The Intent to Deceive

"But I didn't lie...I just didn't change what they were thinking that I meant by what I said..."

Have you ever met someone that tactfully words something they either say or write sot hat it can be taken multiple ways? Where they do not technically say that things are a certain way, but their wording allows for people to believe that they are a specific way.  For example, think of the following conversation:

Interviewer: So, this engineering job requires a lot of experience.  Do you have experience in this area?

Interviewed: Oh, I have TONS of experience!

Now, they mean that they have tons of experience in other areas, but they didn't actually SAY that is what they meant, and so the interviewer is left with the belief that the person they interviewed has tons of experience with engineering.  Is this technically a "lie"?

Consider Acts 5:1-11.  What did Ananias actually say to Peter when he brought the money from selling the property? There are two possibilities; first, Ananias verbally told Peter that the money he brought was the entire proceeds from the sale, or second, Ananias simply brought the money before Peter, laid it down, and intended for Peter to believe that he had brought all of the money.  While we do not have a written record of what Ananias did or did not say, it is clear that Ananias intended to deceive Peter, the Apostles, and his fellow Christians (Note: of the two choices, it is most likely that Ananias verbally said something and that we simply aren't provided with that information).  Either way, Ananias intended to deceive.  Had it been left up to mere men, as Ananias supposed it would be, he might have gotten away with it and received the glory of men.  But he and his wife lied to the Holy Spirit; in other words, God knew the truth!

God obviously found lying (the intent to deceive) to be of serious consequence.  Do we view it in that manner? Do we tactfully word what we say, write, or what we post so as to lead others to believe one thing about us when the truth is something entirely different?

Consider Matthew 5:33-37.  Here, Jesus is talking about the taking of oaths and says that we should not swear by anything because our word should be sufficient.  While Jesus is not talking about lying here, He IS talking about the trustworthiness of our word.  He tells us to let our yes be yes, and our no be no.  Further, consider the words of Jesus in Matthew 12:33-37; we are either justified by our words or condemned by our words.

What is your intent?