Christians have dealt with this issue of lying in 1 of 3 ways:
(a) Never lie. No exceptions.
(b) Doing the lesser evil.
(c) Doing the greater good.
The last two options (b and c) can be a bit confusing, so please read carefully (these are actually notes adapted from a class I taught).
1st View: No Exceptions
i. What does it say
1. God gives us moral laws (not lying, no adultery) to follow
2. His moral laws flow from his unchanging nature
3. Since he never changes his laws never changes
4. Therefore one should never lie.
5. No exceptions even to save someone’s life. Trust God.
6. There are no real moral conflicts we face ie lying vs saving a life (they are just apparent not real)
ii. What is good about it
1. A belief in absolute moral laws or else we are left with moral relativism.
2. It shows trust in God’s providence. God made the rules. We follow them and leave the results in God’s hand.
a. Dan 3:17-18
3. It holds there is a third way to avoid sinning
a. Dan 1 – eat the royal food and wine or face the consequences. The third way was not a or b, but to eat vegetables.
iii. What problems it has
1. God blessed the midwives and Rahab because of their deception. One cannot separate the lie from the act of mercy. The lie was an act of mercy.
2. By believing this we are guilty of the sin of omission. (James 4:1). Some believe by telling the truth, it is the offender who is threatening to do the killing who is sinning. But there is also a duty to save innocent lives, or to show mercy. If we know the right we have to do and do not do it, that too is sin.
3. God does not always save us from moral dilemmas or give us a 3rd alternative. Many have died or have persecuted throughout history (for not recanting their faith).
4. There is a basic inconsistency. Some people might condemn others for lying to save a person, but they may intentionally deceive to save their property (eg leaving the lights on while away to deceive potential thieves.)
5. Tendency to legalism. We miss the spirit of the law to avoid breaking the letter of the law. When lying and lives are weighed, what is more important?
2nd View: Doing the Lesser Evil
i. What does it say
1. We live in a fallen world. In such a world, real moral conflicts do occur.
2. When they occur, we are morally responsible to do both duties but since we cannot we have to break one.
3. In such cases we should do the lesser evil.
4. God’s law cannot be broken without guilt. Hence it is still a sin that we’ve committed so we need to confess and ask for God’s forgiveness.
ii. What is good about it
1. It preserves moral absolutes
2. There’s a realism (not found in option 1). We do face real conflicts not apparent ones.
iii. What problems it has
1. It seems strange that to say we have a moral obligation to do what is wrong. Does God command us to sin?
2. Can you be guilty for doing what is unavoidable?
3. This view holds that Jesus must have sinned. If Jesus was tempted in all ways as we are (Heb 4:15), then when he faced conflicting moral laws, he must have sinned. But this can’t be! (2 Cor 5:21). Jesus did face moral dilemmas in which 2 or more commands of God came into conflict. How did he respond?
• At age 12, he faced a conflict between his earthly parents and his heavenly Father (Luke 2)
• Matt 10:37 – he says to love God more than parents
• He chose mercy (healing a man) over the Sabbath
• So what does this mean for us?
3rd View: Doing the Greater Good
i. What does it say
1. Moral duties sometimes do come into conflict.
2. In such cases we are obligated to do the greater good not the lesser evil. This is not a word game.
3. When 2 moral duties clash, the believer is exempt from his duty to do the lower law by obeying the higher.
ii. What is good about it
1. There are higher and lower moral laws.
a. Matthew 23:23 – tithing vs justice, mercy and faithfulness (more important)
b. Matthew 23:36 – the greatest commandment
c. Matt 10:37 – love God above parents
d. Matt 5:19 – anyone who breaks one of the least of these commandments
e. Some sins call for excommunication (1Cor5) some for death (Gen 9:6, Ro 13).
f. 1 Sam 15:22 -Obeying vs sacrifice
g. There is one sin so great as to be unforgivable (Mark 3:29)
h. There are levels of reward in heaven (1 Cor 3:1-12)
2. There are unavoidable moral conflicts we face
a. Gen 22 – Abraham & Isaac – do not murder vs obeying God (Love of God over Love of man)
b. Ex 1 & Josh 2 – lying vs saving lives (mercy over truth)
c. Dan 3, 6 – obeying government vs obeying God (Obey God over government)
3. People are not held guilty for doing the unavoidable. We are following the example of Jesus by doing the greater good and we are not sinning.
a. In lying to save a life, it is not the lie that is good, but it is the act of mercy to save a life that is good. (despite the fact that lying was necessary to accomplish this good.)
b. Mercy is an attribute of God Even though lying to save a life cannot be based in God as truth, it can be based in God as merciful. When truth and mercy conflict, then the necessary act of mercy (in this case lying) finds its basis in God’s nature as merciful.
c. God looks at the whole picture not the parts by themselves. (Cutting off a human leg by itself is wicked – it is called mutilation. But cutting off a leg because it is gangrous and to save a life is right – it is called amputation).
Summary: We argue that the 3rd view is the best. There are times when there is moral conflict. In those times, we must do the greater, moral good (not the lesser evil). A good example is when we lie in order to save a life (i.e. the greater good is another person's life).
Thus, to answer your question directly: "lying" about your friend's birthday party is not sinful b/c you are doing the greater good. You are lying because you are doing the greater good of loving another person. However, to be clear, this does not mean you should use this excuse to lie as frequently as you want. Lying because you were lazy or because you want to gain something easily is NOT the greater good.
[Answered by Pastor Quang, from the English Congregation, with a little help from Pastor HM]
