’s a small matter. It’s a small deal. No, it’s not. God teaches integrity in his word. A clear resolve to fulfill your commitments. And that means you don’t refuse to pay it. You don’t delay. You do it. And you reaffirm your obligation to pay. Pay what you have vowed. And third, I believe it also reveals the importance of making a vow in the first place. Integrity is a clear resolve, a clear decision in your heart to fulfill your commitment. And that means that you understand it’s important to make a vow in the first place, so you’re very careful. The text in Ecclesiastes 5, verse 5, says it’s better not to vow than to vow and not pay. Proverbs 20, 25 says, it’s a snare or a trap for a man to devote or to make a vow rationally. Something is holy. He’s going to dedicate it to the Lord and afterward reconsider his vows. That’s interesting. Now, if I’m reading this right, it would be better not to make a promise to God than to make a promise and not fulfill it. I don’t know, maybe we all ought to go back and read this again. What is really trapping and snaring our lives? What’s really dragging us down? Why am I not effective for Christ? Why are some things wrong in my life? I wonder how many of these things from God’s point of view would be related to not keeping our vows and commitments to Him, things we’ve said. I made a promise to meet with that discipleship group on a regular basis for X amount of weeks or whatever. Did I keep it? See, I told you there’s going to be plenty to make you miserable in this sermon. We haven’t hit half of the stuff that you know and I know we could bring up. Commitments, vows, decisions we made. I made a decision to serve the Lord in X area, but we never kept it. We never served the Lord. You say, well, I lost interest. Is that what God says? If you lose interest, don’t keep it. Well, I don’t have any joy anymore. Is that what God says? If your feelings change, don’t keep your vow. No, he never says that. See, integrity is lost in the world because we don’t keep. There’s no clear resolve to fulfill our commitment no matter what. That’s why, in my opinion, just to drop a bottom line in on us here, that is, in my opinion, why we’re such a mess in marriage and family relationships today. You made a vow before God, then keep it. You said, my wife doesn’t love me anymore. Still keep it. I don’t feel love towards her. Still keep your vow. You made a vow before God. It’s better not to vow than to pay. You better make sure when you get married, you’re saying a vow till death do us part. You made a vow. God holds us accountable for our commitments. I look at this and I say, what’s happened to us? We’ve lost our sense of accountability to God. We’ve forgotten who God is. Doesn’t make any difference anymore. We’re given token appreciation to the Lord of the universe who is in heaven above, who knows all things and whose sovereignty rules over all. These things are so serious. Come back to Ecclesiastes 5. Integrity is also another thing, and that is it’s a continual resistance to sin. A continual resistance to sin. Look at verse 6 of chapter 5 of Ecclesiastes. Here’s what integrity is. It says, Do not let your mouth cause your flesh to sin. Nor say before the messenger of God, that would be the priest who’s asking you, Hey, you made a commitment to bring that vow. Where is it? Don’t say that it was in error. If you said it, you should do it. Why should God be angry at your excuse and destroy the work of your hands? For in the multitude of dreams and many words, there’s also vanity. It seems to me that if you have integrity in your heart, you have a continual resistance to sin. You don’t want to sin. A lot of us don’t see this as sin. Yet James 4.17 says, Therefore to him who knows to do good and does not do it, it is sin. James 4.17. It put our Lord Jesus on the cross, that kind of sin. What is integrity? Well, it respects, I believe, when you talk about resistance to sin, it respects the attitude of God and our accountability to Him. Because the text says, why should God be angry at your excuse or your voice and destroy the work of your hands? I understand that I’m going to pay a price for not keeping my commitments. How much of the trouble in Christians’ lives is related to this, I don’t know. But from reading this and other passages in the Scripture, I have a feeling it’s a great deal. God promises temporary judgment and chastening and trouble to the life that does not keep its word and fulfill its commitments. That’s the truth. I find that an awesome thought. And it not only respects the attitude of God, but I believe it reinforces the danger of our words. The danger of our dreams. He says in the multitude of dreams, things we want to see happen. It’s not just talking about dreaming at night when you’re asleep. But things you want to see happen in your life. Many things you visualize in many dreams and in many words. There’s often emptiness. There’s emptiness. There’s no integrity there. Because there’s a lack of response towards God. So I think in the final place that integrity has to be a constant reverence for God. That’s the real issue. That’s why the last two words of verse 7 are there. But fear God. That’s integrity. Integrity is a constant reverence for God. The main message of Ecclesiastes is to fear the Lord. New International translates, therefore stand in awe of God. Psalm 5-7 says, But as for me, I will come into your house in the multitude of your mercy. In fear of you, I will worship toward your holy temple. Turn to Psalm 89 and with this we’re through. Psalm 89. What is integrity? Integrity begins in the heart as a cautious response toward God. It is therefore a controlled reluctance to speak before God. More important, to listen. It is a clear resolve and decision to fulfill our commitments. It is a continual resistance to sin, of recognizing the terrible things that happen to a person simply because he doesn’t fulfill his commitments. And it’s also a constant reverence for God. In Psalm 89, verse 6 to verse 8, we read this. For who in the heavens can be compared to the Lord? Who among the sons of the mighty can be likened to the Lord? God is greatly to be feared in the assembly of the saints, and to be held in reverence by all those who are around him. O Lord God of hosts, who is mighty like you, O Lord? Your faithfulness also surrounds you. Do we really understand that? Do we have integrity? Integrity is making a commitment stick. It is making a promise. It is making a decision and staying by it because you’re accountable to God.
