The Father of Lies
Life during the time of Noah was very much like it is today (Genesis 6 v 5) and we all know what the world today is like, the hatred, the killings, lack of morality and conscience. You would never imagine that children could kill but that is the case in most areas of the world today. A similar situation was the case in Noah's time it got so bad that God decided to do something about it. (Genesis 6 v 6), God must have tried time without number to make them understand that what they were doing would not help them but they refused to listen. God never makes mistakes there is always a logical reason for what He does. Probably during Noah's time too much curse activation existed and they where polluting the flesh (Genesis 5 v 5-6), Ha YEHUWAH God may also be using this as an example of what he can do and will do if our ways are not changed.
Lets start with the first sin we commit 'lying'. It is a common thing children do to avoid getting into trouble, the first time they try it they get away with it and so it continues, as they grow older they realize the advantages of fabricating stories, nobody wants to look or appear foolish or wicked, especially when we are out to impress and it continues until it becomes a habit. Something you started to do at a young age is always very difficult to shake off, especially when every body you know does it. I can still remember one of my first lies I was very young then probably about four years of age, and I blamed my younger brother for something I did to avoid getting into trouble and it succeeded. Eventually my mother was able to tell when I was lying but that never stopped me. Lying has gotten such that it is second nature to all of us because we start it at a very young age. God gave a commandment 'Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.' (Exodus 20:16) Some of us like to interpret this commandment in their favor. They say the operative words are false witness and neighbor they feel that the statement only refers to lying against somebody we know or are close to, Jesus describes neighbors in a very different light, (Luke 10:29-36) however if we go further into the old testament it is made clearer exactly what God hates, (Proverbs 6 v 16-19). In my bible the title of this chapter is named the 7 deadly sins, and lies are mention there twice. In Leviticus the commandment is re-emphasized...
(Leviticus 19:11) Ye shall not steal, neither deal falsely, neither lie one to another. The New Testament does not avoid this subject either it is mentioned quite a few times (Colossians 3 v 9) and (Ephesians 4 v 25) are some of the chapters you will find them in.
Those of us that commit adultery, or steal or are murderers cannot be honest about who they are or what they are doing. If we were thieves, we are not going to declare it, because we are never going to be comfortable announcing it that means we would possibly have to lie about what we are doing. If you any of us was having an affair there is more than one person that we would have to lie to about it. If we've killed someone, we will try our best to hide it and that involves that act of deception as well as telling lies. Even where the act to be an accident, the penalty will be far worst, if one were to try and cover it up. Sins include fornication, believing and worshiping anything other than God (idolatry) and so on. Idolatry does not apply to worshiping idols alone it also applies to putting and relying on things of the world above relying on God to solve our problems.
Any sin committed must always involve lies. And a web of lies lead to more webs of lies. And then we moan to God when we encounter problems. We don't realise that we create, indirectly, the situation we find ourselves in when we lie, since the act of lying is another way of seeking the devil's help and the devil always gets his 'pound of flesh?
You can't make a soup without adding some form of liquid, and so also you can't commit a sin without lies. Lies helps to create a situation that makes the person get away with what he or she has done for a while, deceiving others and even themselves, lulling them into this false sense of security and belief that they have succeeded, drawing oneself further away from God and closer to the devil.
God has given us freedom of choice it is the only thing He does not control in our lives so we are free to choose to follow Him or follow the devil. God represents the truth and light while the devil represents darkness and lies. Jesus describes him as the father of lies.
(John 8:44) Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.
We do not only lie to make ourselves look good but we lie when we are afraid. I heard a man of God say that, all that the devil needs, to work effectively in us is fear. Whereas what God needs is faith.
To be afraid is not a sin Jesus himself was worried and afraid in the Garden of Gethsemane just before they arrested Him but He did not act on that fear. We lie because we are afraid of someone or afraid of what will happen to us if we tell the truth. Acting on that fear is the sin. The only person we should be afraid of is God, fearing God is having faith in Him. Believing that God is going to get us out of any problems we may find ourselves in.
(Isaiah 57:11) And of whom has thou been afraid or feared, that thou hast lied, and not remembered me....
(Matthew 10:28) And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
(Jeremiah 13:23-25) Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? Then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil. Therefore will I scatter them as the stubble that passeth away by the wind of the wilderness. This is thy lot, the portion of thy measures from me, saith the LORD; because thou hast forgotten me, and trusted in falsehood.
