Intro

This evening we will be speaking about lying. The ninth of the ten commandments, the series which we have been going through together each Sunday evening.

Our passage comes from Exodus 20:16: ‘You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour.’

Behind each of the commandments we must bear in mind is our personal creator God, who is expressing his very nature through these ten commandments.

It is prudent that we study the commandments, as they give us insight into God’s character, and help us live more like Him.

We live in a society that celebrates lying. It states that the best measure of advancement (with primates) is proficiency at telling lies. Well they certainly have us humans pinned there. A child’s first lies are celebrated as cognitive milestones. And while certainly it shows creativity and awareness of self, it is not something to be celebrated. And some people think children are born innocent. You don’t need to teach a child to lie, say no, or say mine.

We live in a post-modernist world. We’ve raised up an entire generation of people who believe in relative truth. What’s true for you can be your truth, but it doesn’t mean that it’s my truth. The fact that the entire argument is self defeating, as it depends on the fact that there is an absolute truth, that relative truth is true, seems to go over their heads.

God Himself rebuts relative truth at every turn. The first words of the Bible are. ‘In the beginning, God.’ The God who said, ‘I am the Way, the Truth and the Life’. The God who, when on trial before Pilate, stated that his purpose for coming into this world was to, “bear witness to the truth”, and to which Pilate asked the question, “what is truth”.

The fact that Jesus summarised his mission as “bearing witness to the truth”, means that we have a God who is deeply concerned about the Truth, and for whom deception is abhorrent and totally against His nature.

Some points before the main point

Quick word study

There is very little to say in doing a “word study”, the Hebrew reads practically identically to the English, which is why it renders almost verbatim in almost all translations. I’m not going to go into a word by word Hebrew study, this isn’t a Hebrew class, but I want to briefly glance at the three parts to this commandment. “You shall not”, “bear false witness”, and “against your neighbour.”

“You shall not…” is a singular, second person “you”, meaning each of you individually, and shall not is pretty unambiguous.

“…bear false witness…” - “bear” can be read as “give”, and “witness” can be rendered “testimony”. Regardless of the combination of “bear/give” and “witness/testimony” you use, the meaning is the same. What is notable is that this carries an air that is closer to a court or legal proceeding than what we would typically associate with “do not lie”, we’ll take a look at this shortly.

“…against your neighbour.” This renders consistently in almost every English translation. It raises an interesting question as to why there is a qualifier here at all.

What is the difference between bearing false witness and lying

This commandment is often abbreviated as “do not lie”, which would have covered a broader category of lying than just bearing false witness.

So then why the difference? Just like in English, there are other words which could have been used to cover the more general “lying”.

Exodus 23:1-3 gives us this context, thus: ‘You shall not spread a false report. You shall not join hands with a wicked man to be a malicious witness. You shall not fall in with the many to do evil, nor shall you bear witness in a lawsuit, siding with the many, so as to pervert justice, nor shall you be partial to a poor man in his lawsuit.’

Bearing false witness carries with it a judicial connotation, and we would do well to remember that what was being instituted here was a judicial legal document.

But as we have seen in both the topics on do not murder and do not commit adultery, Jesus himself often made the commandment harder by showing that it’s not just the judicial matter, but the heart matter which is important.

And so, as with murder and adultery being expanded to “unjust anger” and “looking with lust”, showing that the commandments apply not just to a judicial or civic legal system, we find that the New Testament expands upon the concept of “do not bear false witness”.

Let’s look at James 3:1-6: ‘For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell.’

And then Paul in Ephesians 4:25-32, talking about putting off the old self and putting on the new self: ‘Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, and give no opportunity to the devil. Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need. Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.’

So if bearing false witness is the legal law given for the establishing of Israel, then the spiritual pattern it represents is unquestionably not to lie.

Given that, I will continue this message with the stricter “do not lie”.

Against your neighbour

While the Israelites would certainly have understood this to mean other Israelites, Jesus himself clears that up for us in Luke 10:25-37, the parable of the good Samaritan, making it very clear that all who come across our path are our neighbors.

Why the qualifier

Are there cases of bearing false witness being considered good or righteous? Almost surprisingly there are several.

The first is openly blessed by God, the second is praised in two different places in the New Testament. The third is referred to lauded in song by Deborah, a prophetess of God, proclaiming the woman as “the most blessed of women” (up to that point naturally). There are other cases which are not condemned, but they may be descriptive rather than prescriptive, so I won’t include those.

