Reflections 10 Lying & Secret Keeping (Relationships Series)

I remember when I was a child, my mother would call me by my full name, summoning me forth to explain a particular deed and before getting to her I would break down crying. I did so because I was guilty, and I did not want to lie to her, but I also did not want to get into trouble. I was faced with a dilemma, lie and blame someone else, or tell the truth and be punished. On extremely rare occasions where it was warranted in my house there was a long leather strap my parents would use, and written on it was these words from: (Leviticus 19:12), “And ye shall not swear by my name falsely, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the Lord.” With each strike of the leather strap upon my rear-end, I would hear my mother profess that this was hurting her more than it was me, somehow I took argument with that statement. My older sister would boldly reply with what I was thinking, “Not in the same place.” I learned very early on that keeping secrets, and lying where very wrong, and I referred to the truth more often than which I would lie. In truth I could never really lie to my mother, because she could always look into my eyes and know the truth. I hated that feeling more than I hated the leather strap, thus I would not lie to my parents, or any other adult. I respected what my parents would tell me, as much as I respected and feared the word of God.

This week I have been moved to write about those who lie, and keep secrets. I want to use this personal story to testify to the wrongness of these two actions, how destructive they can be, and how they separate people from each other. It is to the latter of that statement I will spend the majority of my time explaining because it is such a veil scheme of Satan’s to divide us from each other, and then to devourer us as if we had never existed.

I am simply going to state for the record that God hates liers. God hates those who actively practice deceit. He hates those who teach children to lie, and disrespect their parents, and he curses those who set obstacles that mislead his followers.

Q76 “Obstacles to faith are sure to arise, but beware to the one who creates them. It would be better for that person to be thrown into the sea with a millstone tied around the neck than for that person to mislead one of my followers.”

“A faithful witness will not lie: but a false witness will utter lies.”(Proverbs 14:5)

God takes such offense to this one simple act we call lying because it shows something extremely disturbing about our character. To lie is equal to building obstacles’ to God, thus widening the already huge separation that which excites between you and God. To lie is to reject God, even if it is a simple little white lie. A lie that surely could not hurt anyone, but in truth it hurts your personal relationship with God, and over time can cast doubt upon your character. Other people will begin to deem you untrustworthy, and soon you fall into a pit, that which there is no escape. To lie is to sin as we have been told not to lie, but rather tell the truth.

“Thou shalt not raise a false report: put not thine hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness.” (Exodus 23:1)

“A false witness shall not be unpunished, and he that speaketh lies shall perish.” Proverbs 19:9)

For the record God hates those who keep secrets. To keep secrets is the equivalent to lying. To have knowledge of something, then making a conscious choice not to revel it to those who would need to have that information is lying by omission. Just for the sake of argument even if that information was not required and the choice was made not to reveal it is still lying by omission in the eyes of God, because within that choice there has then been placed another obstacle between you and God. The key concept is that anything which falls short of telling the truth is lying. Again a very disturbing revelation about ones character will be shown for all to see. As surely as it is impossible to remember each lie, and the web gets bigger and bigger, so does the secrets that one keeps. They grow and grow until there is nothing but guilt, and loneliness within the heart of the one which practices to deceive. Profane words spew like rivers and the heart is filled with utter darkness. Life becomes a chore, not a blessing, and this road only leads to misery, and despair. The weight of this act of keeping secrets will alter the mind and spirit in such a way that one cannot be with those who know the truth. Thus the separation is as much out of guilt as it is the desire to hide from the multiple sin.

Q45 “There is nothing covered up now that will not be exposed. Nothing is secret that will not be revealed. Every secret you’ve kept will become known. What you have whispered in the hidden places will be shouted from the housetops.”

The other fact about this practice of lying and secret keeping is that they are one in the same. I laugh when people say that they are Christians and then proceed to lie. To these people Jesus referred to as Hypocrites. It saddens me each time I see one of my students be influenced to lie by another student. I have recently come across a very disturbing practice among divorced parents who teach their children to hate the co-parent; to this I will say that God hates those who mislead the children. Personally I do not see how you could call yourself a parent and be actively engaged in such practices, and such self indulgence. To lie, keep secrets, is tantamount to building obstacles that which will barricade yourself in, separate you from God, and all those whom you love and cherish. If you lie, cheat, and steal, plot, plan, mislead, manipulate, and otherwise practice dishonest tactics to get your own way, and to rob from others things that otherwise do not belong to you then know this, God can forgive you if you only ask.

By asking God first, you honor him. You will recognize his power is absolute, and he is all knowing, for God alone is the Alfa, and Omega. You will acknowledge that he send Jesus, his only son to die for all those sins which you have so actively perpetrated, and willfully committed. Then once he has forgiven you, the asking of forgiveness of others whom you have alienated will rebuild your bonds, and help you to set a good habit, one absent of these sins. For what is inside your heart, is what will flow from your lips.

Q21 “No good tree produces rotten fruit and no bad tree produces good fruit. Each tree is known by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thorn bushes, nor gather grapes from blackberry brambles. Good people draw what is good from the treasure of their hearts. Bad people produce what is bad from the evil within them. A person’s words flow from what is treasured in the heart.”


Amen.

May peace be with you all the days of your life? If you have been moved by this blog I invite you to become a follower, and learn to Listen Faithfully to our Lord Jesus Christ.

Published by

Brother Brian

Brother Brian currently serves within the Archdiocese of Los Angeles Catholic School System. He is currently in his twentieth year of teaching.

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