Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour. — Exodus 20:16
On several occasions we have moved into new areas to live. Each time, we make it a point to try to meet the people around us. We don’t always have friendships with our neighbors, but we do want to at least know who they are. Sometimes that has been a pleasant experience. Other times, it has led to some interesting experiences.
On several of these occasions, I recall having a new neighbor start off talking and introducing themselves. Then, they would often start asking if I’ve met others that live nearby. After I answer, they would often proceed to tell me all about the neighbors around us and share their opinions. I have heard the stories about crazy neighbors, annoying neighbors, and anything else you can imagine.
While this commandment talks about neighbors, this is not specifically those who we live around. It is actually anyone that we interact with. Multiple commandments have to do with neighbors and how we interact with them. This one specifically talks about how we should not bear a false witness about our neighbors. But it’s so much more than just that.
Our desire should be that we maintain the integrity of those we interact with. Not backbiting, telling stories, or causing doubt about our neighbors. Our desire shouldn’t be to provoke them to anger, but rather help them see Christ through us. We should share our witness with them in every interaction we have.
How do we interact with those around us? Do we go around talking about our neighbors in a way that wouldn’t honor God? Instead of talking about our neighbor, we should focus on our Savior! We should focus on living a life that points others to Him in all situations.
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