Category Archives: Lies

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FAKERS

2 TIMOTHY 3:8

“Just as Jannes and Jambres opposed Moses, so these men also oppose the truth, men of depraved mind, rejected in regard to the faith.”

Just who are these two guys. They are mentioned nowhere else in the Bible. We are pretty sure these two men were the two lead magicians who opposed Moses in front of Pharaoh. There is a lot of Jewish literature that names them, and it would be normal for their names to have been preserved in ancient texts.

But why mention them here. Paul is saying that just as these two tried to fake the truth of Moses’ miracles to free the slaves, these people Paul is warning Timothy about were faking the truth of the gospel and pretending to have an equal claim to apostleship and power. There are still people around today who will do the same. Beware!

APPLICATION

Now, people won’t normally come up to you or your child and say, “I have the power of God. Listen to me.” That would be too obvious. We teach our children about stranger danger. If someone approaches them and claims mom or dad sent them to pick them up, what should they do? That’s right, run! The same holds true here.

If you find yourself in a situation where you are hearing “another” gospel that doesn’t quite match up to the truth of the gospel, run! Teach your kids that the moment the shift happens from all glory pointing to Jesus towards another person or object (church, event, etc.), run! Fakers fake because we fall for it. Fakers fake because we are not diligent to check them out.

Let me ask you a hard question. Are you a faker? Do you pretend to be walking in the truth but are actually living a lie? Stop right now and make that right. Set your feet on the firm foundation of God’s Word and never turn again. And be mindful of the other fakers around you trying to lure you into chasing things that are false and just don’t matter. Life is way too short to chase rabbits spiritually.

Give me Your eyes, Lord, so I can spot the fakers. You only stand for truth. That is all I desire.

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OUT OF LINE

2 TIMOTHY 2:18

“men who have gone astray from the truth saying that the resurrection has already taken place, and they upset the faith of some.”

Have you ever known someone who was just out of line? I mean, someone who deliberately said something or did something that everyone could see was not right. Maybe you have done that. Well, the phrase “have gone astray” in today’s verse carries that meaning. It is only used three times in Scripture (here, 1 Timothy 1:6; 6:21), each time by Paul writing to Timothy.

Now, listen to this definition. It means to be out of step with God, to be off target. But it’s more than that. The word has the understanding that this person has purposely walked off the line with God. They didn’t get pushed off. In fact, this word also emphasizes God’s disapproval due to their walking off.

APPLICATION

Raising children isn’t for the weak of heart. Can I get an “Amen”? I’ve said it many times, “We are not raising children. We are raising child raisers.” And there is nothing more important than to teach our children to walk with God. So, when a parent comes to me, heartbroken, because their son or daughter have decided to walk away from the faith, I can feel their pain.

Walking is simple. It’s just putting one foot in front of another. Walking with God can be just as simple – if – we let Him do all the walking. All we have to do is hold His hand. Better yet, all we have to do is place our hand in His. He will hold onto us.

Have you deliberately walked off? Are you walking hand in hand? Take a moment and make sure that every step you take is in sync with the Lord. Don’t take one step without knowing your walk is His walk. His direction will always be right.

I can’t begin to know where You are leading me, Lord. So, I will stay on the path You have laid out before me. Lead me, Lord.

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Advice, Bible, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Deception, Holy Spirit, Lies, Obedience, Parenting, Scripture, Trust

WHO?

2 TIMOTHY 1:15 

“You are aware of the fact that all who are in Asia turned away from me, among whom are Phygelus and Hermogenes.”  

The only thing we know of Phygelus and Hermogenes is right here. All we know is they turned away from Paul. These were men who had seemingly embraced the Gospel, but then decided to go back to the world. How sad? To have it all and spurn it! 

There are many who make attempts at religion, only to find that religion doesn’t work. It takes too much effort. Even in the first century Christian church, individuals were faking it. It’s no wonder the church today is still full of people pretending to have faith. Times may change, but people remain the same. 

APPLICATION 

So, what’s the lesson for our children in this verse? Remember, every single word of Scripture is inspired by the Holy Spirit. That means even this seemingly unimportant verse about two men is God’s Word.  I believe the lesson for us is to ensure our faith is real and that we are walking with Christ. 

