A Lying Tongue

God hates pride. It is something that he hates the most. Yet in this scripture the pride is coupled with a lying tongue. If we draw an inference from this connection, we can then say (my opinion), a prideful person will never accept that they are wrong so they lie to keep their reputation intact. Is it correct to say that their pride is fuelled by their feelings of insecurity. They overestimate themselves to make people believe that they are something that they are not. The pride then is a defence mechanism. It’s what they believe in their heart so the mouth speaks it. It glides off the tongue with big words and flowery words that make them seem that they are so great and “all that”, when they are not. So it’s not just a lying tongue, or someone who lies, but there is a whole other story behind it. The tongue is only voicing what the issues of the heart are. The spirit of pride has to be cast out so the tongue can be free to speak the truth. The tongue is trained by the heart and mind and can only speak from the wells within.

So the lying tongue is not the problem but the spirit of pride and an overestimation of themselves. So much so, that they are even prepared to shed innocent blood. You may say, well Pastor, normal people do not kill other people. Jesus says if you hate your brother you are a murderer. Does it make sense. A person does not have to physically kill to be a murderer. Just hating your brother makes you a murderer. The reference to shedding innocent blood can also be related to a person, who constantly sacrifices others to save their own reputation. When I say sacrifice I do not mean a physical sacrifice, but when they tell a story that is untrue at the expense of another person. The reputation of the other person is sacrificed just so the prideful person is made to look good.

The thriver recognises the need to lay down pride and refuses to hate others. They never indulge in the luxury of thinking of themselves more highly than others. They are connected to the vine and the sap (anointing of Jesus) flows through them to allow the fruit of the spirit to come through in all of their relationships.