You Shall Not Bear False Witness

There is an alarming decline in basic honesty in our nation. We know more facts and believe less truth than ever before. In this message on the ninth commandment, “You shall not bear false witness,” Adrian Rogers discusses how to teach our children to live truthfully.

• The Liability of a False Witness
• The Reliability of a Faithful Witness
• The Responsibility of a Family Witness

We are calling this series of messages a perfect 10 for homes that win.
There is a crying need in America today for families that know the truth, believe the truth, love the truth, teach the truth, speak the truth and share the truth.
A home that is not built on truth will crumble. Profound truth.
Simply stated, this is love worth finding with pastor teacher and author Adrian Rogers.
Take if you will please your Bible and be Finding the book of Exodus chapter 20.
And today we look at verse 16, Exodus chapter 20 and verse 16.
It simply says this, thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.
Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor.
I want you to listen today as we think today about truth and consequences.
Now, our truth are consequences. The first thing I want you to notice is what I’m going to call the liability of a false witness, the liability of a false witness.
Thou shalt not bear false witness. Have you ever thought about who the father of all false witness is?
He’s Satan himself. John chapter eight and verse 44 Jesus speaking to the unsafe Pharisee said you of your father, the devil and the lust.
That is the desire of your father. Ye will do.
He was a murderer from the beginning and a bow.
Not in the truth because there is no truth in him. There is no truth in Satan.
Listen, when he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own for he.
Satan is a liar and he is the father of it.
Every time you tell a lie, you’re acting like the devil.
Do you know what the word devil means? The very word devil means slanderer.
That’s the meaning of the word devil.
When you bear false witness, when you slander, you’re like the devil.
When you tell the truth, you’re like the Lord Jesus whose name is truth.
Any time you slander someone, you are acting like Satan.
Now he’s the father of it and being the father of it, he has a family and, and who are these Children of Satan?
Uh you know, Children are like the father.
If you’re guilty of perjury, if you ever appear in a court and you perjure yourself, you break this commandment that says thou shalt not bear false witness.
Exodus chapter 23 verse one says, thou shalt not raise a false report, put not thy hand with the wicked to be an unrighteous witness.
Thou shalt not follow a multitude to do evil.
That doesn’t matter what people think you speak the truth and tell the truth.
And if you perjure yourself ever in a courtroom, one day, you will stand in God’s courtroom.
And the one who sets the murderer free will be condemned of murder.
And the one who accuses the innocent will suffer the penalty that that innocent person suffered.
The perjure is the child of his father, the devil.
The rumor monger is a child of his father, the devil.
It was rumored that Jesus was going to destroy the temple.
Now, Jesus did not say he’s going to destroy the temple that was built in Jerusalem.
He was talking about the temple of his body. But rumors got started about that.
The Bible says in Exodus 23 verse one, thou shalt not raise a false report.
Now, the perjure breaks this commandment. The rumor monger breaks this commandment. The Flatterer breaks this commandment.
Did you know that flattery is forbidden in the word of God?
Did you know that Proverbs 26 verse 28 a lying tongue.
Those that are afflicted by it and a flattering mouth worketh ruined, a flattering mouth, worketh ruined.
And I’m not talking here about giving encouragement. You ought to give encouragement. I’m not talking about giving thanks.
You ought to give thanks. You ought to give honor, encouragement, thanksgiving, and honor.
That’s the oil that just lubricates life.
If somebody has done a good job, tell them so encourage them if they need your help.
Flattery, however, is a way of using people. Psalm 55 verse 21.
The words of his mouth were smoother than butter but war was in his heart.
Have you ever met anyone like that? Oh, they flatter you to your face.
But when you are, you don’t have your face toward them. It’s an amazing thing.
What they will say about you.
Do you know why a Flatterer and a hypocrite are so much alike, the Flatterer will say to your face what he will not say behind your back.
The hypocrite says behind your back, what he will not say to your face and both are really heads and tails of the same coin and God’s word forbids it.
Uh You can break this commandment by mere insinuation.
The Bible speaks in, in uh second Corinthians chapter 12 and verse 20 about whispering when Jesus Christ was teaching the Pharisees insinuated that Jesus Christ was an illegitimate child.
John chapter eight and verse 41 we be not born of fornication. What’s the implication you are?
You know that you can bear false witness just by insinuation just by the tone of your voice, just by the arching of the eyebrows.
I’ve told you before about something that God convicted me of when I was a young preacher.
I was driving down to my little country church.
I was aware that one of the seal beams of my car had burned out and I was driving with one headlight hoping I could make it and get it fixed back to school.
The highway patrolman stopped me. I got out, tried to be courteous and respectful.
He said to me, son, do you know you only have one headlight?
Do you know what I said to him? I only have one headlight.
I told him the absolute truth. I only have one headlight.
But you see how I said it, I said it, I insinuated that I didn’t know that.
