Falsehoods AND Lies

Reading for Today: Proverb Chapter 30

Gold Nugget
Verse 8a: “Remove falsehood and lies far from me;”

Commentary

I really like that today’s “gold nugget” says “Remove falsehood AND lies far from me;” Many versions actually say “Remove vanity and lies far from me;” Due to the fact that the word “vanity” has changed meaning over the centuries, “falsehood” is a better translation. Originally vanity simply meant, empty or void. Vanity or falsehood is just a false representation of the truth. How does that differ from lies and why are they both mentioned as if they have different meanings? If the scripture says, “Remove falsehood AND lies far from me;”, we could miss something if we just rolled them into one. Let’s see what we may have to gain by actually paying closer attention to the Word. We know what it means to have lies removed far from me. Lies are intentional deception. There are some falsehoods that are not intentional and yet cause just as much damage to our lives. I can lie to you and tell you I am capable of doing your taxes for you, but I can do just as much damage by really believing I can when I cannot. Just because I really thought I could do your taxes doesn’t mean that you won’t overpay or underpay and earn yourself an audit from the IRS. I don’t want to have just lies put out of me and away from me, it is of utmost importance that the truth is the foundation of all my existence. Some of the most devastating unintentional falsehoods are the ones we believe concerning ourselves. Not long ago the Lord dealt with me on some issues in my life where I was absolutely wrong about several things. I was not lying about these issues, but my perception was wrong and couldn’t have been further from the truth. There were things that I believed about myself that were wrong and just as damaging as if I lied about them intentionally. It would be easy for me to say, “Well, I was ignorant of the truth, so God will show me mercy.” Well, yes He is a merciful God, but this ignorance was selective. I had opportunity to see the truth in my life, but didn’t want to acknowledge my weakness. This is not an intentional lie, but it was a damaging falsehood anyway. As we mature in Christ Jesus, we want lies away from us, but we are so desirous of the truth that we don’t even want to overlook the truths that are not convenient for us. We want to know the truth about ourselves more than we want to preserve our pride. I want not only lies put far from me, but also any false or empty opinions of myself as well.

Prayer

Lord, when we look into the mirror of your Word, help us to see the truth around us and the truth about us. Allow your Word and our humility to keep us in truth and repentance as needed.  Amen

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Reach Out

Reading for Today: Proverb Chapter 5

Gold Nugget

Verse 23: “He shall die for lack of instruction, and in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.”

                                                                                                                             

Commentary

Although men hold the reputation for not stopping for directions, pride does not reserve itself to just one of the two genders. All of us, male and female, have issues asking for help or admitting failure. Sometime asking for help or admitting failure are related to one another, sometimes they are not. Either way, the inability to reach out for instruction will ensure our own folly and disaster. We will surely find things in our lives began to perish. That which perishes can be relationships, finances, even employment. As today’s “gold nugget” declares, “He shall die for lack of instruction, and in the greatness of his folly he shall go astray.”

This next point is something that everyone must come to grips with; “God did not create us for individual survival.” As a matter of fact, one of the first statements He made concerning man was, “It is not good that he should be alone.” As a result, he made Eve to be his helpmate. This sounds demeaning to women if they are not aware of what this means. Clearly man in himself was lacking. He needed fellowship that God Himself did not fill. That is a statement that can cause discomfort, but it was from God's mouth Himself. (Genesis 2:18)

As long as we are on this earth we will need each other. God designed us to need one another spiritually and naturally. We need each other for strength, encouragement and for instruction. Embrace your humanity and loosen your pride. Reach out to someone with Godly character today for instruction. Your path with God is designed by Him, to include others. We are one body in need of our other members.

Prayer

Lord, help me to suffer my pride and receive instruction from those you have provided for me to call upon. You are first and foremost in my life for instruction, correction and guidance, but I know you often use others to carry it out. Amen

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