Last time we closed with a mention of the Cretan poet and
reputed prophet Epeminides, whom Paul quotes in Titus 1:12: “One of themselves,
even a prophet of their own, said, The Cretans are always[s] liars, evil
beasts, slow bellies.”
Fascinatingly,
in the very same era as Epeminides but in a different part of the world, the prophet Jeremiah
labored, and we see lying as a way of life even among God’s chosen people.
Jeremiah 5, in fact, is the most graphic Biblical example of what exists in our
society today. Historically, the Northern Kingdom, Israel, has already been
taken into captivity by the Assyrians (722 B.C.) and only Judah, the Southern
Kingdom, remains. God has, however, been telling them that they too will be
judged harshly for their sin unless they repent. In verse 1, God sends Jeremiah
scurrying through the capital city Jerusalem seeking anyone who “executeth
judgment, that seeketh the truth” and promises to “pardon” the sins of the
entire nation if he can find a single person. But there was not
one.
Think
of it! Not one
person, whether rich or poor, whether citizen or leader (vs. 4-5), told the
truth. Even though they mouthed the words “the LORD liveth,” in reality “surely
they [swore] falsely” (v. 2). Verses 11-12 go on to say that they “dealt very
treacherously against [God]” and lied to Him. Verse 27 paints the picture, “As
a cage [was] full of birds, so are their houses full of deceit.” Verse 31
records that even the “prophets [prophesied] falsely” and that the people loved
it. Like today, people loved what was preached even though it was not true!
Honesty, integrity, veracity, genuineness, and truthfulness were not virtues
to be encouraged, but weaknesses to be avoided. They are
not only bad for business but even bad for ministry. People do not want to hear
the Truth.
To
illustrate further, may I interject that while the foundational approach
to child-training is obedience, the foundational principle is Truth. A
parent must never allow a child to get away with a lie. Further, the punishment
for lying should be more severe than for anything else. Why? For two reasons,
not only because of how important Truth is, as we’ll detail later, but for the
practical reason that a good liar is capable of any other sin, no matter how
bad. Lying rarely, if ever, stands alone; it usually hides other sin. If
a person is good at deception, he can hide anything else. Verses 7-8, for
example, reveal that adultery and fornication permeated the nation, as did
idolatry in verse 19.
Verse 3 is
especially instructive: “They have refused to receive correction: they have
made their faces harder than a rock; they have refused to return.” The imagery
here is unmistakable. They are stubborn, adamant, and even obstinate in their
lies. A liar will fight and do anything to cover up the truth. Why? Because to
admit one lie opens the flood gates to all the others and everything pours out
in a deluge, and the liar is exposed.
In
contrast, a person who loves truth avoids other sin that he would be
compelled to admit if found out. Love for truth will keep us from sin.
Jeremiah
later foretells of the coming judgment of the Babylonian captivity and
destruction of Jerusalem (vs. 14-17; chs. 20-21) if the people continued in
their sin. Did the nation heed Jeremiah? Did the people repent of their sin?
Indeed not. They rejected what he said, struck him, and imprisoned him
(20:2-3). When that didn’t shut him up, they threw him into a muddy dungeon
without food or water and waited for him to die (38:6). A liar hates the one
who exposes his lies.
No comments:
Post a Comment