John 8:43-45
New International Version (NIV)
Why is my language not clear to you? Because you are unable to hear what I say. You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. Yet because I tell the truth, you do not believe me!
What does Jesus' association between the devil and telling lies mean to you?... (Serendipity Bible 10th Anniversary Edition, page 1504).
The life and death of Jesus have a multiplicity of instructions for us. An essential lesson regards what happens to human beings when clothing themselves within a habit of contrived dishonesty. The initial effect and averred intent is outward--we wish to deceive others by our dishonest displays. However, the zinger occurs when our own perception in strict accord with relentless cosmic justice becomes clouded and skewed by our own dishonesty. Our initial intent was to fool others, but the ultimate effect is that we fool ourselves and become deaf to truth from external sources. This tendency towards self-destruction greatly pleases the father of lies. Thus the Bible gives us a powerful cautionary tale. We had best not congratulate ourselves overmuch when we dishonestly spin a lie and thereby gain a temporary advantage, for surely awaiting us on the rebound is our own self-intoxication and destruction.
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