TO TELL THE TRUTH A. God & truth go hand in hand; truth originated with God. 1. He cannot lie, for it is impossible for God to lie (Titus 1:2; Heb 6:16). 2. His word is truth, Jesus said (John 17:17). 3. So it shouldn t surprise us to read that... B. A lie is a conscious & intentional falsehood (Thayer). 1. It is to speak with the intent of misleading or deceiving the listener. 2. Apparently the deadly course of failing to tell the truth began with Satan. John 8:44 He was a murderer from the beginning, & does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar & the father of it. Prov 12:22 Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, but those who deal truthfully are His delight. Prov 6:16-7 These six things the Lord hates, yes, seven are an abomination to Him: 17 A proud look [comes first, but then], a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, Prov 19:5, 9 A false witness will not go unpunished, & he who speaks lies will not escape. 9 A false witness will not go unpunished, & he who speaks lies shall perish. a. The implication of this statement from Jesus is that before Satan lied there was everywhere on earth a condition of peace & truth. [So the great transgression is not adultery or idolatry, but that which gave birth to these & all sins, i.e., lying; failing or refusing to tell the truth. What are a few of the earthly consequences of refusing to tell the truth?] 1
I. THE EFFECTS OF LYING A. Lies can deceive people into displeasing God. Jer 23:32 Behold, I am against those who prophesy false dreams," says the Lord, "and tell them, & cause My people to err by their lies & by their recklessness. Yet I did not send them or command them; therefore they shall not profit this people at all," says the Lord. D. Lies will lead people into rank immorality; as we mentioned earlier, a lie is the overt sin that led to all sins (Pride came first: Prov 6:17; Isa 14:12). Rom 1:25-26 who exchanged the truth of God for the lie, & worshiped & served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. 26 For this reason God gave them up to vile passions. For even their women exchanged the natural use for what is against nature. B. Lies can cause people to be wrongfully accused with a crime, as Jesus was. Prov 14:25 A true witness delivers souls, but a deceitful witness speaks lies. [Truly, when people fail to tell the truth they set in motion or release a number of terrible consequences into the world. What is the motivation behind a lie? We don t have time to pursue this question fully, but we can suggest three of the most basic reasons people lie.] C. Lies can cause the poor to be made poorer. II. WHY DO PEOPLE LIE? Isa 32:7 Also the schemes of the schemer are evil; he devises wicked plans to destroy the poor with lying words, even when the needy speaks justice. A. Some people lie because they actually enjoy it; they delight in lies (Psa 62:3-4). 2
1. They enjoy the envy in others they can create. 3. They think it will protect them from harm (Gen 12:11-13, 20:2). 2. They get a thrill from the sense of power they can wield over others. C. Some people lie to gain or keep power (control) over others (2 Pet 2:1-3). 3. Satan was powerless against God, but the Devil led many spirits to believe he had something of value to offer them if they would join his cause: the demons envied Satan, who got a thrill out of leading his band of evil doers. [So you see, the reason lying is so commonly done is because it promises so many advantages. But that s the biggest lie of all! There is not a lie that can be told that will ultimately yield any lasting advantage (Rev 21:8).] B. Some people lie because it makes them feel safe. III. IS MENTAL RESERVATION EQUIVALENT TO LYING? 1. They think it will protect their position (Isa 28:15; John 11:47-50, 53; Mark 14:55-56). A. Some have defined a lie as a statement made at variance with the mind of the speaker. 2. They think it will save them from embarrassment (Gen 18:15). 1. In other words, a lie is not determined by the understanding of a hearer, but by the knowledge of the speaker. 3
B. The Catholics have an intricate doctrine built around the practice of mental reservation. C. Of course, God makes no such distinctions or provisions to deceive. 1. Strict MR: A statement that is false on its face, but is made true in the speaker's mind by adding something mentally (Catholic: sin). a. Akin to saying something false or misleading with one s finger crossed behind his back. b. As the Jews would swear by the Temple rather than the gold of Temple if they didn t want to keep their promise. 2. Wide MR: A statement that is true but ambiguous or subject to interpretation (Catholic: not sin). 1. Such conduct is not a reflection of the truthfulness that characterizes Him. 2. God is a God of truth because His word can be safely relied upon, & so must ours be. The term for truth in the Old Testament ( emeth) suggests notions of firmness, stability, reliability, faithfulness. (Gordon Pinnock, Baker s Dictionary of Christian Ethics, Carl F. H. Henry, ed., page 679.) The words for lie, (kazab & seqer the most common), carry the underlying thought... of deceit or emptiness. (William Kelly, Baker s Dictionary of Theology, Everett F. Harrison, ed., page 323.) One can rely upon truth; he can act upon it safely. This is characteristic of God. That which is empty, upon which one cannot build safely, is a lie. One who cannot be safely relied upon because his word is empty, deceptive, does not reflect the character of God & cannot justify his lying as being approved of God! a. I have no knowledge of that, i.e. (it is privileged information and) I know nothing of that (which I can tell you). 3. Truth is not only what is realized by the speaker to be as things really are, but is conveyed to the hearer in the same way. 4
D. Remember the young & the old prophet event (1 Kings 13:7-10, 15-19)? 1. The old prophet lied to the young prophet (13:18); what his motive was we can only surmise. a. Did he enjoy it? b. Did it make him feel safer? c. Did it give him a sense of power? d. Perhaps he lied out of envy over the fact that the young prophet had been chosen for such an important mission. 2. No one would argue that the old prophet did wrong, because it was a boldfaced lie. 3. But what if he had used Wide MR? a. I am a prophet of God, & you will not sin by coming into my house to eat bread & drink water, mentally completing the sentence: if you do it after you complete the Lord s mission. b. Would he have lied? Yes. c. Some would say that his MR released him from guilt, & that he bore no responsibility in the young prophet s death. d. We call this half or partial truth; IT IS A FULL-FLEDGED LIE! [Truthfulness involves the integrity (honesty) of the speaker & the clear-headed understanding of the hearer. If the speaker deliberately implants a false idea in the mind of the hearer he is guilty of lying.] 5 IV. VARIOUS KINDS OF LIES
A. Untruth: Contradiction of truth (1 Kings 13:18). B. Mental reservation: The internal act of adding a qualification to, or exploiting an ambiguity in one's words, or privately vowing that one does not mean what one is saying. C. Equivocation: Using words or expressions susceptible of two or more meanings with the intent to deceive (Gen 12:13; 20:2). D. Out of context: A statement made that was extracted from its proper setting (Mark 14:57-58; John 2:21-22). E. Duplicity: Pretending to entertain one set of feelings & acting under the influence of another (Matt 26:48-49). F. Silence: Not speaking when the occasion demanded a response (Wedding ceremony for an adulterer: Does anyone know a just cause why these two should not be joined in marriage? ) CLOSING A. The world will always go out of its way to minimize sin. 1. Some people reason that even though one intentionally tells a falsehood, if the result is considered to be good, then the lie was justified (situation ethics). 2. But God clearly tells us that lying has no part whatsoever with truth. 3. There is never any justification for lying. All liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire & brimstone (Rev 21:8). G. Insinuation & innuendo: A malicious statement made that indirectly implies something derogatory about one s character. 6