Are we all born to lie? Are we liars at heart? Is lying the default position in our life? An experiment was carried out to answer these questions and the results were less than surprising. A five year old boy called Jonah was asked to play a simple game. The tester was a friendly looking woman who would play toys behind Jonah’s back. These toys made distinct noises and Jonah was supposed to identify and match the toys to the noises they make. The first toy was the sound of a fire engine and it was a piece of cake for Jonah to identify. The second toy made this recorded statement, “To infinity and beyond” and Jonah shouted, “Buzz Lightyear!” Then, came the last toy with a melody that left Jonah clueless. It was at this time that the woman left the room to answer a telephone call. Before she left, she specifically instructed Jonah not to peek at the toy.
But it didn’t take long for Jonah to turn around and saw a Barney doll lying on the floor. After a while, the female tester returned and she asked him to identify the toy. Jonah barked, “Barney!” Looking surprised, the tester asked Jonah whether he had peeked at the toy. This is the whole purpose of the experiment: Will Jonah tell the truth or lie about it? This experiment was done on one hundred 3 to 7 years olds and 82% of them peeked. Out of this 82%, about 95% of them lied to the tester! Imagine that. A vast majority of these young, tender, adorable and innocent children lied to the adults without even being trained or taught to do so. In other words, you don’t need to school your children in the art of lying; it just comes naturally like the cravings for sweets.
In fact, to stretch things a little, there are a few schools in this world that will be wholly redundant or completely unnecessary. They are the school of lies, theater of theft and, maybe, academy of greed and adultery.
We are only humans and the Bible has already foretold of how sins are an integral part of us like a belly button or a birthmark. No matter how hard we hope to deny it, we are very imperfect people. For some of us, lying is only the tip of the iceberg of our character flaws. In fact, all of us have our hidden closets of bone-dried skeletons, deep-seated secrets, and shameful past that we dread the day they are exposed to our loved ones, our children or the public at large. This is therefore the cry of our heart: What must we do to be saved?
However you look at it, we are all crying out for redemption. And this is not even as a result of feeling guilty for some wrongdoings in our life. Even for those who think they are “morally upright” or “spiritually cleansed” by the overflowing dispensation of grace, something deep inside of them, I sincerely believe, still feels life is incomplete, something is broken, or something is missing.
When Jesus said that the truth shall set us free, He was referring to the freedom that comes from living a holy life. And this is achievable not to the extent that our life will no longer be plagued by sin or the temptation to sin. As long as we are still on this side of fallen heaven, and limited by this body, we will without exception face our own carnal cravings of the flesh. We will still lie. We will still fall into temptation. We will still be challenged by greed, lust and pride. But the difference here is in the final words of Jesus when he was confronted by Pontus Pilates in John 18:33. Finding no charge against Jesus, Pilates asked him whether he was the King of the Jews. Jesus then said that His kingdom belongs not to this world. Pouncing on this admission, Pilates exclaimed, “You are a king then?” My point here is in the reply of Jesus, “You say it! For I am a King. This is why I was born, and for this I have come into this world, to bear witness to the Truth. Everyone who is of the Truth hears and listens to My voice.”
This is what I call the ears of redemption. That is why the Bible says that faith comes by hearing and by hearing the word of God. Are we being convicted by what we hear and listen to? In this age of technology, we are assaulted by thousands of information. These are sensory stimuli that overwhelm and paralyze us into inactivity. Instead of becoming believers, we become non-believers. We have become skeptical, critical and even acerbic. The prosperity teachings, the grace dispensation, the Calvinistic pre-destination, the healing without exception messages, and the charismatic gifts manifestations have all conspired to lull us into a state of spiritual obesity. We are clearly overfed but, at the same time, spiritually empty, barren and disillusioned. This reminds me of the story told by a monk who founded the Dominican order named Dominic.
In the thirteen century, he was invited by the Pope to tour around the Vatican. In the tour, Dominic witnessed the majestic architecture, the wonderful treasures, and the exceeding riches of the interior. With reference to Acts 3:6, the Pope turned to Dominic and said proudly, “Peter (signifying the Pope himself) can no longer say, “Silver and gold have I none.” Dominic quickly added, “Neither can he says, “Rise up and walk.” Indeed, the lesson here is a sad one. Instead of listening to our Shepherd’s voice, we have turned our attention to the voices of the world. Jesus’ admonishments, his teachings and his rebuke have all been drown out by the rosy promises of exceeding wealth, perfect health and success for the easy plucking.
As Christians, we must be careful in our definition of what it means to live a life that is pleasing to God. On this point, Titus 1:15 puts it well, “To the pure (in heart and conscience), all things are pure, but to the defiled and corrupt and unbelieving, nothing is pure; their very minds and consciences are defiled and polluted.” So, the same old record keeps playing the same old tune: it’s the heart, silly. A life that is pleasing to God is one where the heart is right before Him. With a pure heart, we have the Midas’ touch. Everything we come in contact with turns solid gold. Our focus becomes realigned. Our directions become clearer. Our pleasures become redefined. When the heart is pure, whatever we do pleases God. Success takes on a new dimension. Wealth no longer controls us. Relationships with others take precedence. Physical intimacy with our spouse becomes pleasurable and meaningful and no substitute will suffice.
Beloved, let me leave you with this thought: Imagine just one day lived with a pure heart. You wake up in the morning with the assurance that God is pleased with you for being you and not because you are rich and famous or poor and less well-known. You go to work and relate to your colleagues differently. Because you are loved, you are able to demonstrate the same kind of powerful affection to your colleagues. Your inclusive behavior becomes contagious and everyone who crosses your path cannot help but feel a positive aura about you. You then return home and spread your joy and love to your children. After enjoying precious moments with them and putting them to sleep, you spent quality time with your wife. Both of you make love and enjoy the ecstasy that comes with consummation. Then, you seal the night with a prayer of thanksgiving and ask for strength and faith to face the next day.
Although not everyday will turn out so smoothly, you will nevertheless experience such profound pleasure and satisfaction that dwarfs all carnal pleasures this world can offer. Soon, the world would lose its luster. Temptation would lose its enticement. And greed and pride will lose its hold over you. Dr James Houston says it well, “For Christians who live closely with God, life is like a festival.”
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