(Part 1 of 3)
Forgers of Lies
“All my life I’ve been charmed by his speech, never dreaming he’d turn on me. His words, which were music to my ears, turned to daggers in my heart.” (Psalm 55: 21 Message Bible)
Political lying has become such an art form today that you have to pick your politicians like you pick your choice of poison. Lying has become such an ART FORM that you can to go to “spin school” and earn a degree in it; some call it rhetoric. Lying is so weaved into the web of our society that you expect lawyers, lobbyists, advocates journalists, talk-show hosts and anyone else in the public view to lie, to “spin” the truth whenever it serves their purpose.
Lying has become a devious virtue, a hallmark of character not an actual vice.
In fact professional liars (Machiavellians) are often looked up to as real leaders, exceptionally good politicians. Gone with the wind are the days when Greatness and Honesty went together like sunshine and the rain. All too-often it’s about strategy and not character. So subtle is the game that “your lying” is the lest used expression in politics and business today. Instead, I misspoke, it was a misstatement, a misappropriate remark, less than the truth; but you dare not call the scum-bag a liar. Oh that uncouth ‘L’ word!
Lying has become the modus operandi of our society. Historians lie by re-shaping history to conform to current morals. Advertisers lie to sell their products. Politicians lie to garner votes. Newspapers lie to sell their papers. Tabloids sell by the millions because people want the latest gossip not the latest facts.
An article in The New York Times, said that 91% of Americans confess that they regularly don’t tell the truth. And a full 20% admitted that they can’t get through the day without telling conscious, premeditated white lies. But can you believe what you read in the newspaper. Would it hold up in a court of law if you said, “I read in the newspaper…” or be laughed out of the court.
In Boston, a community leader noticed a group of boys standing around a small stray dog. “What are you doing, boys?” he asked. “Telling lies.” one of them replied. “The one who tells the biggest lie gets to keep this dog.” The man was shocked and said to them, “When I was your age, I would never have thought of telling a lie.”
The boys looked at each other in dismay, until one of then shrugged “I guess he wins the dog.”
It sounds as if Isaiah 59:3-4 is describing present day America. Listen to what it says, “No one calls for justice; no one pleads his case with integrity. They rely on empty arguments and speak lies; they conceive trouble and give birth to evil.” Lying does not making people feel safe in the neighborhood..
. I imagine they can relate to the words of Psalm 12:1-2 where it says, “Help, O Lord! For the godly are no more; the faithful have vanished from among men. Everyone lies to his neighbor; their flattering lips speak with deception.”
~Is It Ever Wrong To Lie?
~What are the consequences of lying?
“Think of these Things”
Pastor Bryant
(Part 2 of 3 next week)