1. In Exodus 1:15-21: ‘Then the king of Egypt said to the Hebrew midwives, one of whom was named Shiphrah and the other Puah, “When you serve as midwife to the Hebrew women and see them on the birthstool, if it is a son, you shall kill him, but if it is a daughter, she shall live.” But the midwives feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the male children live. So the king of Egypt called the midwives and said to them, “Why have you done this, and let the male children live?” The midwives said to Pharaoh, “Because the Hebrew women are not like the Egyptian women, for they are vigorous and give birth before the midwife comes to them.” So God dealt well with the midwives. And the people multiplied and grew very strong. And because the midwives feared God, he gave them families.’
2. In Joshua 2:1-7: ‘And Joshua the son of Nun sent two men secretly from Shittim as spies, saying, “Go, view the land, especially Jericho.” And they went and came into the house of a prostitute whose name was Rahab and lodged there. And it was told to the king of Jericho, “Behold, men of Israel have come here tonight to search out the land.” Then the king of Jericho sent to Rahab, saying, “Bring out the men who have come to you, who entered your house, for they have come to search out all the land.” But the woman had taken the two men and hidden them. And she said, “True, the men came to me, but I did not know where they were from. And when the gate was about to be closed at dark, the men went out. I do not know where the men went. Pursue them quickly, for you will overtake them.” But she had brought them up to the roof and hid them with the stalks of flax that she had laid in order on the roof. So the men pursued after them on the way to the Jordan as far as the fords. And the gate was shut as soon as the pursuers had gone out.’
   This act is praised in Hebrews 11:31: ‘By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient, because she had given a friendly welcome to the spies.’
   And again in James 2:25 (and you’ll recall from a few minutes ago that James is especially harsh on lying): ‘And in the same way was not also Rahab the prostitute justified by works when she received the messengers and sent them out by another way?’
3. In Judges 4:18-21,5: ‘And Jael came out to meet Sisera and said to him, “Turn aside, my lord; turn aside to me; do not be afraid.” So he turned aside to her into the tent, and she covered him with a rug. And he said to her, “Please give me a little water to drink, for I am thirsty.” So she opened a skin of milk and gave him a drink and covered him. And he said to her, “Stand at the opening of the tent, and if any man comes and asks you, ‘Is anyone here?’ say, ‘No.’” But Jael the wife of Heber took a tent peg, and took a hammer in her hand. Then she went softly to him and drove the peg into his temple until it went down into the ground while he was lying fast asleep from weariness. So he died.’
   And in chapter 5:24-27 Deborah praises this act in her song: ‘“Most blessed of women be Jael, the wife of Heber the Kenite, of tent-dwelling women most blessed. He asked for water and she gave him milk; she brought him curds in a noble’s bowl. She sent her hand to the tent peg and her right hand to the workmen’s mallet; she struck Sisera; she crushed his head; she shattered and pierced his temple. Between her feet he sank, he fell, he lay still; between her feet he sank, he fell; where he sank, there he fell—dead.’

What this is not

This is not an excuse for lying, we are already masters at justifying our own lies. What this shows is that the qualifier is not there by happenstance, no, there is a very real time and place where this qualifier takes effect.

What the qualifier is for

The qualifier indicates that the prohibition can have caveats when the totality of the evidence is weighed up, and that there are rare exceptions, where it may not hold. But its purpose is to protect and defend against propping one’s self up or putting another down. I won’t be going deeper into the qualifier in this message, as I believe it is sufficient to recognise that we serve a Just God, who will judge fairly based on the totality of the evidence, and he has all the evidence.

How we lie

Okay, so onto the main points, the how, the way, and the reason we lie. And what God thinks of it.

So how do we lie? Well there are certainly many ways, a wink, for example could do it.

But by far the most common way we lie is our tongue. We’ve already read James 3:1-6, but I’ll read it again: ‘For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell.’

James describes the tongue as a fire, a restless evil, full of deadly poison. This is why in verse 2 he says that a perfect man is the one who is able to have control over this tiny part of our body. We lie by using it, and we lie, at times, by not using it.

In John 8:44, Jesus tells us why: ‘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.’ For context here, Jesus is speaking to the Pharisees, however it applies to all who have not repented and been made new in Christ.

Jesus describes Satan as the father of lies, that lying is his native language, if we are unrepentant, then Satan is our father, and his natural language is ours too.

