Organizations that name the name of Christ must communicate truth consistently.
Every Christian with a heart to please Christ faces a daily challenge to maintain and even grow in integrity—to be as good on the inside as we may seem to others on the outside. The measure of character, as has been wisely observed, is what we do and think when nobody is looking. While accountability relationships can be helpful, this is a challenge that must ultimately be faced individually.
In the same way, there are integrity challenges that every organization must face. These challenges have the same root as those that individuals face, centering on honestly being who you say you are and doing what you say you will do. Good organizations face them head on and address the issues publicly and with transparency, normally employing outside auditors to affirm their claims, at least with regard to financial issues.
Less quantifiable issues generally receive much less attention, but it is often these that are most telling for organizations that name the name of Christ.
Some of the most important of these issues might include:
- Making clear to all what the organization is in business to do.
- Providing a track record of how the organization has gone about achieving its purpose, and what the results have been.
- Being explicit about its faith commitments, especially concerning the person and work of Jesus Christ and the authority of the Bible.
- Explaining how the organization navigates the most divisive issues of the day, whether they are within the Body of Christ or vis-à-vis the society generally.
- Being clear about the kind of people the organization wants to join with them, and what discriminatory disqualifiers the organization will not tolerate.
While it would be possible to suggest some organizations that may not have fared ...
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