Wise Words Concerning Honesty

PROVERBS 3:3; 11:1, 3; 12:17-22; 14:5; 23:10, 11

GOLDEN TEXT: “Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearance of evil.”—I Thessalonians 5:21,22

THE first verse of today’s lesson sums up the theme of the study in a very comprehensive manner, stating, “Let not mercy and truth forsake thee: bind them about thy neck; write them upon the table of thine heart.” That which is bound about our necks, and imbedded in our hearts is almost sure to remain with us because it is in reality a part of us. “Mercy and truth” should indeed become a part of us, so much so that it will be natural to exercise mercy, and to be truthful in all our dealings.

We should never give utterance to that which is not true, although it is not always necessary to express a thought simply because it might be true. It might be true that our neighbor has a very odd looking nose, but we are under no obligation to remind him of it, nor to tell others about it. Consideration for his feelings would dictate otherwise. But when and where it is necessary and appropriate to speak, the truth of whatever subject is involved should never be compromised.

The importance of truthfulness in our dealings with others should be second only in importance to dealing truthfully with ourselves. As a matter of fact, unless we are truthful with ourselves it is doubtful if we could be truthful with others. And a Christian should be truthful even in the smallest affairs of life. The principle which operates here is that he who is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in that which is great.

Truthfulness in our words will be followed by honesty of dealing, an honesty which is well illustrated in our lesson by a “just weight.” “A false balance,” the text declares, “is abomination to the Lord: but a just weight is his delight.” Honesty of word and deed is the outward expression of heart integrity.

How true are the words, “The lip of truth shall be established for ever: but a lying tongue is but for a moment.” Truth abides. It cannot be shaken nor destroyed. It may be cast to earth for a time, but it will rise again. On the other hand, a lie will be discovered sooner or later. And this is true particularly with respect to the lies to be found in false theology—lies concerning God and his glorious character of love. These doctrinal errors will not be able to stand against the increasing light of the new day now dawning.

“A faithful witness will not lie,” declares Solomon, “but a false witness will utter lies.” All true Christians are “witnesses for Jesus and for the Word of God.” It is our privilege to bear testimony concerning God and his character, and to tell of his loving plans for the blessing of the people. It is important, therefore, that we learn the truth well, that we understand its doctrines correctly, lest we bear false witness concerning our Heavenly Father.

To be established in the pure doctrines of the Word it is essential, as our Golden Text states, “to prove all things,” and to “hold fast that which is good.” But once we have proved all the doctrines of the truth by the infallible Word of God and found them to be in harmony therewith, it should not be necessary to spend the rest of our lives examining all the ideas which enemies of the truth might wish to bring to our attention. We believe that the “all things” which we are to prove are the doctrines of the divine plan, not all the theories and guesses of men. And when we have proved the doctrines to be correct, we should hold to them, having learned that they are “good.”

We should not for a moment be led to believe that it is being narrow-minded to hold fast to that which we have proved to be true, and decline to waste time poring over other ideas. Those who feel that it is necessary for them to do this are evidently of the class mentioned by the apostle who are “ever learning, but never able to come to the knowledge of the truth.”—II Tim. 3:7

There are those who are like this, and we should have sympathy for them. Usually these believe that they are far in advance of most of the Lord’s people in their understanding of the Bible. They pride themselves on being “intelligent,” and “careful students.” They claim that they do not accept what a man says, but are guided only by the Word of God, thus implying that many have accepted the truth merely because someone told them it was the truth, rather than proving it by the Word of God. Let us not be misled by this viewpoint, and thus prevented from holding fast to the truth ourselves.

The statement, “Abstain from every appearance of evil,” is not the best translation. The proper translation would be, “Abstain from every form of evil.” To the ungodly, things which are just and good and holy, might appear evil. We are not, through carelessness, to let our good be evilly spoken of, yet we could not be faithful to the Lord and at the same time abstain from everything which might appear to be evil to others.

QUESTIONS:

Is it essential always to declare a matter simply because it is true?

What is the greatest privilege of witnessing enjoyed by a Christian?

What are the “all things” which Christians should prove, and in proving them, hold fast to that which is “good”?

Is it possible and proper for a Christian to abstain from every appearance of evil?

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