Sermon for 1/30/2000
A Honest Heart
Ephesians 4:25
Introduction:
A. Famous American Fibs.
1. The check is in the mail.
2. I’ll start my diet tomorrow.
3. We service what we sell.
4. Give me your number and the doctor will call you right back.
5. Your luggage isn’t lost, it’s only misplaced.
6. Leave your resume and we’ll keep it on file.
7. I just need five minutes of your time.
8. Your table will be ready in a few minutes.
9. Open wide, it won’t hurt a bit.
10. Let’s have lunch sometime.
B. The story is told of four high school boys who couldn’t resist the temptation to skip morning classes. Each had been smitten with a bad case of spring fever. After lunch they showed up at school and reported to the teacher that their car had a flat tire. Much to their relief, she smiled and said, “Well, you missed a quiz this morning, so take your seats and get out a pencil and paper.” Still smiling, she waited as they settled down and got ready for her questions. Then she said, “First question- which tire was flat?”
C. A store manager head his clerk tell a customer, “No, ma’am, we haven’t had any for a while, and it doesn’t look as if we’ll be getting any soon.” Horrified, the manager came running over to the customer and said, “Of course we’ll have some soon. We placed an order last week.” Then the manager drew the clerk aside. “Never,” he snarled, “Never, never, never say we’re out of anything- say we’ve got it on order and it’s coming. Now, what was it she wanted?” The clerk said, “Rain!”
D. A USA Today poll found that only 56% of Americans teach honesty to their children. A Louis Harris poll turned up the distressing fact that 65% of high school students would cheat on an important exam. Not to long ago a noted physician appeared on a network news-and-talk show and proclaimed, “Lying is an important part of social life, and children who are unable to do it are children who may have developmental problems.”
E. A minister told his congregation, Next week, I plan to preach about the sin of lying. To help you understand my sermon, I want you all to read March chapter 17. The following Sunday, as he prepared to deliver his sermon, the minister asked for a show of hands. He wanted to know how many had read Mark chapter 17. Every hand went up. The minister smiled and said, Mark has only 16 chapters. I will now proceed with my sermon on the sin of lying.
WBTU:
A. Ephesians 4:17-24- the First sermon in this series.
B. Read Ephesians 4:17-24 and make a few points on each verse.
a. Vs. 17- Mankind thinks that he is so smart, but rather his whole mind and thoughts are futile.
a. b. Vs. 18- Alienated or separated.
b. Blindness or hardening.
c. Satan has deluded their minds because of sin.
a. Vs. 19- Being past feeling or lost all sensitivity. We see that today.
b. Uncleanness with greediness or impurity with a continual lust for more.
a. Vs. 20- 21- Learned Christ or know Christ that way.
b. We see Christ our Lesson and Christ our teacher.
c. The condition of learning the Lesson and hearing the Teacher.
d. Must have union with Christ. Must have salvation to begin with. We should be unlike surrounding corruption.
Jesus is the truth. Everything about him is truthful.
a. Vs. 22- Put off the old man- put off your old self. Dark picture of mankind; make light so much brighter.
b. Universal sinful nature. Possibility of fulfilling command.
1) Union with Christ. Dying to sin. In baptism.
1) The waters of our heart are made sweet. New heart. Deceitful desires- mere actors trying to get something.
a. Vs. 23- Spirit or attitude. Many of us need the new attitude.
a. Vs. 24- Created according to God or created to be like God.
b. Great purpose of Gospel is our moral renewal. Has to be put on.
C. So far in this chapter Paul has been giving a contrast between the old way of life and the new way of life or new heart.
D. In the rest of the chapter Paul goes from these general concepts into more specific instructions on what we are to put away or put off.
E. Vs. 21- Truth is in Jesus. Vs. 22- Deceitful lusts, desires. Goes right into this first and most obvious command and instruction. Vs. 25
F. Put off falsehood. Church must be marked by a refreshing openness, mutual frankness. Must trust one another.
G. One of the Ten Commandments is (Exo 20:16 NIV) "You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
H. At a trial, the prosecuting attorney asked the defendant if he committed the murder. The defendant said he did not. The attorney then asked the man if he understood the penalty for perjury. The man said, “I sure do! I understand the penalty for perjury is a lot less than the penalty for murder!”
I. We are like witnesses in court, we are called to tell the truth.
J. We are all witnesses for Jesus Christ. The witness in court eventually steps down from the witness chair, but the witness for Christ never does.
Thesis: For the Christian, deception is never an option. It wasn’t an option for Jesus and neither for us. We have a new heart. We have a honest heart.
For instances:
I. What God can not do.
A. Isaiah says that the Messiah would have no deceit in his mouth. Jesus was staunchly honest. No deceit was found in his mouth.
B. God wants us to be just like Jesus. (Psa 101:7 NIV) No one who practices deceit will dwell in my house; no one who speaks falsely will stand in my presence.
C. Lying ranks right up there with those who are sexually immoral, adulterers, idolaters, prostitution, getting drunk, robbing people, etc.
