DEUTERONOMY 25
God is a master of relationships, and the first key to any relationship is honesty. When you think about it, the whole world — even the universe — is in the mess it’s in because one of God’s creatures decided to be dishonest instead of honest. Up in heaven, Lucifer began spreading lies about God, and when Adam and Eve bought into his lies in the Garden of Eden, our planet began to descend into chaos.
You can’t have any sort of positive relationship without trust, can you? If you can’t really believe what the other person is telling you, what does that mean for the relationship? You are suspicious of everything they do and say. They may be suspicious of you in return. And when both people in a relationship are guarding themselves because they’re afraid of being suckered, there isn’t a whole lot of relating going on.
Photo © Michael Means
A friend of mine once commented about the story of Adam and Eve (when God came looking for them in the garden) this way: "Once the finger pointing begins, the conversation is over." That’s why God gave the Israelites strict instructions to safeguard the trust and integrity of their relationships between one another. Here’s what He said: "Do not have two differing weights in your bag — one heavy, one light. Do not have two differing measures in your house — one large, one small. You must have accurate and honest weights and measures, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you. For the Lord your God detests anyone who does these things, anyone who deals dishonestly." (vs 13-16)
Honesty is everything in a relationship. I mean, if you’re not even willing to deal in reality, what’s the point? This is the whole problem with sin. When we became afraid of God, we started to believe that we had to protect ourselves, that we couldn’t trust Him to do what was right by us. This is the very (flawed) thinking God is trying to overcome.
God is always honest with us, and He wants us to be honest with Him and others. When we deal with others in a trustworthy manner, we not only strengthen our personal relationships, but we honor God as well. He reveres honesty.
Photo via Wikimedia Commons / Alan Levine