Remember his strength – Day 21
Lying
Um(Imi)bhalo weBhayibheli
Kwabase-Efesu 4
IzAga 19
IzAga 19
EkaJakobe 3
Izono zolimi
Ukuhlakanipha okuvela phezulu
Amongst the people of God, there should be no lying or untruthfulness. We belong to the One who said, “I am the Truth”, and truth and transparency should categorise everything we do.
Many of us will know the hurt, chaos and conflict that has been brought about by people telling lies. Perhaps, you yourself have been the victim of some sort of deceit. You then know how hurtful and shocking it can be.
We know that we live in a world of lies. Not only do our politicians and public figures often lie to us, but also we can hardly escape the falsehoods and deceptions contained in the small print of many of the documents we have to sign, just to live in this world. Our TV shows are full of all the things that break our society. Just think of the titles of some of the soap operas as you read this. They all speak to you of lies, deceit and unfaithfulness.
Proverbs 19:5 says, “A false witness will not go unpunished, and he who tells lies will not escape.” We all know that lies and half-truths all eventually are found out, but how sad it is to see the characters of young people being forged and formed by living in an environment where everyone lives by lying to each other.
This is not so with us as Christians. We know, by instinct, that truthfulness should form and shape our lives. We know the truth of Proverbs 19:22: “… it is better to be a poor man that a liar”. We remember the teaching about the power of the tongue – how it can set a great forest on fire with a small spark (James 3).
Let us avoid lying at all costs. We follow the Lord Jesus Christ, in whose mouth no falsehood was found. Whatever others may do, let us always determine to tell the truth and be people who are known to be trustworthy and dependable, for Christ’s sake.
