“The righteous hate what is false, but the wicked make themselves a stench and bring shame on themselves.”

The other day, the Lord had to check my anger. I watched someone declare something to a group of people, and I was a bit stunned that they said it. I knew it wasn’t true, and even more, I knew that pretty much anyone else who heard it would recognize it as false. They said it to be provocative, controversial, perhaps even confrontational or just mean. I was, frankly, ticked off. The more I thought about it, the angrier I became. I knew it would hurt good people and confuse innocent listeners. You probably want me to tell you what was said and by whom, but I won’t. The point that Solomon emphasizes in this verse is that we live in a world full of deceptive messages, even lies. As God’s followers, it is neither okay to make those declarations nor to accept them. God is angered by them, and so should His children be. That doesn’t mean we respond in kind—we don’t attack. However, we should be even more determined to be purveyors of the truth, specifically His truth. Jesus called Himself “The Truth.” He actually said “the truth” as in the one and only truth. He did not say He was a truth—there can only be one truth, and He is it. Also, according to Solomon, a lie stinks. It smells very unpleasant, and that helps us identify them. The world really needs good, clear truth-tellers. Today, speak the truth and flee from lies. #BeTheEdge

“I am the Truth.” Jesus