Is it true that I am dishonest if I do not tell the whole truth?
Suggested Daily Reading: Proverbs 12: 17-28
Yes, I can deceive someone by saying true things, but by hiding other aspects of the truth. For example, you ask permission to go to a good friend’s place tonight. Your Mom responds, “What will you be doing?” You reply, “we’ll be doing our homework. While this is true, it is only half of the truth, because you are also planning to to meet up with some other friends to go bowling after your homework is finished. Yes, you can be deceptive by only revealing part of the truth and concealing other aspects of it.
Honesty and trust are best friends. You cannot have the one without the other. If your parents or some friends do not trust you, this is a key indicator that you have not always been fully honest. If you find that people trust your word, this indicates that, by the grace of God, you have been very honest. The rich rewards for being fully honest is God’s favor and people’s trust.
We can be tempted to lie, however, for many reasons. For example, to avoid undesired consequences, to be praised, to make money, or to harm others. Lying is self-centered. God is a God of truth, Who cannot lie. Satan is the father of lies. God hates all types of lying. Lying is an abomination to God, but truth is His delight (Prov. 12:22).
We can be dishonest and deceptive in many ways. For example, we can minimize or exaggerate something to serve our own purposes, or tell only the parts of the truth that best serve our purpose, or be silent to deceive others to protect myself, or by flattering others so they will like us and do what we ask, or by pretending to be able to do or not do something to serve our own desires.
Not only must we be fully honest with other people, we must also be open and honest with God. How do we do this? We do so when we pray to Him and openly and honestly confess all our sins and failures. We do so when we look to Jesus as the only Savior, Who can deliver me from all my sin. We do so when we pray for the Holy Spirit to equip us to live according to God’s law – to love God above all and others as ourselves.
Why is Satan called “the father of lies?” How can a person lie by being silent? Are you fully honest with others? Do people trust you? If some people tend not to readily trust you, how can you change this? Why is honesty with God in prayer so important?