The way in which we lie

Outright premeditated lying

The most obvious one, lying in court, also called Perjury. Going to court, taking an oath to tell the truth and then not doing so. It used to be that you had to swear on the Bible. This is now optional. And in a world of relative truth, what is truth anyway. And so a judge has an almost impossible time trying to determine truth from lies. When my kids are fighting, and I arrive on scene, I will get two totally different and contradictory accounts, which kid am I supposed to believe?

And while we’re talking about court rooms, and the fact that even in that setting there is rampant lying, we need to realise that mandating not lying does not stop lying. Only the transformation of the Holy Spirit in our lives can do that (and even then we slip up as we wobble our way along the path of sanctification).

Rumour / gossip

Another way we lie is via rumour and gossip. That is saying things which are not ours to say. Typically we don’t have the authority to say what we have heard. Typically we don’t have the whole story, all the facts. Typically we have no actual verdict.

Oh but the gossip is just too juicy and too sweet not to tell it.

But gossip and rumour destroys lives. The damage is done. Even an innocent verdict later on often can never reverse the reputational damage.

I’ll give you some extreme cases to meditate upon.

Richard Jewel (1996)

At the Atlanta Olympics, Richard Jewel discovered a pipe bomb. He raised the alarm and saved many lives. However in the absence of anyone else the investigation included him as the prime suspect. Now innocent until proven guilty applies to a court room, however the court of public opinion is another matter, and he was slandered by sensationalist magazines as though it was a done deal, he was the guy. He was later found not guilty, and the real perpetrator was caught and sentenced. However despite being a hero, he died eleven years later, still completely shunned by society and in financial ruin.

McMartin Preschool (1980s)

In the 1980s, a preschool named McMartin’s was accused of satanic ritual abuse on children. They suffered years of prosecution. It was almost a decade of legal battles until it was eventually conclusively proven false, and the rumour was found to have been started with a lie. They were acquitted, however their school was still demolished. They never recovered, living socially ostracised, unable to find work or start another school, and financially ruined.

Markus Watson (2015)

Bringing it a little closer to home, Markus Watson was a pastor for fourteen years before one day a staff member at his church mentioned to him in a meeting that her husband struggled with pornography. Markus’ immediate reaction was not what she had expected, and as such she came to the conclusion that Markus must struggle with the same addiction.

She reported it to the church council, who immediately seized his laptop for forensic investigation, to ensure he couldn’t clear anything up (in fact he was away at the time, two weeks into a sabbatical). He got a call to let him know what was going on, and immediately returned home.

What should have taken a few days turned into a month and a half, at which time Markus eventually found out that the FBI had his laptop.

The rumour mill determined that if the laptop had gone to the FBI, then there must be some truly horrendous stuff on there, and the congregation turned on him, determining him guilty.

As it turns out the flag that had had the laptop sent off to the FBI was that amongst all his family photos there were a few pictures from years gone by of his kids in their underwear. It was determined both by the FBI and by the church council that these were completely ordinary pictures, the sort any parent would take, and nothing to be concerned about, and the case was closed. I know my parents have some bum shots of me when I was 3, this is not a crime.

Despite being cleared by the FBI and the church council, the rumour was so pervasive in the congregation, that the membership voted to have him excommunicated.

He lost his position as pastor, his flock, his reputation, and his spiritual family, because he didn’t act as expected when a lady raised the topic of her husband’s pornography addiction.

1 Kings 21 - Naboth falsely accused in order to claim his vineyard.

I’m paraphrasing heavily here, as this is a lengthy chapter, so more homework for you. But essentially King Ahaz wanted a vineyard which belonged to Naboth. Naboth did not want to give it to him. Ahaz’s crafty wife wrote letters in Ahaz’s name. We pick up from verse 9: ‘And she wrote in the letters, “Proclaim a fast, and set Naboth at the head of the people. And set two worthless men opposite him, and let them bring a charge against him, saying, ‘You have cursed God and the king.’ Then take him out and stone him to death.” And the men of his city, the elders and the leaders who lived in his city, did as Jezebel had sent word to them. As it was written in the letters that she had sent to them, they proclaimed a fast and set Naboth at the head of the people. And the two worthless men came in and sat opposite him. And the worthless men brought a charge against Naboth in the presence of the people, saying, “Naboth cursed God and the king.” So they took him outside the city and stoned him to death with stones. Then they sent to Jezebel, saying, “Naboth has been stoned; he is dead.” As soon as Jezebel heard that Naboth had been stoned and was dead, Jezebel said to Ahab, “Arise, take possession of the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, which he refused to give you for money, for Naboth is not alive, but dead.” And as soon as Ahab heard that Naboth was dead, Ahab arose to go down to the vineyard of Naboth the Jezreelite, to take possession of it.’