Why else would Paul mention these two men to Timothy. We need to warn our children that there will be those, even in the church, who will pretend to be believers. Some do it for themselves, while others do it to manipulate and deceive. How do our children guard against this? Simple! Walk with Jesus. He will reveal those individuals to them through the discernment of the Holy Spirit. 

Aren’t you grateful the Spirit speaks to you as you encounter individuals? Have you ever just known someone instantly because of your kindred spirits in Christ? That same Spirit speaks to us to warn us of danger. But we must listen. Trust the Spirit to show you who walks with you in your faith journey.  

O God, You are the revealer of all things. Show me those who would be worthy travel companions on my road to eternity. Protect me from those who would like to deceive me and take advantage of others. 

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YOU JUST CAN’T HIDE IT

1 TIMOTHY 5:25

“Likewise also, deeds that are good are quite evident, and those which are otherwise cannot be concealed.”

Have you ever tried to conceal a wrong? You messed up, you know it and now you are trying to hide it. Most of us have. Paul knew about wrong deeds. Remember his past? He had sought out and persecuted the believers. I am sure there were some things he did he wished he could have hidden. But he also knew that truth was the only way.

Paul is also warning us of the same. Some people’s good works are so evident. They may or may not want the attention for doing them, but the fact remains that did them. On the other hand, there are many who appear as good, yet try to conceal their true actions and motives. Paul is saying they will come out. Give it time.

APPLICATION

Teaching your little one to do good is something I am sure you are doing. We don’t have to teach them how to do bad stuff, do we? That comes naturally. And we know they are going to mess up. That’s unavoidable. What we must do, however, is teach them to own up to their mistakes, to confess, to make it right. Concealment only leads to bigger problems.

I can deal with just about any problem, but when someone outright lies to me, that’s hard to stomach. Trust is broke. Your children need to know that. And you need to be quick to deal with deception from your children. Quick and natural consequences are the key. Why? We want them to be truthful, even if it means they may suffer a consequence. 

So, how do you handle this yourself? Are you tempted to cover up your bad behaviors? Do you make excuses for your failures? Be upfront. Be honest. Take responsibility. Little ones are watching and listening. Let your good deeds be quite evident. Don’t be the one trying to conceal your wrong deeds.

O Lord, help me to be open and honest at all times. I represent You and want to draw all to you. Help me confess my wrongdoings and accept whatever consequence may come.

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WAIT AND WATCH

1 TIMOTHY 5:24

“The sins of some men are quite evident, going before them to judgment; for others, their sins follow after.”

Context, context, context! We can’t forget the context of this verse. Taken out of context you could apply this incorrectly and use it to judge others unfairly. But Paul is talking to Timothy about choosing men to serve as Elders in the church. Basically, he is telling him some men are open books. Everyone knows their character, flaws and strengths. Others, however, play a good game. They hide their secret sins, but they will be revealed.

Have you ever met someone and thought they were awesome, only to find out later that you had been conned?  People do it all the time. Deception is their life. They present one way to the public, but privately they live a whole other life. Paul is telling us to wait and watch. Give it some time. Don’t be too hasty. Their true self will reveal itself.

APPLICATION

Oh, listen! This is so important to teach your children. And you can teach it when they are pretty young. I bet you they are going to want something at the local Walmart that you know is not going to last very long. The item is not well made, so you know it’s only going to last the weekend. Have you had this experience? But they are begging for it. They even say they will use their own money.

So, you let them buy the item. Sure enough, it breaks within 24 hours. Now you have a great object lesson. Tell them that people can be that way. What appears to be great on the outside can hold deceptive parts. People who seem like great people can be hiding some very bad motives. The object here is not to get them to not trust people. The object is for them to learn discernment and patience. God will reveal to them the truth or the falsehood in the person. (Now, give them their money back since you used this as an object lesson, lol.)

This devotional may seem like I am “negative Nancy.” I believe the Word teaches us wisdom. It shows us the way to avoid situations. This is one of them. Don’t rush to judgment on someone, good or bad. Wait and watch. Let the Lord reveal their character. It will come out. Just watch.

Father, give me Your eyes and ears to discern truth in others. Help me see them as You see them. Expose any deception before I am deceived.

