Some Practical Instruction ... On Deceit And Lying

Series – May 2016 – Grace & Truth Magazine

Some Practical Instruction On
DECEIT And LYING

Deceit and lying are sins connected with the tongue – that unruly member which no man can tame. Over and over again, these sins are strongly condemned by the God of truth (Col. 3:9; 1 Pet. 3:10; Prov. 24:28, 12:22). When Peter spoke of the life of the Lord Jesus as an example for us to copy, he emphatically, or forcefully, pointed out that no deceit was found in His mouth (1 Pet. 2:22). Therefore, those who are deceitful are evidently most unlike Christ.

Lying Through Fear
We find Sarah, in Genesis 18:15, telling a lie because of fear. How often is this the case, resulting from having done or said something wrong for which we, as Christians, are ashamed? Or could it be in relation to something right – even to the point that we are ashamed of Christ? In either case, a lie slips from our lips before we are aware. The radical cure for this is simply to believe and do what is right, without being ashamed of it.

If you have sinned do not add to it by committing another. As a lie is about to leave your lips, let the thought “God hears me” instantly stop it. May you and I firmly avoid lying even in the smallest things, and never lend our tongues to deceit.

Lying For Our Own Advantage
In Genesis 27:19, when Jacob told a lie for his own advantage, we see another shameful variety of this sin. Note that Jacob was a child of God, but through the next thirty years of his life he suffered from the consequences of his sin – by which he gained nothing, for God would have given him all in due time. Have any of my readers fallen victim to this sin – making haste to be rich, improve their position or in some way run in advance of God? Have they ever through selfish motives told a lie? If so, I am sure they have suffered since.

There can be no real restoration until that lie is confessed to God and to man. As in Jacob’s case, sometimes one lie leads to another. Once on this fatal course, who can tell what the end will be? O beloved reader, I plead with you, never, never allow yourself to tell a lie for your own advantage. Think for one moment what a horrible denial such a sin is of all that Jesus ever was or did.

Lying To Cover A Sin
Passing over several examples we come to David. He was guilty of lying (1 Sam. 21:2) and deceit (2 Sam. 11) of the most fearful character, seeking to cover up an awful sin. Oh, how often some previous sin is the cause of a long course of deceit and lying. Beloved friends, let us, above all things, seek to be honest with God, our fellow men and ourselves. Should we fall into a sin, never, never seek to cover it up by another. A course of deceit withers the soul, destroying all simplicity, joy and communion. The result of these sins in David’s case was a life of sufferings almost unparalleled in their severity, from the hands of his own children. Considering David, do not think for a moment that we can escape the all-searching eye of God.

Lying From Habit
We read in 1 Kings 13:18 about a prophet of God lying in a most shameless manner without any apparent reason. Even now among God’s people we see some who apparently have no regard for the truth and find it easier to tell a lie than to avoid it. The only remedy when the disease has so developed is to go straight to God and cry to Him daily for strength and watchfulness to overcome it.

For some time I saw a person who was almost always silent, and one day I asked him for the reason. He said that he had been so addicted to lying that he was determined now not to speak at all if he could not speak the truth. For that reason he rarely opened his lips and always considered well before he spoke. Deep-rooted sins may require some radical measures.

Two Solemn Cases
Two New Testament cases, one of lying and the other of deceit, stand out: Peter and Ananias. Peter, forewarned by the Lord yet strong in his own strength, told three lies to save himself – actually going the length of denying the Savior while He was standing silent before His accusers (Lk. 22:54-62).

Sadly, such sins are known even now. Many of us are ashamed of showing that we are believers, and when suddenly asked an unexpected question, through fear or shame, we lie to the triumph of Satan and the grief of our Lord. Watch earnestly against this, and if ensnared follow Peter in the path of restoration. It is remarkable to see that the very one who fell was so perfectly restored as to be able to point out the very same sin to the Jews (Acts 3:14). Interestingly, Peter was chosen by God to be the executor of His justice on the flagrant deceit of Ananias.

Ananias’ deceit was shameless – a path chosen merely to give others a false impression of his generosity and to appear other than he was in life (5:1-11). Desiring to be respected in the eyes of our fellow men rather than in those of God, sometimes we do not hesitate to descend to such deceitful practices. We seek to get praise from men that we do not deserve. Surely such a pathway needs only to be named to be condemned by every upright heart.

Be Like Christ
The examples in this article were selected from the lives of professing children of God. We do well to give them careful consideration as they are striking illustrations of the main causes of deceit and lying among Christians. Lies may be told without using the lips: We may act to deceive and seek to excuse ourselves because we have not said what is untrue. This is a worthless ploy and will not be approved by God for a moment. He will sweep away all such refuges of lies.

The only way to be happy before Him and to be in any degree like Christ is to turn our backs firmly on deceit in every shape and form, by word or deed. We must determine that we will earnestly seek to say and do nothing that is not absolutely true, thus saving ourselves from reaping the bitter fruits of shame and sorrow that would otherwise follow. May God help each one of us that is tempted by sin to overcome it in His power.

“The lip of truth shall be established for ever: but a lying tongue is but for a moment” (Prov. 12:19).

By Alfred T. Schofield, (adapted)

This concludes this Series.