Posted on December 31, 2012 at 3:00 AM |
There is a verse in the Bible that says, "The heart is deceiptful above allthings and desparetly corrupt, who can understand it" (Jeremiah 17:9). The implied but unspoken answer is, "No one". You could add, "Not even myself".
Can you understand the reasons for everything you do and say and think? I know I can't. But I do know that I sometimes consciously make excuses for the things I do, say and even think. I have this conflict: on the one hand, I have just excused myself for something wrong (trying to convince myself that it wasn't that bad, really).
On the other hand, my own conscience condemns me. Anyone know I'm talking about here? Of course you do! Well, if there are times when we know we are deceiving ourselves, what about those times when we do not know we are deceiving ourselves. After all, isn't that the nature of deception. When it's happening, you don't know because, well, you're being deceived.
Every deception has to do with the corruption of truth, even in just a small way. So every deception is actually a lie! It has to be if it's not true. How many times a day do you think you lie to yourself (we haven't even begun to consider lying to others). 5,10, 20, 50.
OK, what about lies to others? Be honest (if you can). We lie when we try to make ourselves look better than we are; or when we exaggerate to make a story more exciting; or say we would never do a certain thing when we know we would or have; or we agree with the popular person just to win their favour when we don't actually agree at all; or we lie to cover up something. The list goes on.....
All the time you are reading this, there is a battle going on. Do I admit this is true or do I tell another lie and try to deceive myself that it is not. Self-deception runs deep.
If you're honest (that's telling the truth) how many times do you think you lie, fib, exaggerate, decieve, withhold the truth, bend the truth, tell a white lie, make out something is true but is not, in just one day? We're just talking about 1 day here. Let's not get too carried away, yet.
I'm going to be really generous here, despite the damning evidence, and suggest that perhaps you may only tell 5 lies a day. That's either in your thoughts, words or both. Just 5!
Now consider this. 5 times 365 days in a year = 1,825 lies!
That should concern you.
Take those 1,825 lies now and multiply them by 60 years and that's 109,500 lies!!!!!
It's true, God will not sent you to hell just because you just told one lie.
Would you like me to list all the other unholy things we think, say and do and multiply that by 109,500?
Add to this the fact that we are sinful and God is Holy and what we call good is often an unclean thing to God. As sinners it is hard for us tofully comprehend how filthy our lives are in the eyes of God who alone is Holy (Perfect, Pure). It would not be unreasonable to suggest thatin an average life time we actually commit well over 1 billion sins. Well over that.
If you were to name all 1 billion of your sins by naming one every second, how long do you think it would take you to count them all up.
The answer is 31 years, 251 days, 7 hours, 46 minutes, and 39 seconds.
Do you now see why you need God's forgiveness and why the only way youwill get to heaven is to throw yourself at the mercy of God.
Does that help you see how merciful and generous God actually is that he has provided a way for you to escape the just penalty of eternal hell forall your sin?
The Bible says in Revelation 21:8 "But for the fearful, and unbelieving, and abominable, and murderers, and fornicators, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, theirpart `shall be' in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone; whichis the second death."
Your lies are not the only things that will send you to hell.
Please CLICK HERE and do the Good Person Test and see the amazing thing God has done so that you do not need to go to hell. What he has done requires a response from you in order for you to know his mercy here on earth and forever in heaven.
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