10 Words: Commandment 9

Good evening. We are almost done with this series, this week and next, then we will be moving forward. As I announced last week and on Sunday, our next series will be a video series on the book of Revelation. I am greatly looking forward to that, as I will be learning right along with you all.

Old Testament View of the 9th Commandment

9th Commandment.

Exodus 20:16

“Do not give false testimony against your neighbor.”

The 9th Command, as given by the Lord to the Israelites concerned testimony in a court type proceeding. There was already a general understanding that being deceitful is not a good thing, but in court proceedings you could do anything to justify winning, including giving false testimony against your neighbor. The wording of this command is similar in nature to some of the previous commandments, like adultery. Also, how the Israelites would have viewed the command is significantly narrower than how we view it or what Jesus taught about it.

Like all of the other commands, this one is also mentioned in Deut.

Deuteronomy 5:20

“Do not give dishonest testimony against your neighbor.”

I’ll tell you something interesting about these 2 passages that I did not know before I started studying this command. If you notice, the command in Exodus is worded ever so slightly different. The reason for this is because the original Hebrew word was different……it carried a different idea. However, because of the limitations of the English language, we had to settle with false testimony and dishonest testimony.

In the Exodus version, the meaning is lying or untruth, while in the Deuteronomy version, the meaning is insincere, empty, or frivolous. Exodus version is thinking of the nature of the evidence (it is true or false), while the Deuteronomy version emphasizes the spirit in which the evidence is given (a general attitude of not caring or being apathetic towards the truth). While the difference may seem trite, in fact, one is about what we say, while the other is about our hearts and attitudes.

There are actually many places throughout the Mosiac law that discuss different types of dishonesty.

Exodus 23:8

“You must not take a bribe, for a bribe blinds the clear-sighted and corrupts the words of the righteous.”

Deuteronomy 10:17

“For the Lord your God is the God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, mighty, and awe-inspiring God, showing no partiality and taking no bribe.”

Deuteronomy 16:19

“Do not deny justice or show partiality to anyone. Do not accept a bribe, for it blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the righteous.”

Deuteronomy 27:25

“‘The one who accepts a bribe to kill an innocent person is cursed.’ And all the people will say, ‘Amen!’”

We do not have to go very far, past the creation of the world, to find out just how destructive lying and deceitfulness can be. God created humanity as immortal beings…we were made to have fellowship with the Lord…but that did not last very long. Satan crept in and lied to Eve…and of course, she believed the lie, that eating from the tree of knowledge of good and evil would not cause death. In fact, Satan convinced Eve that it was God who was lying…God was trying to simply “keep them down” and oppress them, because God did not want Adam and Eve to be like him…but I suppose we should expect no less from the father of lies. The problem is not that Satan lies, it’s that we believe his lies. I would argue that Satan still uses this lie to great effect today.

As I mentioned before, even in the Old Testament, God made it very clear that dishonesty was not acceptable…however, just like the Israelites, we too always like to find ways around the rule and tend to justify our actions. You can tell by the wording of these different commands that God was trying to get to the heart of why people are deceitful, instead of focusing just on the actual lie. What I want to do for this commandment, aside from reading our passage in James, (which we will do while I wrap up) is talk about the different kinds of deceit that we often are guilty of. Some of these are obvious, but some of them are very sneaky…things we do not often associate with breaking the 9th Command.

malice

fear

profit

silence

boasting

lie which is a half-truth

lie to self

lie to God

Some of these can be related, but often have different motives. We won’t spend a ton of time on each one because there are quite a few.

Malice: the intention or desire to do evil; ill will.

There are some people who have a very utopian view of life and do not believe that a person can operate with pure malice. I showed a clip from Batman a few weeks ago so I won’t show it again, but in the clip, Bruce Wayne is trying to figure out Joker’s motive. It doesn’t seem as though he is doing it for money or power or any reason that people normally do bad things…so Alfred tells Bruce a story about a guy he knew that would kill for no other reason other than he enjoyed watching people suffer. In technical terms, this person would be called a sadist. They enjoy inflicting pain on others, whether physical or emotional.

1 Peter 2:1–2

“Therefore, rid yourselves of all malice, all deceit, hypocrisy, envy, and all slander. Like newborn infants, desire the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow up into your salvation,”

Here in 1 Peter, we see the author closely associate malice and lying. Of course, I would hope very few people go around being deceitful out of pure spite and malice…but we can’t be naive and think it does not exist.

2. Fear: An emotional response to perceived threats or danger, characterized by a sense of unease, apprehension, or anxiety. Also: Affright; Afraid; Cowardice; Dread; Fray; Panic; Terror

Besides pure malice, one reason that people lie or are deceitful is because of fear. This is a big one and is the cause of a good portion of deceit. In fact, fear can cause us to do all manner of things, from murder to lying. Sometimes we will lie to a person because we do not want to hurt their feelings. Sometimes we lie because we get caught up in people pleasing. People pleasing is caused by fear and will usually result in us having to lie to someone.

One of the perfect examples of this that we can find early in Scripture is from Abraham. Two times Abraham lied out of fear for his life. Both times involved denying that Sarah was his wife.

Genesis 12:10–12

“There was a famine in the land, so Abram went down to Egypt to stay there for a while because the famine in the land was severe. When he was about to enter Egypt, he said to his wife, Sarai, “Look, I know what a beautiful woman you are. When the Egyptians see you, they will say, ‘This is his wife.’ They will kill me but let you live.”