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Advice, Bible, Blameless, Child Raising, Child Rearing, Commands, Deception, Gossip, Lies, Mentoring, Parenting, Satan, Scripture, Trust

ACCUSED

1 TIMOTHY 5:19

“Do not receive an accusation against an elder except on the basis of two or three witnesses.” 

We have probably all been accused of something we haven’t done. It’s not a fun thing to go through. You know you didn’t do it. You are positive they are wrong. But the longer the accusations go on, the less sure you are about your own innocence. Constant accusations can bring you down. That’s exactly what Satan wants. That’s exactly what Satan does.

It’s interesting that the Greek word here for “accusation” is also used in John 18:29 where Pilate asks the Jewish leaders what accusation they are bringing against Jesus. Even He was falsely accused. But unlike us, Jesus WAS completely innocent. He was sinless, yet He was accused. Living righteously does not protect you from being accused. 

APPLICATION

Probably one the best things you can teach your child is to be confident in who they are. Teach them to be forthright about their actions, to not hide their behaviors. That way if they are ever accused of something they haven’t done, they will be confident in themselves. They need to know, though, that following Jesus may just bring false accusations.

The world doesn’t like us shining the light of the Lord on their activities. When we stand for truth and God’s Word, the world will do all it can to shut us down. They will lie and make up things about us to try to shame us. Teach your kids now to stand up for the Lord, no matter what. Teach them to trust Him to defend and protect them against the enemy.

Are you trusting the Lord in your battles? Maybe you don’t have any battles because you have compromised your principles to fit in at work or community. If that is the case, repent. Stand up! Make your love for Christ known. Then you will know true freedom.

Father, I praise You for allowing me to suffer false accusations. I know the world cannot bring me down. They do not have the power to unseat You on the throne of my life.

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DID YOU HEAR ABOUT?

1 TIMOTHY 5:13

“At the same time they also learn to be idle, as they go around from house to house; and not merely idle, but also gossips and busybodies, talking about things not proper to mention.” 

Women get the bad reputation of being the gossipers, but have you have been to a barber shop? We men are just as bad, if not worse. Most of that gossip starts out as, “Did you hear about…” Or if the person telling the “news” is a believer, they may say, “Oh brother, we need to pray for…” Either way, it’s gossip.

That word in the Greek is only used right here. It has the idea of a pot that has boiled over, ruining whatever was in it and the area around it. That’s exactly what our gossip does. It ruins stuff, especially the reputation of the one gossiping and the one being gossiped about.

APPLICATION

This is a simple application. If you can’t catch this truth, maybe you need to go back to kindergarten. We teach our children that it is not nice to talk about people, and then we proceed to do it right in front of them. I know I have been guilty of that. Lord, please forgive me. As I said above, as believers we always disguise it as a prayer request, but it’s still gossip.

What would you do if your little Johnny was caught gossiping and spreading stuff about you? You would probably discipline him. So, what should the Lord do to you for doing the same thing? I am not saying He will, but you have definitely grieved His heart. Not living like Jesus grieves the Father’s heart. And we should never want to do that.

Are you a gossiper? Are you a “prayer request” giver? Make sure the news you are sharing about someone is true and appropriate. It may be completely true but is it worthy of sharing. Those little, juicy tidbits are so tempting, aren’t they? Don’t do it. Ask the Lord before you “share” that information. He will let you know if it is appropriate and worthy to be shared.

O Father in heaven, forgive me for gossip. Forgive me for talking about others. Forgive me for letting my desire to look better than someone else lead me to babble and boil over.

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UNAPPREHENDABLE

1 TIMOTHY 5:7

“Prescribe these things as well, so that they may be above reproach.”

I’m not sure “unapprehendable” is a word, but it is now, lol. I use that to describe “above reproach” for a reason. The Greek word means someone is trying to accuse someone else of something of which there is no evidence of their guilt. It’s a baseless charge. Therefore, they cannot be apprehended.

This Greek word is only used in 1 Timothy (3:2, 5:7 and 6:14) by Paul. I wonder why. Why did the Holy Spirit tell Paul to use that word only in this letter to Timothy? It’s a great word and could have been applied to a lot of Paul’s letters. It doesn’t matter why – only that it is used here.