And one last example, maybe me or maybe you at the office tomorrow.

Who knows, perhaps my talking about Christ will have offended someone, or any other reason not to like me comes up, and someone starts a rumour about me. Perhaps they allege that I sexually assaulted one of the female staff. If that rumour were to start, my chances of my career ever recovering, even after I am proven innocent, is next to nothing.

Slander / Flattery

Other ways we lie… Slander does the same thing, and so does its opposite in crime flattery. Slander is saying something behind someone’s back that you wouldn’t say to their face. Flattery is saying something to someone’s face that you wouldn’t say behind their back.

Deceit

Deceit is lying without lying. Not really telling the whole story. Leading a conversation away from damning evidence.

Kids do this instinctively… Guilty of something they quickly confess to a lesser crime, or to something innocent, and then redirect so that the line of questioning doesn’t reveal the true crime. Good thing us adults are above that…

Exaggeration

Exaggeration (not hyperbole, which is obviously overstated for dramatic effect). It’s typically used to puff up our pride or one up someone else’s story.

Fishermen’s tales.

Nothing increases a golf score like witnesses.

The effect

One word out of place can destroy a person. One comment slipped out in conversation. Lies.

The effect on children

If we aren’t intentional to correct children in all aspects of deceit, then the first time they face something in the real world they will have 100% of their 18 or so years of life experience of being flexible with the truth to fall back on. No wonder we live in a world of, “your truth isn’t the same as my truth.” It’s just not true.

The reason we lie

Pride and hatred

The snake lied out of malice and pride. He hates God and lies as part of his revolt.

We do the same. Our fleshly selves were once his children, and we mimic our father.

Lying typically comes from one of two places, pride or hatred.

It is pride, the sin pregnant with all sin, that wants to puff us up, make ourselves look better than we are, lie about our achievements.

It is hatred which pushes someone else down.

To protect myself, to have the best story, to make myself look the best… Selfish pride.

Juicy gossip, slander, contempt, revenge… Hatred.

Not wanting to cause offence

What about just not wanting to cause offence? Typically just little white lies.

What happens if an oncologist doesn’t want to offend or upset a patient, and doesn’t tell them about their cancer, or send them for the checks they need.

I’m guilty of this one. I am an introvert who is highly non-confrontational. So I have to confront this to prevent chickening out of dealing out the hard truths.

But I have to fight my very nature daily, because what happens if I don’t have the hard conversation with the people who report to me at work? They don’t get the opportunity to course correct before it’s too late.

Some of the hardest moments in my career have been when I’ve had to let staff go. Just imagine I hadn’t had the hard conversations early on, to try and save their careers? I would have to have fired more people than I have, and all those who I have and would have had to fire would have been my fault, not theirs.

It’s part of the game

The problem

I’m sure that nobody in business, politics, law, sales, marketing, or advertising has ever been guilty of deceit. No shots intended to be fired here. These are stereotypes because those industries have systemic issues, and to those Christians in those industries, we need you there to fight the good fight, and to present Christ to those people.

This extends far beyond the couple of industries I just mentioned.

But it’s very clear, if you don’t play the game, then you won’t win against everyone else who is playing the game.

If you don’t win, how will you provide for your families?

I am so glad it’s me giving this message this evening and not Dave or Jason, who, as people in full time ministry, have careers which hinge on their integrity. I guarantee they have these same issues. However I can speak to you as someone who is in the 9-5 trenches, it’s rough out there. I have to give deadlines to the executive committee and the board, I have to make promises to partners. My career, its continuation and advancement hinge on how much I can sell. I speak to you from a place of consistent temptation in this matter. And sometimes I fail.

But God

But God…

Did God lie when he said through Paul in Philippians 4:19 that He will supply all your needs according to His riches and glory in Christ Jesus?

Did God lie when he said through David in Psalm 23 that the Lord is our shepard, we shall not want?

Did Jesus lie when he said, as recorded by Luke in Luke 12:29-31, ‘And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.’

Did Jesus lie when he said, as recorded by Matthew in chapter 6:31-33, ‘Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.’

The Bible is very clear on this point… Do not lie. It is also very clear on this point, that God knows what you need, and He will provide all you need.

