Stop Lying: Guard Your Lips

September 20, 2015

Vol. 15, No. 38

WORSHIP
SUGGESTED WORSHIP SONGS:
God is Here, God is in this Place, Broken Vessels, The Wonder of Your Love, Change My Heart

WELCOME
Memorize Ten. Memorize the 10 Commandments using body movements or acrostics for easy recall.

WORD
EXODUS 20:16
You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
Have you ever been lied to? How did it make you feel?
Did you confront the person who lied to you?
The ninth commandment tells us, Do not bear false
witness against your neighbor. It means do not lie.
A lie is an intention to deceive. Today we call a lie in
many different names i.e. a fib, slip of the tongue,
bending the truth or a white lie. But a lie is a lie, no
matter what you call it.

SOME TRUTHS ABOUT LYING

Nothing weakens the truth more than stretching it.
When we choose to lie, we choose to suffer.
The truth may hurt for a little while but a lie may hurt
forever.
If we hold on to God's truth, we won't be trapped by
Satan's lies.
Oh, what a tangled web we weave when first we
practice to deceive! Sir Walter Scott
Of the Ten Commandments of God, the ninth is
broken most often. Many people will struggle to steal,
kill, or commit adultery, but most will find it difficult
to miss a day without lying. Lying seems to be a
second nature to so many people. It is like a way of
life to the point that we can no longer distinguish a lie
from the truth. Many people live a life believing that
their lies are truths.
When the lie detector was invented, after numerous
tests, the results showed that Man is basically
dishonest, as the Bible says it so.
Man's heart, is deceitful above all things, and
desperately wicked. Jeremiah 17:9
A lie is not only spoken words but can also be written
words, actions and silence. The Greek word for a lie is
Pseu, which means untrue, insincere, counterfeit.

WHEN AND WHY DO WE LIE?

Withholding the truth is lying. When we tell our boss
we will do a sales call but in fact we have some
personal errands to make, that is lying. When you tell
your parents you will go to your classmates house for
group study, but you will actually go to a movie with
your friends, that is lying.
We lie because of our fear to be disliked by others, or
we are afraid to fail or to suffer the consequences for
things that we have done. Peter denied Jesus because
he was afraid. Abram lied to the king that Sarai was
his sister because of fear.
We lie by boasting, exaggerating or understating.
Sometimes we get tempted to exaggerate our story to
make ourselves look good; or we hide the dark part of
a story to make it sound better. In exaggerating we
enlarge the matters beyond the truth. In understating
we withhold facts that are vital to the whole truth. If
you conceal sin, you will not prosper; but when you
confess them, you shall find compassion (Proverbs
28:13).
This is usually difficult for followers of Christ who
work in advertising, sales and marketing. We should
make it our habit to give all the facts as they really are
because a half truth is a whole lie. If your job or
business is causing you to tell a lie, it might be time to
pray to get out of it and move on for another career
or business that will glorify God.

SPEAKING THE TRUTH IN LOVE

To build healthy relationships, you need these five
words: Speaking the truth in love
You cannot love and not tell the truth. The Apostle
Paul wrote that as we speak the truth in love, we can

WORD (contd)
grow in faith and build relationships (Ephesians 4:1516).
Love and truth are like oil and vinegar. Oil mixed with
vinegar makes a delectable Italian dressing for a salad.
If you only put vinegar or only oil in your salad, it will
taste awful. Vinegar represents the truth and oil
represents love. Together, they are life building
combination for our relationships. One without the
other can create a lot of serious problems.
If you are a Truth-er, you are likely to speak the
vinegar of truth without the oil of love. Pray
therefore that God will empower you to add a perfect
blend of love in the truth that you speak.

If you are a Lover like oil, you may have a tendency

to speak love but at the expense of truth i.e. you
refuse to confront but you delay or bury the issues.
Pray for God to lead you to confront problems as you
speak in love.
The tongue is powerful; you cannot tame it (James
3:8). Death and life are in your tongue (Proverbs
18:21), coming from the abundance of your heart
(Luke 6:45). Therefore seek the Lord to guard your
mouth (Psalm 141:3). Get rid of sinful lips and ask
God to create in you a new heart (Ezekiel 18:31). You
are not doing this for yourself or to please men, but
all for Gods glory.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
(Leaders: Please choose questions that are appropriate to the level of spiritual maturity of your members)
1. True Lies. What is the Hebrew meaning of lie in Exodus 20:16 as discussed? How do you treat a lie?
2. Oil or Vinegar. Are you oil, vinegar or a tasty Italian dressing of oil and vinegar? What happens when you
only tell the truth without love, or vice versa? Why do you think we need both truth and love?
3. Speaking the Truth in Love. What would you to build up your relationships by speaking the truth in love? What
are the truths that you are withholding to speak in love to your loved ones?

WORKS
LYING IS SERIOUS
Proverbs 6:16-19 tells us Gods hate list where lying
was mentioned twice (v17b, 19). God hates lying
tongue and false witness, because lying associates you
with the father of all lies.
List down all the lies that you remember you have
made. Confess all of these lies to God, and then take a
bold step of faith in action to make amends to the
people you lied to and lied about.
Ask God to give you a new heart (Ezekiel 18:31; Psalm
51:10.) Remember these:
Truth hurts Lies kill
Truth sets us free Lying imprisons us
Truth trusts God Lies trusts self
Truth builds relationships Lies break relationships

WEEKLY PRAYER POINTS

I. Thanksgiving
Worship God for who He is, what He has done,
and what He will do in our lives
II. Country and the World
Upright and moral governance of Public
Servants and a God-centered Philippines
Repentance and Salvation
III. Church
That CCF Members would honor and love God
and make disciples
Elders, Pastors, Leaders, and Families
Ministries and Churches worldwide
IV. CCF Facilities
New Worship and Training Center
Prayer Mountain
V. Personal Concerns
Deeper intimate relationship with God
Righteous living
Salvation of family and friends