God wants us to obey the Ten Commandments at all times, including the
ninth. Many people, based on their own understanding, have tried to justify
that “white” lies are alright. They take things into their own hands and
decide what is wrong and what is right.
One of the reasons people tell lies is that they are fearful of man. Some
justify telling lies in order to protect themselves or their loved ones.
However, we cannot break a commandment in order to obey another
commandment.
Acts 5:1-11 describes the account of Ananias and Sapphira who lied to the
Holy Ghost, and they paid for their sin with their lives. They pretended to
give to God the whole proceeds from the sale of the land when in fact they
kept part of the proceeds.
Exodus 23:1-3 reminds us that we are not to break the ninth commandment by
lying to our fellowmen. In our day-to-day conversations, hiding some parts
of the truth and not telling the whole truth is also breaking the ninth
commandment.
Some people are habitual liars. They tell lies so often that nobody trusts
them anymore. We must not be like that. We have to examine ourselves. God
is truth and, as children of God, we must always speak the truth.
We must be careful not to use situational ethics when obeying this
commandment. Joshua 2 records the account of Rahab and the two spies. Rahab
hid the two spies in order to protect them, and then lied about it when
being questioned about the two spies. She broke the ninth commandment when
she lied. Situational ethics, however, would justify her lying as alright
since her lie saved the lives of the two spies. Note that whatever the
situation or the purpose of Rahab’s lying, she has lied and therefore has
broken the ninth commandment. God does not need her to sin in order to save
the spies’ lives. If it is His will, God can save the spies without Rahab
having to lie. Rahab’s name was mentioned in the book of Hebrews because of
her faith. This cannot be used to justify her lie. Her lie is a sin and is
condemned by God.
May God help us to speak the truth at all times.
