A Lying Tongue

There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers. Proverbs 6:16-19

Proverbs 6:16-19 gives us a list of seven things that are an abomination to God. This is a mixture of things that are both a little surprising and some that are what I would expect to be an abomination to Him.  Some of them are very easy to believe but some are things that we are all guilty of, things that we most likely consider not that bad.  This week we are going to look at these seven things that are an abomination to Him.

No one wants to be labeled a liar.  Yet, our lives are full of small and, what we deem acceptablelies, that we hide behind to try to fit in, to try to feel better about ourselves, to be seen as better than we really are.  Lies like “I’ll be praying for you”, “I am sorry I didn’t see your call”, “Nothing is wrong, I am fine”, roll off our tongues without thought.  But a lie is a lie, no matter how little we think it is. 

Justification– we can easily justify a little white lie.  We lie to protect.  We lie to surprise.  We lie to avoid conflict.  We lie to make others happy.  We lie to survive.  Some of these circumstances seem perfectly justified to tell a little white lie, but wrong is wrong and the Bible clearly says, in many areas, that a lying tongue is an abomination to the Lord.  There is no justification for it.  Not on God’s terms.  

Misery- In my distress I called to the Lord, and he answered me.  Deliver me, O Lord, from lying lips, from a deceitful tongue…

One little lie always leads to another.  It is truly a tangled web once we set it in motion, and when you are tangled up in the midst of it all, you will be miserable and wish you had never started it.

Contradictory to God – And God in You

God desires truth. God is truth.  Telling a lie contradicts everything God is and everything He is in you.  There will be conflict in your heart when you tell a lie because it is contradicting who you are in Christ.  

We tend to be careless and lazy when it comes to following some of these “basics” of a relationship with Christ.  We sometimes think we can blur the lines of truth or bend them just a little as long as it is not something major or doesn’t hurt anyone.  If no one else is affected by my little lie, what is the big deal?  The big deal is our hearts and our relationship with God.  Satan is the father of lies and he loves to put a chink in our armor, even if it is an inconsequential “little white lie”.  He knows if we can get comfortable with one little lie, it will make it much easier to tell more “little lies”, and then to move on to bigger ones.  Before you know it, you are tangled up in a giant web of deceit.  Don’t give the devil a foothold.  Resist the urge to be dishonest in any way

Scripture to Claim:
Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.  John 17:17 NASB