You shall not bear false witness
Introduction
- Coming towards the end of the Ten Commandments
- Very convicting
- Especially this truth
- How many of our words have been true, sincere and right?
- James warns about the power of the tongue
- Ex 20:16 - it's strict definition is related to court
- Yet there are greater principles that stand behind this argument
- The whole issue of truth
- What about unintentional misspeaking? - Yes
- We need to come again to Christ, repent of our sin and request forgiveness
- Overview:
- Why do we lie?
- What form does lying take?
- What damage does lying do?
- How can we fulfill this law?
Why do we lie?
- Often to gain some sort of advantage
- Example of Jezebel/Ahab/Naboth
- How does this apply to ourselves?
- Example of staying off work, lying about time, altering figures, changing information
- Sometimes due to fear
- Example of Abraham (x2) and Simon Peter
- Sometimes necessary to lie: example of hiding Jews in the war and Rahab
- Often this is not the case
- To give a good impression
- Example
- True religion is to tame the tongue
- Holding a grudge
- Personal example and example in the life of Jesus Christ
- Ultimately because we do not consider God
What form does lying take?
- Example of court
- Other examples - CV, votes
- Outright lies
- Example of Potiphar's wife
- Making the victim the perpetrator
- Exaggeration
- Deliberate over emphasis or misrepresentation of truth e.g. a worst-case scenario
- Because we want to impress others - personal example
- Flattery
- Eulogies
- Selective language
- Half stories and half truthshttps://studio.youtube.com/video/_ogamnzE1HM/edit
- Misinformation
- Hiding things that need to be said
- Giving a false impression
- Distorting truth - example of politicians
What damage does lying do?
- It creates a culture of distrust
- Example - Rom 3:8, John the Baptist, the Lord Jesus
- Prov 12:22, 16:5, Rev 21:8
- Do you see how seriously God takes lying?
How can we fulfill this law?
- We can turn to the Lord Jesus
- We are all guilty before God
- Yet we can come to a God of all truth
- God never gives false testimony
- Jesus has never given false testimony
- He only ever spoke the truth in love
- He is the embodiment of truth
- We are all guilty but God offers full forgiveness
- Speak truth - Eph 4:29
- Our tongue has great power