BRIDLING YOUR tongue
SERMON STARTER
Funny
Lying has become the expected national past-time.
Like the stock boy at the grocery store. A lady asked him,
"Can I buy a half a head of lettuce?"
He walked back to the manager to ask, not realizing she was walking right behind him. He said,
"You’re not going to believe this, there’s an old bag out there who wants to buy half a head of lettuce."
Then he turned around and saw her standing there and said, "And this fine lady would like to buy the other half."
Later in the day the manager cornered the young man and said, “That was the finest example of thinking on your feet I’ve ever seen! Where did you learn that?”
“I grew up in Grand Rapids, and if you know anything about Grand Rapids, you know that it’s known for it’s great hockey teams and ugly women.”
The mangers face flushed, and he interrupted,
“My wife is from Grand rapids!”
“And which Hockey team did she play for?”
Funny
A store manager heard his clerk tell a customer,
“No, ma’am, we haven’t had any for a while, and it doesn’t look as if we’ll be getting any soon.”
Horrified, the manager came running over to the customer and said,
“Of course we’ll have some soon. We placed an order last week.”
Then the manager drew the clerk aside.
“Never,” he snarled, “Never, never, never say we’re out of anything- say we’ve got it on order and it’s coming. Now, what was it she wanted anyway?”
The clerk said, “Rain!”
Lying has become rampant. Oxymorons are everywhere,
Truth in Advertising
Honest Politicians
Safe Drivers
Healthy Fast Food
(We even lie to ourselves. . .)
Children on school playgrounds taunt each other,
"Liar! Liar! Pant's on fire!"
Eg. Jim Carrie's hilarious movie: "LIAR! LIAR!"
The history of humankind is strewn with liars. Many are criminals who spin lies and weave deceptions to gain unjust rewards—as the financier Bernie Madoff did for years, duping investors out of billions of dollars until his Ponzi scheme collapsed. Some are politicians who lie to come to power or cling to it, as former President Bill Clinton lied to Congress and the American public, "I did not have sex with that woman."
People lie to cover up bad behavior, as American swimmer Ryan Lochte did during the 2016 Summer Olympics by claiming to have been robbed at gunpoint at a gas station when, in fact, he and his teammates, drunk after a party, had been confronted by armed security guards after damaging property.
Even academic science—a world largely inhabited by people devoted to the pursuit of truth—has been shown to contain a rogues’ gallery of deceivers, such as physicist Jan Hendrik Schön, whose purported breakthroughs in molecular semiconductor research proved to be fraudulent.
Global Warming pseudo-scientists fudge scientific data to make it appear worse than it actually is. Lying has become accepted by the American public. It's as easy as lying on your Income Taxes. It's as easy as breathing.
This sermon is what I call a "Toe-Stomper." It was personal conviction that led me to present it. I hope it steps on your toes as it did mine.
Pastor Phil <><<
June 11, 2017 - Sheepfold Ministries
Pastor Phil <><<
BRIDLING YOUR tongue
JAMES 3:1-13
Lying has become accepted by the American public. It's as easy as lying on your Income Taxes. Yet, the practice of lying in scripture comes with dire warnings and severe consequences. Remember, Jesus is the One who said, "I am the Way, TRUTH, and the Life." Pastor Phil <><<
Exodus 20:16 (NKJV)
16 "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.
What Is a Lie?
In essence a lie is something said with the intent to deceive.
A life lived under false pretenses is a Lie as well.
How not to Bridle Your Tongue. . .
I. THE TONGUE OF THE UNWISE - Verse 5,6
"Even so the tongue is a little member and boasts great things. See how great a forest a little fire kindles! 6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell."
A. Common for Mankind to Lie
1. Everyone is an Oscar-Winning liar at some time or another
2. Many of us lie without being caught
3. Lie to ourselves / Lie to others
B. WHY DO WE LIE? (Eg. National Geographic, June, 2017)
1. We Lie for several reasons:
a. To manipulate others
b. To make ourselves look better in others' eyes
2. Charles Ponzi - Italian Immigrant's 1919 Pyramid Scheme
3. Modern Financier Bernie Madoff - Bilked Billions
4. Former President Bill Clinton lied to Congress / Public
"I did not have sex with that woman."
