Wherefore, having put off falsehood, speak truth every one with his neighbour, because we are members one of another.
Ephesians 4 turns from teaching to daily life. The first thing it deals with is how Christians speak to one another. The command not to lie is old. The reason given here is new: believers belong to one body.
What Falsehood Covers
The word translated "lying" reaches further than spoken untruths. One writer ties it to the new self, quoting an older translation of the verse just before:
In verse 23 the apostle speaks of the new man these believers had put on. He tells us that "after God" it was "created in righteousness and true holiness," or, literally, holiness of the truth. So all falsehood is shut out. It can have no part in this new creation of God… "lying," or "falsehood," means everything that has the character and nature of falsehood. It is abstract: what has this quality, not just the act of lying. We should keep this in mind, because it may search many of us who would never be caught telling outright untruths. A look, a gesture, our manner, unclear speech, evasion, compliments and many other things can fall under this sense of lying.
Where Lying Comes From
One writer traces lying to both our nature and its first author.
Lying is natural to us all. Men are said to go astray from the womb, speaking lies (Ps. 58:3). And even believers are ready to forget, when they twist the truth, that they are only following the devil, who did not stand in the truth and who became the originator of falsehood (John 8:44). We should not lie to anyone. But when we are all members of one body, how horrible it is to bring in deception, and so bring corruption into the body of Christ.
Another writer adds what lying reveals about the person telling it:
Lying is both an instrument of selfishness and a confession of personal wretchedness. No happy spirit can ever be a false one. It is the instinctive refuge of a guilty conscience. So it should have no place in a heart that the precious blood of Jesus has cleansed from an evil conscience. Falsehood and faith stand in essential opposition. Faith feeds on truth, because it trusts in God; while it is the absence of that trust that gives a lie its power over the human soul.
A Motive Higher Than Honour
Most people can give reasons for honesty. The reason given here is not one of them.
We are too apt to treat falsehood on the human basis of honour. Many a man would not lie on moral grounds. Another would be too proud to tell a lie. A godly man, with a certain fear of God before his eyes, would not lie, because it is a practical denial of God. It is as good as saying that God does not hear… But this is not enough for a Christian. It matters greatly for our souls that we walk well and righteously. But the motive, character and extent must be according to God too.
Another writer sets this reason against the reasoning of moral philosophy:
Moral philosophy never gave a reason anything like the one given here… Who can imagine falsehood from the lips of Him whose words were the words of God, and whose truth was the truth of God? One who walked in His spirit and showed His life could no more speak falsehood.
Members of One Another
The final clause supplies the logic. Deceiving another believer turns out to be self-injury.
Nothing could be more horrible than one member of the body trying to deceive the others. No one could be guilty of such wickedness if he had any real sense of the oneness of that spiritual body… But who ever saw the parts of a man's body fighting each other in bitterness and anger? If I deceive the members of the body, I deceive myself. If I quarrel with them, I quarrel with myself. For though we are many members, the body is one, and we are all one body in Christ.
The Positive Side
The verse does not only forbid. It says what to speak instead.
If we speak truth, we speak what is helpful, what builds up, refreshes and encourages, and what is good in the sight of God… We should speak truth at all times because we have put off the old man. But there is one more reason for it here: the close and living links that bind us to all the saints.
Why It Comes First
One writer points out where this command stands in the letter.
Have you noticed, in the letter that reveals the church more than any other, which is the first command? … And read carefully every word that follows to the end of the chapter. If all believers walked according to these commands, division would be impossible.
Summary
- Put off — falsehood belongs to the old self, now laid aside. It is our inborn habit, and it comes from the devil, the first liar.
- Put on — truth is the voice of the new self, created after God in righteousness and holiness of the truth.
- Wider than words — a look, a gesture, evasion or a hollow compliment can all carry the character of falsehood.
- Higher motive — honour, morals, even the fear of God: none of these is the reason given here. Membership in one body is.
- Body logic — deceive a fellow member and you deceive yourself. Speak the truth, and division becomes impossible.