Let's Create a Culture of Honesty - Bible Baptist Church

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Let’s Create a Culture of Honesty

Text: Romans 12:17

Honesty is openness and vulnerability. Honesty is how you handle the truth.

Creating a culture of honesty is the responsibility of Christians. This is what we’re responsible for building. A culture that makes people want to be honest about their own lives, about God, and about everyone else. This is the kingdom God is building.

Lead an honest life so God is glorified.

Peter told the early Jewish Christians to have their conversation honest among the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation.
Christian lives are to point to the LORD in a life characterized by honesty and goodness.
An honest life is a faithful life.

Live honestly so the Spirit can bear fruit.

In the parable of the sower, the good ground is an honest and good heart that receives the truth of the words of God and handles it properly.
- Maybe we get ahead of ourselves. Maybe we need to create a culture and place where people’s hearts can and will be honest.
- John Baptist prepares the hearts of the Jews who are entrenched in the scriptures. How much more do we need to be in the preparing hearts?
- An honest and good heart is one that accommodates what is good and right. Have we not made enough accommodations for bad behavior?
- Some of you make it very difficult for people to be honest with you. You either bully folks with your anger or you collapse at the least bit of criticism. So people tiptoe around honesty with you because you’ve created the environment that punishes honesty.
Christians are the people who cultivate the fruit of the Spirit of God. If you’re going to be a Christian, you must nurture honesty in yourself, between you and God, in your relationships, and in your community.
Paul told the Corinthians to provide for honest things, not only in the sight of the Lord, but also in the sight of men.

Live honestly so you can live confidently.

The writer of Hebrews said, Pray for us: for we trust we have a good conscience, in all things willing to live honestly.
The request for prayer is because they are living honest lives before men and before God and therefore know that God will hear their prayers.
The righteous are bold as a lion.

Leave the hidden things of dishonesty.

A Christian has renounced dishonesty, as Paul said in his letter to the Corinthians (2 Corinthians 4:1-2). You can’t be a Christian and be dishonest with God and yourself.
Isaiah said the truth is fallen in the street. As a nation, Israel had become fundamentally dishonest. They would not accept criticism. They also would not disperse truth to other nations.
Not honest because you overestimate the harm that will ensue.
Some prefer dishonest unity to honest disagreement.
Not honest because you underestimate the long-term benefits of honesty.
We really don’t care about being deceived. Proverbs 21:2 Every way of a man is right in his own eyes: but the LORD pondereth the hearts.
- You have a duty to stop accepting your own untested thoughts and to lay them aside up against the words of God. You don’t want to because you feel out of control if you’re not right.
- Philippians 4:8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are honest…think on these things.

Celebrate honesty

Acts 6:3 Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.
Can we stop celebrating deceit and dishonesty? We celebrate dishonesty in our lives with excuses we make.
The Honesty Project by Carnegie Melon and Wake Forest and culture seeing relevance in Christian values. The world has begun at the highest levels doing what Christians are supposed to be doing.
Christians are to be evangelists for honest lives and the power of honesty.