C. A Lie is sets a fire in the human soul
1. A lie defines the limits or lack of Conscience
2. Lies burn in a healthy conscience
D. There are between 60,000 and 80,000 forest fires in U.S. yearly
1. Irony: 83% caused by human activity
2. Human activity causes the most destruction: 10 million acres yearly
a. Half the acreage lost is to Lightning
b. The other half is caused by Human Activity
E. The Tongue is a Fire
1. Fake News is an easy example
2. Doesn't have to be true, just say it
BRIDLING YOUR TONGUE, cont. p.2
3. A little spark ignites the fire
a. Need fuel: someone's character or reputation
b. Need Oxygen: the wind of volume / noise
c. Add a little spice, confabulate the story
4. All the Fire needs is Time and Opportunity
F. Fires of the Tongue are often set by Envy and Jealousy
1. Person needs to be better than someone else
2. No one is better than anyone else
3. We are all equal in God's sight: He loves us all
G. Choose Life and not Death - Proverbs 18:21
"Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
And those who love it will eat its fruit."
How not to Bridle Your Tongue. . .
II. THE TONGUE OF THE DEVIL - Psalm 55:21
21 The words of his mouth were smoother than butter, But war was in his heart; His words were softer than oil, Yet they were drawn swords.
A. DEVIL - Greek, DIABOLOS - Malicious Gossip
1. Father of Lies - "Has God said. . .?" See John 8:43-44
2. Bearer of False Witness
3. Third Party Communication can be soul-destroying
B. The Devil's lies are often filled with half-truths
1. Deception is a tool of the Devil
2. A Lie is a deception wrapped in the skin of reason
How not to Bridle Your Tongue. . .
III. THE TONGUE OF MANKIND - Romans 3:10-13
10 As it is written: "There is none righteous, no, not one; 11 There is none
who understands; There is none who seeks after God. 12 They have all
turned aside; They have together become unprofitable; There is none who does good, no, not one." 13 "Their throat is an open tomb; With their tongues they have practiced deceit"; "The poison of asps is under their lips";
A. All Humanity Speaks Lies
1. How can you tell when _________ is Lying?
Adulterers, Addicts, Politicians, etc. . .
2. "Their lips are moving!"
B. Watch out for Talebearers - Leviticus 19:16; 1 Timothy 5:13
16 You shall not go about as a talebearer among your people; nor shall you
take a stand against the life of your neighbor: I am the LORD.
13 And besides they learn to be idle, wandering about from house to house,
and not only idle but also gossips and busybodies, saying things which
they ought not.
BRIDLING YOUR TONGUE, cont. p.3
How To Bridle Your Tongue. . .
V. THE TONGUE OF THE WISE
A. LOVE THE TRUTH - John 14:6
6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to
the Father except through Me.
1. Love Jesus?
2. Love the Truth - He IS Truth
B. LEARN THE TRUTH - Philippians 4:8
8 Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble,
whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are
lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if
there is anything praiseworthy--meditate on these things.
C. LIVE THE TRUTH - Ephesians 4:25
25 Therefore, putting away lying, "Let each one of you speak truth with his
neighbor," for we are members of one another. 1. Edifying Tongue - Build Up, Encourage, Edify
2. Relationship Building Tongue
3. Your Words can Seal Your Life
4. Word Filled with the Light of Jesus' Love
Christianity Today article, The Seven Levels of Lying
http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2011/may/7-levelslying.html
National Geographic, "Why We Lie?" - June, 2017
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2017/06/lying-hoax-false-fibs-science/
YOUR OWN TONGUE IS YOUR WORST ENEMY
Your words, your dreams, and your thoughts have power to create conditions in your life. What you speak about, you can bring about.
If you keep saying you can't stand your job, you might lose your job.
If you keep saying you can't stand your body, your body can become sick.
If you keep saying you can't stand your car, your car could be stolen, or just stop operating.
If you keep saying you're broke, guess what? You'll always be broke.