To be honest, each on of these motivations could take up an entire sermon…especially fear. On one hand, fear is a necessary component to have in our lives…and not just the fear of God. Fear is what keeps us from jumping off of a building or jumping in front of a train. Fear is what keeps us from touching a hot stove on purpose. However, fear is also what paralyzes us emotionally and causes all manner of long term emotional, spiritual and physical consequences. For some people, fear is what drives their every decision…fear that something bad will happen to them or someone they love. This is why God’s word says that we have not been given a spirit of fear.

3. Profit: to obtain a financial advantage or benefit, especially from an investment.

The Bible talks about dishonest scales and warns against those who sell things to others to make sure they are being fair and not taking advantage. We see this type of dishonesty almost every week in the news. Someone gets busted for running a ponzie scheme and gets away with 100’s of millions of dollars. In fact, the only time that we see Jesus actually act aggressively is when he throws the money changers out of the temple. The money changers were known to use deception…for the sake of profit. To be honest though, we are no different. If we go into a store and the cashier gives us back the wrong change…once we discover it, do we take it back or just keep it? Small instances like these can be deception.

1 Timothy 6:6–10

“But godliness with contentment is great gain. For we brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out. If we have food and clothing, we will be content with these. But those who want to be rich fall into temptation, a trap, and many foolish and harmful desires, which plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evil, and by craving it, some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”

4. Silence: withholding the truth by not speaking at all.

Among other common lies, we have the silent lie — The deception which one conveys by simply keeping still and concealing the truth. Many obstinate truth-mongers indulge in this, imagining that if they speak no lie, they lie not at all.” Mark Twain

Looking back at the original intent of the 9th command, the book of lev. addresses this type of lie directly

Leviticus 5:1

““When someone sins in any of these ways: If he has seen, heard, or known about something he has witnessed, and did not respond to a public call to testify, he will bear his iniquity.”

Story: when I was in T.C., the program was divided up into phases, the first phase was 4 months, while the 2nd phase was supposed to be 10 months. This story takes place well into the 2nd phase of the program…meaning, myself and the other people involved were not new to the program. The program had very strict rules about music. We were only allowed to listen to Christian music…we weren’t allowed to have radios. One day, this guy (who I shared the same dorm with) asked me if I wanted to see something…so, I said yes..of course. Turns out, while he was out working at the thrift shop owned by T.C., he stole a radio and brought it back with him so he could listen to country music. I asked him if his roommates knew…he said yes, that he will turn it on at night and they will all listen to it. I walked away from that thinking…I wish he did not share that with me. A couple of weeks go by and I found myself not being able to sleep at night. My conscience was bothering me. So, I went to the guy and asked him to get rid of it…as I am now implicated in his theft and dishonesty. He refused to get rid of it…so I asked him one last time and told him that if he didn’t I would say something. He still refused. I think he figured I would not say anything…because if I did, I’m not just ratting on him, but on everyone…because everyone knew and was keeping the secret.

I did say something and was very much hated as a result. In fact, this guy and I were supposed to graduate together, but he ended up getting an extra 2 months because of this issue. Most guys in T.C. and most people in general think that silence is not lying…but it is. To know the truth but withhold it is a lie.

5. Boasting: excessively proud and self-satisfied talk about one's achievements, possessions, or abilities.

When I was a kid, I would, on a regular occasion, boast about things that were not true. To be honest, I did this for a number of reasons. I wanted my peers to like me. One day I was riding home on the bus with this kid who had just gotten a new pair of Air Jordan shoes. These things were ungodly expensive…something that my parents wouldn’t buy me in a million years…even if they could…which they couldn’t. Well, not to be outdone, I told this kid that I had a pair of Jordan shoes as well…but they were Black and White instead of red and black. Of course the follow up question was: where are they? I told him that I didn’t like to wear them to school because they could get ruined. As the school year wore on, my one pair of Jordan’s grew into 5 pairs. By the end of that school year, I was miserable, just trying to keep up the lie. To be honest, that lie had a few underlying factors…one of which was boasting…but there was also fear…fear that i wouldn’t be accepted by my peers.

I mentioned to you all a few weeks ago that I used to golf…well, I would go out with people who would cheat on their golf score, just so they could have bragging rights. Pride and a low sense of self worth can lead to this type of deceit.

James 4:16

“But as it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.”

Jeremiah 9:23–24

““ ‘This is what the Lord says: The wise person should not boast in his wisdom; the strong should not boast in his strength; the wealthy should not boast in his wealth. But the one who boasts should boast in this: that he understands and knows me— that I am the Lord, showing faithful love, justice, and righteousness on the earth, for I delight in these things. This is the Lord’s declaration.”

6: Half-Truth: a statement that conveys only part of the truth, especially one used deliberately in order to deceive someone.

The half-truth type of lie is a big one as well. We only tell part of the story, but hold back that which makes us look bad.

Earlier on I spoke about Satan lying to Eve in the garden. Satan told 2 lies to Eve, one was a blatant lie, that they would not die…there was no truth in that…Adam and Eve did end up dying…which was not God’s original plan. The half-truth is found in

Genesis 3:5

““In fact, God knows that when you eat it your eyes will be opened and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.””

Eve’s eyes were opened, but her experience of knowing good and evil was far from being like God. It opened the door for humanity to choose Satan’s way of thinking, not God’s way. Satan basically told her enough of the truth to hook her, and left out enough of the lie to make it seem like a “win-win” choice.

Also, in Gen. 12, Abraham told a half-truth when asked who Sara was…he said that Sarah is his sister…which she sort of was, but not really. He told this half-truth out of fear for his own safety.

7. Lying to Yourself: the act or an instance of deceiving oneself or the state of being deceived by oneself especially concerning one's true nature, feelings, etc.

This is probably the most common lie that Christians tell. When we lie to ourselves, we are