HOW HONEST ARE YOU?

HOW HONEST ARE YOU?

"Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord." Proverbs 12:22

I am at the point where I don't even like to watch the news anymore. It has nothing to do with the important stuff going on in our world. I am tired of hearing all the pundits talking about who's lying and not telling the truth. We live in a political world were lying and dishonesty abound, and it is on both sides of the aisle!

Listening to our grand kids talk at age 3, you realize how quickly we learn to lie and not tell the truth. It's a habit that starts when we are very young, and if we don't see lying from God's point of view, it can become a besetting sin that will eventually reap havoc in our lives.

Listen to what commentator, Dr. Jerry Bridges, says about lying in his book, THE FRUITFUL LIFE:

On Christmas Eve, our doorbell rang. Answering it, I found a little four-year old neighbor girl holding out a plate of cookies. "My mommy sent you some cookies," she said with a big smile. I thanked her and put them down someplace -- and promptly forgot about them for we were just leaving fro a church service.

A few days later as I was walking out to my car, the little girl came down the sidewalk on her tricycle and asked how I liked the cookies. "Oh, they were fine," I said, though I hadn't even tasted them.
As I drove away, I began thinking about this. I had lied. Why? Because it was expedient; it saved me embarrassment and the little girl's disappointment (though mostly I was concerned about myself). Sure, it was of little or no consequence. But God says without qualification that He detests lying.

Thinking further, I realized this wasn't an isolated incident. The Holy Spirit reminded me of other occasions of exaggeration and manipulating a story's facts just a bit. I had to face the fact that I wasn't quite as honest as I considered myself to be. God taught me a valuable, though humbling lesson.

As I've told the story of the cookies to some audiences, I've gotten a troubled reaction from a few people. Some sincere Christians think I am nit-picking. But consider Daniel. The record states that his enemies could find NO corruption in him (Daniel 6:4). It seems clear they would have seized upon any inconsistency. regardless of how small or insignificant, to bring Daniel into disrepute. But they could find NONE! Daniel had evidently mastered this matter of absolute integrity. We should have the same goal.

Wow! Would my enemies be able to say the same thing about me -- "They could find no corruption in him?" How about you? Lord, take control of my tongue! -- Bill Welte is President and CEO of America's KESWICK

Digging Deeper: Proverbs 12; Deuteronomy 16-18; Mark 13:1-20

Dig This Quote: The holiness of God must cause us to walk continually in the fear of the Lord and to take careful inventory of all the complex desires of our hearts – and even to how we behave when we come near to Him in holy worship. – Richard Baxter

Determined Digging: Psalm 37:23; Psalm 40:1-5