I have a five-year old grandson named Carson. A couple of years ago, when he was about three, his sister came into the house with a bag of fruit snacks. When her mother asked where she had gotten the snacks, she reported that Carson had given them to her. On further investigation, his mother discovered he had been sharing these fruit snacks with several of the neighbors. His mother called him in and questioned him about where he had obtained the snacks since they did not have any. Carson replied that he was getting them out of the neighbor’s garage. His now concerned mother said, “Carson, you can’t go in the neighbor’s garage and take things that don’t belong to you.” Carson replied, “But I just love ‘em.” Sometimes, we are tempted to be dishonest because we want something that is not ours just because “we just love 'em.”
I want to talk with you today about being honest. The 13th Article of Faith states, “We believe in being honest, true, chaste, benevolent, virtuous, and in doing good to all men; indeed, we may say that we follow the admonition of Paul – We believe all things, we hope all things, we have endured many things, and hope to be able to endure all things. If there is anything virtuous, lovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.”
According to the dictionary, honesty is the quality or fact of being honest; upright , fair, truthful, free from deceit or fraud, honorable in principles, intentions, and actions; gained or obtained fairly, moral, trustworthy, good, decent, and righteousness.
Being dishonest is defined as deceit, fraud, lying, untruthful, corruption, and cheating.
There are many ways to be dishonest. Today, I will talk just about two: lying and stealing.
In the Ten Commandments, these two are specifically mentioned:
• Thou shalt not steal.
• Thou shalt not bear false witness against your neighbor.
Let me start by talking about stealing.
D&C 42:20 reads, "Thou shalt not steal; and he that stealeth and will not repent shall be cast out." This command indicates the unrepentant thief should be excommunicated, and therefore, his covenants are removed. Losing the saving ordinances is a high price to pay for theft. Many times, we think of stealing as a crime that may not hurt anyone, but that is not true.
Elder Marvin J. Ashton stated, “A person is poor when he thinks honesty is a policy instead of a proper way of life. … An honest conscience is worth more than it costs. Greatness is truly measured by honest self-appraisal. ‘What shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?’ (Mark 8:36). How many times have you heard the declaration that it is greater to be trusted than to be loved? Let me remind you that, regardless of the number of times, you haven't heard it enough. One of my greatest pleadings with the Lord on a daily basis is for Him to help me turn the hearts of the dishonest to repentance. Without honesty, there is no foundation upon which to build. How can a person be helped when he insists on living the lie? Lying and living the lie keep us poor."
How prevalent is the problem of dishonesty. In just one area – shoplifting - the cost to American retailers was $40 billion in 2007, according to a study by Retail Systems Research.
A 2006 article stated, “Shoplifting has become one of the most prevalent crimes in the U.S., averaging about 550,000 incidents per day. … Current estimates are as high as 1 in 11 Americans who shoplift in our nation today.”
On some products, this means that the consumer pays 30, 40, or even 50% more to cover the losses from just shoplifting. Does that sound to you like a sin that does not have a cost associated with it?
When I was in kindergarten, we walked from the outskirts of town to the downtown elementary school. One day on the way home from school, I stopped in Hayward’s Market. As I wandered around, I spied some safety pins, and thinking that my mom could use those, I put a package in my pocket and walked home. When my mother arrived home from work, I presented her with my present. She asked where I had obtained such a nice gift. I told her from the market. "How did you pay for them?" she asked. I told her I did not pay; I just took them. Well, the next thing that happened was a trip to the market. We climbed in the car and headed to Hayward’s Market. Mr. Hayward had a loft, so he could see out onto the market’s floor. Climbing those stairs was scary. Each stair seemed higher than the last one. Having to explain my actions and apologize to an old man who at that moment looked more like Scrooge than Santa Claus made it worse. He and my mother must have had a discussion before we got there because he really lectured me on being honest and what the results were of being dishonest. I had not stolen the pins for me. I am not sure that I even thought I was stealing at the time, but I did after getting a lecture from both my mother and Mr. Hayward. I learned a wonderful lesson from them. When I reflect back on the experience, I do so with appreciation for both of them. It would have been easier for Mr. Hayward to have not wasted his time on a six- year old taking such a small thing, but he must have understood he was teaching an eternal principal, and he changed my life for the better.
