KINDNESS - Champions by the Fruit of the SpiritSample

Kindness vs Deceit

Bible story: Peter denies Christ (Matthew 26:31-35, 69-75)

Theme Verse: Psalm 26:4

Today our match fight is against deceit, a sin where we hide the truth. Psalm 101:7 says, talking about God, "No one who practices deceit will dwell in my house; no one who speaks falsely will stand in my presence. "If you do a study on the word deceit, you will find that it is mentioned many times in the Bible. God really does not like it. But why? We all tell little lies from time to time. For example, we will tell someone that his or her baby is beautiful, when really we are thinking how ugly it is! We all know that these times where we do not tell the whole truth are not so bad. So why is deceitfulness so evil to God? David says, "I do not sit with the deceitful, nor do I associate with hypocrites." Here David is comparing a deceitful person with a hypocrite! Maybe that will help us understand how much God dislikes deceit, because we all hate the idea of hypocrisy.

I followed a famous preacher for years, who continually taught on integrity. Then one day I found out that he had been abusing young girls the whole time. The natural anger that welled up in my heart was amazing! I wanted to throw into the trash every teaching he had ever done. This preacher does not even know who I am, but he was unkind to me. He cheated me and deceived me.

This week's Bible story is on Peter the Apostle. He made a mistake one day that led to him being a hypocrite as well. The wonderful thing is that Peter repented of his sin, and Jesus forgave him. If you and I are caught being deceitful, we can also be forgiven. Unfortunately, the preacher I mentioned has not repented, does not admit his sins, and continues to preach as if he has done nothing wrong.

In the Bible story, when Jesus and His disciples were having the Passover meal one day, Jesus told them that they would all fall away. However, Peter said, “Even if all fall away on account of you, I never will.” Jesus then predicts that Peter will disown Him three times before the rooster crows that very night. Peter must have felt terrible, and at the same time determined to have it not be true.

However, Jesus was right. That very same night Peter disowned Jesus three times. He was not just pretending not to know Jesus, but he swore an oath saying he had never known the man. At that point, the rooster crowed. A major disciple of Jesus stood there and publicly said he had no friendship at all with Jesus. This must have broken Jesus' heart. Our own deceitfulness can break God’s heart as well. We can be grateful that God will forgive us if we can admit our sin, repent, and change.

Questions:

1. What makes a hypocrite?

2. Have you ever been frustrated by a church scandal? Which one?

3. When is it right to hide the truth?

Life Application:

This week go to someone that you have lied to, and tell them the truth. Apologize for the lie, and ask them to forgive you. Each time you return and tell the truth will be another major win against this sin.