Tyler Walker 11/30/03 Bible 7
Honesty
The Bible has a lot to say about honesty and dishonesty. There are many scripture passages on a lying tongue. Many people in the Bible were dishonest and they suffered severe consequences. In Genesis 27:34-46 Jacob lied to his father, and it made his brother so angry that Jacob had to run to safety. “The Lord detests lying lips, but he delights in those who are honest” (Proverbs 12:22). In Proverbs 6 it says the Lord hates a lying tongue, but in chapter 10 it says “one who holds his tongue is wise”. The definition of honesty is truthfulness and sincerity. Lying can get you in a lot more trouble than when you tell the truth. If you are truthful to your parents they will let you do more things and believe your story. If lying becomes a habit it can be very bad and hard to break. A good illustration of dishonesty in the bible was when Ananias and his wife Sapphira sold some land to the apostles and Ananias kept some of the money for himself. His wife knew this and she agreed to it. Peter said to him “why did you let Satan rule your heart? You lied not to man but to God. When Ananias heard this he died right then and there. Then when Sapphira heard that he had died she too died right then and there. Another good illustration of dishonesty was when Achen kept some of the things that were to be given to the Lord as an offering. The Lord became very angry with his actions. As you can see from these Bible stories that lying leads to severe consequences, and that no lie is a good lie. We should obey God’s Word and be honest all the time.