GOD’S WORD FOR SEPTEMBER 29

We are reading from a daily devotional  called “Running To Win” written by Erwin Lutzer  and the late, great D.L. Moody.   Erwin Lutzer is a light in our day as D.L. Moody was in his.  Besides his many ministries, and many books, Pastor Lutzer was Senior Pastor at Moody Church in Chicago for 36 years and now serves as Pastor Emeritus there.  He is  Chancelor and a former professor at Moody Bible Institute, where he taught Theology and Ministry, and now has numerous radio teachings.

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TRUTH, HALF-TRUTHS, AND LIES

Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. Ephesians 4:25

D.L. MOODY

We have got nowadays so that we divide lies into white lies and black lies, society lies, business lies, and so on. The Word of God knows no such letting down of the standard. A lie is a lie, no matter what are the circumstances under which it is uttered, or by whom. I have heard that in Siam, they sew up the mouth of a confirmed liar. I am afraid if that was the custom in this land, a good many would suffer.

Parents should begin with their children while they are young and teach them to be strictly truthful at all times. There is a proverb: “A lie has no legs.” It requires other lies to support it. Tell one lie and you are forced to tell others to back it up.

ERWIN LUTZER

Many years ago I read the book, The Day America Told the Truth, and I was surprised at how often people confessed they had lied, even several times a day. Jesus taught that the devil was the author of lies (John 8:44). It’s frightening to think of how the human hearts sides with Satan, choosing to skew the truth rather than face reality. We must each ask ourselves: Are we truth-tellers, even at our own personal expense?

Let me repeat our verse, “Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth.” If you find yourself telling a lie, confess it immediately to God and to the one whom you have wronged. Let it never be said that we can tolerate deceit. As the saying goes, “Truth hurts, but lies hurt even more.”

Let’s take this a step further. David wrote that a person in fellowship with God “swears to his own hurt and does not change” (Psalm 15:4). In other words, that person not only tells the truth, but lives by what they say, even at their personal expense.

    PRAYER

    Father, I desire the truth and to honor you with the truth. Help me to keep falsehood away from my tongue.

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John 8:32

    “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

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Ephesians 4:25

    “Therefore, putting away lying, ‘Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor,’ for we are members of one another.”

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 Exodus 20:16

    “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”

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 Psalm 101:7

    “He who works deceit shall not dwell within my house; he who tells lies shall not continue in My presence.”

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1 Peter 3:10

    “For ‘He who would love life and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips from speaking deceit.’”

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Proverbs 21:6

    “Getting treasures by a lying tongue is the fleeting fantasy of those who seek death.”

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James 3:14

    “But if you have bitter envy and self-seeking in your hearts, do not boast and lie against the truth.”

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Isaiah 59:4

    “No one calls for justice, nor does any plead for truth. They trust in empty words and speak lies; they conceive evil and bring forth iniquity.”

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Proverbs 30:8

    “Remove falsehood and lies far from me; give me neither poverty nor riches—feed me with the food allotted to me.”

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