19th April 2025

19th April 2025


Pray (ACts)


Read (Exodus 20v16)


Message (Scott Woodburn)


It often strikes me as odd but nevertheless a moment 36 years ago still frustrates me. I was in P7 and one day after lunch a girl from my class was crying uncontrollably. The teacher calmed her down and when she composed herself she told the whole class that I punched her and pushed her face into a wall during lunch. I can admit that I was no angel in school but on that day I can truthfully say I was nowhere near this girl. I pleaded my innocence but the teacher could see no reason for the girl to lie and so I spent the next few days isolated in a room in the old part of the school. I was warned that I was on my last chance, I wasn’t to talk to my accuser and I was a thoroughly nasty piece of work.


Even writing these words causes some bitterness and I have never understood the girl’s motives. Did she mix me up with someone else or did she know full well what she was doing? I once upon a time saw her name on Facebook and I briefly thought about contacting her, but thankfully cooler heads prevailed.


What is forbidden in the ninth commandment? “The sins forbidden in the ninth commandment are, all prejudicing the truth, and the good name of our neighbors, as well as our own, especially in public judicature; giving false evidence; suborning false witnesses; wittingly appearing and pleading for an evil cause; out-facing and overbearing the truth; passing unjust sentence; calling evil good, and good evil; rewarding the wicked according to the work of the righteous, and the righteous according to the work of the wicked; forgery; concealing the truth; undue silence in a just cause, and holding our peace when iniquity calleth for either a reproof from ourselves, or complaint to others; speaking the truth unseasonably, or maliciously to a wrong end, or perverting it to a wrong meaning, or in doubtful and equivocal expressions, to the prejudice of truth or justice; speaking untruth, lying, slandering, backbiting, detracting, tale-bearing, whispering, scoffing, reviling, rash, harsh, and partial censuring; misconstructing intentions, words, and actions; flattering, vain-glorious boasting, thinking or speaking too highly or too meanly of ourselves or others; denying the gifts and graces of God; aggravating smaller faults; hiding, excusing, or extenuating of sins, when called to a free confession; unnecessary discovering of infirmities; raising false rumours, receiving and countenancing evil reports, and stopping our ears against just defence; evil suspicion; envying or grieving at the deserved credit of any, endeavouring or desiring to impair it, rejoicing in their disgrace and infamy; scornful contempt; fond admiration; breach of lawful promises; neglecting such things as are of good report; and practicing or not avoiding ourselves, or not hindering what we can in others, such things as procure an ill name.”


Did you get all of that? Read it again and let the challenge sink in. We are so quick to break the ninth commandment that it makes a mockery of anyone who believes they have kept God’s moral law fully. We are forbidden from giving false evidence, forbidden from promoting evil, forbidden from staying silent when we should speak, forbidden from misconstruing the words of others, forbidden from using truth in a sinful manner, forbidden from lying, forbidden from backbiting, forbidden from gossip, forbidden from twisting the intentions or others and forbidden from a whole raft of breaches of God’s ninth commandment.


My P7 accuser was wrong but I have no grounds to play the victim. How many times have I aggravated the smaller faults of others and ignored the massive log in my own eye? How often have I opened my ears to slander instead of closing them? How frequently do I deny the gifts and graces of my neighbour?


I was thoroughly humiliated and rebuked back in P7 but I am often worse than my accuser’s sharpest barbs. It was CH Spurgeon who once said “If any man thinks ill of you, do not be angry with him. For you are worse than he thinks you to be.” How true! May God have mercy on us for we are sinners worse than anyone bar Him could ever know! 


Pray (acTS)


Sing


WSC


Q62 What are the reasons annexed to the fourth commandment? The reasons annexed to the fourth commandment are, God’s allowing us six days of the week for our own employments, his challenging a special propriety in the seventh, his own example, and his blessing the Sabbath day.