Day 6: F is for False

“A faithful witness will not lie: but a false witness will utter lies.” Proverbs 14:5

F is for false. False means opposite of truth; incorrect. Merriam-Webster even takes it a step further and defines it as “intentionally untrue; adjusted or made so as to deceive; intended or intending to mislead.”¹

This world is more black and white than we think or admit. Because no matter how we “slice” it, it always comes back to black or to white. It is either false or it is true. We talked extensively about lying in Day 11 and Day 12 of the July 2019 devotionals, so we will not go back over that, but I do want us to see some truths today about falsehood.

It is like when a witness is sworn in into a court of law. They swear to “tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth”² In layman’s terms … just in case we did not understand what that means … it means that “you will not lie, you won’t leave anything out, and you won’t try to deceive or mislead anyone.”² Wowzer! I believe that nailed it on the head right there, did it not?

How can we know what is true and what is false though? Well, God did not leave us hanging on this one because He tells us in John 17:17 that His “Word is truth.” If God’s Word is the truth (white), then what is false (black)? Anything that does not match up with God’s Word, correct? What is the easiest way to spot a falsehood? To know the truth!

If I had a flat tire … and my husband was not around … and someone was trying to instruct me over the phone how to change a tire, I would follow their instructions. Why? Because I would believe that they have more experience than me changing tires … because, in my half a century of life, I have never changed a single tire! Now, if someone were to come to me and try to tell me how to bake a cake, that would be a different story because I know how to bake a cake. Do you follow me here?

Being in ministry and constantly working with people, you begin to learn them. There have been times when we have been confronted with someone or something and it just did not “sit” right. Some things just did not add up in the equation. Why do you think that was? Because there was something there that was not supposed to be in the equation!

People can try to deceive us with their words and actions, but the truth of God’s Word will reveal their lies, their deceitfulness, and their true self. It is like in a quiz or test with true/false answers. It can only be either true or it can be false. It cannot be both!

May we live a life of truth before God and all men, especially our brothers and sisters in Christ!

Lesson Objective: To understand what it means to bear a false witness. Have you been studying the truth (God’s Word) so that you may spot falsehood when confronted with it? Have you been trying to live a false (deceitful) life before others?

Did you pass or did you fail?

¹http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/false ²http://www.johnfoy.com/glossary/oath/