Springwood Presbyterian Church: Whitsett, NC

Jeremiah is known as the “weeping prophet” for his grief over his homeland.  Here we see how his heart is broken over the sins of his people, reflecting God’s broken heart over us.  We can also remember that the 9^th commandment forbids lying and calls us to be truthful in speech and action.

Jeremiah 8: 4-8, 11-22; 9: 1-6

Luke 5: 27-31                                                                                               9-19-10

Healing for a Chronic Illness

God’s questions, spoken by Jeremiah, are as timely now as when they were written: When you fall down, don’t you get back up again?  If you miss the road, don’t you turn around?  Why, then, my people, do you turn away from me in perpetual backsliding?

During the era of Nazi Germany, and later, during our Civil Rights movement, theologians spoke of reading the Bible in one hand, with the newspaper in the other—making the point that scripture is God’s living word, still relevant to our personal and national life. 

It’s a popular pastime to point a finger at lies promulgated by presidents, governors, and other public officials.  But perhaps the top elected leaders are not so much the problem as they are the very visible, very public symptoms of the larger problem.  It’s all of society that is sick, and there is no balm in Gilead nor in Walgreen’s to cure it: no vitamin, no St. John’s wort, no antibiotic. 

Just as lies, deceit and treachery permeated Judean society in Jeremiah’s day, so they create major social problems in our day. 

Politicians stretch the truth to get elected, to stay in office, to gain influence, and trust in government--national/ state/ and local--is out the window. 

Advertisers make unrealistic promises to sell their wares; and “business” becomes a dirty word.  

Officers of the court lie; and citizens start to wonder if justice is possible.

Children don’t tell their parents their grades, one spouse claims to be faithful while paying more attention to someone other than his or her spouse; and we wonder why so many families are in disarray. 

Ordinary citizens conveniently forget to note extra income on their tax returns; and there’s less funding available for police and highways and mental health services. 

The truth gets pulled and stretched beyond recognition; all from a simple lie. 

Sure, there’s a place for the occasional “little white lie.”  When a telemarketer calls, you might say, “I don’t have time to talk right now” even if you’re doing nothing but twiddling your thumbs, because you’re too polite to say what you really think about being invaded at home.  When a lonely friend asks, “Do you want to go to a movie with me?”, you might say, “Of course,” even if you’d planned on cleaning the gutters, and besides, you’d rather have your fingernails ripped out rather than see the movie your friend reallyreallyreally wants to see. 

Not every truth needs to be told.  If a coworker tells you his daughter just dropped out of school, and then asks about your family, you do him no favors by bragging on your son’s Morehead Scholarship.  Truth is for building up—not tearing down.

When it’s the wrong time or the wrong way or the wrong reason to tell “the whole truth and nothing but the truth”, a little “courtesy lie” may have more integrity than a boatload of insensitive, everything-on-the-table honesty.  The trouble, however, is in our tendency to justify all lies as harmless.  So before you tell that little white lie, ask yourself: will this help this person, or is it just protecting me?  Does it build a bridge between us, or will it destroy our relationship if it’s found out? 

So what is wrong with lying, if you don’t get caught? 

Lying distorts reality.  The many harmful side effects of lying--faithlessness, self-righteousness, self-centeredness, loss of trust in government and business and other people—are products of a distorted view of reality. 

Jeremiah tells us we live in a world of lies because we don’t know God—don’t have that clear vision of God’s reality that can keep us on the right path to abundant life.

          Scott Peck writes, “Our view of reality is like a map with which to negotiate the terrain of life.  If the map is true and accurate, we will generally know where we are, and if we have decided where we want to go, we will generally know how to get there.  If the map is false and inaccurate, we generally will be lost.” 

          The reality for Christians is the undistorted view of God we see in Jesus, the way, the truth, the life. 

The people of Judah complained to Jeremiah, we are not saved—where is our God?  In Hebrew, “to be saved” comes from the word meaning “to be spacious”—in other words, to have room to walk and breathe unrestrained.  God frees us from the prison of sin and lifts the fears and anxiety that hold us back, so we can be the people God intends us to be.  But we have to be willing, then, to be in fellowship with the life-giving Lord, and to recognize our sickness and our need for healing.  Jesus, the physician who leads us to repent—to forgive and to be forgiven--is the healing for the soul, and for our society.  Easier said than done.  As poet W.H. Auden (The Age of Anxiety, 1946) despairs,

We would rather be ruined than changed,/ We would rather die in our dread

Than climb the cross of the moment / And let our illusions die.

What illusions?  That we’re perfect?  That we are without sin?  That I wasn’t speeding, Officer?  That he didn’t cheat on his taxes?  That she isn’t a closet alcoholic?  Lying won’t make the problem go away. 

Telling the truth might not make it go away, either, but telling the truth helps us live the truth.  It’s part of repentance, helping us redirect our lives and our perspectives, so we can walk the path God lays out for us.

Our personal relationships certainly depend on truth-telling.  Unless others speak truthfully to us, we’ll never know them for who they really are.  Unless we speak truth, lovingly, to them, we can’t experience the joy of being known and accepted and loved for who we really are.  Truth-telling brings our actions into harmony with our words, so we’re not split down the middle by the contradictions within ourselves.  And telling the truth pulls down the barriers between us and God, who already knows all the secrets of our hearts.

Jesus said, if you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free. (John 8: 31-32)  A noted preacher of the 20^th century, Carlyle Marney, took reality into account and elaborated, “You shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you flinch before it makes you free.”  Truth is strong medicine, more like old-fashioned iodine for cuts or castor oil for what ails you than like the soothing balm of Gilead, but it’s still the best prescription to heal the soul, and the sickness of society.

This is good news.  We don’t have to stand by helplessly and watch our personal lives and our nation suffer a meltdown.  Each of us can be agents for change, speaking truthfully, living honestly, encouraging and supporting truth-telling in others, calling to account those who disregard it, cultivating forgiveness of ourselves and of others when we backslide, and finding joy in healed relationships.  God does call us to account for our actions, but, at the same time, calls us to the mercy seat to be healed, saying through Jeremiah (30: 17): I will restore health to you, and your wounds I will heal. 

Let us seek the healing balm in the love of Jesus, and share it with others who need it.

It is good to give thanks to the Lord!  And to sing praises to your name, O Most High.  To declare your loving-kindness in the morning and your faithfulness every night.