The Spirit of Exaggeration

The Spirit of Exaggeration 

Is Exaggerating The Same As Lying? 

In a perfect world, Christian character would emulate Christ in every way. We would never sin or do anything ungodly but live flawless lives of godlike perfection. Unfortunately, we have not been elevated to the heavenly state yet and remain influenced by our nemesis the old sinful nature. This “earthly nature” mentioned in verse 5 below, must be controlled by the spirit-filled believer who is responsible for resisting the temptation of yielding to sin. The apostle Paul tells us in Colossians 3:1-2, that it is by setting our hearts, minds, and affections on the things above, the things of God, that we are able to overcome the carnal impulses to honor our flesh over our spirit. This is why it is so important to study the Bible, attend the local church, and put into practice the scriptural truth we learn. Consider the following:

Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. ⁶ Because of these, the wrath of God is coming.  ⁷ You used to walk in these ways, in the life you once lived.  ⁸ But now you must also rid yourselves of all such things as these: anger, rage, malice, slander, and filthy language from your lips. ⁹ Do not lie to each other, since you have taken off your old self with its practices ¹⁰ and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its Creator. (Coloissans 3:5-10)

We are asking the question, “Is exaggerating the same as lying?”

Exaggerating has become a very popular trend in our world. The broadcast and print media have been practicing it for years and it was once known as “Yellow Journalism.” Many salespeople marketing their services or products have been guilty of exaggerating the benefits, outcomes or results. At a young age, experience taught me to be skeptical when things appear to be exaggerated or overstated. These half-truths always contain some element of truth to hook you, but the expansion of facts and inclusion of other information to embellish the communication ultimately render the message a big fat misleading lie.

When we exaggerate we are communicating something that is less than completely true and misleading, or, in other words, a lie. Some folks have convinced themselves that a half-truth is not as bad as a completely fabricated lie that has no truth in it whatsoever. However, while different in composition both accomplish the same thing, they deceive and mislead the other person into believing what is false while concealing the unadulterated truth—both are lies.

Revelation 21:8 tells us that liars will be thrown along with other sinners into the lake of fire at some point after death. So, if you refuse to “put to death” (verse 5 above) your lying ways or spirit of exaggeration and continue to practice lying, you are in danger of the eternal flames of damnation.

Now some will argue, “I am a Christian and all my sins are forgiven and under the blood of Christ,” and while this is very true, those who are truly born again are commanded and empowered by the Spirit of God to rid themselves of the spirit of exaggeration and they must! Galatians 5:16 instructs us to “walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.” This is not to say we will never sin again, but it does mean we must not willfully be in the habit of practicing exaggeration or lying. On the contrary, we should willfully be in the habit of practicing honesty and truthfulness without exaggeration. The person who is governed by the spirit of exaggeration is not controlled by the Spirit of the living God and is more than likely not an authentic believer. The believer, however, is to walk in a daily relationship with God’s Holy Spirit empowering us to model our lives after Christ.

Now I am not a self-righteous Christian who believes he has mastered Christian perfection and no longer falls short. Like others, I am guilty of moments of compromise where I fail to do what I know is right and I feel just awful—I have sinned. The Spirit brings immediate conviction in my heart and mind. I think, “Lord I am such a failure.” Temptation has manifested its presence and I yielded to it again. I cannot justify my sin, but I can recognize it and confess it as evil and ungodly behavior. As the apostle says:

There are six things the Lord hates, seven that are detestable to him: ¹⁷ haughty eyes, a lying tongue, hands that shed innocent blood, ¹⁸a heart that devises wicked schemes, feet that are quick to rush into evil, ¹⁹a false witness who pours out liesand a person who stirs up conflict in the community. (Proverbs 6:16-19)

God loves you and desires to rescue from your sinful life and transform you by His divine power. Will you open your heart and turn to Him today?