SPEAKER 03 :
That’s David Hawking, and this is Hope for Today. He’ll be back to close out today’s lesson in just a moment or two, just ahead of that. Matt Hawking is here, and together we’re going to share something with you. This is really going to help you get the absolute most out of our current study in Ecclesiastes. Matt?
SPEAKER 01 :
Jim, this note from the forward of my dad’s book, Is Life Worth Living?, really captures the sad condition of our world today. It states, Contemporary culture has lost its way. We have rejected or at least neglected the moral and spiritual values of the Bible and seem to believe that something is right or wrong depending on how the majority of people feel about it. Following this path does not bring us into fulfillment or a sense of well-being in the end.
SPEAKER 03 :
Solomon discovered this in stark and vivid terms, Matt. Mm-hmm. He was surrounded with wealth, pleasures, and power. And it all led to his powerful conclusion. Life without God on the throne of your heart is sheer vanity. So, Matt, how do we avoid that vanity? How do we stay strong, committed, faithful, and enthusiastic in our walk with God?
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, Solomon has Holy Spirit-inspired insights for us in Ecclesiastes. The Complete Package, just $40. The Is Life Worth Living Pack will bless and strengthen you.
SPEAKER 03 :
And please do know that your purchase will also help the ministry of hope for today. And as always, please continue praying for hope for today. Amen. Please do pray. And when you do, ask God how he might have you support this daily broadcast. It can be via a special one-time donation or by ordering one of our resources or maybe doing both. Many folks do that. To order the Is Life Worth Living Ecclesiastes package, call us at 875-BIBLE. That’s in the U.S. or 888-75-BIBLE in Canada. And again, Bible by the numbers 24253. You can also donate or order at DavidHawking.com. And remember, you can become a regular monthly supporter. In fact, if you want to send a gift every month, you can make that donation automatic. And we’ll show you how to do that when you get in touch with us. And if you’d like to send a donation by mail in the U.S., write to Hope for Today, Box 3927. Tustin, California, 92781. In Canada, right to hope for today, Box 15011, RPO Seven Oaks, Abbotsford, BC, V2S 8P1. And thanks so much. Your generous donations are quite literally the gas in our engine. We can’t do this without your support. And we’re thankful that many have come alongside this ministry. And we’ve seen God use those finances to send his word into places that might not have a church or Bibles or any mainstream resources other than an internet stream or an audio player. Your gifts are saving lives for eternity. That’s a fact. So thank you from the bottom of our hearts for anything you’ve donated in the past or may give today. Well, here’s David with a moment of prayer.
SPEAKER 02 :
Father in heaven, as we talk about this subject, we feel a sense of shame and embarrassment and guilt in our hearts as we think of many things we have said to you and to others and simply have not kept. God, we ask that you would give us a great hunger and desire to restore integrity in our lives. We look around to see the people who have it, and we see so very few who can be relied on and trusted and depended on. God, I thank you for your integrity that everything you have said you will do, you have done or will do in the future. We can rely on your promises because you’re a faithful God. You will do everything you have said. And God, I pray for some who may have made some commitments to God they’ve not followed through on, that God, there would be a real sense of repentance in our heart right now, a determination to do your will, to get things right with you. Some of us have only been surface Christians, and there’s an awful battle going on inside for control of our hearts. God, I would ask you, by your Holy Spirit, to break our spirit. To humble us before you. That we’d understand who you really are. That one day we’re going to face you. God, I pray for those that are not even sure if they died today. And would stand before God. That they would be in heaven forever. They have no assurance of that because they’ve not come to your wonderful son, our Savior, Jesus Christ. They’ve not come to trust him for what he did in dying for our sins at the cross. And thank you that he rose again from the dead. He’s coming back for us. God, I would ask you to move in their hearts and show them, Father, that you are the God you say you are. And they would call upon you, Father. They’d respond to your word before it’s too late. And we thank you in Jesus’ name. Amen.
SPEAKER 03 :
Amen, David. And friend, if you’d like to know more about what the Bible says about being a Christian, or if you’re new to the Christian faith, we’d like to send you a free booklet by David called What Is Christianity? And a Bible study by mail as our free gift. These resources are going to help you gain a solid footing in your relationship with the Lord Jesus Christ. And you can receive them by calling us at 875-BIBLE in the U.S., 888-75-BIBLE in Canada. Or use the contact form at davidhocking.org. Well, next time, as our monthly question and answer program, we’re going to take a quick break from our Ecclesiastes series and break out the archive of listener questions and David’s answers that we’ve received over the years. So be sure to invite a friend to listen along with you as we bring you the Bible, the whole Bible, and nothing but the Bible right here on Hope for Today.