D. (Prov 12:22 NIV) The LORD detests lying lips, but he delights in men who are truthful. Proverbs 6:16- The Lord hates a lying tongue. (Psa 5:6 NIV) You destroy those who tell lies; bloodthirsty and deceitful men the LORD abhors.
E. Why so hard?
F. Dishonesty is absolutely contrary to the character of God. Titus 1:2- God cannot lie.
G. God always speaks truth. (2 Tim 2:13 NIV) if we are faithless, he will remain faithful, for he cannot disown himself.
H. Satan is a different story. He finds it impossible to tell the truth. Jesus said that Satan is the father of lies. His native language is falsehood.
I. Garden of Eden. God says you’ll die if you eat the fruit? You will not die. A Big Fat Liar.
J. Daniel Webster, “There is nothing as powerful as the truth and often nothing as strange.”
II. The Wages of Deceit.
A. It is natural for us to lie. It is part of our culture. If it were not for our Christian heritage, we would be like the rest of the nations, where bribes are common place and a man’s word doesn’t mean a thing.
B. The question should be, “Why does God demand such honesty?” but rather, “Why do we tolerate such dishonest?”
C. Jeremiah said rightly: The heart is deceitful above all things.
D. Why?
1. We don’t like the truth.
a. When my wife asks me if this looks alright.
b. When a co-worker comes to you asks for your opinion of his work and you really tell him the truth.
c. You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you squirm.
d. Our dislike for the truth began at the age of three when mom walked into our rooms and asked, “Did you hit your little brother?” We knew then and there that honesty had its consequences. So we learned to lie, no, we learned to cover things up. “Did I hit baby brother? That all depends on how you interpret the word hit. I mean, sure I made contact with him, but would a jury consider it a “hit?” Everything is relative, you know.” Did I hit baby brother? Yes, Dad, I did. But it’s not my fault. Had I been born with nonaggressive chromosomes, and had you not permitted me to watch television, it never would have happened. So, you can say I hit my brother, but the fault isn’t mine. I’m a victim of nurture and nature.
e. The truth, we learn early, is not fun. We don’t like the truth because many times it makes us look bad.
2. We don’t trust the truth.
a. The truth seems inadequate to do what we need done.
b. Our boss. Flattery.
c. We exaggerate.
d. Stretch the truth.
e. Hide the truth.
f. Lying is OK as long as it doesn’t injure anyone, isn’t it? Got to have some fun.
g. Unfulfilled promises.
h. Lies out of convenience. Don’t want to take the time to explain or… The story is told of an old fellow who boarded a train, occupied the best seat, and then tried to reserve still another for himself by placing his luggage upon it. Just before the crowded vehicle started, a teenage boy came running up and jumped aboard. Irritably the man said, “This car is full, that seat next to me is reserved for a friend of mine who has put his bag there.” The youth paid little attention but sat down saying, “All right, I’ll stay here until he comes.” He placed the suitcase upon his knees while the elderly man glared at him in vain. Of course, the “friend” didn’t appear, and soon the train began to move. As it glided past the platform, the young fellow tossed the bag through the open window remarking. “Apparently your friend has missed the train. We mustn’t let him lose his luggage too!” With a horrified expression on his face the old gentleman began to fume and sputter. That lie had cost him his luggage.
i. How are you? Fine, maybe you are not.
j. Living a lie. Appear righteous but are full of sin and hypocrisy.
k. Telling half-truths. Ananias and Sapphira. Misrepresenting the truth.
III. If we don’t tell the truth.
A. We should be glad that God doesn’t still strike people dead for lying.
B. Not death of body, but death of:
1. Marriage. Falsehoods are termites in trunk of family tree.
2. Conscience. Tragedy of second lie is that it is easier to tell than the first.
3. Career- Students booted out for cheating, employee fired for embezzlement.
4. Others Faith in us. When Aristotle was asked what a man could gain by telling a falsehood, he replied, “Never to be credited when he speaks the truth.”
5. God’s faith in us. Our witness is ruined. Max Lucado- The court won’t listen to the testimony of a perjured witness. Neither will the world. Do we think our coworkers will believe our words about Christ when they can’t even believe our words about how we handled our expense account? Even more significantly, do we think God will use us as a witness if we won’t tell the truth?
C. Teenager who convinced me to go to Chesapeake for a movie theater. Took short way and he lead me to the beach instead. Never again did I trust him.
D. (Mat 25:21 NIV) "His master replied, ’Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’
Conclusion:
A. Many years ago a man conned his way into the orchestra of the emperor of China although he could not play a note. Whenever the group practiced or performed, he would hold his flute against his lips, pretending to play but not making a sound. He received a modest salary and enjoyed a comfortable living. Then one day the emperor requested a solo from each musician. The flutist got nervous. There wasn’t enough time to learn the instrument. He pretended to be sick, but the royal physician wasn’t fooled. On the day of his solo performance, the impostor took poison and killed himself. The explanation of his suicide led to a phrase that found its way into the English language: “He refused to face the music.”
B. The cure of deceit is simply this: face the music.
C. Examine your heart. Ask yourself some tough questions. Do I tell the truth, always?
D. (Col 3:9 NIV) Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices
E. (John 8:32 NIV) Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."
