Lying

Proverbs 6: 16-17 “The Lord hates….a lying tongue…”

Psalms 120:2 “Lord, rescue me from lying lips and a deceitful tongue.”

The other day I was doing some studying for a class I teach on Spiritual Disciplines when I ran across an article on lying. It got me thinking about how often we lie to ourselves. We are constantly telling ourselves things about ourselves that are not true, from how much we don’t measure up or are not good enough to an over-extended or prideful view of ourselves. We all do it, and our thought is that it is okay because it doesn’t hurt anyone.  No one knows what I am telling myself. Here is the issue: lying to yourself is still lying, and lying is a sin. If I am willing to lie to myself about some things then what will stop me from lying to others about the same things? If I lie to myself long enough then I will start to believe the lies and behave accordingly. That is the power of a lie. The lies we tell ourselves also twist our understanding of how God sees us, which in turn causes us to understand God in ways that are inconsistent with His character, and that is always dangerous.
So the question becomes, how do I uncover the lies? How do I become aware of when I am telling myself a lie? There is a simple answer to those questions; Jesus gave it to us when he said, “If you continue in my word…you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
Have you been lying to yourself lately? Maybe you have your entire life. Spend some time learning the truth, get into the Word of God and let it release you from your lies and bring you freedom.

-Pastor Tim