Years later, when my daughter Hannah was about four, she picked up some crayons from the store. We did not notice that she had them until we were home. Hoping for the same kind of help in teaching the principal of honesty, my wife took her to see the manager of that store. The manager was a nice lady. She could see that Hannah was quite upset, so she said something like, “It is okay, sweetheart. I know you did not mean to do it.” It did not have the same effect as my meeting with Mr. Hayward, so we needed to be Mr. Hayward ourselves, so she could learn the lesson. She did, and she in turn had to teach it to her son Carson years later when he pilfered the fruit snacks. This shows to me how important it is for parents and others to teach correct principles. Four generations here were involved in teaching the lessons of honesty. You wonder what would have happened if my mother had done nothing?
We believe in being honest. Now what of lying?
In 2 Nephi 2:18, we read, “And because he had fallen from heaven, and had become miserable forever, he sought also the misery of all mankind. Wherefore, he said unto Eve, yea, even that old serpent, who is the devil, who is the father of all lies, wherefore he said: Partake of the forbidden fruit, and ye shall not die, but ye shall be as God, knowing good and evil."
Satan was and is the father of all lies.
The Lord said to Moses, "Wherefore, because that Satan rebelled against me, and sought to destroy the agency of man, which I, the Lord God, had given him, and also, that I should give unto him mine own power; by the power of mine Only Begotten, I caused that he should be cast down; And he became Satan, yea, even the devil, the father of all lies, to deceive and to blind men, and to lead them captive at his will, even as many as would not hearken unto my voice" (Moses 4:3-4).
Satan began his war on this earth against the Father by lying to Eve. “Thou shalt not die,” he said, but that is exactly what happened to her. Satan will lie to you over and over again, telling you that you will not die if you sin, that what you’re doing is not that bad, that others are doing it, and he will try to get you to lie to help his cause. Think about Korihor in The Book of Mormon.
“But behold, the devil hath deceived me; for he appeared unto me in the form of an angel, and said unto me: Go and reclaim this people, for they have all gone astray after an unknown God. And he said unto me: There is no God; yea, and he taught me that which I should say. And I have taught his words; and I taught them because they were pleasing unto the carnal mind; and I taught them, even until I had much success, insomuch that I verily believed that they were true; and for this cause I withstood the truth, even until I have brought this great curse upon me.” (Alma 30:53.)
Satan tempted Korihor with popularity and power. All he had to do was lie, and he kept lying until he believed his own lies. He then was cursed by Alma, and a few verses later, we find his fate. He was trodden upon and killed. I am not sure how that happened but it does not sound good. In verse 60, we read, “And thus we see the end of him who perverteth the ways of the Lord; and thus we see that the devil will not support his children at the last day, but doth speedily drag them down to hell" (Alma 30:60).
Satan has no power to support his children eternally, despite what he or his servants say. In matters of eternity, Satan is impotent to decide. You and I have agency to decide. Whose side will you be on?
In contrast to Satan, the father of lies, Moses, David, Isaiah, Enos, and the Brother of Jared all call the Savior “the God of Truth.” Enos and the Brother of Jared also remind us that God cannot lie.
Christ promises to sustain, build, and uplift us as we follow Him, and He does have the power to do that eternally. As Elder Jeffery R. Holland taught the stake presidencies and bishops recently here in Hawaii, we know who will win this war between Lucifer and Christ. Christ will win. Why would you choose up front to join a team you knew was going to lose, he asked us. Satan will lose. We must not unite with him.
In today’s media, we see the popular groups of society in the world apparently uniting with Satan in committing sins of theft, lying, and worse. Sports figures, actors, and politicians all are breaking almost at will the basic commandments. This is so common today that maybe we think the scripture in Psalms was written for our day: "Deliver my soul, O Lord, from lying lips, and from a deceitful tongue" (Psalms 120:2).
Back in 1987, two major weekly magazines – U.S. News and World Report and Time – had covers that read, "Lying in America" ( U.S. News and World Report, 23. Feb. 1987) and "What Ever Happened to Ethics?" ( Time, 25 May 1987).
Since that time, things have not improved. In 1998, Jeff Benedict and Don Yeager wrote a book called Pros and Cons: The Criminals Who Play in the NFL. Our heroes are not very heroic when it comes to virtue and truth. I am not sure that some of them could even pretend to believe in the principles of the 13th Article of Faith.
Elder Marvin J. Ashton said, “We live in a world of law. We may be able to avoid or skirt laws of the land, but the laws of heaven have an irrevocable effect on us today, tomorrow, and forever.”
He continues, “May our Heavenly Father help us to have the courage to acknowledge and cast aside the living of a lie or the perpetuation of lies. Honesty is more than a policy. It is a happy way of life as we deal with our fellowmen, and particularly as we live with ourselves.” ("This Is No Harm," General Conference, April 1982.)
Speaking of lying, I found a few quotes which teach some wonderful truths.
