Without a strong foundation, a building will fall. It does not matter how beautiful its appearance or spectacular its design, if the structure does not stand upon a secure base, it will collapse under the pressure of its own height. 

The Tower of Pisa, located just outside of Rome, Italy is an example of this truth. First constructed in 1,117 AD it began leaning when it was only 35 ft high. Today it stands 179 ft tall and continues to threaten collapse. The reason? A faulty foundation. It was built upon insecure, unequally settled ground that is unable to support its own towering weight.

By contrast, consider the Sears Tower in Chicago Illinois. Having 110 stories, it rises ¼ mile in the air—1,454 ft. high. It is constructed of 76,000 tons of steel and enough concrete to build an 8 lane highway 5 miles long. This mammoth structure is 8 times the size of the Leaning Tower of Pisa and stands secure; it refuses to lean even an inch. The reason? –It has a firm foundation. Beneath the Sears Tower is 114 solid rock footings that sink deep into the underlying bedrock—just one of those footings is sunk as deep as the Statue of Liberty is high. It is this foundation that holds this superstructure firmly in place. No wind, no storm, no tremor has ever succeeded in toppling it or the 1,600 people who work safely within its walls.

A leader’s character is like the foundation of a building. If it is not strong, deep and firmly fixed in place, the man’s life and all he has built will eventually fall. It does not matter how anointed he is, how attractive his ministry or powerful his gifts, without character, all threatens to collapse. It has been said, “Charisma can take a man to the top, but only character will keep him there.” It is character that keeps a man honest, ethical and pure. It is character that binds us to our godly responsibilities. It is character that holds us up when the heavy temptations of leadership threaten to pull us down. 

Leadership will destroy the man whose character has not been prepared for it. With higher levels come higher devils. Advancement, enlargement and promotion in the Kingdom of God bring fiercer temptations, harsher attacks and greater opportunities for destruction. This means that before God takes us higher (by elevating our position or increasing our anointing), He needs to deepen our foundation. Too many have been promoted before their character was enlarged to support that promotion. As a result, they became top heavy like the Tower of Pisa and eventually fell. 

Columnist Cindy Adams wrote, “Success has made failures of many men.” It is sad but true. Too many “successful” leaders have collapsed under the weight of their promotion. Intermittent ethical compromises that once seemed like insignificant cracks in the foundation of a small building, became gaping breaches of immorality in the place of enlargement. Impure motives, like a sleeping giant, were awakened by the egotistic opportunities afforded in success. The spirituality that first initiated their increase was eroded by secret sins, and sadly, the heights to which they ascended came crashing down. Their foundation—their character was unable to support the pressures of their heightened success. Only when we allow God to deepen our character, will we be able to support greater levels of spiritual promotion and higher heights of tangible anointing.

Saul said to his armorbearer, "Draw your sword, and thrust me through with it, lest these uncircumcised men come and thrust me through and abuse me." But his armorbearer would not, for he was greatly afraid. Therefore Saul took a sword and fell on it. And when his armorbearer saw that Saul was dead, he also fell on his sword, and died with him. So Saul, his three sons, his armorbearer, and all his men died together that same day. - 1 Samuel 31:1-6

Saul killed himself. Overrun by the enemy, his army crushed, and mortally wounded by arrows, Saul took a sword and fell on it. Indeed, the enemy had overpowered him, but in the end his death was his own doing.

It was a tragic end that serves as a metaphor for all leaders. We must take heed lest our success be our undoing. The saying is true: “With higher levels come higher devils.” Leadership will destroy the man (or woman) whose character has not been prepared for it. With advancement, promotion and enlargement in the Kingdom of God comes fiercer attacks, harsher resistance, and more intense warfare. The battle gets tougher the higher you go; and leaders must be aware that in the midst of such intense warfare there is a danger to fall on their own swords.

Proverbs 5:22-23 reinforces this concern by warning: “His own iniquities entrap the wicked man, and he is caught in the cords of his sin. He shall die for lack of instruction, and in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.” The warning is clear: men are often ensnared by their own iniquities and the greatness of their own folly. In other words, our concern should not just be for the traps the devil is setting for us and the arrows he is shooting; we should be equally concerned about the traps we are setting for ourselves. We leaders need to be careful lest we fall on our swords in battle.

