Is a lie always a sin?

[revdcb]

During the Holocaust Corrie Ten Boom and her family hid Jews and had to lie to cover their tracks. I am of the oppinion that these lies were not sin because they were an unselfish act of agape love. This oppinion flies in the face of the thinking that what is sin to one is sin to another, or does it? :confused: (http://alongtheroadtoemmaus.com)

[Richard Amiel McGough]

During the Holocaust Corrie Ten Boom and her family hid Jews and had to lie to cover their tracks. I am of the oppinion that these lies were not sin because they were an unselfish act of agape love. This oppinion flies in the face of the thinking that what is sin to one is sin to another, or does it? :confused: (http://alongtheroadtoemmaus.com)
I think sin is defined as doing anything contrary to the will of God. And it seems to me that lying to save a life from the wicked would be coherent with God's will.

[derekkye]

The truth shall set you free. God hateth a lying tongue. When a person lies they are serving the devil for the devil is the father of lies.

[Rose]

During the Holocaust Corrie Ten Boom and her family hid Jews and had to lie to cover their tracks. I am of the oppinion that these lies were not sin because they were an unselfish act of agape love. This oppinion flies in the face of the thinking that what is sin to one is sin to another, or does it? :confused: (http://alongtheroadtoemmaus.com)




What does the Bible really say about lying?

The origins of lying being a sin begins in the Ten Commandments, with the 9th commandment prohibiting the bearing of false witness against ones neighbor, but does that mean its always a sin to lie?
.
Exodus 20:16 Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour.

The premise I would like to begin on is the idea that it’s not always wrong to 'lie', but it is always wrong to bear false witness against another. It is a far different thing to bear false witness against another than it is to tell a lie to protect a person from harm. The key word here is 'false witness', to accuse someone falsely; that is what the 9th commandment is stating.
.
Luke 3:14 And the soldiers likewise demanded of him, saying, And what shall we do? And he said unto them, Do violence to no man, neither accuse any falsely; and be content with your wages.

The foundation of the 9th commandment is to protect people against those who try to make false accusations against them. An excellent example is that of the chief priests and rulers who bore false witness against Jesus and accused him of perverting the people.
.
Luke 23:13-14 And Pilate, when he had called together the chief priests and the rulers and the people, Said unto them, Ye have brought this man unto me, as one that perverteth the people: and, behold, I, having examined him before you, have found no fault in this man touching those things whereof ye accuse him:

I believe the 9th commandment has no bearing on the general definition of the word 'lying' which applies to everything from one telling an overweight person wearing tight pants that they look fine, to complementing a cook on a fine dinner when it tasted horrible.

Bearing witness to the truth is what the moral principle of the 9th commandment is addressing. Jesus came to bear witness of the Truth, that is where the focus lays….those that bear false witness against the Truth, not the petty lies people focus their attention on missing the much larger picture of what Scripture is telling us.
.
John 5:32-33 There is another that beareth witness of me; and I know that the witness which he witnesseth of me is true. Ye sent unto John, and he bare witness unto the truth….36) But I have greater witness than that of John: for the works which the Father hath given me to finish, the same works that I do, bear witness of me, that the Father hath sent me.

Satan was called the father of lies, and the accuser of the brethren, he was the quintessential example of a false witness, being one who lies by bearing false witness against another.
.
John 8:44 Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

Rev. 12:10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.


The 9th commandment does not tell us that lying is a sin, but rather that bearing false witness is....which is a specific kind of lie.

Rose

[CWH]

Hi,

I believe to lie is not a sin if it is based on good intention. It becomes a sin if the intention of the lie is selfish and harmful to others. Remember the Golden Rule: "Do unto others what you want others to do unto you". But it is a subtle thing, to save a murderer from the gallows by telling a lie, is it a sin? It is good for the murderer but is it fair to the murdered victim? Where is the fairness based on "an eye for an eye"?

Even if any lie is a sin, I believe there are different degree of sin based on the lie. The more harmful the lie, the more sinful it is and the more severe is the punishment. To tell a good or bad lie that is not harmful to anyone is of the least sin compared to a good or bad lie that is harmful, selfish and unfair.

Many Blessings.