Why People Lie

Welcome back! Thanks for stopping by! Today I want to talk about the basic principles that cause people to tell lies. There are 7 core reasons that people lie. However, first I want to explain what a lie is, as it pertains to this message. A lie is told when someone wants to intentionally deceive another for the sole purpose of causing them harm in some way.

Now, there are some cases where it is necessary to lie in order to save someone. For example, if someone breaks into your house with a gun while your children are asleep in another room, and the gunman asks you if there is anyone else in the house, most people would lie and say “no” in order to keep their children safe. I am not talking about those types of lies. I am talking about the ones that cause undue harm to others.

Here are the 7 main reasons why people lie:

1. To take what is not rightfully theirs
   • People tend to confuse jealousy and envy. Jealousy is when you have something and you are afraid someone will take it from you, so you go to extremes to try to hold on to it. Envy, on the other hand, is when you want what someone else has, and if you want it bad enough, you will lie to get it. This happened in the bible when Jacob lied to his father Isaac, pretending to be his older brother Esau so that he would receive the blessing Isaac had for his eldest son.
2. To escape accountability
   • When people don’t want to risk being blamed when things go wrong, they immediately say, “that was not my job” even though it is clearly in their job description. Even more prominent in today’s society, parents don’t want to own up to the acts of their children, citing that they did not raise them that way. However, if you look back over their lives, it is clear that their dysfunctional household is what led their child down the path of destruction. However, while we may be able to fool the people, we will not be able to fool God, and when we meet our maker, we WILL be held accountable…
3. To create a fantasy/false self-esteem to escape their mundane life
   • Sometimes people prefer to escape reality and instead of using the “virtual” reality option, they just live in a fantasy world where their whole life is a lie. I have seen TV shows where people lead double lives in some effort to ensure that their life truly has everything. Unfortunately, those lies ALWAYS catch up with them, and it is never a favorable outcome because too many lives are destroyed by it. In other cases, people pretend to be something they are not. Perhaps they rent a police costume and pretend to be an officer of the law, so they can convince people they have some level of authority over other people. It is just a sad life to live because the truth will come out eventually, leaving the person feeling lower than they were before they began the deception…
4. To avoid punishment
   • Some children have a favorite phrase that is either “I didn’t do it” or one that points the finger at a sibling or some other person. Unfortunately, this mindset follows some people into adulthood and they always look for an opportunity to blame someone else. A prime example is when a speeder is stopped by a highway patrol officer and they say they were not speeding, it was that other car… Lying happens a LOT with law enforcement because no one wants the punishment that is handed down by a judge in a courtroom. Unfortunately, we will not be able to lie to the Ultimate judge (God) to avoid punishment because He alone sees all and knows all, and we will be judged accordingly…
5. To inflict pain
   • Some people have a downright evil spirit and they lie for the sole purpose of causing pain to others. Those people are truly working for the devil… I don’t think I need to belabor this point!
6. To feel better in the moment; to “steal” admiration
   • You have some people who are competitive at work, so they lie about their accomplishments to secure a higher position, a pay raise or just some type of award. I have seen many times where one person does all the work, but a counterpart, or even a supervisor takes all of the credit.
7. To gain advantage to exploit others
   • It seems that lying is prevalent in the political arena. Candidates want to win an election, so they lie about their opponent or themselves to gain an advantage. Criminals who are into trafficking or exploiting young girls will lie profusely about wanting to help young ladies realize their dreams to succeed in show business.

Of course, these are not all-inclusive examples. I have not even begun to touch the surface! However, I hope this helped somebody!

Until we meet again, I pray blessings for your life!