The context of Proverbs 5 gives us great insight into the number one cause of so many fallen leaders: sexual sin. Proverbs 5:20 plainly says, “Why should you, my son, be enraptured by an immoral woman, and be embraced in the arms of a seductress?” It is an issue as old as leadership itself: the most common way that leaders self-destruct is sexual sin. More and more we hear about good men who have committed adultery or partake in pornography and are falling on their swords. It’s not only the arrows of the Philistines killing them, they’re killing themselves. Good men fall into sexual immorality, not because of the devil’s traps but because of the traps they have set for themselves. The paths they travel, the practices and policies they have, instead of keeping them safe, expose them to dangers, snares, and falling on swords.

A survey by Leadership Magazine showed 40 percent of pastors regularly struggle with pornography. Other research reveals that 37 percent of pastors have been involved in inappropriate sexual behavior with someone in their church. Even more alarming is a 15-year study that revealed approximately 10 to 12 percent of ministers have engaged in sexual intercourse with members of their congregations. Sadly, these statistics indicate a growing promiscuity in ministry that is reflective of our culture. Wayne Goodall, in his book, Why Great Men Fall, revealed that 25 percent of wives and 44 percent of husbands have had extramarital intercourse. As is true with church leaders, many of their affairs began at “work.” Fifty percent of unfaithful wives were involved with someone from work and 62 percent of unfaithful men likewise met their affair partners at work.4 Indeed sexual promiscuity is occurring in epidemic proportions in our day.

So as we see Saul slumped over on the battlefield, a sword sticking into his chest, we should be concerned, not only about the arrows the enemy shoots at us, but about the traps we set for ourselves. It is not Satan who is causing pastors to fall into adulterous affairs; pastors fall because of their own folly. They fall because of careless professional ethics and negligent standards of personal purity.

Throughout scripture we see examples of leaders who battled the arrows of sexual temptation. Some overcame victoriously, others self-destructed. In my latest book, How the Mighty Have Fallen, I deal with this issue exhaustively. Drawn from chapter ten of this book, the next series of blogs will address this issue of maintaining sexual integrity in ministry and leadership. If interested in getting your own copy, you can order here.

This is an excerpt from chapter nine of "How The Mighty Have Fallen."  Follow this link to order your copy

Now Samuel had died, and all Israel had lamented for him and buried him in Ramah, in his own city. And Saul had put the mediums and the spiritists out of the land. …Then Saul said to his servants, "Find me a woman who is a medium, that I may go to her and inquire of her." 1 Samuel 28:3,7 
 
King Saul had a problem with integrity. He was one thing publicly, but another thing privately.  In public, he took a stand against mediums and drove them out of Israel, but in private, at least on one occasion, they were still a part of his life. 
 
Integrity comes from the Latin word “integer” which means “one” or “wholeness.” To have integrity means there is no double mindedness or duplicity in one’s character. It is the condition of being whole—undivided in values and conduct. It is the struggle to be without contradiction in one’s character.

By contrast, Saul was duplicitous. He was double minded. He forbade others from seeking out witches and outlawed mediums from the land, but still harbored them in his own heart.
 
INTEGRITY ARISES FROM PRINCIPLES
 
The person of integrity is a person of principle. They are guided by absolutes: an internalized set of rules that guides their decisions and determines their course of conduct. They are firm on what is right and what is wrong. Of course, they are not perfect and may fall short of their convictions from time to time. But, at the core, they struggle to remain consistent with the values in which they believe.
 
Absolutes are simply that, absolute. They are truths that are not dependent on external conditions, opinions, or approvals for their nature or existence. They exist as sovereign realities simply because they are true. One plus one equals two is absolute. Two plus two equals four is absolute. These realities do not need personal interpretation or application to be true; they are correct on the basis of their own nature. In much the same way, the man of integrity recognizes certain moral absolutes and has integrated his life around them. Like the engineer adhering to principles of mathematics, the person of integrity commits to these absolutes as the guiding equations of his life. He believes them to be essential truths that will keep his home, his family, his ministry, his career, and all things secure. In fact, everything in his life depends on his recognizing and building his life upon those essential truths. 
 
For the Christian, the “absolute” is God’s Word, the Bible. Scripture is the standard, the authoritative rule for faith and conduct in this life. Beginning with the Ten Commandments and extending through the Epistles of Paul, these truths provide foundational principles that serve as the basis for integrity. 
 
