Lies

"Oh, it was just a little white lie!" How many times have you heard that? What makes people think that a "little" lie or a "white" lie is not really a lie? And what is a "white" lie anyway? I'm assuming that it comes from the equation of black being bad and white being good. Can a lie be good? The dictionary describes "lie" as: a false statement made with deliberate intent to deceive; an intentional untruth; a falsehood. In our society today, lying has become common place and almost expected. People lie about everything from their age to their income. They lie to parents, employers and the government. And why do they lie? Only to make themselves look better or avoid punishment or make a material gain of some sort. Deceit is never right no matter how you look at it. In the long run it only makes a person out to be what they really are....untrustworthy.
Personally, I can not trust someone who has lied to me. That doesn't mean that I can't forgive and that the offender can not be contrite and remorseful for what they have done. My children have lied to me many times through the years, but I will still place trust in them because I know that they have learned a lesson from the falsehoods they have told. There are, however, people who can not open their mouths without lying. They have told so many untruths that their whole life has become one big lie. Some believe that you can tell if a person is lying from their body language. In many cases, this is true, but the habitual liar has become so calloused about their storytelling that they can fabricate showing no abnormal expression or gesture. A lie is most generally always found out even though no one confronts the wrongdoer. Someone always knows and now looks upon that other as a dishonest person. Proverbs 7:16-19 says: "These six things doth the Lord hate: yea, seven are an abomination unto Him: A proud look, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, An heart that deviseth wicked imaginations, feet that be swift in running to mischief, A false witness that speaketh lies, and he that soweth discord among brethren." If the Lord hates a lie, shouldn't man do the same? My observation about these verses is that a lie is no less a sin than murder. As you see, a lying tongue and hands that shed innocent blood are within the same sentence. In my opinion lying or bearing false witness also brings about the final transgression listed ... sowing discord among brethren. I see these things on a daily basis at my place of employment and unfortunately it is not just among the employees but management also. The friction and conflict brought about by these actions are disasterous. If only people would realize that they present themselves in a much more favorable light when they are being honest and upright. The next time you are tempted to tell that "little white lie", thinking that it is not really such a devious thing to do....imagine that you are Pinocchio, and that any untruth that spills from your lips will cause your nose to grow an inch!