As we continue to look at the seven things that are an abomination in the sight of God (Prov. 6:16-19). The second one listed is “a lying tongue.”
The first sin recorded in the Bible was a lie. When the serpent said to the woman, “Thou shalt not surely die” (Gen. 3:4-5), he was lying; and when Eve believed his lie, she disobeyed God and led Adam to do likewise; as a result, innocency was destroyed and man was driven from the Garden of Eden—all because of “a lying tongue.”
God has always looked upon lying as a detestable thing. “Thou shalt not bare false witness against thy neighbor” was one of the original ten commandments of the Decalogue (Exod. 20:16). Yet many folks believe it is okay to lie. A researcher suggested that a lot of people even lie about being honest. We hear about “white lies” from men, but not from God.
Lying brought about the death of Ananias and Sapphira as recorded in Acts 5. Peter said, “Ananias, why hast thou filled thine ear to lie to the Holy Ghost?” (v. 3). Paul tells us, “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new” (II Cor. 5:17). In Ephesians 4 Paul explains further that this is because, “you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness” (vs.22-24). In demonstrating what it means to “put off the old man” and to “put on the new man” the first thing he said was, “Therefore, putting away lying, Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor” (v. 25).
As we mentioned earlier there is no such thing as degrees of lying. Lying—ALL lying—will cause one to lose his soul if not repented of. Don’t just take my word for it, read what the Holy Spirit said through the pen of John in Revelation 21:8: “But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”
The news media has predicted that over 14 million people will call in sick on the Monday following the Super Bowl. Wow! What does that say about the honesty of the American people?
One more passage for you to consider is Revelation 21:27 where John is writing of things that will not be in Heaven: “And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.”
And don’t forget that any time we say something that is opposite of what God teaches in His Book, “let God be true, but every man a liar” (Rom. 3:4). God doesn’t lie (Titus 1:2); neither should we, for God hates “a lying tongue”.
-Paul M. Wilmoth