To Tell The Truth

TO TELL THE TRUTH

“Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts: and in the hidden part thou shalt make me to know wisdom.” - Psalm 51:6

In the last couple of years, I've had the joy of watching old episodes of the TV game show, “To Tell The Truth.” I can recall watching the show when I was a little boy. With the aid of Youtube, I am able to watch many of those old episodes again. In fact, the first season of the show is online from 1956. While I remember the show from the 1970's, the very early episodes were in black and white. The show has been revived numerous times through the years and just finished another run a couple of years ago.

The show's overall format has remained the same. A panel of four “celebrities” would question three contestants who all claimed to be the same person. The host of the show would read a brief biography of the person who was appearing before them. Only the real contestant was sworn to tell the truth, the two impostors were not. Each panelist would be given a short period of time to question each of the contestants and at the end of questioning, the panelist would vote for the person they thought was the right contestant. It was a show of deliberate misrepresentation.

The show was interesting because of the different contestants they had. In one program, the panel was searching for the man who invented the game, Monopoly. In another show, the real contestant had been a double-agent in World War II.

The original show was hosted by Bud Collyer. At the end of the show, he would sign off by saying, “This is Bud Collyer reminding you to tell the truth.”

Do we need to be reminded to tell the truth? I think so. Our world is so corrupt that lies, falsehoods and misrepresentations are common and expected. Although most people are offended when they are lied to, they have little or no remorse when lying themselves.

Sadly, we expect politicians to lie to us. We aren't surprised when a salesman uses hyperbole in selling a product. Truth is rare these days.

As Americans, we tend to compartmentalize our lives. It isn't uncommon for a businessman to lie to a customer. When confronted about his lie, he responds, “O, that's just business.” Should truth be confined to only our personal lives? If you aren't honest in business, you aren't honest.

As the old saying goes, “honesty is the best policy.” Although that saying does not come directly from Scripture, the Bible has much to say about honesty.

Whether we like it or not, our sinful, fallen nature is very dishonest. As a result, we must train children to be honest. Honesty is a core principle to teach young people. As adults, we need to be reminded to tell the truth. Whether we are on a witness stand in a trial, responding to criticism or responding to a spouse, we need to be truthful.

Most of all, we need to be honest with God and ourselves. After David's great sin, he prayed, “Behold, thou desirest truth in the inward parts.” God expects us to be transparent before Him. He already knows the truth, but He wants us to be honest before Him.

The reason we aren't seeing revival in America is due, in part, to a lack of honesty among believers. We think that “other people” need to change, but not ourselves. We believe that our neighbors may need a convicting message, but we don't. Repentance is for wicked sinners, not for those of us who attend church regularly. These beliefs reflect the kind of deceit that God wishes to expose. We aren't being honest with God or ourselves.

David refused to own up to his immoral behavior. His actions were probably hidden from most of the people, but God was aware of them. He was given time to be honest and repent. After about a year, God sent the prophet, Nathan, to confront David. When his sin was exposed, David finally got honest with God.

God has a way of getting your attention. The same One who stopped Saul on the road to Damascus is the same One who can stop you in your tracks. The same God that halted Jonah's disobedient journey can bring your life to a halt. The One who brought Nathan to sinful David is the same God that may bring a friend, neighbor or preacher to confront you about your sins.

Confrontation often leads to denial and anger. We'd rather protect our image than come clean with God. We'd prefer to travel a road of deceit and defeat than get right with God and walk in victory. Sad, isn't it?

Yet those who get honest with God find help, hope and healing. Confession leads to cleansing. Surrender leads to victory. Honesty leads to liberty.

There's no greater fool than a man who genuinely believes his own lies.