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A recap of yesterday....
I asked if it is ever OK to tell a lie, then I gave you a couple of passages to study. Let me review those very quickly.
Joshua 2:1-16. Rahab, the prostitute, hid the spies, but then lied when she was questioned. Rahab and her family were spared because she protected God's people.
In Exodus 1, we find that Pharaoh commanded that the Hebrew midwives murder any male baby at birth. In verse 20 it says that God was good the midwives for doing this.
Let's see...Jacque gave a response yesterday (Thanks for your input Jacque!) that said this , "The Ten Commandments have been mentioned, but remember when the question was asked of Jesus...and He said the "greatest" Law was to "love the Lord your God ...and to love your neighbor..." He said that if we keep these two commandments, we have kept the whole of the Law. In my finite mind, that means that the midwives and Rahab put their love and fear (reverence) of God first. By doing that, they "kept" all of the Law."
Before I give my thoughts, let's look at a few more verses. There are many many many Bible verses about lying. I had to really trim my list to keep it to a manageable size for you all. Here are some that I feel are the most powerful: ( they are in KJV because I used a cheater list. At least I am being honest! Saved me tons of typing!!)
Leviticus 6:1-4, "And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, If a soul sin, and commit a trespass against the LORD, and lie unto his neighbour…or hath deceived his neighbour…and lieth concerning it, and sweareth falsely; in any of all these that a man doeth, sinning therein: Then it shall be, because he hath sinned, and is guilty," (How many times lying mentioned just in this passage alone?)
Psalms 101:7, "He that worketh deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that telleth lies shall not tarry in my sight."
Proverbs 6:16-19, "These six things doth the LORD hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto him: A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren."(note...lies are mentioned TWICE here!)
Ephesians 4:25, "Wherefore putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbour: for we are members one of another."
Colossians 3:9, "Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds;"
Revelation 21:8, "…and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone:"
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My thoughts? Well, let me ask you a couple of questions.
In the case of Rahab...could not God have blinded the eyes of the soldiers if Rahab had been truthful? Not being a person of God, I am sure that she really never even thought about it one way or another, and God knew that. He blessed her for fearing Him the best she knew how at the time. But I feel if she would have been truthful, God would have taken care of the Israelites in probably a much more powerful way.
In the case of the midwives...what if? What if they stood before Pharaoh and refused to murder the boys? There was Daniel. He was thrown into a den of lions because he displayed a PUBLIC fear of the Lord...and what happened?
How about Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego? Because of their obedience and PUBLIC fear of the Lord, God was able to show His power in a great and mighty way there as well.
So, now what do you think? Now you've got something to ponder over the weekend.
What's the right answer? Well, we each will form our own opinion. Jacque had some good points. If you were to ask me personally, I am sure that you figured out by now that I hold to the opinion that it is NEVER ok to sin against God and his commandments. Scripture is very clear time and time again that lying is wrong. God's will always happens. He'll work through sin if He has to. But when He can work through truth the results are always much more mighty and powerful.
This really helped me understand my need to say it's never ok to lie. I wanted to say it, but didn't have scriptures to back myself up. Shame on me for not taking the time to find them. And I never thought about God working more miracles if they had been truthful. Shame on me again. He is GOD. Great posts Tonya!
ReplyDeleteSuper post, Tonya! I stand corrected! I appreciate your bringing us back to the thought that we should do what is right, and leave the rest to God. :) In my own life, I've always tried to be truthful, in spite of some painful consequences.... that instinct was correct, and that was the right path. Thanks, my friend!
ReplyDeleteVery interesting topic. We've just been discussing this at our house. Both the issue of whether it's ever okay to lie and the consequences of lies. I feel the consequences of a lie are devastating and that is why God is so against it.
ReplyDeleteBlessings from your newest follower.
Hi Tonya...I am playing catch up on your blog here, and stopped at this one because this has always been a truly black and white issue to me! My mom would omit information or 'color' something she said to me, and call it a little white lie! Even as a kid I would get so upset and tell her that it is a LIE!!! A big fat black lie! Mom would justify it by saying that if she was cornered and didn't want to tell something or admit to something that it was a white lie because it was her business. I cannot tell you how upset that would make me, because I was very black and white.
ReplyDeleteWhenever it was my turn to not want to talk about something I would just say, I do not want to talk about it rather than lie. If I would ever want to lie, I always had a check from the Holy Spirit that this would be VERY DISPLEASING to Him, and I always knew even as a kid that a lie will be the loudest Truth that comes out when you stand before God in Judgment!!!
When raising my children, we would come down hard on them if they lied about anything. If they told the truth and confessed, then they would only be punished for the disobedience. They knew not to lie, and if they did they were in BIG trouble! Today, they have children of their own, and they are just like we are!
The biggest sin to lying is the we CANNOT lie to the LORD for He knows and sees everything! We think we are lying to people, but we are actually lying to the LORD Himself!
I liked your explanation of Rahab's lying. That she was not accustom to knowing that the LORD God can protect and provide for Himself!!! It also showed that she was FEARING the LORD and that was counted in her favor. Rahab was NOT Lying to protect her own skin! That is a huge difference! When we lie to protect our own sin and skin, then we are saying we do not Trust the LORD to protect us!!! A real lack of Faith, OR a cover up for our PRIDE! Pride goeth before the fall! :)
Very interesting topic! ♥♥♥