You scratch my back and I’ll scratch yours. Call it whatever you want- a cup of Kenyan masala chai for the cop to look the other way, loads of tender meat for the last born while the other siblings get hard chicken necks or even a piece of that juicy T-bone for your land case files to mysteriously disappear from the court clerks. It is all corruption.
Corruption is the misuse of an office, a position of authority for private material or social gain at the expense of other people. A state of decay, pollution, or incorrectness.
Truly, this menace called corruption can greatly affect the quality of life in a family, a people and a country. But why is it that people embrace corruption and never look back?
- When they are of the opinion that their interests are not being met.
- When the end justifies the means.
- When their leadership is leading on corruption, they may feel that the evil is more permissible and almost justified- a lesser evil.
- It is justified as long as there are others who also do it.
- Greed
- The culture of silence and not acting as whistle-blowers.
Solomon counters this attitude with the following proverb: “Better a little with righteousness than much with injustice.
In the Bible, corruption is one of the ramifications of sin that resulted from the fall of man.
- Oh thy glorious Garden of Eden: God created it as a perfect paradise, free of sickness, pain, and death but alas! the sin whisperer threw smooth lyrics to Eve causing her to lose her mind and together with hubby Adam, they ushered in sin- hence corruption.
- The triple compounded amplified corruption Noah encountered was beyond percipience.
Now the earth was corrupt in God’s sight and was full of violence. God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. Genesis 6: 11-12.
- #OccupyTheCity: The prophets of old boldly took a stand against fast rising moral decay among God’s people.
The sin of the house of Israel and Judah is extremely great; the land is full of murder, and the city is full of corruption. Ezekiel 9:9. Do not accept a bribe, for a bribe blinds those who see and twists the words of the righteous. Ex 23:8
- Integrity by coercion: Moses’ integrity charge to judges and officials was especially important when it came to work.
You must not distort justice; you must not show partiality; and you must not accept bribes, for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and subverts the cause of those who are in the right. Without impartial justice, it would be impossible to “live and occupy the land that the Lord your God is giving you. Deut. 16:19-20.
- Justice be our shield and defender people: To protect Israel’s judiciary against abuse, the judges were cautioned to provide equal justice to all by not taking bribes. Any income acquired by the government officials and judges by illegal means with the purpose of influencing decisions were considered a bribe. Taking a bribe was regarded as an offense against God, the weak, the innocent and the community.
In the book of Proverbs, Solomon reveals the underlying attitude of bribery: A greedy man brings trouble to his family, but he who hates bribes will live. Proverbs: 15:27. A fortune made by a lying tongue is a fleeting vapour and a deadly snare. Proverbs: 21:6. Jeremiah describes the same result of bribery: Like a partridge that hatches eggs it did not lay is the man who gains riches by unjust means. When his life is half gone, they will desert him, and in the end he will prove to be a fool. Jer: 17:11.
The Resisters:
- Nehemiah as a governor in the land of Judah had integrity. Neither he nor his fellow workers ate the food apportioned to the governor. The previous governors had placed heavy burdens on the people to fund their extravagant lifestyles, but in the process impoverished the already tussling people even further. Nehemiah did not follow suit- out of fear for God but on the contrary helped others.
- Daniel: The administrators and the satraps tried to find grounds for charges against Daniel in his conduct of government affairs, but they were unable to do so. They could not find corruption in him, because he was trustworthy and neither nefarious nor negligent. (Dan: 6:4).
Consequences of Corruption
- Abuse of government or private power for personal benefit acts as a damper on the economy.
- Safety issues– that cop that takes a bribe instead of insisting on the roadworthiness of a vehicle that goes on to cause an accident.
- Moral decay: That child who feels overly entitled and ends up biting others in class, leading an unwarranted strike and becoming an abuser just because Mama and Daddy gave them corruption lessons 101 since conception.
- Helpless people become vulnerable and there is no social justice, because powerful people don’t fear God, and life becomes savage
- The Bible teaches that the consequence of sin is death Romans 6:23. Living in a state of moral corruption brings about eternal separation from God:
The Gospel, has a series of hyperbolic statements that stress the importance of integrity.
- Embracing transparency, positive attitudes and perceptions.
- Enclasping God and the fruits of the Holy Spirit: Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Gal 5:22-23.
- Addressing the problem at grass roots level, whistle-blowing by thinking ethically.
- Living our lives according to the golden rule of Jesus Christ- do unto others what you would have them do unto you.
- God is Jehovah Jireh our provider and the infinite good who gives us all that we need.
Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine power has given us everything we need for a godly life through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness. Through these he has given us his very great and precious promises, so that through them you may participate in the divine nature, having escaped the corruption in the world caused by evil desires. 2 Peter 1: 2-4. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. Galatians 6:8.
Sit down and relax because there’s enough for everyone! Skirting the law is not necessary or helpful for us to progress.
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