Thou Shall Not Bear False Witness And You Shall Not Covet Series

Turn to Exodus 20:16-17, as we conclude our sermon series, the Ten Commandments, with today's sermon, "Thou shall not bear false witness and you shall not covet". "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. You shall not covet your neighbor's house, nor covet your neighbor's wife, nor his male servant, nor his female servant, nor his ox, nor his donkey, nor anything that is your neighbor's", end of story.

The ninth commandment simply says tell the truth. Tell the truth. What is truth? Here's the absolute truth. Listen. There is a God of might and majesty who has all power in heaven and in earth. He is all-mighty. He is all-knowing. He is all-powerful. He is not a cosmic bellhop responding to your every request. He's not your doting grandfather sitting benignly in the heavens, watching your bizarre behavior. He is the Creator of heaven and earth. He is Jehovah Shammah, the God who is there. He is Jehovah Jireh, the God that supplies all of your needs. He is Jehovah Rapha, the Lord that heals your sick body.

That miracle-working God here now. He is Jehovah Nissi, he is our banner. He is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the alpha and omega, the first and the last, the one who was and is and always shall be. He is the shepherd of the stars. He calls them by name. He holds the seven seas in the palms of his hand. He weighs the mountains in a scale and the hills in a balance. The islands of the sea are but a small thing. He's the author of the Ten Commandments. These Ten Commandments are the basis of social order and the gateway to happiness and prosperity. These Ten Commandments are the very soul of America! His son, Jesus Christ, said, "I am the way, the truth and the life". That's the truth, the whole truth, nothing but the truth!

And then comes the pinhead that says, "Well, I don't believe in absolute truth". Well, listen up. What you believe has no bearing on reality. God doesn't give you a vote. The world is round, whether you believe it or not. Fire will burn you, whether you believe it or not. Jump off a ten-story building and you will fall, whether you believe in gravity or not. Poison will kill you whether you believe it or not. God's word is absolute, whether you believe it or not, period. The ninth commandment, "Thou shall not bear false witness" actually translates in the Hebrew, you shall not answer nor repeat. You shall not answer nor repeat. Get this. You are not to answer or repeat, that means gossip, unless you were an eyewitness to the event. You might want to write this down.

If you are not an eyewitness in the Bible, you are a false witness. If you are not an eyewitness to what happened, you are a false witness. How many things have you repeated about other people where you were not an eyewitness? By Bible standards, that's a false witness. You don't get to go to court and say what Aunt Mary said about Uncle Ned and say this and that. They want an eyewitness to the fact. Look at what the Bible says about your words. Matthew 12:36, "For by your words, you shall be justified. And by your words, you shall be condemned". Every idle word that men speak shall be judged and they shall give account on the Day of Judgment. Think about that. There's no middle ground. Either justified or condemned. God hates lying. All sin began with lying.

Go with me to the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve were told not to eat the forbidden fruit, or they would surely die. Satan, the father of lies, slipped into the garden and said, "Eve, eat that fruit. You will be like God. You will be just as smart as God". She ate it, her husband ate it, and sin was released on the earth. Sin that birthed every disease, every death, every divorce, every war that has happened from the Genesis until this day was released that day because it gave Satan a license to operate on planet earth. Every death, every divorce, every war that has covered the earth with dead and dying came out of that first lie. Jeremiah said their tongue is a deadly arrow.

David said, "They sharpen their tongues like swords and they aim their words like deadly arrows". The question is: how can I reverse the poison and pain of a lying tongue? How many of you've ever been lied about? The Bible says, "Bless, and curse not". "Bless, and curse not". What does that mean? Proverbs 26:2, "As a swallow darts in flying, so a curse (or a lie) without cause, shall not land". Have you ever seen a swallow fly? They don't fly in a straight line. The point is when you bless those who curse you, the blessing of God covers you with a divine shield of protection and you become a Teflon Christian. The curse, the lie, and the slander will not stick.