How seriously does God really take lying

Just before we wrap up, I want to take a moment to consider just how seriously God takes lying. Let’s look at a few scriptures in which people lie, and God’s reaction to these situations.

Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1–11) is probably the most dramatic: ‘But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, and with his wife’s knowledge he kept back for himself some of the proceeds and brought only a part of it and laid it at the apostles’ feet. But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land? While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? Why is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to man but to God.” When Ananias heard these words, he fell down and breathed his last. And great fear came upon all who heard of it. The young men rose and wrapped him up and carried him out and buried him. After an interval of about three hours his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. And Peter said to her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for so much.” And she said, “Yes, for so much.” But Peter said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.” Immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last. When the young men came in they found her dead, and they carried her out and buried her beside her husband. And great fear came upon the whole church and upon all who heard of these things.’

The Lying Prophet of Bethel is a strange case. It is found in 1 Kings 13, which is a bit lengthy to read, so I will paraphrase it, but please go read it yourselves. A prophet is told by God not to eat or drink on his mission. Another prophet deceives him by claiming God gave him a contrary instruction. The man of God believes the lie and disobeys — and is killed by a lion on the way home. Notably, God punishes the deceived man rather than the deceiver. It makes for some uncomfortable reading. But most importantly God cannot lie, and as such cannot issue contradictory statements, so by believing a human over God, the first prophet died.

Gehazi (2 Kings 5) lies to Naaman after Elisha refuses payment for healing his leprosy: ‘He said to him, “Go in peace.” But when Naaman had gone from him a short distance, Gehazi, the servant of Elisha the man of God, said, “See, my master has spared this Naaman the Syrian, in not accepting from his hand what he brought. As the Lord lives, I will run after him and get something from him.” So Gehazi followed Naaman. And when Naaman saw someone running after him, he got down from the chariot to meet him and said, “Is all well?” And he said, “All is well. My master has sent me to say, ‘There have just now come to me from the hill country of Ephraim two young men of the sons of the prophets. Please give them a talent of silver and two changes of clothing.’” And Naaman said, “Be pleased to accept two talents.” And he urged him and tied up two talents of silver in two bags, with two changes of clothing, and laid them on two of his servants. And they carried them before Gehazi. And when he came to the hill, he took them from their hand and put them in the house, and he sent the men away, and they departed. He went in and stood before his master, and Elisha said to him, “Where have you been, Gehazi?” And he said, “Your servant went nowhere.” But he said to him, “Did not my heart go when the man turned from his chariot to meet you? Was it a time to accept money and garments, olive orchards and vineyards, sheep and oxen, male servants and female servants? Therefore the leprosy of Naaman shall cling to you and to your descendants forever.” So he went out from his presence a leper, like snow.’

And of course, what roundup of lies is complete without the Father of Lie’s first recorded lie: Satan, the father of lies and great deceiver, in Eden (Genesis 3). It is also a lengthy read, so it’s more homework for you. The serpent deceives Eve with a half-truth (“you will not surely die”) and a half-false promise (“you will be like God”). God curses the serpent above all creatures, and the consequences ripple through all of human history. It’s the founding deception which causes all sin to enter the world.

The call

To wrap up, the call of the ninth commandment is for truthfulness. It specifically cuts off lying that would puff up one’s pride or put another down.

On the flip side it calls for putting our neighbour’s good first, before our own. Speaking truth about our neighbour in a way which produces good in their lives. Loving our neighbour so to speak.

The consequences of lies upon people can be the destruction of their lives, their families, imprisonment, social ostracisation, and in some countries the death sentence. For which the liar would incur guilt.

I’ll say what I said earlier again. The Bible is very clear on this point… Do not lie. It is also very calendar on this point. That God knows what you need, and He will provide all you need.

It might not be all you want, but this one life is so short as to be less than a flicker in the light of eternity.

Is it not better to live in abject poverty and win eternal reward, than to sleep and eat in luxury and wealth through ill gotten gain, in doing so risk your eternity?

This commandment, as much was with all the other commandments, shows me that I cannot do it! I cannot keep this commandment. I cannot keep any of them.

I am a law breaker, with a debt of my eternal damnation to pay.

It brings me to my knees in need of someone, a saviour who can pay that debt, which I could never pay, on my behalf.

Behold Jesus, my Saviour! He has done exactly that!

I implore you, just as I implore my own fleshly self. Do not put aside the eternal for the material… It is just not worth it.