Proverbs 13:15 - Good understanding giveth favor: but the
way of transgressors is hard.
"When a person consistently has a perception of what is true
and lives it, he gains a force of beauty of character. In other words,
faithfulness creates favorable impressions that open doors for him.
"For example, to whom would we rather loan money, to a person
with a record of steady work and payment of debts or to one who cannot keep a
job and consistently defaults on his obligations? Which one is more likely to
get the loan? A person of good character recognizes his responsibility to
truth, understands it, and submits to it. This produces the witness that
glorifies God.
If a person will not follow this process, he will not have
the good character and the good name to go with it. If he recognizes and
understands his problem but does not submit to the truth, he is deceiving
himself.
"This principle holds true in every area in which a name is
built, including marriage, childrearing, and health issues. Many run from the
truth about themselves. Hardly anything will destroy a reputation quicker than
for others to know an individual is lying to himself about what or how much he
eats, his failure to discipline his children properly, or his careless
inattention to his spouse. Such faithlessness provides a strong foundation for
hypocrisy.
"The ninth commandment not only covers bearing false witness
verbally, but also bearing false witness about one's relationship with God by displaying a spotty example of conduct, all the
while claiming to be Christian. To make a bad witness in ignorance or weakness
is one thing, but to know better and deliberately mislead is another matter
altogether.
"Why do we lie? Often, it is to cover up our
irresponsibility. We fear that something about ourselves we wish to keep hidden
will be exposed, so we lie to protect the image we want others to see. We also
lie to rise above our feelings of inadequacy or inferiority. We also do it to
lower a third party in the eyes of others, which, of course, has the effect of
elevating ourselves in our own eyes and, we hope, in the eyes of others."
