Lying

Have you ever told a "little white lie" to cover up for something you did? Have you ever told a lie to "help" a friend who did something wrong? If you have, did you feel bad about it afterwards? Lying is the opposite of honesty. All lies are wrong, no matter how big or little they are. When a person lies about his grades in school, it is just like when a criminal lies before the jury and judge. All lies are sins in God's eyes, despite how "big" or "small" the world thinks they are.

The Bible clearly condemns lying and commands us to tell only the truth. It has examples of people who gave in to the temptation to lie, and it has stories of godly people who avoided lying and faced the consequences of telling the truth. Paul wrote: "Therefore, putting away lying, let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor" (Ephesians 4:25). If we decide to always tell the truth, we can have a stronger relationship with God. Proverbs 12:22 says: "Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord, but those who deal truthfully are His delight." If we want to have a good relationship with God, we must not be dishonest.

Have you ever heard of the story of the boy who cried "wolf"? The boy kept telling the townspeople that there was a wolf that was attacking the sheep, but actually there wasn't. He did this many times, and the townspeople became tired of his dishonesty. One day, however, the boy was taking care of his sheep, and he really did see a wolf. When he tried to inform the townspeople, they ignored him because of his bad reputation. Because the boy had lied many times earlier, the wolf ended up killing the boy's flock of sheep.

One lie can easily destroy your reputation, and it is very hard to earn respect once you have lost it. Don't you want a good reputation, so others will be able to believe what you say? We need to follow the example of God, Who, as Paul wrote, "cannot lie" (Titus 1:2). God is faithful to His promises, and we need to be faithful and trustworthy in all we say and do.