TRUTH BE TOLD
Top Ten Life Hacks- Part 9
Exodus 20:16
16 “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor. Exodus 20:16 (NIV)
1 Lord, who may dwell in your sacred tent?
Who may live on your holy mountain?
2 The one whose walk is blameless,
who does what is righteous,
who speaks the truth from their heart;
3 whose tongue utters no slander,
who does no wrong to a neighbor,
and casts no slur on others;
4 who despises a vile person
but honors those who fear the Lord;
who keeps an oath even when it hurts, Psalms 15:1-4 (NIV)
LOVE WHAT IS TRUE
- God hates deceit
God is not human, that he should lie… Numbers 23:19 (NIV)
- God loves truth
17 Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. 18 God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged. Hebrews 6:17-18 (NIV)
- Loving truth means loving God
Let God be true, and every human being a liar. As it is written:
“So that you may be proved right when you speak
and prevail when you judge.” Romans 3:4 (NIV)
LEARN WHAT IS TRUE
- It requires self-renunciation
“Even from birth the wicked go astray; from the womb they are wayward, spreading lies.” Psalms 58:3 (NIV)
“Their throats are open graves; their tongues practice deceit.” Romans 3:13 (NIV)
- It requires hard work
1 My son, if you accept my words
and store up my commands within you,
2 turning your ear to wisdom
and applying your heart to understanding —
3 indeed, if you call out for insight
and cry aloud for understanding,
4 and if you look for it as for silver
and search for it as for hidden treasure,
5 then you will understand the fear of the Lord
and find the knowledge of God. Proverbs 2:1-5 (NIV)
LIVE WHAT IS TRUE
- Put off all hypocrisy
Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. James 1:22 (NIV)
- Be a truth teller
Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. Ephesians 4:15 (NIV)
Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. Ephesians 4:29 (NIV)
- Truth must be lived out
If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. 1 John 1:6 (NIV)
THE TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE
31 To the Jews who had believed him, Jesus said, “If you hold to my teaching, you are really my disciples. 32 Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” John 8:31-32 (NIV)