"Sin," said Oliver Wendell Holmes, "has many tools, but a lie is the handle which fits them all" (from “The Chambered Nautilus”).
"Nothing else," said President J. Reuben Clark, "is quite so despicable or cowardly as a lie, and it is an added iniquity to befoul another with an untruth" ( South African Mission Bulletin, 19 Jan. 1971).
"Wo unto the liar," said Jacob, the brother of Nephi, "for he shall be thrust down to hell" (2 Nephi 9:34). This may be the first scripture I ever memorized. I think I did it more to irritate my friends as I would quote it anytime I thought they needed teasing. But while it is a simple scripture, it carries a powerful warning.
"Anyone who doesn't take truth seriously in small matters cannot be trusted in large ones either."– Albert Einstein
"A lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on.” – Winston Churchill
This is particularly true today with the internet.
"If you tell the truth, you don't have to remember anything." – Mark Twain
That is one of my personal favorites.
"Half a truth is often a great lie." – Benjamin Franklin
I hope these quotes on lying have been thought provoking and inspiring.
President James E. Faust reminded us that "Honesty is a principle, and we have our moral agency to determine how we will apply this principle. We have the agency to make choices, but ultimately we will be accountable for each choice we make. We may deceive others, but there is One we will never deceive. From The Book of Mormon we learn, 'The keeper of the gate is the Holy One of Israel; and he employeth no servant there; and there is none other way save it be by the gate; for he cannot be deceived, for the Lord God is his name' (2 Nephi 9:41)" ("Honesty—A Moral Compass," General Conference, Oct. 1996.)
Now let’s discuss a story in the book of Acts in the New Testament. Like a few others in the scriptures, this one seems a little harsh, but it teaches the seriousness of lying. I think many of the stories in the scriptures are models or patterns, so we can liken them to ourselves. This story may be more about the spiritual consequences of lying than the temporal ones. In the scripture, apparently the ancient church was practicing a form of consecration. The members were to unite their belongings holding nothing back. With that background, here is the story as found in the fifth chapter of Acts. I will tell it rather than read it, so I can hopefully liken it to us.
A man and his wife, Ananias and Sapphira by name, joined the Church. As I mentioned, the Church was practicing a form of consecration. The members were bringing their donations to Peter who was then the head of the Church. Ananias presented his donation to Peter, but Peter knew by the Holy Ghost that Ananias was being dishonest in saying he had given all the money from the sale of his property. Peter then made a couple of profound statements. He said basically, Ananias, you owned the property you sold; you had the proceeds from it. No one forced you to give the proceeds to the Church and pretend to join us in good faith, but in coming here and saying that you are giving all the proceeds from the property you sold is not true, and you have lied to God. How had he lied to God? He lied to his church leader, his prophet. When Ananias found his lie was revealed, he died. It is a good thing for us that we don’t die when we lie. Some might not live too long. Now that is not the end of the story. When Ananias dies, men come and take him out and bury him. Apparently, it was not the custom to wait for relatives to arrive from Samoa. He was buried right away. Later, his wife comes to Peter. She did not know what happened to her husband. Peter interviewed her. Basically, his question was like the temple recommend question that reads, “Are you honest in your dealings with your fellow men?” He said to Sapphira, I understood you sold your property for such and such a price. Is that right? Well, she had worked out with her husband what their story would be, so she said yes. Peter rebuked her and said, Why are you lying like your husband did? He has died and is buried and now you will be buried next to him. She then died.
As I said, this is a harsh story, but as I have spent more time in the scriptures, I think that the stories and the way they are written are meant to give us patterns and teach higher principles. Here, for example, we could just say that these two were smitten for lying, which would be true. However, how does that relate to us? I have no knowledge of a single person being smitten when they declared they were full tithe payers when they were not. At least not physically. I think these scriptures may be talking to us about our spiritual life. I am sure Ananias died and was buried, but to us, this scripture may be saying that if you lie to your leaders about tithing or other matters, you are creating spiritual suicide. It is better to be truthful and live eternally.
Now, remembering the story and thinking that it is spiritual more than physical, what is the fate of liars spiritually? We can read that in several places but here are two. First, let’s read in Revelation 21:8.
“But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.”
Do you notice that liars are grouped with murderers and those that commit other very serious crimes? We may not want to think of lying as being that serious, but obviously the Lord does.
In D&C 76:102-106, we learn of those in the Telestial kingdom.
“Last of all, these all are they who will not be gathered with the saints, to be caught up unto the church of the Firstborn, and received into the cloud.
