“The integrity of the upright will guide them.” – Proverbs 11:3
I think the world would be a much better place if everyone had integrity. And for the most part, there are a lot of people in the world who have admirable integrity. But there is one problem, which is called “the self-serving bias.” That means pretty much everyone believes they are above average. Take this for an example: 800,000 high school students were asked whether they were above or below average. Now if they were accurate they’d have split 50-50. Guess what percentage rated themselves below average? Zero! 20% rated themselves in the top 1%! This self-serving bias is seen in many areas, most drivers view themselves as above-average drivers, 88% of college professors rated themselves as above average, and 90% of all pastors within the survey rated themselves above average preachers…
This is a huge problem because when we begin to view ourselves above others it begins to disintegrate our integrity and our capacity for integrity. Jesus said: “…many who are first will be last, and the last, first.” (Mark 10:31) The fact is we should never view ourselves above average because it just sets us up in a very bad place. Becoming first doesn’t necessarily make us bad, but while we continue to view ourselves above average, humility and integrity begin to become absent. In a way, we start to become the Pharisees… Our problem is not just our lack of integrity, but that we can’t see how badly we lack it.
I viewed myself as a good driver (no accidents, or tickets, etc.), but doesn’t speeding (even a little) or performing the infamous California rolling stop already diminish that goodness? I am in fact a very poor driver according to the law, and I can never say I am above average unless I begin to always follow speed limits, stop completely, and other things the law requires. In fact that’s almost the same as when we view ourselves as good people, and we deserve to go to heaven. But God has given us a very strict law, The Ten Commandments, and if you have ever broken one of them, you are considered a sinner and are destined to hell. We should never think of ourselves as good people because we simply aren’t. There was only one who was righteous and his name is Jesus, and that is why he was able to take our sins away, because he himself was blameless and pure.
This devotion has helped me realize that I should always humble myself in situations and never view myself above average in any situation. That doesn’t automatically give me integrity, but it will allow me to produce an integrity that will constantly guide me as the verse from Proverbs above says. Do you view yourself as above average in anything?