If you keep saying you can't trust a man or trust a woman, you will always find someone in your life to hurt and betray you.
If you keep saying you can't find a job, you will remain unemployed.
If you keep saying you can't find someone to love you or believe in you,
your very thought will attract more experiences to confirm your beliefs.
If you keep talking about a divorce or break up in a relationship, then you might end up with it.
Turn your thoughts and conversations around to be more positive and power packed with faith, hope, love and action.
Don't be afraid to believe that you can have what you want and deserve.
Watch your Thoughts, they become words.
Watch your words, they become actions
Watch your actions, they become habits.
Watch your Habits, they become character.
Watch your Character, for it becomes your Destiny
The minute you settle for less than you deserve, you get even less than you settle for.
I’d like to leave you with this thought:
"In the search for myself, I discovered truth.
In the search for truth, I discovered love.
In the search for love,
I discovered God.
And in God, I have found everything."
Adapted Pastor Phil Roland <><<
BRIDLING YOUR TONGUE
James 3:1-13 (NKJV)
1 My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.
2 For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body.
3 Indeed, we put bits in horses' mouths that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body.
4 Look also at ships: although they are so large and are driven by fierce winds, they are turned by a very small rudder wherever the pilot desires.
5 Even so the tongue is a little member and boasts great things. See how great a forest a little fire kindles!
6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell.
7 For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and creature of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind.
8 But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.
9 With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the similitude of God.
10 Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be so.
11 Does a spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same opening?
12 Can a fig tree, my brethren, bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Thus no spring yields both salt water and fresh.
13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show by good conduct that his works are done in the meekness of wisdom.
I’ve known Christian women who were fanatical about dressing modestly, and yet they think nothing to manipulate a situation using untruths. Spouses lie to one another in the name of keeping the peace, parents lie to their own children and vice versa, employers and employees just the same. Advertisers lie to sell products. Politicians lie in order to spin things their way. [add another to the list, John Edwards, who confesses lying and tells a few more lies in the process of his confession!]
Ill.—man spread lies about his pastor, was convicted, repented, and asked him how he could make it right. The pastor told him to get some feather pillows and rip them open, and place one feather on every porch in their community. It seemed strange, but he did what he was told. He went back to the preacher and said he was done. He said, no, you’re not. Go back and pick them all up now. “But I can’t. The wind has taken them who knows where!” The pastor said, “So it is with the words you have spoken about me.”
Revelation 21:7-8 (NKJV)
7 He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son. 8 But the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death."
Revelation 22:14-15 (NKJV)
14 Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city.
15 But outside are dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and whoever loves and practices a lie.
Proverbs 12:22 (NKJV)
22 Lying lips are an abomination to the LORD, But those who deal truthfully are His delight.
Proverbs 6:1-2 (NKJV)
1 My son, if you become surety for your friend, If you have shaken hands in pledge for a stranger, 2 You are snared by the words of your mouth; You are taken by the words of your mouth.
Proverbs 6:16-19 (NKJV)
16 These six things the LORD hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him:
17 A proud look, A lying tongue, Hands that shed innocent blood,
18 A heart that devises wicked plans, Feet that are swift in running to evil,
19 A false witness who speaks lies, And one who sows discord among brethren.
1. Half truths—not telling the whole story. A parent asks their teen where they are going. “To Andy’s house.” That’s true, but they leave out where they’re going from there. You break the spirit of the law when you do this. This is why in court you swear to not just tell the truth, but ‘the whole truth.’ Half the truth equals a whole lie.
2. Exaggeration—none are as guilty as preachers. One pastor was brought before the deacons for exaggerating so much. They confronted him. He said they were right. “I’ve cried a barrel of tears over it. And I promise, I’ve tried to quit a million times!”
3. Excuses—they are just dressed up lies.
Psalm 101:5 (NKJV)
5 Whoever secretly slanders his neighbor, Him I will destroy; The one who has a haughty look and a proud heart, Him I will not endure.
NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC
The history of humankind is strewn with crafty and seasoned liars like Hogue. Many are criminals who spin lies and weave deceptions to gain unjust rewards—as the financier Bernie Madoff did for years, duping investors out of billions of dollars until his Ponzi scheme collapsed. Some are politicians who lie to come to power or cling to it, as former President Bill Clinton lied to Congress and the American public, "I did not have sex with that woman."
