Once upon a time, the traditional oath in a court proceeding was the question from the administering officer: “Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you God?” The oath taker would usually respond with an honest, “I do.” The expectation was that everyone who testified would tell the total truth, not just a portion of the truth, but the whole truth. We have also heard in recent courtroom proceedings, in Congress or legal television drama, persons taking the oath and later being charged with perjury.
Do you ever get the feeling that society is no longer interested in telling or hearing the truth? Untruths (lies) have become so common in just about every aspect of our lives that it is beginning to feel as it is expected and normal behavior. During our last election, media companies were reporting lies in some cases and knew they were lies, but the public had to receive the news and move on. Don’t you just hate those political campaigns where one candidate drags the other through the mud. Sadly, in so many instances, the listener does not know whether the information on the campaign ads are true or false. In some cases, the information is neither totally true or totally false. It is so borderline that it is difficult to say the information is not true because it is partially true. We are living in a very dangerous and precarious time, for it is difficult to determine what is an exaggeration of the truth and the whole truth.
The Bible tells us in Proverbs 12: 17: “When you tell the truth, justice is done, but lies lead to injustice.”
Denzel Washington once said these words regarding the media. “If you don’t read the newspaper, you are uninformed. If you read the newspaper, you are misinformed.” It is true that most broadcasting stations are more interested in reporting a story first than having all the details and truths regarding a story. Even if the whole truth is not reported, some of us just accept it, move on and wait for the next breaking story.
It is troubling and dangerous when people do not tell the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Too often a portion of a story is told so that it will not be classified as a lie, but enough of the story is left out so it will not incriminate anyone.
Even church folk have a tendency to exaggerate the truth. I can recall some years ago when a member of the church reported to me that the entire church was in an uproar over some comments or administrative actions that had been taken. After doing a little research, it was revealed that only one person was questioning the actions, not the entire church. If you have a spirit of discernment, it is easy to determine if the entire truth is being told. I often tell myself, “I was born in the night, but not last night.” I would love to give the author of the quote credit, but I do not remember who said it.
If we wish to speak the truth, the first thing we should do is get all the facts. It is my belief that people want to be able to trust each other again, be it in the political arena or even the church. It is refreshing when you hear the truth in today’s world, regardless of the consequences or outcomes.
There is a very familiar story in Acts 5 that tells of a married couple, Ananias and Sapphira who were members of a fellowship of believers and followers of Jesus. They lied to the community about financial matters, but they both die suddenly as the indulged in conspiratorial deceit.
Acts 5: 3-4 explains further as Peter said, “Ananias, why have you let Satan fill your heart? You lied to the Holy Spirit, and you kept some of the money for yourself. The property was yours to sell or not to sell, as you wished. And after selling it, the money was also yours to give away. How could you do a thing like this? You were not lying to us but to God!”
The problem was their lying or pretending to give their entire proceeds while privately keeping a portion for themselves.
We may be able to deceive ourselves and others, but God knows all.
Just my thoughts!
Robert Earl Slade, Pastor
