Honor is one of those words many use but few try to define. You see it carved on public buildings or on your local war memorial. You can read about it in books and hear it used in everything from speeches to combat bravery. It includes reverence for truth (honesty), commitment to justice (fairness) and respect for the property of others. Honor means demonstrating an understanding of what is right and always living so your reputation is above reproach.

Honesty and integrity form the foundation of honor. Being honest means being truthful and upright all the time, despite pressures to do otherwise. As believers, we should be honest with ourselves by being committed to living for Christ consistently and honest with others by not presenting ourselves or our actions as something other than what they are. We should say what we mean and do what we say.

Integrity demands that one always act according to personal and professional principles. It means being morally complete and behaviorally upright. As contrasted with honor, integrity signifies a character manifested by consistency in action. A person of integrity always acts according to principles to which he or she is committed. People of integrity possess high personal moral standards and are honest in word and deed. They show an uncompromising adherence to moral principles; they do the right thing not because it is convenient or because they have no choice, but because they have a choice and they choose well. Integrity requires three steps:

• Discerning what is right from what is wrong.
• Acting on what you have discerned, even at personal cost.
• Saying openly that you are acting on your understanding of right from wrong.

The point of having integrity as a value is to ensure personal values are consistent with God’s values. As Christians, we should be ready to answer for how we act, not to defend ourselves, but to show others what it means to know, do and say what is legally and morally correct.

We were created with the innate ability to know right from wrong. Paul wrote in Romans 1:20-23, “For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so they are without excuse: Because when they knew God, they glorified Him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools and changed the glory of the incorruptible God into an image made like corruptible man and to birds and four-footed beasts and creeping things.” As believers we have the power through the Holy Spirit to do what is right. Before salvation, we had no power against sin. Now that Christ has redeemed us, we have the ability to do what God requires of us regardless of who is watching. The world is looking for something genuine in which to believe. We can give hope by living up to the integrity that God demands of us as followers of Christ.

A person of honor has the strength of will to live up to a set of values, even when the temptations to do otherwise are strong, even in the face of personal danger. The military’s highest award is the Medal of Honor. Its recipients did not do just what was required of them; they did not do only what was expected of them. They went above and beyond the call of duty. They went as far as humanly possible. It is fitting that the word we use to describe their achievement is honor.

As believers, we know God is all-knowing, and we cannot hide anything from Him. We may be able to fool others, but we cannot fool God. Honor is a value that God holds high. God is true to His Word. He can and will not do anything that is contrary to what He has said He will do. It is not in His nature to contradict Himself. How would the world be if God changed His mind as much as we change ours? The world would be in chaos. We should be people of our word. Jesus says our yes should be yes and our no should be no. As Christians, we need to be examples of God’s unwavering honor and tell of the promises given to those who believe in Him.