That time you didn’t tell the truth.

If you tell the truth you don’t have to remember anything.

Mark Twain

It’s #FiveMinuteFriday and I didn’t want to pass up this word prompt: Truth!

I have a dear friend that I remember when we were teenagers always ending a statement or answering someone else with “This is true!” Wouldn’t it be wonderful if that were the case? That everything we said was true?

The story of Ananias and Sapphira is told in Acts, chapter 5. This couple had sold a piece of property and then brought part of the profit to the apostles. The problem was that they claimed it was the full amount when it wasn’t. Peter confronts them and asks if it is the full amount and Ananias replies that it is. Here is where it gets interesting:

Then Peter said, “Ananias, why have you let Satan fill your heart? You lied to the Holy Spirit, and you kept some of the money for yourself. The property was yours to sell or not sell, as you wished. And after selling it, the money was also yours to give away. How could you do a thing like this? You weren’t lying to us but to God!”

Peter makes it clear that Ananias did not have to give the money to the church, it was his money, he could as he wished. The problem was that he lied, not to them but to God.

As soon as Ananias heard these words, he fell to the floor and died. Everyone who heard about it was terrified. Then some young men got up, wrapped him in a sheet, and took him out and buried him.

Ananias paid for his sin immediately…can you imagine if that were the case today? That if you lied, you died!

Things got worse from there because about three hours later his wife, Sapphira walks in and Peter asks her the same question he asked Ananias and she tells the same story, the same lie. Look at the beginning of the chapter again: He brought part of the money to the apostles, claiming it was the full amount. With his wife’s consent, he kept the rest.

With his wife’s consent, he kept the rest. Sapphira not only knew about the lie, she was in agreement with it. So, when she walked in and lied to Peter?

And Peter said, “How could the two of you even think of conspiring to test the Spirit of the Lord like this? The young men who buried your husband are just outside the door, and they will carry you out, too.” Instantly, she fell to the floor and died.

Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. Ephesians 4:25

I love this quote! It is so much easier to tell the truth because you don’t have to remember the lie that you made up!! Yes, sometimes the truth hurts but a lie will follow you forever. Whether it is in the guilt or the worry that you will be found out, or the condemnation that trails you…as the saying goes, Be sure your sin will find you out!

If you have lied? If the guilt is weighing you down, Jesus is in the forgiveness business! He wants you to come to Him, to confess your weaknesses. He is ready and willing to forgive and forget! Don’t let the enemy intimidate you an make you think that forgiveness can’t be found. That is also a lie! He is the father of lies and wants you to think that you are stuck with that guilt and condemnation. Not so, friend, not so! Repenting is turning around, away from the sin and not repeating it over again. Confessing and giving it to God is the best remedy for that guilt. Do it today!

It’s so much easier to be honest, so much easier to not have to apologize later or worry you will be found out. And most of all, your heart is right with your God and that is worth it all.