When Lying is Justified

“Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord.”  My mother made me memorize that verse from Proverbs when I was a boy. Perhaps while sitting in the corner, caught red-handed for lying to her.

But is lying ever acceptable? Is lying ever the right thing to do? If so, what might possibly justify lying in the eyes of God? Most importantly, how does faith play into this question?

Before opening this Pandora’s box you must understand that I know full well I will step on many, many toes. Some people see sin only as black and white, right and wrong, punishable by death, so help me, God. If you are one of these then you should stop reading now or you will only become angry and adversarial.  And I do not want to make enemies of my friends.  I just want to answer a question that has always lurked in the back of my mind.

Here’s the issue. We have several instances in Scripture where various people lied, and God seemed to honor it, not condemn it. Puah lied about the baby Moses in the reed basket in Egypt (Ex 1:15-21).  Rahab lied about the spies in Jericho (Joshua 2). Abraham lied about his wife, Sarah, being his sister, not once, but twice (Gen 12:13; 20:2). In modern times we have the example of Corrie Ten Boom lying about harboring Jews in her “hiding place” to keep them from being arrested and deported. And then there are the Bible smugglers, who lied to the border guards to get Bibles behind the iron curtain.

On the flip side we have the story of Ananias and Sapphira in the very early days of the church in Jerusalem (Acts 5). God punished them for lying to the Holy Spirit. They dropped dead on the spot.

Philosophers who study and write about ethics suggest a theory for justifying Rahab’s lying. She was faced with a dilemma and she chose the lesser of two evils. In essence, her lying is justified in that it saved the spies from a greater evil, being captured and killed. If you like that theory, then use it. But I have a different way of looking at it, from faith, rather than from moralistic ethics alone.

Here is my theory.  Lying is always wrong when it is done to deceive a trusting person for evil gain. On the other hand, lying is justified when it is used to detract an evil person for good gain. That’s the simple version. As a Biblicist, and one with a deep reverence for God, let me expand on the second part of that theory. Knowing and trusting in God’s plans and purposes is the bedrock of faith that would determine when detraction is not mere deception, when a questioner’s motives are evil and need to be thwarted, and when my lying might actually be glorifying to God’s great plan.

With that theory, based on faith, it is understandable, and almost easy to justify Puah, Rahab, Corrie Ten Boom, and the Bible smugglers. But Abraham raises the question to a higher level of debate. And I seldom ever win anyone over to fully justify Abraham’s lies in light of his faith. Some call him a wimp, one who was willing to lie and give his wife over to another man to save his skin.  

But God honored Abraham as a man of a faith, saying repeatedly of him, “Abraham believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness” (Gen 15:6). His faith was far greater than we can even imagine, and it is held up throughout all of Scripture as an example (Rom 4:11). Only our moralistic black and white judgment of the situation condemns Abraham. Not God, though. In fact, God even praises Sarah for obeying her husband (I Pet 3:6). And this is the only instance in the story of Abraham and Sarah where obedience is at the core of the story, when she went along with his plan of lying. Abraham lied because He knew and trusted that God wanted to make a great nation of him. He knew that he somehow needed to escape the sword of these two kings.

I write this not trying to justify lying, but rather to increase our understanding of faith. Faith is not demonstrated by obedience to rules, but rather by knowing and trusting the Living God.

Ignorant of My Sin

In the courtroom, standing before the judge, ignorance of the law is not an excuse for breaking the law. The judge will have no sympathy. I know. Been there, done that, paid the fine.

But what about God?  If you have sin, or sins, in your life and you are not aware of them, can you still have fellowship with Jesus?  Will He overlook them?  Or you might be inclined to ask it this way. If I am seeming to have a good relationship with Jesus -- everything is peaceful, joyful, hunky dory – then can I assume that I must be pretty holy?  Maybe. Maybe not. To answer those questions, it would be enlightening to understand God’s heart this way, “love covers over a multitude of sins” (I Pet 4:8).

Jesus said in his sermon on the mount, “If you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar.  First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift” (Mt 5:23). This would seem to indicate that sometimes offenses have occurred and we are unaware, and God will bring it to our mind. Maybe an offense against us, or an offense we have done to others, or maybe offenses against God. Until that point they were not a part of our knowledge and they did not hinder our relationship. But once they come to mind then they become an impediment to our relationship with Jesus. Then our fellowship, our service, our trust is infected, or broken. And we dare not carry on like nothing is wrong.

The value in this question lies in the recognition of sins that have been lying undetected, not in trying to ignore hidden sin and just carry on, status quo. You see, ignorance is not always bliss. God helps us remember, or realize, sins that need attention, by the prompting of the Holy Spirit. Then by dealing with that “new” sin our relationship grows stronger, deeper, richer. Jesus comes closer. Relationships are healed. Transformation and sanctification take a step forward.

