Lying Eyes

They say that our eyes are windows to the soul. That's so true. I can look at my children and know whether or not they are telling me the truth. And nine times out of ten, your parents can tell what's going on when they look at you. You may think that all parents are dumber than dirt, but we see things in you that you just can't hide. In the words of the great rock band, The Eagles, "You can't hide your lying eyes."

Since the beginning of time people have been lying to those in authority over them, and to themselves, by failing to accept responsibility for their wrong actions (sins). Remember Adam and Eve and the forbidden fruit? They disobeyed God by eating the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. When God asked them about it, Adam pointed his finger at Eve, who in turn blamed the serpent for deceiving them. Seems to me that the one who lies is dumber than dirt.

What about Cain? We learn in Genesis 4 that he got angry and killed his brother Abel because the Lord accepted Abel's offering and rejected his. Abel didn't do anything wrong; in fact, he offered to God the very best of his firstborn lambs. When God asked where Abel was, Cain responded, "I don't know. Am I my brother's guardian?" (v. 9) Talk about denying his own wrongdoing! God wasn't fooled. "But the LORD said, 'What have you done? Listen! Your brother's blood cries out to me from the ground! Now you are cursed and banished from the ground, which has swallowed your brother's blood. No longer will the ground yield good crops for you, no matter how hard you work! From now on you will be a homeless wanderer on the earth'" (Genesis 4:10-12, NLT).

Make no mistake, lying is never the solution for avoiding the consequences of your sin. You might fool yourself into believing that your sin is not such a big deal, but you'll never convince God or your parents. That's because they love you too much to overlook an offense that could bring you or others great harm.

Cain learned a painful lesson: that sin results in unavoidable and potentially devastating consequences. The only cure for sin is taking responsibility for your actions, repenting of (turning away from) the sinful behavior, and seeking the forgiveness of God and those against whom you have sinned, including yourself. "If we claim that we're free of sin, we're only fooling ourselves. A claim like that is errant nonsense. On the other hand, if we admit our sins—make a clean breast of them—he won't let us down; he'll be true to himself. He'll forgive our sins and purge us of all wrongdoing" (1 John 1:8-9, The Message).

The Truth About Lies

One of the hardest lessons for a teenager to learn is that it is never okay to tell a lie. What may seem to be an innocent little fib can turn into a bold-faced and malicious lie capable of hurting others and ruining the reputations of innocent victims. Telling a lie is a very hard habit to break. That's because Satan is the father of lies (John 8:44) and the master of deceit. He can make you think that telling a lie to protect yourself or someone else is no big deal, when in fact he is setting you up to tell an even bigger lie the next time.

Do you realize that as a Christian you are to display the character of Jesus, not Satan? In this world, the devil makes sure that we think we are better off taking the easy way out by telling a lie or two. What he is really doing is making you think that following Christ is neither easy nor cool. The truth is, that in itself is a lie! "The devil is described, more than anything else, as a liar. He has no power to defeat God, but he is skilled at lying, and convincing people to listen to his lies. Anyone who lies is modeling their behavior on the devil" (http://www.gospel.com/topics/lies). The Bible doesn't tell us that living for Christ results in bondage or drudgery. Rather, it tells us that when we know and live the truth, the truth will set us free and that if Jesus sets us free from sin, then we are truly free (John 8:32, 36).

Don't let Satan ever convince you that telling a lie is okay, because it isn't. If you honor God by telling the truth, he will honor you. Be faithful to the One who is faithful, and don't give the devil another victory by telling a lie.