You see when I got back in the car, he wrote, he said, get that thing fixed young man.
I said, yes, sir, I will.
When I got back in the car, the Holy Spirit tore me up and said, Adrian, you lied to that man.
I said, I didn’t lie, told him the truth.
I only had one headlight said you told a lie and I did tell a lie by mere insinuation.
We can lie. I say with the tone of our voice.
And then of course, sheer slander is a part of one of the family members of your father, the devil, the slanderer.
The Bible says in James chapter four verse 11, speak not evil.
One of another brethren speak not evil. One of another brethren.
It doesn’t say whether it’s true or whether it’s not true. We are not to slander.
We’re not to speak with an evil spirit.
The Bible calls this in Jeremiah 18 verse 18, smiting with the tongue.
When you listen to slander, you’re as guilty as the person who gives it.
It’s a small compliment to you that people want to use your ears for garbage cans.
You can even break the spirit of this command that says, thou shalt not bear false witness by simply being silent.
Because the negative always implies the positive.
And when the Bible says, thou shalt not bear false witness, it implies you will bear true witness.
And if you’re quiet and don’t speak when you ought to speak, you’ve sinned.
Leviticus chapter five verse one.
And if a soul sinned and he had seen or known it, if he do not utter it, then he shall bear his iniquity.
That is if you simply say it’s none of my business and you keep silent when a criminal deed is done are when you fail to speak up, when a good man is criticized, you break the spirit of this command a few things you could do more foolish and more hurtful than to bear false witness.
It is so hurtful to people and it is so hellish before God listen to what God says in Proverbs six verses 16.
And following these six things that the Lord hate, Y seven are an abomination unto him.
A proud look, a lying tongue and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devise wicked imaginations and feet that be swift to running to mischief.
A false witness that speaketh lies and he that so discord among brethren of the six things that God hates Y seven, two of them deal with breaking this commandment which says, thou shalt not bear false witness.
Now, you may think it’s a small thing to lie.
But if you have a practice of lying, I wanna tell you plainly and clearly that you are of your father, the devil and you will spend all eternity with him in hell.
For the Bible says hell was prepared for the devil and his angels And the very word angel means his messenger, his witnesses.
You have become a witness for Satan and you will spend eternity with your father, the devil in hell.
Hell was not prepared for you. For me, it was prepared for the devil and his angels.
And when you become a false witness, you become one of Satan’s angels, one of Satan’s messengers.
And the Bible says in revelation chapter 21 verse eight, all liars, all liars shall have their part in the lake which Burnet with fire and brimstone.
That’s the word of God. I can’t change it.
I cannot amend it from the lightnings and thunders of Sinai.
God says, thou shalt not bear false witness again.
I wanna tell you, you are never more like Satan than when you bear false witness, when you perjure, when you slander, when you falsely criticize, when you remain silent, when you ought to speak, when you insinuate things that are not true, all of these things break God’s Holy commandment and will receive the judgment of Almighty God.
Now, there’s a second thing I want you to see.
I’ve talked to you about the liability of a false witness. I want you to see with me also.
Now the reliability of a fateful witness because you see when God says, thou shalt not bear false witness by implication, God is saying you shall bear fateful witness.
Jesus Christ is called the fateful and the true witness of God.
And we’re to be witnesses to Him.
Acts chapter one and verse eight, the Bible says, but ye shall receive power after that.
The Holy Ghost has come upon you and ye shall be witnesses unto me, my home and your home ought to be a witness to the saving power of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in the Bible.
When the Bible says that, uh they took the gospel from house to house.
That does not mean that someone went down the door, knock down the street, knocking on doors and telling people about Jesus this house and then this house and then this house now that’s well and good.
That’s a good way to do evangelism, but that’s not what the Bible means.
When it says the faith went from house to house, it means it goes from the Jones house to the Smith’s house and from the Smith’s house, uh to the Brown’s house and so forth.
Uh, and, and one family becomes a witness to another family and our families our families are the are to bear witness of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Now, we are not to bear false witness against our neighbor.
We are to bear faithful witness to our neighbor.
Our neighbors ought to know the Jesus that we know.
Are you bearing a fateful witness to your neighbor? Do your neighbors know that you’re Christians?
You say, well, Pastor Rogers, I haven’t been to seminary. I’m not trained.
Well, let me ask you a question. Has Jesus Christ saved you? Has he changed your home?
Is he real to you? Now, remember you are called to be a witness. A fateful witness?
Well, what does a witness do?
A witness tells what he has seen and heard as they used to say on dragnet?
Just the facts, ma’am. That’s all a witness tells what he has seen in her.
Now, Jesus did not call you to be his lawyer. A lawyer argues a case.
A witness simply shares what he’s seen and heard.
And so you just tell people what Jesus Christ has done for you and how you know he has done it.