King David is remembered more for his affair with Bathsheba than anything else, it seems. Hollywood knows a good juicy story when it sees one. He planned his liaison, lust harbored in his heart, and stayed at home, in the city, when it was time to lead his army out to battle. Uriah, one of his 30 mighty men, lived next door to his palace, and that guy had a beautiful wife who would be all alone if he stayed back. The sin blossomed forth, big time, and we know the rest of the story. But the most amazing part is that David seemed to be living in ignorance of his sin, from beginning to end. Not until Nathan the prophet came to him did the light turn on in his heart. Before God and before man he acknowledged his sin, then, and repented and humbled himself before God (Psalm 51). That’s the part Hollywood leaves out. He is known as a man after God’s own heart, in part because of his immediate response of repentance, whenever his sin was pointed out.

Do you have a confidant in your life, someone like Nathan, who can help you see your sin or deception? That’s perhaps the single most important instrument to help you get closer to God. Do you know that David even named one of his sons after the prophet Nathan, a son born to Bathsheba after Solomon?

So don’t be surprised if God puts the thought into your mind of an offense that you have overlooked. Capture that thought. Don’t ignore it. Then deal with it. God’s mercy and love can make a good relationship even better when we go through the steps of acknowledgment, forgiveness and restoration. Not to mention the relationship with the person we sinned against and were unaware.

All Theology Has A Bias

“All science has a bias.” My interest was aroused when I read that statement, recently, in a forestry publication. The author was trying to accentuate the differences in viewpoints held by foresters, loggers, environmentalists, and politicians. All profess to be scientific, but all come to differing conclusions due to variations in their starting bias. The writer was trying to urge tree farmers not to back off from the debate and formulation of policies and laws in the forestry industry. But I quickly switched tracks. I applied it to theology. The same is true, “All theology has a bias.”

We all inherit beliefs -- from parents, church, denomination, school, theologians and commentators. And with those beliefs comes an underlying bias, whether we know it or not. Every new truth or opinion then must fit the mold which that bias creates. You cannot think differently, cannot consider otherwise. You cannot even hear statements that do not support your bias. They go sailing right on by.

Jesus told his disciples over and over that he would die and that he would rise again. Over 20 times he told them. But it never ever registered with them They did not expect him to rise from the dead. Jesus’ enemies heard him, but not his disciples. How is that possible? Probably due to a great big huge bias that they held, derived from Daniel’s great prophecies. They believed that the Son of God would rule an eternal kingdom, that “His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will not be destroyed” (Dan 7:14). They did not believe he would die, so they never even heard Jesus say that he would rise again. You see, a bias can be pretty powerful when it’s deeply entrenched.

I want to illustrate further by saying that in my lifetime of study, teaching, ministering and writing, I have changed my beliefs in three significant areas of theology. And I mean change, not just tinker with them.  Those three areas of theology are demons, the Holy Spirit, and end times prophecy. I won’t elaborate my starting point and ending point in these three theologies, because what I want to emphasize is this. If you are willing to scrutinize your beliefs at the very foundational level, you must look at the underlying bias that supports them. When I saw the errors in the underpinnings of some of the doctrines I was taught, then the whole superstructure was suspect. It had to be reconsidered, realigned, completely redefined. In some cases that redefining task took on urgency and moved quickly. Other times it was a slow train moving. But that was fine with me. I would rather arrive at the truth than stay stuck in a bias that I inherited.

To be honest, I may not have moved in the direction of scrutinizing my beliefs if it had not been for events and teaching that God providentially put in front of my face at various times. At those points I was left with a decision – dismiss the providence of God, or dismantle the bias I had inherited. I think that changing our bias in theology requires great sensitivity to the Spirit of God and letting go of the pride and self-assured cockiness that accompanies our bias. A wise mentor said to me when I was much younger, “Know what you believe, but hold it loosely.” I have never forgotten that statement. It may sound like heresy to some, but for me it was wisdom from the mind of God. What do you see in the picture? A rabbit? Don’t be so sure. Maybe it’s a duck.

                                                   

Don’t get me wrong. There is the case for heresy. (Just ask the apostle Paul.) There is a case for pastors and elders protecting the flock from following after false doctrine and false teaching. But when a good portion of the church believes differently than you do, it might be wise to hold back on the attack. They are your brother in the Lord. Love is more powerful even than truth – engage the person, not the debate.

“Our object should not be to have scripture on our side but to be on the side of scripture; and however dear any sentiment may have become by being long entertained, so soon as it is seen to be contrary to the Bible, we must be prepared to abandon it without hesitation."  --  William Symington