INTEGRITY REQUIRES COURAGE
 
Most people have integrity until that integrity costs them something personally. It’s our willingness to pay a price for our morals that demonstrates if the integrity we claim to have is real or mere pretense. 

It was easy for Daniel (in Daniel 1:8) to abstain from pagan foods while living in Jerusalem where pagan food was taboo. The real test of integrity came in Babylon, when he was expected—even commanded—to eat pagan foods. It was when his principles required him to defy the king and say, “No. I won’t!” It was when there was a potential cost involved that his integrity was authentically demonstrated.
 
I was easy for Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego (in Daniel 3:13-18) to refuse to bow before idols in Israel where idolatry was frowned upon. That’s not showing integrity. True integrity was shown when Nebuchadnezzar commanded them to bow under threat of execution if they refused. True integrity was revealed when the guards heated the furnace, bound them with chains and still they refused to bow. True integrity was shown when they were tossed into the fire and would not betray their convictions even expecting death to ensue. That is integrity, when it costs.

 True integrity will be tested. It has a price which can only be paid by the courageous—the one who is willing to lose friends, become unpopular, face rejection, mockery, insult and even injury. Integrity costs. Integrity requires courage.
 
INTEGRITY IS WHAT HAPPENS IN PRIVATE

Integrity means doing what is right when no one is watching. Psalms 101:2 says, “I will walk within my house with a perfect heart.” The old saying is still true: “Integrity is when you do the right thing even though no one is watching.” It’s what we do when we’re all alone, when no one is there to appreciate our goodness or rebuke our badness that defines the authenticity of our integrity. Anyone can stand in the pulpit and declare high ideals to the admiration of the crowd. As well, anyone can avoid doing wrong when he knows he’s being monitored in the spotlight. It’s what a man will do when he knows he will get away with it that reveals how much integrity he really has. 
 
Integrity is not true unless it passes the privacy test. True integrity is what happens when no one is watching and I know I can get away with compromising it. If you want to be anointed in public, learn first how to be anointed in private. Learn how to honor God, walk in purity, and maintain integrity in secret and God will bless you openly.
 
INTEGRITY TELLS THE TRUTH
 
Proverbs 12:22 says, “Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, but those who deal truthfully are His delight.” Ephesians 4:25 says: “(put) away lying, let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor.” By contrast, studies reveal that 91 percent of people lie regularly, 69 percent admit to frequently lying to their spouses, and 32 percent believe that they've been lied to by their pastor. 
  
So what is “lying?” That’s easy one may say: “It’s a statement that misleads or deceives someone.” But lying is more than a deceptive statement—lying is any action or intention that misleads, deceives, or misrepresents the truth.
 
1 Peter 2:1 says, “Therefore, lay aside all guile (or deceit).” Honesty, as the Bible defines it, means avoiding statements or actions (such as giving partial information, or making out-of-context statements, or even maintaining silence) that are intended to create beliefs or leave impressions that are untrue or misleading. Michael Josephson, founder of the Josephson Institute of Ethics states, “Honesty is a good-faith intent to convey the truth as best we know it and to avoid communicating in a way likely to mislead or deceive.”
 
INTEGRITY KEEPS ITS WORD
 
Psalm 15:1-4 tells us, “Who may abide in Your tabernacle? Who may dwell in Your holy hill? He who walks uprightly…He who swears to his own hurt and does not change.” James 5:12 says it like this, “…let your ‘Yes,’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No,’ lest you fall into judgment.” Too often people who lack integrity say “yes” but then their  “yes” quickly changes to “no.”
 
It is important to understand that the ethic of keeping one’s word is an absolute. It is a universal principle, revealed in God’s Word, intended for all who would “abide in His tabernacle” to observe. Robert Service said, “A promise made is a debt unpaid.” The man of integrity takes his word very seriously. Anytime he gives his word, makes a promise or commits, it is (to him) like incurring a debt: a debt that can only be satisfied by doing what’s been promised. 
 
INTEGRITY BRINGS SECURITY
 
Proverbs10:9 tells us, “He who walks with integrity walks securely, but he who perverts his ways will become known.” One’s life may be filled with great accomplishments, but it is integrity that keeps those accomplishments secure. 
 