People lie to cover up bad behavior, as American swimmer Ryan Lochte did during the 2016 Summer Olympics by claiming to have been robbed at gunpoint at a gas station when, in fact, he and his teammates, drunk after a party, had been confronted by armed security guards after damaging property. Even academic science—a world largely inhabited by people devoted to the pursuit of truth—has been shown to contain a rogues’ gallery of deceivers, such as physicist Jan Hendrik Schön, whose purported breakthroughs in molecular semiconductor research proved to be fraudulent.
These liars earned notoriety because of how egregious, brazen, or damaging their falsehoods were. But their deceit doesn’t make them as much of an aberration as we might think. The lies that impostors, swindlers, and boasting politicians tell merely sit at the apex of a pyramid of untruths that have characterized human behavior for eons.
Lying, it turns out, is something that most of us are very adept at. We lie with ease, in ways big and small, to strangers, co-workers, friends, and loved ones. Our capacity for dishonesty is as fundamental to us as our need to trust others, which ironically makes us terrible at detecting lies. Being deceitful is woven into our very fabric, so much so that it would be truthful to say that to lie is human.
THE ART FORGER
Lying for self-aggrandizement
Mark Landis, who says he was a failure as a commercial artist, spent nearly three decades imitating the works of famous painters, including this one in the style of folk artist William Matthew Prior. Posing as a philanthropist or Jesuit priest, he donated them to art museums and enjoyed being treated with respect. “I had never experienced this before, and I wanted it to go on,” he says. “I have no feelings of conscience about this. When I was exposed and had to stop, I was very sorry.”
the champ
Lying for fun
Jacob Hall’s desire to become a superhero inspired a tall tale that won him the West Virginia’s Biggest Liar award and a golden shovel at last year’s Vandalia Gathering, a folk festival in Charleston. “My stories would be pretty boring without deception,” says Hall, who intends to spin yarns “for the rest of my life, if you can believe that.”
That human beings should universally possess a talent for deceiving one another shouldn’t surprise us. Researchers speculate that lying as a behavior arose not long after the emergence of language. The ability to manipulate others without using physical force likely conferred an advantage in the competition for resources and mates, akin to the evolution of deceptive strategies in the animal kingdom, such as camouflage. “Lying is so easy compared to other ways of gaining power,” notes Sissela Bok, an ethicist at Harvard University who’s one of the most prominent thinkers on the subject. “It’s much easier to lie in order to get somebody’s money or wealth than to hit them over the head or rob a bank.”
As lying has come to be recognized as a deeply ingrained human trait, social science researchers and neuroscientists have sought to illuminate the nature and roots of the behavior. How and when do we learn to lie? What are the psychological and neurobiological underpinnings of dishonesty? Where do most of us draw the line? Researchers are learning that we’re prone to believe some lies even when they’re unambiguously contradicted by clear evidence. These insights suggest that our proclivity for deceiving others, and our vulnerability to being deceived, are especially consequential in the age of social media. Our ability as a society to separate truth from lies is under unprecedented threat.
BENDING THE TRUTH
“The truth comes naturally,” says psychologist Bruno Verschuere,
“but lying takes effort and a sharp, flexible mind.” Lying is a part of the develop-mental process, like walking and talking. Children learn to lie between ages two and five, and lie the most when they are testing their independence.
the impersonator
Lying for personal gain
Frank Abagnale, Jr., is now a highly regarded security consultant, but his brazen deceptions earlier in life inspired the 2002 movie Catch Me if You Can. Leonardo DiCaprio played Abagnale, who ran away from home at 16 and learned to survive by his wits, becoming a check forger, con man, and impostor. “I had to be creative in order to survive,” he says. “I do and will continue to regret it for the rest of my life.” Abagnale masqueraded as a pilot, a pediatrician, and an attorney with a Harvard law degree.
