The first crisis the early church confronted was a crisis of integrity.
In the book of Acts, a married couple named Ananias and Sapphira pretend to sell their property and give all that money to the church. The reality, however, was they kept back part of it. They pretend to be something on the outside that they are not on the inside. And God’s immediate and drastic judgment falls on them.
The apostle Peter, the leader of the church, sees this lack of integrity as an invasion of the powers of darkness into their community of the Holy Spirit. He knows the power of the Spirit will be quenched without truth and integrity. Thus, he calls it out.
I have rushed through areas of my leadership more times than I want to remember. I have avoided meetings I knew would be hard. I have skimmed on truth when it was uncomfortable. I have preferred not to ask difficult questions or speak up when something was clearly wrong. The list goes on.
Integrity is when who I am on-stage is the same as who I am off-stage. Living this out on a daily basis is no small thing – especially for us in leadership.
Let me now invite you to listen to this very important message on this theme out of the story of Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5:1-11.
And join me next Tuesday, July 10th, at 2 p.m. EST for a Webinar entitled: Growing in Differentiation as Key to Great Leadership. And bring your questions around differentiation, and integrity, with you.
