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Written by Dr Sidney Langston
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Webster defines a lie as the utterance of an untruth with the deliberate intention to deceive, an intentional violation of the truth. Truth is “. . . that which is conformable to fact, honest, exact, correct, right, not false or erroneous, not counterfeit.” Scripture tells us that Jesus is the perfect expression of truth (John 14:6). We can interpret that truth is not merely verbal expression but also sincerity and integrity of character. A liar is one who declares to be fact what he knows is not, and scripture tells us Satan is the father of lies (John 8:44).
Many of us have dealt with people who frequently, if not perpetually, lie to us.
People who lie constantly, and often for no apparent reason, are known as pathological liars. They have an intense need for people to like them, but their lying keeps people at arms’ length. In this sense they are self-destructive because others decide the liar is more trouble than he is worth.
Some pathological liars are not content with merely telling a lie. They go a step further and actually live a lie (2 Thess. 2:11), sometimes even adopting completely different identitities and living it them as if they were truth. They may pose as physicians, lawyers, rock stars, heroes, etc. The major payoff to these individuals is a boost to their self esteem. According to a survey of 72 cases, one-third of pathological liars adopt fake identities, as recorded in the medical literature over the course of a century.
Research done by Gordon Deckert, an Oklahoma psychiatrist, reveals that pathological liars are about equally divided between males and females (Ekman, 1986). They are usually of average intelligence and have far higher than average verbal skills. They often work with believable facts, seasoning and embellishing them here and there. One in four has simulated illnesses, and one in five has been arrested for theft, swindling, forgery, etc.
According to Robert Baker, a University of Kentucky psychologist, pathological liars are some of the most charming people you would ever want to meet (Ekman, 1986). They are experts on deceit, and unlike most people, do not show emotion or get upset when they are lying (Prov. 26:28).
The average person manifests measurable physiological differences when telling a lie. They blink their eyes and shift their body posture more frequently, stumble over
their words or speak in a slightly higher and faster voice when they lie. Their eye contact is poor and their eyes tend to flit back and forth from one object to another. Their facial expressions are suggestive of feelings of self-doubt and panic. And as they age people may become more convincing liars. For those who habitually lie, these signs and symptoms are highly refined and almost imperceptible to the untrained person. According to studies by Robert Feldman, a psychologist at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, people’s rates of identifying suspected liars are even worse than random guessing (Ekman, 1986).
Lying is very prevalent in our society. Lies range from the innocuous (“No, that dress doesn’t make you look too fat”) to the criminal (people who lie about where they were or what they were doing when a crime was committed). People pad their resumes, cheat on their taxes, write inflated letters of recommendation, etc. (Pro. 21:6). Their motives for lying are clear—to avoid trouble or to grease the cogs of their professional career or social life. But God says, “What a man desires is unfailing love; better to be poor than a liar” (Pro. 19:22).
Research on pathological liars has been limited because habitual liars rarely seek professional help. The little research available indicates many liars have been traumatized as children. Some were terrified by abandonment, shame or abuse. They may have begun lying as a means of protecting themselves against assault and blame (Isa.28:15).
One-third of pathological liars, according to one study, have parents or siblings who are alcoholics or mentally ill. Still another study speaks of imposters as growing up in families where there is often an abundance of shared deception, lying, cheating, make-believe and living in a fantasy world—a world of denial.
Other liars simply grew up with a miserable self-image. Down deep, they really don’t believe they are worth anything. According to Deckert they are constantly trying to buttress their self-image by telling grandiose stories, while in actuality their behavior has caused them to be their own worst enemy (Ekman, 1986). Hosea states, “But you have planted wickedness, you have reaped evil, you have eaten the fruit of deception. Because you have depended on your own strength and on your many warriors, the roar of battle will rise against your people, so that all your fortresses will be devastated . . .” (Hosea 10:13-14).
The cost of lying is very great. A marriage or relationship may be lost, or even a
job or a life. In John 8:44, while speaking to those who wanted to kill Him, Jesus said, “You belong to your father, the devil and you want to carry out your father’s desire. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies” (John 8:44). God clearly states in Isaiah, “I will make justice the measuring line and righteousness the plumb line; hail will sweep away your refuge, the lie, and water will overflow your hiding place” (Isa.28:17). Consider what life would be like if all lying were to cease and we lived in a world where truth prevailed.
Scripture distinctly tells us that we must put off falsehood and speak truthfully with our neighbor, for we are all members of one body, i.e., the body of Christ (Eph. 4:25).
Ekman, Paul. (1986). Telling Lies. New York, NY: A Berkeley Book.
Vine, W. E.; Unger, Merrill; and White, William, Jr. (1985). Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words. Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers.
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