Not Ours

The entirety of our words and actions, the decisions we make, are all essential components as we build a reputation that Christ will be proud of.  The 4th chapter of Ephesians speaks of putting off the old and putting on the new - and there are practical implications of that.  We can read:
25 Therefore, putting away lying, "Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor," for we are members of one another.
26 "Be angry, and do not sin": do not let the sun go down on your wrath,
27 nor give place to the devil.
28 Let him who stole steal no longer, but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need.

This is a picture of integrity - of displaying honesty: telling the truth, not taking what doesn't belong to us, giving an honest effort.  The Holy Spirit will produce through us Godly character as we are devoted to following Christ, and as we are determined to resist temptation, not following the crowd, but reflecting His presence in us.  We can strive to be people who are trustworthy, who demonstrate to people that our word is our bond and that His Word governs our actions.

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The Bible speaks so much to personal character, and our commitment to personal integrity and 

honesty are components of expressing the nature of God. Proverbs 11 states:

1 Dishonest scales are an abomination to the Lord, But a just weight is His delight. 

2 When pride comes, then comes shame; But with the humble is wisdom. 

3 The integrity of the upright will guide them, But the perversity of the unfaithful will destroy them. 

For years, a couple in New York pondered the old rusted metal box in their backyard.  According to Faithwire, based on a report from WCBS, the couple, Matthew Emanuel and his wife, Maria Colonna-Emanuel, just thought it was an abandoned electrical box.

So, when they were clearing out some trees, they decided to open it up and find out what was inside. The Faithwire article says:

Inside was a bag filled with $100 bills and dozens of pieces of jewelry as well as an address of a neighbor.

The box had been reported stolen in 2011 after a robbery at the neighbor’s home, according to the NYPD. The contents were worth $52,000.

“A couple of people asked us, ‘Why did you return it?’” Maria Colonna-Emanuel said. “It wasn’t even a question. It wasn’t ours.”

Not really a direct faith connection here, based on the reporting; for instance, Matthew referred to the only reward as "good karma."  But, I do think there are some principles regarding integrity.

WCBS reported that the owners were "surprised and grateful" about the return of the merchandise.  Its story concludes with this: 

And now a ceramic elephant sits where the safe once stood. The Emanuels hope it serves as a reminder of their incredible discovery.

I think you could make the case here that the "incredible discovery" is not merely the buried treasure, but the treasure of doing the right thing.  We can be challenged to integrate Christ's principles of personal integrity in our lives.  We are called to live a committed, consistent life, where we are not saying one thing and doing the other, but living from an honest heart and seeking to display Godly character.  I remember, I believe it was Steve Farrar at a Promise Keepers rally said that character is how we act when no one is looking.  The Holy Spirit can help us attain that model of consistency.

We can also think about how honesty operates in a practical sense in our management of resources.
Do you take what doesn't belong to you?  That can even be applied to the workplace - if a person is padding his or her expense account or appropriating business resources for personal use, that does not represent personal integrity.

Finally, we recognize that our personal integrity can actually make an impression on others and hopefully comprise a strong element of our witness.  We damage our ability to represent Christ when our behavior doesn't line up with His principles; we must take great care not to do things that do not build trust.