the secret agent
Lying for country
Valerie Plame, a former CIA agent, worked undercover for two decades. In 2003 her cover was blown and her clandestine career ended when Bush Administration officials leaked her name to a newspaper columnist. She and her husband say it was done in retribution for his claim that the White House had exaggerated intelligence to justify the invasion of Iraq. What lesson did she take away from her years as a spy? “Most people,” she says, “are more than willing to talk about themselves.”
the con artists
Lying to entertain
Apollo Robbins and Ava Do, who are married and business partners, use sleight of hand to entertain and educate. Robbins is an astonishingly agile pickpocket, perhaps best known for emptying the pockets of some Secret Service agents on a presidential detail. Do is a magician who has studied psychobiology. “We think of deception as the intent to distort someone’s perception of reality,” they say. “It is an impartial tool that can be used for good or bad, to inform or mislead.”
Patrick Couwenberg's staff and fellow judges in the Los Angeles County Superior Court believed he was an American hero. By his account, he had been awarded a Purple Heart in Vietnam. He’d participated in covert operations for the Central Intelligence Agency. The judge boasted of an impressive educational background as well—an undergraduate degree in physics and a master’s degree in psychology. None of it was true. When confronted, Couwenberg’s defense was to blame a condition called pseudologia fantastica, a tendency to tell stories containing facts interwoven with fantasy. The argument didn’t save him from being removed from the bench in 2001.
the card shark
Lying for strategic advantage
Raking in more than $32 million in tournament prizes, Daniel Negreanu has won more money than anyone in poker history. The Canadian-born superstar, who moved to Las Vegas 20 years ago, has traveled the world as an ambassador of the game and appeared on countless televised shows. “If you want to win at poker,” he says, “deception is absolutely necessary.” The trouble comes, he says, when players spend so much time deceiving competitors that “it infiltrates their personal life.”
the fabulist
Lying for professional gain
Jayson Blair is a life coach, seeking to help people define and achieve their goals. Before that, he was a fast-rising New York Times reporter whose career imploded in 2003 when he was discovered to have fabricated and plagiarized material in dozens of articles. “My world went from one in which I covered the deception of others to being the one doing the deception,” he says, “and eventually, searching for answers to questions about why I lied and why others do so as well.”
OTHER FAMOUS LIARS:
P.T. Barnum
Charles Dawson, 1012, Fossil enthusiast collaborated with Arthur Smith, created. . .
Piltdown Man, several clever fabrications and deliberate deceptions. . .
Orson Wells, War of the Worlds, radio play, October 30, 1938. It was a fiction account about aliens landing in New Jersey. Listeners panicked across the country. Some committed suicide from fear. It was on the eve of Halloween. No one thought it was just a radio show.
"I can't imagine an invasion from Mars would find ready acceptance." Wells. . .
Socrates' Triple Filter Test
In ancient Greece, Socrates was reputed to hold knowledge in high
esteem. One day an acquaintance met the great philosopher and said,
"Socrates, do you know what I just heard about your friend?"
"Hold on a minute," Socrates replied. "Before telling me anything I'd
like you to pass a little test.
It's called the Triple Filter Test."
"Triple filter?"
"That's right," Socrates continued. "Before you talk to me about my
friend, it might be a good idea to take a moment and filter what you're
going to say. The first filter is Truth. Have you made absolutely sure
that what you are about to tell me is true?"
"No," the man said, "actually I just heard about it and..."
"All right," said Socrates. "So you don't really know if it's true or
not. Now let's try the second filter, the filter of Goodness. Is what
you are about to tell me about my friend something good?"
"No, on the contrary..."
"So," Socrates continued, "you want to tell me something bad about him,
but you're not certain it's true. You may still pass the test though,
because there's one filter left: the filter of Usefulness. Is what you
want to tell me about my friend going to be useful to me?"
"No, not really."
"Well," concluded Socrates, "if what you want to tell me is neither
true nor good nor even useful, why tell it to me at all?"
1) TRUTH – Are you absolutely sure the material presented is the truth?
2) GOODNESS – Is the material about something good for all concerned?
3) USEFULNESS – Is the data useful for those listening?
Why communicate at all if the material is neither true, nor good, nor useful?