APPLICATION

Oh, what an important thing to teach your little Gertrude and Elrod. They need to live in such a way that they are above reproach and unapprehendable. They should live surrendered to Jesus so completely that no accusation hurled against them can stick. They are guiltless before man. 

If we live that way, we don’t have to keep watching over our shoulders hoping no one finds out about us. We have nothing to hide. Our lives are an open book, so to speak. The devil loves to dig up our dirt and throw it back on us. But if we live like Paul is saying here, there is no dirt to be used against us. 

Are you unapprehendable? Or are you constantly trying to keep stuff hidden from others? How tiring! We can literally wear ourselves out hiding stuff. One lie leads to another lie. Don’t you get tired of that? Praise be to God! He sets us free from that. He knows our dirt and still forgives us. Won’t you live in that freedom today? Allow Him to walk with you wherever you go. He will NEVER lead you to a place that you are ashamed. 

Blameless! That’s the way I want live, Lord. Lead me in Your ways every day, so that I have nothing to hide.

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ARE YOU TRUSTWORTHY?

1 TIMOTHY 4:9

“It is a trustworthy statement deserving full acceptance.”

This phrase is used twice by Paul in writing to Timothy in this letter. He doesn’t use the phrase anywhere else. I wonder why. Why is Paul saying what he is saying is trustworthy? Did someone accuse him of lying? Was Timothy hearing other reports from Paul’s enemies? We don’t know, but we do know the Holy Spirit told him to put these words down.

So, how do they apply to us? Let me ask you a question. Can you say this about all your statements? Are all your words worthy? The word “deserving” can also be translated as “worthy of.” The word means to be weighed in God’s scale of truth. That’s a higher level of trustworthiness, isn’t it?

APPLICATION

This is a simple truth to teach your children. We need to model this first, though. Can our children trust our words? Do we say what we mean and mean what we say? Can they rely on us to follow through with what we say? They learn this truth by watching and listening to us. Are we trustworthy in our words to our children?

Too many parents lie to their kids. Yes, I said lie. They tell them something, knowing it will never happen. They make promises they know they cannot keep. If you are one of those parents, stop! Make sure your yes means yes and your no means no. Stop confusing your children with wishy washy parenting. Remember, you are not raising children. You are raising child raisers. What you model and teach will be repeated.

Are you trustworthy in your statements? Can people trust what you say? One of the worst reputations you can have is to be known as a liar. I have known people whom you could say if their lips were moving, they were lying. Not good! Don’t be that person. If you are a believer in Christ, you have THE truth in you.

Forgive me Lord, when I tell untruths. Convict me of this sin. Let me never be guilty of leading others astray by my statements. I want my words to line up with Your Word.

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OLD WIVES’ TALES

1 TIMOTHY 4:7

“But have nothing to do with worldly fables fit only for old women. On the other hand, discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness;”

You may have heard the phrase “old wives’ tales.” It refers to things that are passed down from one generation to another as being truth when it actually is just superstitions or false information. I used to teach First Aid and CPR in an area of Tennessee to teen moms where I heard a lot of these. One such old wives’ tale was to bind up your baby real tight and drop a pair of scissors behind their back if they have colic. That will cut the pain. Don’t try that at home, lol. 

Paul is warning Timothy about these fables and superstitions. He should stick to the truth of God’s Word. Only that will lead to discipline and godliness. Any other source of information is subject to verification. God’s Word is always reliable. It can be trusted throughout the generations.

APPLICATION

Your children will hear lots of silly fables (old wives’ tales) in their lives. Some may even have a smidgeon of truth in them. Those are really confusing to young minds. The easy way to verify if they are true is to measure them against God’s Word. If they agree, trust it. If they don’t, don’t trust it.

Learning to discern fact from fiction is a skill they will need as they navigate life. Satan is around every corner just waiting to try to confuse us or deceive us. When our children learn to recognize those untruths, they will be safer in their journey following Christ.

Are you one who believes all those old wives’ tales? Do you put more stock into what Grandma said than what God says? Give up all those generational truths and turn to the only source of truth. He will teach you whatever it is you need to know. And you can be guaranteed that it is always true.

Lord, help me discern fact from fiction. When I am unsure let me turn to You. I know You are truth and can set me straight.

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