Did you ever wonder how a polygraph test works? Polygraph tests decipher whether someone is lying by recording factors such as pulse, breathing rate, blood pressure, and skin conductivity, also known as Electro-Dermal- Activity (EDA), during questioning.
The idea is that if you’re being deceitful, your body will emit a different physiological response than when you’re telling the truth
Isn’t that interesting …
When we lie, it’s as if our bodies yell out, “You’re lying! Your lying!”
God’s design?
Well, since He designed the human body, I would say so.
Our bodies are walking, talking lie detectors that will betray the fibber! When we lie, our hearts pump faster and we breathe heavier, and we sweat, and we may not even recognize that it’s happening.
I see this as an example of God’s grace. He did not want us to be comfortable when we lie, so He starts with how our bodies react. It is the beginning of God chastising us, and calling us to confession and repentance. He wants us to be more like Christ, so He will discipline His children by having their bodies become uncomfortable. Then, He starts to weigh down our heart with emotions. Just listen to what King David had to say about how God caused him to feel after his sin with Bathsheba:
Let me hear joy and gladness;(T)let the bones(U) you have crushed rejoice. Psalm 51:8
Because of his sin, David was experiencing a crushing depression.
I don’t know if you ever played the game “Uncle”, but the basic premise is that two people bend back each other’s wrists to the point of causing pain, and they see who can go the longest without crying, “Uncle”. Then you release each other’s wrists. Sound fun? Well it is not. That old game is kind of like what God does when we sin. He causes his children pain with the hope that we will stop sinning and enjoy Him and His ways again.
As if all this isn’t enough, He allows us to experience the consequences of our sin. Sometimes these last long after we have confessed them, and asked for forgiveness. Perhaps He wants us to feel the magnitude of our transgression.
Bodily reactions. Emotional turmoil. Negative consequences. God’s trifecta to teach us that our sins are costly.
How much better is the peace of God when we walk in obedience to Him.
4 In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.(I) 5 And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says, “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart(J) when he rebukes you, 6 because the Lord disciplines the one he loves,(K) and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.”[a](L) 7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children.(M) For what children are not disciplined by their father? 8 If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline(N)—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. 9 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits(O) and live!(P) 10 They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness.(Q) 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace(R) for those who have been trained by it.” Hebrews 12:4-11
For Jesus,
Rob