Copyright 2025 by Joan Berry
At one time or another, we have been guilty of lying, hypocrisy, or condoning an unsavory action. Any one of these can have a serious impact on a personal level or a society. Generally, the effects diminish trust, cohesion, and moral standards. This essay seeks to be clear about honesty, integrity, and commitment. These principles are vital to everyone who desires to live a better and more fruitful life, whereas those who condone deceit, and hypocrisy are to be avoided.
Liars:
Liars often project their guilt onto someone else or become deniers who never admit their sins even though evidence reveals the truth. Gaslighting is another way of lying as you will see in the following example. The Bible has several passages concerning liars and the following are two of the key verses:“Lying lips are detestable to the Lord, but faithful people are his delight.” (Proverbs 12.22) and Revelation 21.8) “But the fearful, and unbelievers, and abominable, and murders, and whore mongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burnth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”
Honesty is a virtue throughout the Scriptures.
Following is an example of how lying about a theft caused a rift in a family that yet remains :
A young woman moved back into her family home where her mother and two other family members resided. When the young woman became solvent again, she moved out taking items that were not hers. The victim of the theft went to the mother and explained how she saw her daughter going through things stored in the closet of the room her daughter had occupied but only thought she was rearranging things to make room for her clothes. A cherished collection of vintage items was stored in the closet and was now missing. The return of the items was requested. But, instead, the mother did not discipline the daughter and tried to gaslight the victim into believing that she had “mislaid” the missing things. A hat box used to store the items was later found hidden in the basement among the daughter’s storage — only two of the items remained.
Some parents assert that it is permissible to lie to protect their children or themselves from an embarrassing situation. This attitude teaches their children that they can misbehave and then lie to try to get out of trouble. This sets them up for a bad habit as they go into adulthood.
Hypocrites:
“Woe to you scribes and hypocrites and Pharisees, you are like whitewashed tombs which appear beautiful on the outside, but inside are full of bones and the dead and every kind of impurity. In the same way on the outside you seem righteous to people, but inside you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.” (Matthew 23.27). Hypocrisy often causes broken expectations because they adhere to the” promises-made-promises-broken” school of thought. A typical hypocrite may assure a person that he will approve some project, and then vote against it. You might call that being two-faced.
Condoning sin:
The Bible tells us that it is the responsibility of the believers to not support sinful behavior (Ephesians 5.11). “Have nothing to do with fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them”
This straight-up tells us that we have a duty to stand for righteousness. Exposing and challenging the condones are no easy tasks but, following through our challenges will build accountability and encourage changes. Condoning sin leads to loss of credibility and lack of integrity. You may get involved in questionable behavior, your relationships with others begin to deteriorate, or you left God out of your life. This is one of those Go-to-Jesus moments.
Closing:
Before closing this essay, I asked Microsoft AI how to address liars, hypocrites, and condones. The answer came back in the form of a list of seven steps as follows:
Start with self-reflection.
Promote transparency ( be open and honest about yourself.
Lead by example.
Encourage accountability.
Practice empathy
Speak up against inconsistencies (be respectful).
Foster a culture of integrity.
Sources:
Excerpts from Microsoft AI-Co-pilot. (March 2025).
New King James Version Study Bible. (2nd ed. 2007). Thomas Nelson. Nashville, TN.
The Apologetics Study Bible. (2017). Cabal T. (ed). Harman Publishers. Nashville TN