Truth

Most of us have been encouraged to tell the truth since we were little children.  Without the truth we have no means of relating to each other.  If I can’t trust your word, why should I move into a relationship with you?  If you do manage to deceive me and I move forward with what I think is a relationship with you, I will make all kinds of wrong decisions based on the lies you tell me.  Bad things are bound to happen, sooner or later, to me and the relationship.

Christians live committed to one kingdom, the Kingdom of God where truth matters, while physically present in another kingdom, the Kingdom of this World, which is under Satan’s control.  This presents us with some challenges since the rulers of these two kingdoms have very different attitudes toward the truth. 

God is all about truth and calls those who are part of His family to live by the truth.  However, Satan is all about deception and the lies that prop it up.  He is described as the father of lies.  He’s been using them in his rebellion since day one.  Deception is his speciality, so we shouldn’t be surprised to find lots of examples throughout his Kingdom.

Recently, I heard employers being warned to be very careful in their hiring practices.  It is quite common for people to make fraudulent claims about their level of education and work experience.  It is so easy to fake a diploma these days with digital technology that such documents really should be verified.  It is taking employers more and more time to check out prospective employees because so many people accept that tweaking your resume to look a little better is necessary.

Financial institutions have to be increasingly vigilant because of the growing number of people who attempt to mislead them in order to get a larger loan than their income and collateral would allow.  While some are fraud artists bilking the banks of large sums, many are just ordinary people who cut corners on the truth to gain some personal advantage.

Avoiding taxes is huge, at every level.  The other day a fellow told me about going into a store to purchase a pulley for his electric motor.  When he suggested that he’d be happy with a used one, the shop owner, found one, plunked it on the counter and said, “That’ll be five dollars cash without a receipt, or seven dollars with one.”  The man swapped a five dollar bill for the pulley and walked out smiling. 

The amount of effort teachers expend these days to make sure their students are handing in their own work and not misrepresenting themselves by stealing or buying somebody else’s work is astonishing.  While educational institutions are clamping down on academic fraud, many students see things differently.  Buying or plagiarizing work to submit is largely accepted as something you just might have to do from time to time when the pressure is on, or if you party too much.

Examples of deception and fraud are endless in the Kingdom controlled by Satan, the father of lies.  As subjects of another Kingdom, living in the Kingdom of this World, we have our work cut out for us.  We will have to buck the trend.  We will be cultural revolutionaries.  We will face hard decisions as we stand for the truth.   My own experience indicates that it is difficult to keep all this up.  Not only that, God knows that it will be hard for us to walk in the truth as we navigate in a world full of lies.  So he left us with lots of encouragement in His Word.  Consider these thoughts today:

In a world where deception, fraud and lies are the order of the day, the Truth will stand out and make His presence felt.