In my last blog, we focused on sharing, which was a hallmark of the early church in Jerusalem. We also discovered that the writer of the Book of Hebrews admonished his readers to not:

“…neglect doing good and sharing, for with such sacrifices, God is pleased” (Hebrews 13:16).

If you recall, I pointed out that “doing good” and “sharing” were actually sacrifices, spiritual sacrifices that we are called to offer, and noted that every sacrifice has a cost associated with it. So, “doing good” to others costs us time that we could have otherwise spent on ourselves, and “sharing” costs us personal financial resources that we also could have spent on ourselves. Again, as noted last week, the early church was known for its sharing, and being a “sacrifice,” it was, and still is, “pleasing to God.”

The next chapter in the Book of Acts records an incident where a couple within the congregation decided, like Barnabas, to sell some land, promising to give the entire amount of the proceeds to the congregation to share with those in need (Acts 5:1-10). But Ananias and Sapphira decided to withhold some of the proceeds for their own use. Peter became aware of what they had done and challenged them on it, telling them that they had lied both to God and to the Holy Spirit. As a result, God passed judgment on them, taking their lives right on the spot. After burying both of them:

“Great fear came upon the whole church, and upon all who heard what happened” (Acts 5:11).

Once again, this is a “one-of-a-kind” incident where punishment for lying was both immediate and harsh. Surely, God was trying to send a message to the early church that lying is a serious sin, as it still is. So, let’s ask, Why is lying, among many other sins, so serious? Let’s explore this just a bit.

Jesus told the Pharisees and other religious leaders who were constantly questioning His authority:

“You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar, and the father of lies” (John 8:44).

Jesus was always about “truth-telling.” If you recall, Jesus told Pilate during His trial:

“For this reason, I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth and everyone who is of the truth hears My voice (John 18:37).

It was the devil who lied to Adam and Eve in the Garden, telling them that they could not eat from any tree in the Garden, when God said that they could eat from all of the trees except from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Furthermore, the devil told them that if they ate of it, they would not die as God told them they would (Genesis 3:1-5). You see, our bent to lie is simply an extension of what the devil did in the Garden, and it is the same devil who still fills our hearts to lie.

You see, because the devil is “the father of lies,” he always dresses up his lies to look appealing and attractive, and with that, he tries to get us to follow his plan for our lives rather than God’s plan for us. We must be aware of his crafty schemes, trying to get us to buy into his lies, rather than adhere to the truth of God and His plan for us. As Peter tells us,

“Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. But resist him, firm in your faith….” (1 Peter 5:8-9).

He seeks to “devour” us and make us ineffective for the Kingdom, and so we must first identify the “lie” that the devil is putting forth, and then resist that lie with truth statements about God has His will for our lives, which is always good and always better than the devil’s plan for us.

So, let’s ask the question: “When we choose to lie, who do we lie to?”

First – We lie to ourselves, telling ourselves that we are doing just fine without God, and that we don’t need to have Him tell us how to live our lives.

Second – We lie to others in an attempt to conceal a sin we have committed, or to make ourselves look better than we really are.

Third – We lie to God, telling Him that we don’t need Him or the forgiveness that He offers for our sins.  

You see, lying keeps us from having a vital relationship with God and healthy relationships with others. We need to face the fact that we need God, and that we need to be truth-tellers to others to ourselves, to others, and above all, to God.

Let’s not be like Ananias and Sapphira who tried to conceal the truth of what they had done from the apostles. Certainly, they should have known that they couldn’t hide it from God. And let’s not be like the devil who continues to be a liar, just as He was from the beginning. Let’s always be honest and tell the truth to ourselves, to others, and above all, to God. If we believe that Jesus always told the truth, let’s follow in His footsteps and do the same.

God bless you all.