Truth is so scarce in our society that nearly everyone seems suspect, but Christians should stand out as bright lights of truth contrasted with this present darkness. Whether you're talking about businessmen, advertisers, news commentators, salesmen, lawyers, doctors, tradesmen, mechanics, teachers, writers, politicians, or even preachers, people are skeptical.
For example, not long ago I took our SUV in to the Hyundai dealership in Texarkana because of a recall on the airbag system. While I was waiting, the service guy brought me a vial of what he said was my transmission fluid, and then he showed me what was normal looking fluid. He told me that I needed a transmission flush. I was a little skeptical. It seemed too rehearsed like a well-known presentation. So I said okay, thanked him for his concern, and politely declined his offer to perform that service. I thought I was done, but he returned with what he claimed was my air filter. It was filthy to say the least. Leaves and debris were stuck to it like gum on a tree at Six Flags. Again the offer was made to change it out for a new one. Now keep in mind that I was not invited back to my car to see this, but it was brought to me in the waiting room. Again, I was skeptical. Again, I politely declined the offer. A little while later, I took the same vehicle to the Express Lube in New Boston. I inquired about the fluid and the filter, and I was told that "Everything looks fine." Later on, on a family visit to Georgia, I asked my dad, a service manager at a Nissan dealership, about the same things. He confirmed that they were fine. Basically, the guy in Texarkana lied. What a racket!
No wonder our society is so skeptical! Our whole society is built on a network of fabrication, of manufactured "truth." The Romans in the 1st Century A.D. faced the same problem. No wonder Pilate asked, "What is truth?"
Genuine truth is valuable, and it should be sought after. Cicero said, "Truth is the highest thing a man may experience." Daniel Webster claimed, "There is nothing as powerful as truth and often nothing as strange." G. K. Chesterton asserted, "Truth is stranger than fiction." Sir Winston Churchill said, "A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on."
The story is told that shortly after the Communist Revolution, a spokesman for the party visited a small village in order to promote communism. He said to those gathered, "Thanks to the party, we have increased wheat production by 100%." On fellow stood up in the back and said, "My name is Menski, and I would like to know where all that wheat is." The next year the same official returned to the same little village and began the same song and dance of propaganda, except in this case he said, "I want you to know by now we have increased the wheat production by 200%." The same little fellow in the back stood up and said, "My name is Menski, and I have one question. Where is all that wheat?" The third year came, and the same official approached the villagers and began his same talk. This time he said, "The Communist Party has increased the wheat production by 300%." A man in the back got to his feet, and the official said, "I know, you're Menski, and ..." The man responded, "No, my name is Polaski and I have a question. Where is Menski?"
In Jesus' day, the Scribes and Pharisees lost sight of the truth in their complicated system of oaths (see Matthew 5:33-37). They had "levels of truth." They had expanded oaths to matters of technicalities, much like our own legal system here in America that often twists and turns the normal meanings of words. Remember when Bill Clinton tried to justify his perjury by saying that it depended on "what the meaning of 'is' is." Legal technicalities can devolve to the point of destroying the justice they are supposed to serve. This is nothing new. It was going on in the 1st Century too. The pharisaical system of oaths was expanded to cover all kinds of promises made to one another. It was a lot like children telling something, but all the while having their fingers crossed behind their backs.
Rather than having a complicated system of oaths which invoked God's name or something closely tied to God, Jesus said to simply tell the truth. Let your yes be yes, and your no mean no. If you have to swear and curse, you are rendering whatever you have to say as suspicious. Have you ever been in a conversation with someone who suddenly says something to the effect of "I swear this is true!"? Don't you begin to wonder if everything else that person said was true or not?
It is better just to make a promise and keep it. Prove by your track record in dealing with people that you are indeed a promise keeper worth trusting. The words of a Christian should be sacred and believable. We are so careless with our words. This must be remedied. Listen, words don't need crutches!
We should say what we mean and do what we say. We should be known for our integrity of speech. Speech reveals who we really are; it reveals the soul. A dependable heart will produce dependable words. A person with an honest heart will speak honestly. As Harry Ironside wisely said, "God forbid that we should traffic in unlived truth."
