Integrity

Another lurid newspaper headline: a high-profile figure has fallen from grace. Worse still, he tried to cover it up so that everyone would think he was something he wasn't ... She was a respected figure in her school but it turned out she had been funding her lavish lifestyle with money that didn't belong to her.

Integrity matters. We expect it, naively perhaps, of leaders in all walks of life. We trust people whose words, character and actions are consistent. But why is integrity so rare? Why does our walk not match our talk?

One of the most pertinent and positive examples of integrity in Scripture is that of the apostle Paul. In 2 Corinthians his passions and frustrations are clear as he offers us an extraordinary insight into the joys and pressures of Christian leadership. His model is no less counter-cultural today than it was in the first century: leading with God watching. There are lessons for all Christians here, not just for formally recognized leaders.

Jonathan Lamb examines key passages and interweaves them with examples from everyday life. Whether in responding to criticism, exercising authority, coping with failure, handling money or struggling with personal weakness, this book is a call to live consistently in the light of gospel priorities. Only then will our lives speak authentically to a sceptical world.

Jonathan Lamb writes for various publishers and agencies, often linked with his travels on behalf of IFES, Langham Preaching and Keswick Ministries. He is a Bible teacher and so many of his titles are practical introductions to Bible books and themes, written in order to help both explain the Bible and address the needs of the contemporary world.