“These are they who are liars, and sorcerers, and adulterers, and whoremongers, and whosoever loves and makes a lie.
“These are they who suffer the wrath of God on earth.
“These are they who suffer the vengeance of eternal fire.
“These are they who are cast down to hell and suffer the wrath of Almighty God, until the fullness of times, when Christ shall have subdued all enemies under his feet, and shall have perfected his work.”
Again notice that the fate of liars is not good. Their eternal associates are not the kind of people most of us want to be with now and surely not forever. Now, let me summarize some of the points we have made by borrowing a list from President Marion G. Romney, which he made when speaking about lying:
1. Satan is the father of lying and inaugurated the practice in this world when in the Garden of Eden he lied to Eve.
2. God cannot lie.
3. God hates lying.
4. Liars are classified with major transgressors.
5. All unrepentant liars "shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death."
We are involved in a battle. The outcome is not merely the loss of the few years a person has in mortality but the infinite years one might have in immortality. The weapons of this war are truth and lies. Christ is the personification of truth and Satan the father of lies. Christ has died for us that we might live. Satan would have us live in such a way that we would die. We should choose our leader well. The outcome is sure, but the casualty list is still to be determined. Christ will triumph, and we will triumph as well and live eternally if we are true and faithful to Christ.
When I mentioned to my wife the subject I was speaking on, she remembered a talk given by then BYU president Dallin H. Oaks back in 1973. What made it impactful for her was that he gave specific examples of lying and stealing. I will attempt to update and consolidate from his list some of the items that I have encountered here at this university. There obviously could be many more.
Examples:
• It is dishonest to buy something on credit when you do not have the money to pay for it.
• It is dishonest to go to the doctor and have no intention of paying for his services or leave the country without paying the debt.
• It is dishonest for a student who can and should support himself in his education to spend his money on cars, TVs, sports, phones, iPods, etc. and then go to the bishop and ask the Church to pay his food and housing bills.
• It is dishonest for young people to lie on their financial aid applications and feel justified because they think others do it or because they do not want to work or wait for whatever reason.
• It is dishonest for a student to accept scholarships that encourage them to return to their home country when they have no intention of doing so.
• It is dishonest of a young man to seek an exemption for shaving, pleading skin disorder when he really just wants to break the dress and grooming standards
• It is dishonest of a student to sign the Honor Code, stating that they will abide by its principles and then willingly break them.
Elder Oaks uses three quotes that I especially like. Here they are:
President Nathan Eldon Tanner cautioned that "If a young man [and I would add woman] is dishonest in any way, he is on the way to destruction."
Karl G. Maeser taught that sooner or later everyone of us "must stand at the forks of the road, and choose between personal interests and some principle of right" (Alma P. Burton, Karl G. Maeser, Mormon Educator, 74).
Thomas Jefferson observed, “He who permits himself to tell a lie once, finds it much easier to do it a second and third time, 'til at length it becomes habitual. He tells lies without attending to it and truths without the world's believing him. This falsehood of the tongue leads to that of the heart, and in time depraves all its good dispositions” (Thomas Jefferson in a letter to Peter Carr, 19 Aug. 1785, quoted in Bartlett’s Familiar Quotations, 13th ed., 373).
President Oaks then concluded, “A person who is only partially honest and only partially truthful is always having to make hard decisions about whether each new circumstance of life calls for honesty or deceit. How much better to commit oneself to the way of absolute honesty and truthfulness. A person with that commitment will waste no time or energy on deciding whether or when or the extent to which he will compromise with principle.” ("Be Honest in All Behavior," BYU Devotional, 13 Jan. 1973.)
One last quote. This one is from Brigham Young.
Brigham Young taught, “Can you mingle with the wicked and feel contented in their company? If you can you are on the road to destruction; you are not on the road to perfection. If you can deal, and trade, and visit, and ride, and be with the ungodly, and cannot see the difference between them and the righteous, if you are ever saved in any decent kingdom, it will be because you are totally ignorant. But if you can truthfully say, I love prayer, not swearing; I love truth, not lying; I love honesty, not dishonesty; I love God and His laws, you may be assured you are on the road to exaltation and eternal life. Let us sustain the kingdom of God; and if we do, we will sustain ourselves in truth and righteousness” ( Journal of Discourses, 26.12, 220).
My young brothers and sisters, I know that if you are honest, you will be happy. You must be truthful, particularly in your discussions with priesthood leaders. If you are honest, it will permit the Holy Ghost to guide you and lift you, but if you choose the way of the world, you will reap only unhappiness in the end. I pray you will be wise and truthfully say, “I believe in being honest.”