God's Hatred for Deception

There we go.

So today is the day that we pray for those in business.

And I happen to be a person who studied business and I appreciate all things business basically from the beginning to the end.

And today's verse was Proverbs chapter 11, verse 1.

Proverbs 11:1

And this is actually a theme that I noticed takes place all throughout the Bible in regards to how to conduct business.

So Proverbs, we're going to read it in the NLT.

Chapter 11, verse 1.

The NLT says, The Lord detests the use of dishonest scales, but he delights in accurate weights.

And now I'll read it in the KJV.

A false balance is an abomination to the Lord, but a just weight is his delight.

So the theme of weights and scales that you just heard is mentioned over 30 times in the Bible, both in the New Testament and in the Old Testament.

Unbalanced weights and scales, dishonest weights and scales are forbidden in Scripture.

And so this shows us repeatedly that the Lord cares about honesty in finances and detests dishonesty in finances.

And so what are scales?

What are weights?

In case you don't know the historical context.

So sometimes these days, but especially back in the Bible days, there would be a scale, and you would have one pillar in the middle, and then there'd be two cups on each side.

And depending on what was in each cup, it could balance to tell you how much that weight cost, the weight of the item.

And so you would have a standard stone that everyone knew what the weight of it was, and you put it on one side of the scale.

And then you use the weight of that stone to measure the value of whatever else you're putting on this side.

So whether that's uh coins, silver, gold, whatever it may have been back then, they use the weight of this stone in order to tell the weight of these.

And so what would happen sometimes in the marketplaces is that some business owners would try to be deceitful and not give people what their belongings were actually worth.

And so their weight or their scales would not measure the weight of the person who's bringing their coins or their silver or their gold or whatever they're trying to sell.

It wouldn't measure it honestly.

And so they would get over on people and either not pay them what they were worth, or they would end up making more because they were charging people excessively because their scales were dishonest.

And so that happens all throughout the Bible.

Dishonest weights and scales are detestable to the Lord.

It is an abomination to the Lord.

So dishonest scales are equal to deception, lying, cheating, trickery, false advertising, shisty business practices.

You know how people do false advertising sometimes.

They say one thing, and then it's like, well, what we actually mean when they talk real fast at the end, all these stipulations and things that may apply because they really don't want you to know.

And sometimes they may not say it at all.

And then you buy something, and it's like, oh, this was faulty.

Well, it was there.

No, you didn't.

You didn't disclose that.

So that it's similar, it's the same way.

What is an abomination?

An abomination is a thing that causes disgust or hatred, that which is exceptionally loathsome, hateful, sinful, wicked, or vile.

So if God equates false weights or scales to an abomination, that's what he thinks about deception and business practices.

That's what he thinks about deception in life in general.

That's what he thinks about trickery, about false witness, about shisty business practices, about cheating people.

It is an abomination.

So it causes him to hate it, the action.

It is sinful, he considers it wicked and vile.

And so we must be careful about how we ourselves conduct our own businesses as believers so that we don't have those negative connotations thought about towards us, especially if your business is the church.

A couple of weeks ago, I talked about Paul and how his business was the church, and he was um reprimanding Peter for doing something shisty in the church, in ministry, because that was considered an abomination to God.

And so we have to be careful and make sure that we conduct ourselves decently and in order.

We have to be honest in the way that we conduct business.

We have to be honest in the day in the way that we live our daily lives.

And so this gives us an opportunity to assess yourself, analyze yourself, and see exactly what your intentions are when you're doing things in your business, whatever kind of business you may be conducting, whether you actually own a business yourself or you conduct business on the behalf of the company that you're working for.

What are your intentions behind what you do?

What do you tell the customers every day?

Are you being deceitful?

Are you lying?

And if so, then while we have the opportunity to correct that, repent of it, and um basically bear ourselves before God so that he does not see what we're doing as an abomination unto him.

Um, and then I want to read Proverbs chapter six, 16 through 19.

And it talks about six things that the Lord hates.

It says, There are six things that the Lord hates, and yet there are seven things that are an abomination to God.

And we must be careful and honor the Lord with all of our substance and everything that we think, everything that we say, and everything that we do.

So let's see here.

Give me one moment.

Number two, a lying tongue, number three, hands that shed innocent blood, four, a heart that devises wicked schemes, five, feet that are quick to rush into evil, six, a false witness who pours out lies.

Seven, and a person who stirs up conflict in the community.

So several times it mentions lying, a false witness who pours out lies, a lying tongue, a heart that devises wicked schemes.

Wicked schemes are deceitful.

And so basically, over and over again, Proverbs chapter 6, verse 16 through 19 is telling us how much God hates deception in our personal lives and in our business practices.

Proverbs 6:16–19

And so we should analyze ourselves, assess ourselves, and make sure that when we go out there into the world, that we also be mindful of new believers, new Christians or those who aren't believers yet, that we have the opportunity to witness to and be led by the Spirit and how we make sure that they know the right way to conduct business, the right way to conduct themselves, what it is they're actually supposed to be doing, how they're supposed to be engaging the community, how they're supposed to, you know, sell their products and whatnot.

Whatever it is, if it be on the everything we should do, should be done on the behalf of the kingdom.

And if we're considering God, then we must make sure that we are not dishonest.

But he delights in accurate ways.

And so if we then are honest, then God delights in us.

You know, the word says we're supposed to delight ourselves in the in the Lord, but he delights in us when we do things the right way, when we conduct ourselves the right way, when we have business practices that are actually a blessing to people, that he will increase you even more because of how good you are to people.

A just weight is his delight.

So we delight ourselves in the Lord, and he also delights in us when we are actually doing things the right way, when we conduct our business decently and in order.

So today, what we're gonna do is pray for those in business, whether that be ourselves, whether that be someone you know, or just for people in the body in general, we're gonna pray for those in business.

And we want to make sure that we speak truth over them.

Pray that they would conduct themselves decently and in order and in truth, so that the Lord may delight himself in them and in the way that they conduct their business, so that he can get the glory, the honor, and all the praise.

Amen.

Amen.