An urgent message was sent to me. I ask you to pray for these friends in the Ukraine:
The Russians are attacking the south of Ukraine. Please pray in earnest as the many Lutherans in that area are trying to escape today. Our Romanian helpers are working with them. Many roads are destroyed and the others are dangerous. Please also pray for the Romanian Lutherans who are risking their own life to help. “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Linda Phillips, Helping Hands Eastern European Ministries
The Russians are attacking the south of Ukraine. Please pray in earnest as the many Lutherans in that area are trying to escape today. Our Romanian helpers are working with them. Many roads are destroyed and the others are dangerous. Please also pray for the Romanian Lutherans who are risking their own life to help. “God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” Linda Phillips, Helping Hands Eastern European Ministries
““But cowards, unbelievers, the corrupt, murderers, the immoral, those who practice witchcraft, idol worshipers, and all liars—their fate is in the fiery lake of burning sulfur. This is the second death.”” (Revelation 21:8, NLT)
A 1984 IRS survey found that 50 percent of Americans lie on their tax forms. A 1987 survey of 1006 adults found that 71 percent of those questioned expressed that there were dishonest occurrences in their everyday dealings with others and that honesty is rare. “A New York firm that annually investigates thousands of resumes finds outright lies in 20 percent of them. The American Insurance Association says that 20 percent of insurance claims contain an element of fraud.” (pp. 140,141, Speaker’s Sourcebook of New Illustrations)
Lies and liars are not uncommon.
Why is that? Some people lie to cover up their sin or shame or regret. Some lie to get ahead or to manipulate others. The great Pascal once wrote that there are some people who lie just for the sake of lying. They enjoy deception. Even though Satan is called the “Father of lies”, people often do not associate lying with evil. In fact, the term “white lie” is used to explain how some lies are a better choice when the truth is hard to swallow. Lying in business is often rewarded. Some psychotherapists urge people to lie as a good method to cope with difficult aspects of life. Any way you look at it, lies and lying are downplayed by the worldly as part of everyday life and even natural.
God does not see it that way.
In our scripture for today from the book of Revelation, there is a list of those who will not be allowed a place in Heaven. In point of reference, their future will be “in the fiery lake of burning sulfur”, also known as Hell (Revelation 21:8). “Cowards, unbelievers, the corrupt, murderers, immoral people, witches, and idol worshippers” are all destined for hell. Surprisingly, the last ones added to this list are “all liars”. According to this scripture, lying is as bad as murder and witchcraft, yet most people do not deem them even comparable. However, in God’s eyes lying is not only evil but also an abomination as noted in Proverbs 12:22; “Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord…”.
Worldly attitudes have so infiltrated the church that lying is often passed off as a tool to be used in dealing with other Christians. A pastor in Missouri lied to his church about past sins. When they sought to hire him, he said he was leaving is church in Detroit in order to move to warmer weather. What he failed to tell them was that he was fleeing a church in Detroit where he had three affairs with different women in his own church! Recently a woman named Linda Morrow was videotaped in her church in Clarksville Tennessee, praying with two women. While one woman held her hand and prayed, her friend (seated in the pew behind) quietly took Linda’s purse and stole her money. It was all caught on the security system. The prayer time was all a scam, all a lie! You would think that Christians, who read the Bible, would know that lying is a serious crime from God’s point of view. Sadly, this is not the case. Liars are not only common in our world, they have infiltrated God’s church!
With liars and lying so prevalent in our world, you might be tempted to lie as well. When you are caught doing something wrong, you might think lying will get you out of the jam. Maybe. However, you will put your faith with God in jeopardy in order to get yourself out of that situation. Lying is a serious matter. You should not employ it for any reason.
Many years ago, a woman from my congregation named Carla came to me for help. She could not pay her bills and was in desperate need. Her husband had died two years previous, and the household income had fallen off. Since that time, she slowly used up her savings. Now, every month, she was using her credit cards to get by. She had accumulated thousands of dollars in debt. Her son moved back home to help her around the house and help with her grieving. He contributed to her income by paying some of her bills. She was very thankful for her son’s help.
As we began to look at ways for Carla to cope with her situation, the church paid for several of Carla’s past-due bills to give her some breathing room. Then, Carla and I met together to form a budget and work through her grief. Carla felt like a failure because of her money situation. I tried to bring her comfort and healing as she dealt with all the debts.
In the months following, I discovered that Carla’s son had been siphoning money from Carla’s savings. I also suspected that he had been stealing from her wallet while she slept. He had a drug problem that he kept under wraps. However, the costs of the drugs and his addiction kept him constantly in need of a fix. When I approached Carla with the facts and my fears for what her son had done, she became extremely angry. She told me that I was not only a liar but a terrible pastor. In the next months, she not only smeared my name, but she also quit the church. Several of her friends blamed me for the situation.
Over the next year, two of Carla’s friends came to me privately. They confessed that they, too, believed Carla’s son was stealing from her. They had broached the subject with Carla and were also banished as friends. A few years later, Carla’s house was put up for sale. She lost everything and had to move in with a sister.
Carla was lying to herself and others. She could not believe her son was an addict. She never believed he stole from her. She constantly berated herself for her lack of funds, when in fact she was very frugal with her money. Carla just could not live with the facts of her situation. She refused to listen to me or to friends. Lies destroyed Carla’s life over time. By failing to see the truth, believe her friends, listen to God, and deal with her son, she was destined to poverty and regret. She became an angry and vengeful person. She stopped going to church altogether, telling people that the church was full of hypocrites and liars!
