I’ve shared with you before how it’s not always wrong. But lying is bad for the most part. Especially when you do it to cover up something you’re gonna do or have done that is obviously wrong.
I’ll show you an example of how lying is bad using some famous lyrics.
And I can’t tell you how many times I have personally sung these lyrics in front of audiences all over America. But I do know it’s at least hundreds of times. And I wouldn’t exaggerate that because, as I said, lying is bad. Plus, there’s no need to exaggerate the truth.
Anyway…
There’s a fairly obscure band you probably never heard of. You and I know them as The Eagles even though there’s evidence in some article articles, I’ve read that said they only wanted to be known as Eagles. It seems a little weird to leave out the word The because it makes it sound goofy to say you’re going to a concert to see Eagles. That makes it sound like you’re going to see our national bird. Well, what do you expect from a bunch of long-haired, dope, smoking, hippies?
But I digress. Kinda.
What do you say we dive into those lyrics I mentioned? And see how lying is bad? OK, these are from their song Lyin’ Eyes. And it starts out with an idea that certain girls (young women) get an early start in the business of lying.
City girls just seem to find out early
How to open doors with just a smile.
The songwriters set up how city girls discover, early on, how much they can get away with using their looks. And then the writers follow it up with a little plot-thickening…
A rich old man and she won’t have to worry
She’ll dress up all in lace and go in style
Yeah, you gotta dress apart if you wanna get the “right” results. But why would a city girl, or any girl for that matter, even get started down that deceptive road?
The answer to that comes in the next verse…
Late at night a big old house gets lonely
I guess every form of refuge has its price
And it breaks her heart to think her love is only
Given to a man with hands as cold as ice
OK, so there’s the justification. Now comes the lying. And it IS bad.
So she tells him she must go out for the evening
To comfort an old friend who’s feelin’ down
But he knows where she’s goin’ as she’s leavin’
She’s headed for the cheatin’ side of town
Yeah, have you ever noticed there are certain kind of lies you can tell certain people that just don’t fly? Because those people know you too well. And they can tell when you’re lying. And I think that’s why The Eagles (that’s right, I said the) sang these lyrics in their chorus…
You can’t hide your lyin’ eyes
And your smile is a thin disguise
I thought by now you’d realize
There ain’t no way to hide your lyin’ eyes
It’s crazy how humans tend to double down on the lying.
At least they do once they justify why they’re doing what they’re doing. Because when your flesh desires to be served, it takes a lot more than willpower to overcome it. And most of the time there’s no effort to overcome it anyway. As you can clearly see in the next couple of verses…
On the other side of town a boy is waiting
With fiery eyes and dreams no one could steal
She drives on through the night anticipating
‘Cause he makes her feel the way she used to feel
She rushes to his arms, they fall together
And she whispers that it’s only for awhile
She swears that soon she’ll be comin’ back forever
She pulls away and leaves him with a smile
The songwriters give you a little bit more backstory there.
But they also show how the lies expand to support the original lie. I seem to recall a term for that. Let’s see. What was that again? Oh yeah, ” Oh, what a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive.” And after the flesh is served, then the conscience starts working on the perpetrator…
She gets up and pours herself a strong one
And stares out at the stars up in the sky
Another night, it’s gonna be a long one
She draws the shade and hangs her head to cry
She wonders how it ever got this crazy
She thinks about a boy she knew in school
Did she get tired or did she just get lazy?
She’s so far gone she feels just like a fool
I love how the songwriters add one more verse that sort of plays the part of the voice of the conscience. It isn’t like a a finger in the face or a poke in the chest. It’s a bit more subtle. But it drives home the point very nicely…
My, oh my, you sure know how to arrange things
You set it up so well, so carefully
Ain’t it funny how your new life didn’t change things
You’re still the same old girl you used to be
Of course, the song ends by repeating this reminder:
You can’t hide your lyin’ eyes. And the way the words are sung makes me think they come from the guy who was wronged. Because it says, “I thought by now you’d realize, you just can’t hide your lyin’ eyes.”
Now, I know you would never justify doing what the city girl from that song did. Right? But I also know it’s most likely that you have justified a lie in your life even though you know lying is bad. I’ve done it. And I am most definitely not proud of it. But facts is facts. And it does no good to try to sugarcoat the reality that you need a savior because you can’t hide these truths. It’s best to just be humble, admit it, and ask God to save you from yourself. The government can’t and won’t do it. Your boss can’t and won’t. Neither will your loved ones.
Only Jesus can.
How about that? I just used the lyrics from a famous secular band’s hit song to point people to their need for the love and forgiveness only their Creator can provide. The songwriters themselves would probably never do that. I don’t know any of them personally. But from what I’ve been able to determine through articles and research, it doesn’t seem likely they would.
So, that’s yet another reason why you should…
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