Have you ever asked yourself why the Scripture writers have called Satan the father of lies? I have. Think about it. What has been the effect in your life when you have lied or been lied to? What impact has it had on you and those involved?
Lies create division, disunity, a lack of faith, and a hurdle to charity. It quashes hope, at least for a while. Lies cast out love and brings death. Lies are sins.
Ever notice how the one caught in a lie casts blame on something or someone else? Adam did it. So have countless others in the course of history. Yet the plasticity and shallowness of this is readily apparent.
When the apostle Peter lied to the crowd around the warming fire the night our Lord was being questioned by the Sanhedrin before his death, he immediately assumed responsibility. He responded with sorrow. We don’t know what effect his lie had on those who heard it. Perhaps they found it even more difficult later to believe in the Good News because of Peter. God forgave Peter, but the natural consequences of his lie played themselves out, I am sure.
I am meditating today on the impact of dishonesty in my life. I have been deceived in my life, and the temptation is always to respond with anger and separation. Yet, I know that is exactly what the father of lies wants me to do. I refuse to do so, with the help of God.
Lies enslave and entangle. Jesus clearly taught that only the Truth would set us free.