Beware the lies you tell yourself. Watch out for the lies you are tempted to use to cover your own insecurities. Be wise enough to look for lies and liars in your dealings with others. Lies and coverups not only surround politicians. They are often present in the average citizen! They are even found among Christians. Peter lied about his relationship with Jesus. Judas lied about his dealings with the Jewish leaders. The Jewish authorities lied to the people of Jerusalem about Jesus’ miracles and ministry. Lies led to Jesus’ death on a cross.
Don’t underestimate the danger of lies. Repent of all your own lies, even white lies. You won’t see Heaven if lies permeate your life. God can’t protect you if you refuse to listen to the truth. God won’t reward you when you live a lie.
Lies and liars are not uncommon.
Why is that? Some people lie to cover up their sin or shame or regret. Some lie to get ahead or to manipulate others. The great Pascal once wrote that there are some people who lie just for the sake of lying. They enjoy deception. Even though Satan is called the “Father of lies”, people often do not associate lying with evil. In fact, the term “white lie” is used to explain how some lies are a better choice when the truth is hard to swallow. Lying in business is often rewarded. Some psychotherapists urge people to lie as a good method to cope with difficult aspects of life. Any way you look at it, lies and lying are downplayed by the worldly as part of everyday life and even natural.
God does not see it that way.
In our scripture for today from the book of Revelation, there is a list of those who will not be allowed a place in Heaven. In point of reference, their future will be “in the fiery lake of burning sulfur”, also known as Hell (Revelation 21:8). “Cowards, unbelievers, the corrupt, murderers, immoral people, witches, and idol worshippers” are all destined for hell. Surprisingly, the last ones added to this list are “all liars”. According to this scripture, lying is as bad as murder and witchcraft, yet most people do not deem them even comparable. However, in God’s eyes lying is not only evil but also an abomination as noted in Proverbs 12:22; “Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord…”.
Worldly attitudes have so infiltrated the church that lying is often passed off as a tool to be used in dealing with other Christians. A pastor in Missouri lied to his church about past sins. When they sought to hire him, he said he was leaving is church in Detroit in order to move to warmer weather. What he failed to tell them was that he was fleeing a church in Detroit where he had three affairs with different women in his own church! Recently a woman named Linda Morrow was videotaped in her church in Clarksville Tennessee, praying with two women. While one woman held her hand and prayed, her friend (seated in the pew behind) quietly took Linda’s purse and stole her money. It was all caught on the security system. The prayer time was all a scam, all a lie! You would think that Christians, who read the Bible, would know that lying is a serious crime from God’s point of view. Sadly, this is not the case. Liars are not only common in our world, they have infiltrated God’s church!
With liars and lying so prevalent in our world, you might be tempted to lie as well. When you are caught doing something wrong, you might think lying will get you out of the jam. Maybe. However, you will put your faith with God in jeopardy in order to get yourself out of that situation. Lying is a serious matter. You should not employ it for any reason.
Many years ago, a woman from my congregation named Carla came to me for help. She could not pay her bills and was in desperate need. Her husband had died two years previous, and the household income had fallen off. Since that time, she slowly used up her savings. Now, every month, she was using her credit cards to get by. She had accumulated thousands of dollars in debt. Her son moved back home to help her around the house and help with her grieving. He contributed to her income by paying some of her bills. She was very thankful for her son’s help.
As we began to look at ways for Carla to cope with her situation, the church paid for several of Carla’s past-due bills to give her some breathing room. Then, Carla and I met together to form a budget and work through her grief. Carla felt like a failure because of her money situation. I tried to bring her comfort and healing as she dealt with all the debts.
In the months following, I discovered that Carla’s son had been siphoning money from Carla’s savings. I also suspected that he had been stealing from her wallet while she slept. He had a drug problem that he kept under wraps. However, the costs of the drugs and his addiction kept him constantly in need of a fix. When I approached Carla with the facts and my fears for what her son had done, she became extremely angry. She told me that I was not only a liar but a terrible pastor. In the next months, she not only smeared my name, but she also quit the church. Several of her friends blamed me for the situation.
Over the next year, two of Carla’s friends came to me privately. They confessed that they, too, believed Carla’s son was stealing from her. They had broached the subject with Carla and were also banished as friends. A few years later, Carla’s house was put up for sale. She lost everything and had to move in with a sister.
Carla was lying to herself and others. She could not believe her son was an addict. She never believed he stole from her. She constantly berated herself for her lack of funds, when in fact she was very frugal with her money. Carla just could not live with the facts of her situation. She refused to listen to me or to friends. Lies destroyed Carla’s life over time. By failing to see the truth, believe her friends, listen to God, and deal with her son, she was destined to poverty and regret. She became an angry and vengeful person. She stopped going to church altogether, telling people that the church was full of hypocrites and liars!
Beware the lies you tell yourself. Watch out for the lies you are tempted to use to cover your own insecurities. Be wise enough to look for lies and liars in your dealings with others. Lies and coverups not only surround politicians. They are often present in the average citizen! They are even found among Christians. Peter lied about his relationship with Jesus. Judas lied about his dealings with the Jewish leaders. The Jewish authorities lied to the people of Jerusalem about Jesus’ miracles and ministry. Lies led to Jesus’ death on a cross.
Don’t underestimate the danger of lies. Repent of all your own lies, even white lies. You won’t see Heaven if lies permeate your life. God can’t protect you if you refuse to listen to the truth. God won’t reward you when you live a lie.