It is so important that we never lie but always tell the truth. This can be hard, especially when we are in a sticky situation where we could lose our job or even our life. This happened with Abraham twice, where he thought people would kill him in order to have his wife if they knew they were married. So he told people that Sarah was his sister, where even his son Isaac started to do the same thing about his wife Rebekah. In Genesis 12 and 20, Abraham is recorded telling a pharaoh and a king that Sarah was his sister. And although it was only a half-truth since she was his half-sister, the way he said it was lying. As for Isaac, it is written, “And Isaac dwelt in Gerar: And the men of the place asked him of his wife; and he said, She is my sister: for he feared to say, She is my wife; lest, said he, the men of the place should kill me for Rebekah; because she was fair to look upon. And it came to pass, when he had been there a long time, that Abimelech king of the Philistines looked out at a window, and saw, and, behold, Isaac was sporting with Rebekah his wife.” (Genesis 26:6-8) And slowly his lie was made known.
It is true that many things we do around our children seem harmless at first. However, before we know it they are picking up on our traits. They have heard us lie on certain occasions, so they also now believe it is ok to do the same. Other bad habits are also picked up because the father or mother never thought the need to change those things in their lives. As Solomon said, “train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it.” (Proverbs 22:6) Abraham was a great example to his son Isaac in his faith in God, but in his decisions to lie about his wife, this caried forth with Isaac. His story continues and reads, “and Abimelech called Isaac, and said, Behold, of a surety she is thy wife; and how saidst thou, She is my sister? And Isaac said unto him, Because I said, Lest I die for her. And Abimelech said, What is this thou hast done unto us? one of the people might lightly have lien with thy wife, and thou shouldest have brought guiltiness upon us.” (Genesis 26:9,10) When we sin as believers, it is made evident to the people of the world. In this case, Isaac had to learn his lesson here. Amen.
Let us pray:
Oh Lord, help us to stay strong in the faith and to not fold in sticky situations that we fall in. It is so easy just to lie our way out of a specific situation, but the guilt is never worth it. I know the times that I have lied about something on a job, it always caught up to me at a later point. And then the guilt really kicked in when my boss asked me why I lied and didn’t tell the truth. This was so terrible, as with what happened with my wife. Lord, You know the things I kept from her for many years before I was saved. But then it all blew up in my face when she finally found out. In tears did I then unfold upon her the sinful life I was leading. Thankfully, this was before I committed my life to You, Jesus. It was shortly after this time that I decided I needed You to save me, Lord. But if You couldn’t save a wretch like me, I would have understood also. Oh, the patience and goodness that You have in Your heart towards people who repent of their sins and come unto You. I was like unto the prodigal son who had gone astray, but then You took me in with open arms. I love You, Lord. I give You everything that I am. Lead me all my days. Amen.