Saul was a leader who lacked integrity and it became his downfall. God had promoted him to the pinnacle of success but his character was unable to support it. Are we men and women of integrity? Success and promotion will bring many temptations and opportunities to compromise our morals. But the leaders that have integrity will stand. Integrity keeps us consistent, reliable, and honest: qualities which provide a foundation to support a leader’s enlargement.
 

“Never is integrity more on trial than when one is out of sync with his leader. Loyalty in times of disagreement is the truest test of character.”
 
Never is one’s character more on display than when he is out of sync with his leader. It may be a season of patiently waiting; it may be an issue of disagreement; it could even be a matter of disrespect and contempt that one holds toward his authority.  It any event, it is how one responds to his authorities in times of disparity that reveals the true quality of his or her character.

True submission is demonstrated, not in times of agreement, but in seasons of disagreement.  In fact, there is no expression of submission without the context of disagreement.  Without disagreement, submission is merely compliance. There is no need to restrain one’s impulse or force one’s obedience; one needs only to agree with that which he already views favorable.

On the contrary, it is one’s ability to resist that surge of disagreement rising in one’s heart—it is that discipline to quell an impulse of assertiveness against the leader that proves true submission and the presence of  real humility.

Consider David before he became king.  No one was more wrong than King Saul and no one was more right than David (1 Samuel 18).  In fact, Saul was spiteful, bitter and influenced by evil spirits.  David, on the other hand, was singing psalms and killing Philistines.  But David never lifted his hand against his authority.  The one time David did act against him, he felt great remorse and publicly repented (1 Samuel 24:6).  
 
In those times when the authority is wrong, God is not looking for your help. He is more than able to work all things according to His will. More often, God is trying to work out issues of character in His future leaders—issues such as submission, humility, and faithfulness. Sometimes He does that by putting you under a Saul.

This is not to say, however, that Christians should never disagree with or challenge the authorities over them. Spiritual leaders are not authoritarian demigods wielding absolute power in the name of Christ; they are mere people—infallible flesh that often makes mistakes and exercises severe lapses in judgment. As such, there are times when leaders should be challenged. The question is “how” such authorities can be challenged without compromising our own humility and sense of integrity.

 If you have a concern, there are ways to address it righteously. 

The first way is through intercessory warfare. Pray! God may have burdened your spirit with an issue or given you insight on a matter—not so you can call everyone on the phone and tell them what the authority is doing wrong—but so you can pray with fervor, wisdom, and divine unction. Ezekiel 22:31 says that God is seeking for men and women to stand in the gap. He is looking for intercessors to pray. The way He finds them is by burdening them with revelation and seeing who will be faithful to call down His will. It is my conviction that no one has a right to speak on a matter, criticize a leader, or canvass for change until they have first spent ample time covering the matter in prayer, interceding for His will, and checking their own attitude.

Secondly, submit your concern to your spiritual authority with a right spirit. If you must, go to your pastor—but go with a humble, submissive attitude. Instead of being forceful, be teachable. Ask him to help you understand why “such and such” is being permitted or if he has considered another perspective. Many times, a pastor will reject a suggestion out of hand because of the spirit in which it was presented. Conversely, if you present an idea with meekness, he will be more inclined to accept it because it has a quality of godliness and goodwill upon it.

Thirdly, refrain from using the phrase “God told me to tell you” or “God showed me.” Clearly, scripture does show that God speaks to people today, and you may sincerely believe He is speaking to you. But, the wise communicator understands such statements can seem manipulative. In other words, some so-called “prophets” assert divine authority to compel others into agreement. They are removing any option for disagreement—and if one does disagree, the prophet can salvage his self-respect by labeling that one as ignorant and unspiritual. If your word really is from God, let the wisdom and  power of the word speak for itself. Why should anyone need to be convinced of its authenticity or intimidated into accepting it as “a word from God?” Instead, follow the words of James 3:17 that says, “the wisdom from above is peaceable, gentle and easy to be entreated.”

Ambitious and aspiring leaders must be very careful when opposing spiritual authority. You may sincerely want to correct a wrong.  Perhaps you truly have heard from God and want to assert your revelation. Maybe you are wiser and better equipped than those who are authorities over you.  But beware, the situation before you may not be as obvious as you think. It may seem like Samuel is late and it’s up to you to offer a sacrifice; but it could actually be a test designed by God to purge you of spiritual presumption and reveal if you are qualified for greater promotion.