Truth or lie?

Numbers 23:19 (NLT)

God is not a man, so He does not lie.  He is not human, so He does not change His mind.  Has he ever spoken and failed to act?  Has he ever promised and not carried it through?

God does not lie.  How do you and I know this for sure?  Well, here is where the Bible says that God does not lie.  Titus 1:2 and Hebrews 6:18 also state that God cannot lie.  So, you either believe this claim or you don’t.  If you do, you have great peace that whatever promises are made in the Bible come true and you can stand on whatever biblical claims you wish.  If you don’t, well……you have nothing to trust in, nothing to stand on, and nothing to anchor your life’s views. 

In contrast to God always telling the truth, what about people?  I was watching a TV news program about politicians caught lying.  Remember Bill Clinton firmly and vigorously denying that he had sex with Monica Lewinsky?  John Edwards was shown replying to a reporter with as straight a face as you can ever see that he did not have a relationship with Rielle Hunter.  Anthony Weiner lying through his teeth about lewd photos on Twitter.  I’m picking on politicians because their lies were so visible yet how good they were for awhile at lying.  It seems to be the case that the more a person knows how essential it is to tell the truth, the better he/she is at telling a lie.   

All of us have been victimized by liars.  We’ve experienced lies from family members, workplace management, friends and neighbors.  We’ve experienced broken contracts, promises not kept, and excuses we knew were untrue.  We’ve been lied to and deceived by political leaders, athletes, business leaders, and those we believed were telling the truth. 

Plus, because you are human, you have lied too, maybe a little, maybe a lot.   There is so much written about lying in the Scriptures (e.g. Lev 19:12, I Kings 22:16, Prov 14:5, 19:5, 9, and 25:8, Zech 8;17, and Rev 21:8) because it is human nature to lie.  Lying is one of the seven abominations to the Lord (Prov 6:16-19).  The Lord destroyed Ananias and Sapphira for lying in Act 5:1-11.  While lying is within our nature, it is wrong, and must be stopped.    

People will always be liars this side of heaven.  Of course, as Christians, we are to tell the truth always and the more mature we become, the more truthful we become.  Colossians 3:9-10 affirms that Christians are never to lie to one another.  Yet, because of human nature there will always be the tendency to lie. 

Back to God…..He never lies.  Because He is not human He does not change His mind.  He does not renege on promises.  Everything promised in the Bible will come true, if you truly believe them.  Promises of salvation, forgiveness, eternal life, peace, provision, comfort, answered prayer in His will, being children of God, courage, protection, love, joy, guidance, success, and many other types of promises will come true for you if you truly believe. 

If you know that you have lied and have not confessed both to God and to whomever you lied, it is not time that you do so?  If someone has lied to you, can you find strength through Christ to forgive that person in your heart?  Can you resolve in your heart today, with the Lord’s help, never to lie again?  And, can you believe that God never lies and in all His promises that apply to your life and claim them right now?  If not, why not?