Abounding Grace: The Grace of the Law - Speaking the Truth

Our culture is quirky. A person can claim their own personal truth but then the court can demand that they tell the objective truth at the risk of jail time for perjury. So, which is it? Is truth relative or objective? Our culture is more like Pilate who challenges Jesus’ statement, that he came to testify to the truth, by asking, “What is truth?” A just society requires adherence to truth telling, in legal and personal settings. This means that the “spin” we hear from politicians, business leaders, etc., violates the next commandment, “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”

Again, the ninth commandment establishes a paradigm for how we interact with and love our neighbor. The commandment envisions truth telling in a court or legal proceedings.  If speaking the truth in a legal setting it is required, so is speaking the truth at home or in business. We shouldn’t have to be put “under oath” to speak truth.

The commandment has a specific application toward lying about our neighbor, or what the Scripture calls “bearing false witness.” If our neighbor stands accused of a crime, those who testify should tell the truth, even if it exonerates the accused. This broadens the commandment beyond the court system to how we protect our neighbor’s reputation by refusing to gossip or receive gossip.

All of this finds its root in the character of God and his unquestionable veracity. Join us Sunday, as we consider the abounding goodness of God in his law.