Don’t witness about things you don’t know but witness about things. You do know if you fail.
That’s a part of your witness tell how you failed and how God forgave you and gave you another chance.
Your neighbor is waiting to hear our neighbors are waiting to hear about the saving gospel of Jesus Christ.
There’s the liability of a false witness. There is the reliability of a fateful witness.
Now let me come very quickly to close this message and talk to you about the responsibility of a family witness, the responsibility of a family witness.
We are calling this series of messages a perfect 10 for homes that win.
There is a crying need in America today for families that know the truth, believe the truth, love the truth, teach the truth, speak the truth and share the truth.
A home that is not built on truth will crumble.
Now, how do we take these things that I’ve talked about today?
And how do we transfer them to our Children and that our Children might go out into the school and into the workplace and into the government and rep permeate society with truth or three basic ways.
Number one by precept, you need to get this tape or you need to get a study like this and you need to get all of the scriptures that I’ve given you today and you need to teach them to your Children, literally teach them, take the word of God and show them that when they tell a lie, they’re acting like the devil.
Show them that when they tell the truth, they’re acting like the Lord Jesus Christ.
And don’t just simply say you ought not to tell a lie. That’s bad, that’s naughty.
Give them a theological reason. Tell them, tell them why they ought to tell the truth.
Talk of these scriptures. When you rise up, when you lie down, make certain that your Children understand the Holy Commandment.
So number one, you transfer by precept by teaching number two by example.
And I cannot, oh God help me, I cannot say it well enough, strongly enough.
How important it is, Mr that you as a father tell the truth.
One of the grandest things that has happened in America today is a movement called promise keepers where men have made up their mind under God that they will keep their word.
Listen, you need to be able to say to your Children.
God says, thou shalt not bear false witness and my child. I want to tell you this.
I will never lie to you. I will always keep my word to you.
Come up close and I’m gonna tell you something.
You can fail in many, many, many ways and still come out fairly good with your Children.
But if you fail here, if you fail to keep your word to keep your promises, if you fail to tell the truth to your Children, I promise you that your home is on the road to disaster.
I cannot emphasize enough how important it is to have fathers that will tell the truth if you’ve ever made a promise to your child and fail to keep that promise.
Ask that child for forgiveness. One day I got all of my Children together.
I said, I want to ask you a question.
Have I ever promised you anything that I didn’t do?
I was sure they’d say, oh, no, dad, you’ve always kept your word.
But one of them said, yeah, there was a time when I just made little remarks that were taken as promises and, and one of these days we’ll do that or one of these days we’ll do that.
I said, forgive me, I’m sorry and ask for forgiveness when you’ve done wrong and confess that you’ve done wrong.
Let your Children know that you are a truth speaker. What do you do with Children?
Number one by precept, teach them the word of God.
Number two, by example, live the word of God.
Moms and dads tell the truth and keep your word.
Number three by discipline, there are three deadly des that our kids knew about when they were coming in and our kids are not perfect kids, but they love God and they’re saved.
The three deadly d that I would not put up with. I’m talking about when they were little.
Well, I’m not talking about such things as, as stealing or using dope or I’m talking about when the little kids.
Now the first was deliberate disobedience.
Now, a, a child could disobey and if it’s not arrogant, not deliberate, then you have to deal gently with them.
But when it is deliberate disobedience, friend, you must, you must deal with that immediately.
The second thing is defiance, defiance. That’s the same as, as disobedience.
But it is just simply a disrespectful attitude, a defiant disrespect, deal with that immediately.
And the third is dishonest dishonesty when a child tells a lie that our Children knew that they could get away with some things.
But if they were ever disrespectful to their mother, ever disrespectful to the dad, ever defiantly disobedient or ever were dishonest at that moment at that moment.
The judgment was sure and swift kind. Yes, but stern. Yes. Well, time is gone.
Let me tell you this folks.
If you want your home to win, you better go back to what God has said.
You better take these commandments one at a time beginning with the commandment that says, I am the Lord, thy God.
Thou shalt have no other gods before me and take them one at a time, measure your life by them and teach them to your Children.
Less bower heads in prayer, every head bowed and every eye closed while heads about and eyes are closed.
Let me ask you this question. Do you know Jesus Christ as your personal savior?
Do you, Jesus is the faithful and the true witness. He is the truth.
He said I am the way the truth and the life and no man cometh unto the father.
But by me, if you wanna be saved today, you can be saved to be saved.
Means that every sin is forgiven to be saved means that every dishonest thing we’ve ever done is buried in the grave of God’s forgetfulness.
Never to be brought up against us anymore. To be saved.
Means that the one who is, who is the truth lives in us and helps us to live the truth to be saved means we have the joy of God.
The peace that passes understanding to be safe, means that we have a home in heaven.
Ask Him to save you, trust him to save you, save me, Lord Jesus.