Jesus also, that he might sanctify the people with his own blood, suffered outside the gate. Therefore, let us go forth to him outside the camp, bearing his reproach. For we have no continuing city here, but we seek one to come.
Select a thought to read by choosing a collection, the month, and then the day:
"These six things doth the Lord hate; yea, seven are an abomination
to Him."
- David, to his young son Solomon, in Proverbs 6:16
This is the sixth of the seven sins concerning which David warned his young son Solomon that God especially hates.
Because we are humans and not God, we do not know everything. Nevertheless, we often we find ourselves in positions in which we must make judgments concerning important matters, whether we know everything or not. Daily, we all make decisions, and those decisions are always based upon knowledge of certain facts. But how can we make right decisions if we are ignorant of the facts involved? It is essential that when we make decisions, we have the best information available, whether we be judges in a courtroom wrestling with a difficult case, parents at home deciding what to allow and not to allow, or teachers in a classroom, supervisors at work, coaches working with athletes, or even children walking home from school deciding whether or not to accept a ride home from a stranger. Whenever we humans have to decide anything, we always depend on the information that is given to us.
Judges, both worldly judges and rulers among God's people, regularly make decisions that effect people's lives, sometimes drastically. Knowing that judges must have true information supplied to them if they are to avoid damaging innocent lives, God made it one of His first ten commandments to ancient Israel: "Thou shalt not bear false witness against they neighbor." How can a judge render a just decision if witnesses obscure the truth with lies? Truth absolutely must be told to judges.
Even worldly men acknowledge the importance of this matter. Those in America who are called as witnesses in court cases are required to place their hands on the Bible and swear that they will tell the whole truth, and only that. This custom was developed long ago, when the fear of God was more prevalent than it is now, to impress upon witnesses the very great importance of telling the truth when testifying before a judge. Judges are dependent upon the evidence presented to them. To lie to such men in authority is to undermine the system that secures for everyone security and peace. To "bear false witness against your neighbor" is to undermine the safety and peace of everyone.
Sometimes, the evidence presented in a court case can be a matter of life and death. There are documented cases in every period of man's history of innocent souls imprisoned, fined, or even sentenced to die because false information was given to judges. The Bible itself records several instances of this. In one, wicked Queen Jezebel hired men to bear false witness against Naboth so that she could seize his property. Her false witnesses successfully deceived the judges, and Naboth and his sons were stoned to death.
It is a blessing to everyone for a judge to be so discerning that he sees through a scheme to deceive him. In one extremely difficult case, Solomon was able to expose the testimony of a crafty woman as false, and people everywhere feared God and glorified Him for the wisdom He had given Solomon. When judges render just decisions, it helps people to understand the righteous judgment of God, but when decisions of judges are unjust, it frustrates people and causes them to feel contempt for authority. Solomon warned us that if a ruler believes lies, it encourages everyone around him to become wicked (Prov. 29:12). If the root is infected, the whole plant will become sick.
We must be truthful when being asked for information by those whom God has placed in authority over us. Those in authority are human, and they depend upon other humans when fulfilling their solemn obligations as the ministers of God (Rom. 13:1-5). Rulers on earth such as judges, mayors, policemen, governors, senators, and even presidents, are ministers of God, and testifying falsely to them can cause them to make decisions that bring distress upon innocent people. God loves people, and He will not excuse those who love others so little that they bear false witness against innocent souls. Those who testify falsely against others and, so, cause the innocent to suffer will themselves suffer the fierce wrath of God, endlessly.
Let us be helpers to God's ministers, lightening their load whenever possible and, whenever called upon to do so, providing them with the most accurate and faithful information we can provide. When we do that, we not only help them, we make more secure everyone's well-being, including our own.
After my father had been delivered from sin as a young man, he traveled around the country preaching the gospel. In Kansas City, to one of the godly mothers in Christ there, he expressed his joy that he had been delivered from telling lies. "Oh, Brother Clark," she replied, "There is something much better than that."
My father was surprised. "Oh? What is better than not telling lies?"
She answered, "When you stop believing them."
No one can believe a lie when he is being led by the Spirit of truth. Who could tell a lie to Jesus and successfully deceive him? The children of God are anointed to know the difference between truth and lies. That is our privilege and our calling. Stay filled with the holy Ghost, and nothing evil will find a place in our hearts. If we stayed "filled with the Spirit", we will be like our heavenly Father God to the extent that we will not be dependent upon information from human witnesses when we need to make a decision; we will feel what is true and what is not. I have had the holy Ghost stop me in the middle of nodding my head in assent to a lie. It would not allow me to believe a false witness. That is what Jesus wants to do for us all, all the time. He is our Savior, and he wants to save us from every lie that men tell. And he will save us from lies if we humble ourselves to trust what his Spirit is telling our hearts.
We can be fooled by appearances, but God never is.