Someone said add one letter to 'God' and we have the word 'good' add one letter to 'evil' and you have 'devil'
Remember those cartoon characters that we used to see when we where young where a character had to make a choice and suddenly a demon would appear on one shoulder and an angel on the other both trying to influence his decision. When one chooses to sin they are choosing to follow the devil, but when they choose to do what is right and so avoid sin, they are choosing to follow God. For example say we found ourselves in a sticky situation and the only way to avoid a sure catastrophe was to lie our way out of it. However in spite of increasing pressure for us to lie, we still choose to tell the truth, knowing full well that we risk our job, if it is an employment issue, or losing our spouse if it is a marital matter or we risk jeopardizing our relationship with our parents or siblings if it is a family matter. Our actions by choosing to tell the truth signifies our fear of God, signifies how much faith we have in him and how real He is to us, this act of faith in God also signifies that we recognize he is in us and as a result is aware of everything we do feel and think, thus displaying to God the fact that we believe that He will get us out of our present predicament. Our approach also signifies how much we want to please Him by obeying Him. And obedience always pleases God.
It is like someone needs to choose you over someone else and he chooses you, you would want to do everything you can to prove to that person that he did the right thing by choosing you. It is the same with God. The only difference is that though he is helping you, he also wants to make sure that in the course of doing so, nobody that belongs to him gets negatively affected, (Matthew 13 v24-30) and (v 37-43) KJV. This is why at times it seems that God is not responding to you, or is ignoring you, it is not the case at all, and He is killing two birds with one stone, while He is working things out to favor you He is also gauging your level of faith to receive what He is doing for you. And because He loves all of us He wants to make sure what He does is not to the disadvantage of others.
(Hebrews 11 v 1) KJV Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen..
We have absolutely no idea how God is working on our behalf, because of course we can't see him, but we continue to wait patiently for him to do what he said he would in his word, in which he said anything you ask through Jesus Christ it will be done for you, you just need faith, (Matthew 17 v 20) KJV.
(John 14:13-14) And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If ye shall ask any thing in my name, I will do it.
It may seem impossible to avoid a lie, but I found it is not as difficult as one may think, I am living proof that with God all things are possible, I used to lie even when there was no good reason for it, it had become a habit, and because I desperately wanted to stop, God helped me. He helps me to make sure I am aware of what I say, and how I respond, so this in itself to me is a miracle because I know what I was like. Of course I slip up but as soon as I realize it I ask God to forgive me. Jesus Christ never lied, if He was confronted by the Sadducee or the Pharisees and did not want to answer them He always had a way of dodging their questions without lying. If we do slip up, God always forgives when we tell Him we are sorry and consciously make an effort to avoid repeating it.
When God sees that we are taking Him seriously He takes us seriously.
This is very important, when we lie we are manipulating situations to immediately favor us, and as a result we are diverting our destiny from the will of God and His consequential blessings. God knows our future and knows what steps we need to take to claim it. If in the course of taking those steps, we are distracted or diverted from our route, the proposed destination takes longer to reach.
We are vulnerable to certain situations and this is because we have weaknesses which the enemy is aware of, and takes advantage of this and causes us to be distracted from our course. However the devil cannot just walk in to our lives we are the ones that let him in by the negative things we think, say, do or feel.
(John 5 v 14) Afterward Jesus findeth him in the temple, and said unto him, Behold, thou art made whole: sin no more, lest a worse thing come unto thee.
Our Lord was warning us, our sins are what opens the door to the devil.
God is kind and loving and he needs our permission before he comes in to our lives, (Revelations 3 v 20), Behold I stand at the door and knock.... The devil on the other hand looks for an opportunity and steals in. In all cases the devil does not need our permission, and that is why we make the mistake of believing that the devil does not work in us because we do not ask him to come into our lives, the devil uses this misconception we have of how he works to his advantage. Like a thief he looks for a broken window, an unlocked or open door, a cracked wall, any weak spot and breaks in.
Horror films are at times unpleasant to watch, but one cannot help but see similarities between the way the devil works and the way supernatural horror beings work in films. The thought remains in your mind, while watching, just how evil that being is. The good thing is, in most of these films the enemy is always defeated. We are in an advantages position to get rid of the enemy and his works from our lives, for nothing is impossible with God..
