Nothing But The Truth

NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH

When a witness in a court of law takes the stand, he or she makes a solemn pledge to “tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth”

• Not to dilute the truth

• Not to expand on the truth

• Not to interpret the truth

• Just to tell the plain truth

At least that’s his/ her job in theory

We to are called to be witnesses in Acts 1:8: “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

However, there are two differences between us as witnesses and a witness in court.

• We are called not only to TELL the truth, but also to LIVE the truth. (James 1:22-25)

• We never ever step down from the witness stand. Our testifying never ends. (Hebrews 12:1-2)

Understand that God hates lies

Proverbs 12:22 – The Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in men who are truthful.

Proverbs 6:16-17 – There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him…a lying tongue…

Psalm 5:6 – You destroy those who tell lies…

Satan is the “father of lies” – John 8:44

Satan’s first trick on humanity was a lie – Genesis 3:1-4

Understand that truth is essential to God’s character

God cannot lie – Hebrews 6:18 and Titus 1:2

It seems that the Bible is telling us that it is somehow IMPOSSIBLE for God to lie. Amazing...here is something that God cannot do!

Daniel Webster, “There is nothing as powerful as the truth and often nothing as strange”.

Do we, “not like the truth”?

Story: A man who tells his wife that her cat is dead, but her mom is on the roof.

Where did we learn how to lie?

Maybe it began when we were young and our Mother walked right into our rooms and said, “Did you hit your Brother/Sister”?

Ananias and Sapphira – Acts 5:1-11

Lies bring death:

• Conscience - It’s always easier to tell the seoncd lie, and even easier to tell the third.

• Intimacy - Holding back the truth means we are not being truly intimate with those we call friends/spouse.

• Trust - Once caught in a lie makes it more difficult to trust.

Add to that list:

• Peace

• Credibility

• Self-respect

• Faith

Face the music

The lies of Ananias and Sapphira resulted in death; so have ours.

Some of us find ourselves living in lies wondering whether or not to start telling the truth. The real question is, Will God bless my deceit? Will he who hates lies bless the very thing he hates?

Ephesians 4:25