“Truthful lips endure forever, but a lying tongue lasts only a moment. Deceit is in the hearts of those who plot evil, but those who promote peace have joy. No harm overtakes the righteous, but the wicked have their fill of trouble. Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, but those who act faithfully are his delight.”
Proverbs 12:19-22—
Pretty powerful words. I remember quite vividly when my children were, well, children telling them one thing that would not be tolerated would be lying. While I wasn’t wise enough to teach it from the Biblical perspective, I knew lying was very dangerous to an individual’s moral character. The ease with which a lie can be said to cover-up a problem or shield you, temporarily, from the truth, has a snowball effect. You tell one and “get away” with it so why not tell another, or you tell one then you must tell another to cover-up the previous one. As the verse above illustrates a habitual liar creates in himself a damaged moral character which can lead to more serious flaws, such as coveting, stealing, deceit, violence, etc. At the extreme end you have the work of the purely evil. From John 8:44, “You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in 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.” Two examples of evil lies in today’s world: The lie that boys can become girls and vice versa. The lie that Israel is creating genocide. These are truly societal disrupting lies and the more it is repeated the more others start to believe them. The more people believe then the action itself becomes acceptable. That is why we are duty bound to stand up to these lies. And that takes courage because once you stand up to these lies you unleash the full brunt of the viscous and extreme left. Courage always accompanies truth. For it takes courage to stand up against lies and the evil they can produce. But as a believer in God and his word you must have the courage to strive for truth and to be truthful. Ephesians 6:14-15 “Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace.”
May the peace of God be with you always.
In Christ,
Eric