THE WAY OF INTEGRITY

Genesis 39:10 (NIV): “And though she spoke to Joseph day after day, he refused to go to bed with her or even be with her.”

The events of Genesis 39 reveal what we see to be true throughout the life of Joseph- Joseph was a model of unimpeachable character. He was a man of wholehearted purity in both his motives and his behavior. The word integrity comes from the word ‘integrated’. It means to be one…to be one person living in one body. Integrity is the polar opposite of duplicity. A duplicitous man is deceitful. A man of integrity is integrated, whole, and complete. What you see is what you get. He can be trusted. Joseph was such a man.

His story is that he was reared in a dysfunctional home. His mother, Rachel, died when he was age 10, his father was a dishonest polygamist, and his ten older brothers were abusive. He was exiled from his family at age 17 to serve as a slave in Egypt. Later, he was falsely accused of sexual aggression and unjustly imprisoned for 13 years. But again and again, in his Biblical biography, we read these words: “The Lord was with Joseph…” Eventually, through a series of providential events, Joseph relocates overnight from the prison to the palace, becoming prime minister of Egypt.

Joseph’s integrity was tested throughout his life without a single recorded character flaw. Twelve chapters are devoted to his story without a recorded moral failure. His integrity was tested in the same way ours is today…by how we handle money (especially other people’s money) and how we handle our body…that is, by how we steward our silver and our sexuality. Issachar men know what is going on in the world with its avarice and lust. But they see through it. They know that the way of financial integrity and moral purity is truly the good life. Like Joseph, they will leave a legacy of righteous character that will bless their children and grandchildren.

Take five minutes right now to examine your motives and behavior and ask yourself this question: Are you currently living an integrated life, where what you see is what you get? What is one step you need to take today to practice more wholeness? It may be confession to a trusted friend, commitment to a more intentional way of living, or taking more time this week to consider what you’re currently allowing in your life that could detour you from the way of integrity.