You must not lie.
(Exod. 20:16 TLB)
These chairs showed up on my lawn about a week ago. They were made and delivered by a friend, Bruce. He asked me to pick out the colours. I had a choice of blue, white, yellow, green, and pink. I picked colours I thought would brighten up the place, and I believe I chose wisely. Bruce is 88 years old. He is not on any form of social media. He is a retired boat builder, an avid golfer, and a doer of good deeds. We can learn from Bruce.
The stress/loneliness of self-isolation in our homes, and social distancing in public, is leading to sinful actions – even by individuals who call themselves followers of Jesus. At one end of the spectrum are those sharing multiple conspiracy theories (China released the virus for population control, it’s a vehicle of the New World Order to get people under control, etc.), many that contradict each other. At the other end are those sharing extreme government-like propaganda. (We should keep all restrictions in place until a vaccine is discovered, regardless of how long it takes; those who do not take the vaccine should be placed in containment camps.) What we’ve discovered is that lies are being spread all over the place, shared by many people, causing both fear and division.
The temptation is strong, and I’ve even succumbed to it at times, but there is no condemnation in Christ Jesus. His forgiveness is never-ending. There is no time that is too late for us to turn back from evil ways. There is no better time than now. There is great advice, and warnings, in Proverbs 11 – so much for us to learn:
The Lord hates cheating and delights in honesty (v. 1).
A good man is guided by his honesty; the evil man is destroyed by his dishonesty (v. 3).
Good people are directed by their honesty; the wicked shall fall beneath their load of sins (v. 5).
To quarrel with a neighbor is foolish; a man with good sense holds his tongue (v. 12).
A gossip goes around spreading rumors, while a trustworthy man tries to quiet them (v. 13).
Your own soul is nourished when you are kind; it is destroyed when you are cruel (v. 17).
If you search for good, you will find God’s favor; if you search for evil, you will find his curse (v. 17).
Godly men are growing a tree that bears life-giving fruit, and all who win souls are wise (v. 30).
Sharing any form of information that causes fear or division, without confirmation of truth, is of the deceiver. Those in tune with God’s Word see how this can give Satan control. Followers of Jesus are to be witnesses to the world in all that we do and share (verbally or electronically).
So, what do we do? How do we take back control? We can’t! (We deceive ourselves by thinking we ever had control.) What we can do is decide who will have that control over us. The choice is, relinquish it to Satan or to the Holy Spirit. What happens when we give control to the Spirit?
But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control; and here there is no conflict with Jewish laws.
(Gal. 5:22–23 TLB)
We don’t want to be in conflict with the commandments of God, and displaying the fruit of the Spirit creates no conflict.
Ask yourself, Is what I am about to say, is what I am about to post on Facebook, or is what I am about to do advancing the Kingdom of God? Does it honour God? Is it God's honest truth?
We are being watched during this pandemic. Share misinformation now, share untruths now, pass on outright lies, and people may not believe the truth of the Gospel if it comes from your mouth.
Bruce displayed the fruit of the Spirit. There was no hatred shared about the government, there was no dislike towards people without masks, there was good fruit! Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.
Be like Bruce, who was being like Jesus!
Follow God’s example in everything you do just as a much loved child imitates his father. Be full of love for others, following the example of Christ who loved you and gave himself to God as a sacrifice to take away your sins.
(Eph. 5:1–2 TLB)