The LORD hates the deceitful man.

The LORD hates the deceitful man. Those are not my words, but the inspired words of Scripture. It’s a strong statement that we may naturally resist. Why the resistance? Because we’ve been taught that “God hates sin but loves the sinner.” Which sounds true enough, but is it the whole truth? Finding the whole truth means receiving truth from the whole Bible by diligent study and comparing Scripture with Scripture, which is not the same as cherry-picking a few passages of Scripture - while ignoring or dismissing other related passages of Scripture. Is it possible to be off-balanced in our approach to discerning the truth? Can we potentially over-emphasize one truth at the expense of another? Of course, it happens all the time.

For example, we talk a lot about loving God, while we almost totally ignore the call to fear God. We know the greatest command is to love the LORD with all our heart, soul, mind and strength. But are we not also commanded to fear the LORD? The Bible tells us that our God is a consuming fire (Deut. 4:24; Heb. 12:29)! The Holy Spirit uses a compelling image to describe the LORD. The Bible doesn’t liken our God to a butterfly! Nor is He some silver-haired, celestial Santa Claus, our jolly old side-kick in the sky. Yahweh is compared to one of the most fearsome forces known to mankind, a devouring inferno. Every creature on earth is instinctively terrified of a raging fire, and that’s the picture used by the Spirit in both the Old and New Testament to depict the Most High God.

Back in the Old Testament, Deuteronomy 10:12 says to both love God and fear God in the same verse! Proverbs 9:10 tells us the fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom. In the New Testament, we are commanded plainly in 1 Peter 2:17 to “Fear God.” So, if we only talk about loving God, and say little to nothing about fearing God, we do a disservice to Scripture and we misrepresent the true character of God. He commands that we fear Him, and a key indictment against sinners is that they don’t fear JAH (see Proverbs 1:29; Jeremiah 3:8; Romans 3:18).

A similar “error” or imbalance occurs when we say God hates sin but loves the sinner. Certainly, it is true that God loves people. In John 3:16, Jesus Christ tells us, “For God so loved the world...” But to stop there is to withhold vital information. In verse 36, John the Baptist reveals that the wrath of God abides on those who don’t believe on the Son. So, in the same chapter of the Bible we hear about both the love of God and the wrath of God.

To say that our Lord hates sin but loves the sinner is not stating the whole truth. The Bible declares God is angry with the wicked, not just their wickedness, every day (Psalm 7:11)! This anger from the Almighty is especially directed toward men and women who lie, swindle, con, defraud, trick, fleece, scam, rip off, dupe, grift, cheat and deceive other people. King David of Israel, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, said in Psalm 5:5-6, “The boastful shall not stand in Your sight; You hate all workers of iniquity. You shall destroy those who speak falsehood; the LORD abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful man.” (NKJV)

Does it say here that God hates the sin but loves the sinner? Not quite! God hates iniquity and the workers of iniquity. He abhors the deceitful man. The word “abhor” is a strong verb. It means to despise, to detest and to loathe, to regard with disgust and hatred. This is how God feels about a deceitful man or woman. He hates them! Why such strong feelings? Because deceit flows from a heart in rebellion against a holy God. “The wicked are estranged from the womb; they go astray as soon as they are born, speaking lies” (Psalm 58:3). The wicked have decided they will not fear the Lord of truth, hence they had no scruples about deceiving others.

Lies stand in opposition to truth. Whatever flows from truth, the opposite flows from lies. If truth equals freedom, lies equal bondage. If speaking the truth builds trust, what happens if we attempt to deceive? It destroys trust. Consequently, one of the greatest evils of lying is that it breaks down trust between people, and trust is essential for a moral and secure nation.

Trust is the lubricant that keeps the wheels of society turning. Trust enables people to move forward together. Without trust, you can’t have a loving marriage, a happy home or a stable community. Trusting others is what allows you to drop a check in the corner mailbox, to eat food prepared by strangers, and to vote with confidence. (I submitted my mail-in ballot today!)

Lies attack the foundation of trust that’s so necessary in a moral and stable society. The bottom line is people literally suffer physical harm, and even death, when they stray from the whole truth and place their trust in half-truths, wicked imaginations, conspiracy theories and falsehoods. The LORD said His wayward people would be scattered by the wind like stubble. Why? “Because you have forgotten me, and trusted in falsehoods” (Jeremiah 13:25). Will the same be said of our nation? I pray not, but the spiritual decline of America is a sad possibility. I trust you'll join with others across the land who are praying for "The Spiritual Awakening of America."

Jesus said Satan is a murderer and the father of lies. Death and lies are running buddies, they march together along a path of misery and destruction (see my post, “Hitler lied, Germans died!”). This is why God hates a deceitful person, especially a deceitful leader. “When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice; but when a wicked man rules, the people groan [or mourn].” (see Proverbs 29:2 NKJV). A righteous leader is a blessing to the people. A bad leader is a menace to society. Which brings to mind an earlier post, “How should Christians vote in November?”

Some folks have argued that we should downplay the character of the candidate and vote solely according to the policies of a particular party. But is that biblical? I argue that civic leaders are to be elected based upon their personal, ethical qualifications. This sound principle of selecting moral civic leaders is supported in 2 Samuel 23:1-4; 2 Chronicles 19:5-7 and Exodus 18:21. The latter verse reads, “Moreover you shall select from all the people able men, such as fear God, men of truth, hating covetousness; and place such over them to be rulers of thousands, rulers of hundreds, rulers of fifties, and rulers of tens.”

According to the inspired text from Exodus 18, the personal, moral qualifications for civic leadership are 1) competent, 2) God-fearing, 3) a man of truth, and 4) not greedy for unjust gain. These are the qualities the citizens of America should demand in all of our leaders. To disobey this principle is to invite all manner of corruption. Think about it for a minute. What kind of society would we be if our political leaders were incompetent, irreligious, deceitful and greedy? What might be the outcome if we willfully disregard this principle of selecting moral leaders? From biblical and extra-biblical accounts, we know that wicked leaders cause those under their authority to suffer physical and spiritual decline. So, is God indifferent toward the deceitful person who makes others groan and mourn? I think not. And shall not God render to every man according to his work? (Proverbs 24:12). Yes, He will.

“A worthless person, a wicked man, walks with a perverse mouth; he winks with his eyes, he shuffles his feet, he points with his fingers; perversity is in his heart, he devises evil continually, he sows discord. Therefore his calamity shall come suddenly; suddenly he shall be broken without remedy. These six things the LORD hates, yes, seven are an abomination to Him…” (Proverbs 6:12-16).

Make no mistake about it, God loves the people of the world. But let’s be sure to tell the whole truth. Our God is also a consuming fire, and He’s angry with the wicked every day. Calamity will come suddenly upon the man who sows discord. The man or woman who is busy devising evil shall be broken without remedy. Lying lips are an abomination to the LORD, and the Bible says He shall destroy those who speak falsehoods. The Most High hates all workers of iniquity, and the wrath of God abides on all unbelievers. Salvation over the penalty and power of sin comes by faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

That’s the “bad news-good news” message we’re called to proclaim to a fallen race. A lost person must first comprehend the bad news, before they can see the urgency of accepting the good news. And unless Christians truly grasp the awfulness of the bad news, we’ll never see the urgency of sharing the good news.

Grace, Peace and Jahspeed!

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