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Choose Abundant Living (5)
Choose Abundant Living 5
Choose Honesty
By Mike Willis
The word “honesty” means “the quality of being honest.” The English word “honest” means “free of deceit and untruthfulness; sincere.” These two words do not appear frequently in English translations of the Bible, but most certainly the concepts do. Some antonyms for “honesty” include the following: deceit, deception, lying, corruption, fraudulence, etc.
Paul exhorted Ephesian Christians saying, “Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another. . . .Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need” (Eph. 4:25, 28).
Most of us have watched the ill consequences of a company or individual who becomes known for lying, stealing, and cheating. His customers experience first hand the rotten fruits of his dishonesty. A few decades ago, I had a problem with one of my automobiles and took it to the new owner of an auto repair shop with an established reputation for good work and fair prices. He “fixed” my car, but about 100 miles later it was doing the same thing again. I was out of town and had to have it repaired a second time in order to make it home. The mechanic related to me that my problem occurred because of the failed job of the previous mechanic. I called the new owner of the auto repair business and he assured me that I would be reimbursed, but he never did what he promised. I was out a few hundred dollars. Within a few months, his bad reputation had become known in the community and his business failed.
If you want an abundant life on earth, choose honesty. People will appreciate your integrity, tell others about you, and, most likely, you will soon have more business than you can handle, assuming that people want what you are providing. But, more important than the success of your business, is the eternal consequence of integrity and honesty.
John, the Apostle whom Jesus loved, wrote in the last book of the Bible, “But as for the cowardly, the faithless, the detestable, as for murderers, the sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars, their portion will be in the lake that burns with fire and sulfur, which is the second death” (Rev. 21:8).
