Do Not Lie

A certain woman, preparing to entertain guests, went to a small neighborhood grocery store to buy food. She stopped at the meat counter and asked the attendant for a large fresh chicken. He reached down into the cold storage compartment, grabbed the last chicken he had, and placed it on the scale. “This one weighs four pounds, ma’am,” he said. “I’m not sure that will be enough,” the woman replied. “Don’t you have a bigger one?” The attendant put the chicken back into the compartment, pretended to search through the melting ice for another one, and then brought out the same bird, discreetly applying some finger pressure to the scale. “Ah,” he said with a smile, “this one weighs six pounds.” “I’m just not sure,” the woman said with a frown. “I’ll tell you what-wrap them both up for me!”

It was Oliver Wendell Holmes who said, “Sin has many tools, but a lie is the handle that fits them all.” And, Abraham Lincoln is credited with the observation, “No man has a good enough memory to make a successful liar.”

A lie is the weapon of choice in Satan’s arsenal

From the Bible it would seem that a lie is the weapon of choice in Satan’s arsenal. It was certainly effective in the beginning (Genesis 3), and is still the cause of much sin and spiritual disease today. Jesus went so far as to say that Satan was “a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (John 8:44).

Do not lie to one another

One of the things which should distinguish Christians from all others is their absolute devotion to truth. Solomon admonished, “Buy truth, and do not sell it; buy wisdom, instruction, and understanding” (Proverbs 23:23). Those sentiments seem to be echoed by the Apostle Paul when he cautioned Christians: “Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator” (Colossians 3:9-10). Lying, deception, and falsehood are all found in the devil’s tool chest.

The truth will set you free

To the very best of our ability, we must be honest and truthful in all our dealings with one another. We cannot alter the truth to spare feelings. The Bible doesn’t distinguish between white and black lies. We must always be kind, but truthful. There are going to be times when the truth will hurt, but lying will ultimately hurt even more. Jesus message still resonates: “you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32).

— Roger

MAY 13, 2012