Would you lie to save your spouse from jail?

Ryanswife said:

It's not that I don't want to protect a loved one from injustice...It's just that lying to the authorities and under oath would be something that I couldn't do. I am a horrible liar anyway...they would know I was lying.

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Leave out the horrible liar part.

Are you scared to lie?

Whats a bigger sin.

A) Lying to protect someone from injustice.

B) Refusing to lie and allowing a person to be wrongly convicted.

Or do you even believe that B is a sin?

seeker777 said:

Leave out the horrible liar part.

Are you scared to lie?

Whats a bigger sin.

A) Lying to protect someone from injustice.

B) Refusing to lie and allowing a person to be wrongly convicted.

Or do you even believe that B is a sin?

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Nope, don't believe that B is a sin. To lie is a sin. Not to lie is not a sin.

Who am I to say that my husband going to prison isn't part of God's plan. Joseph was falsely accused/wrongly convicted and God used him mightily. Who am I to say that isn't what God has in mind here. I truly believe that there is no weapon formed against me (or my spouse in this instance) that can prosper. Which basically means that I believe justice will be served even if it doesn't look like it to my human eyes.

immersedingrace said:

Who am I to say that my husband going to prison isn't part of God's plan.

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Yikes, I hope you tell your husband you would never lie for him, even to keep him from going to jail or facing the electric chair and all for a crime you know he didn't commit.

I just can't understand how you think the greater sin is telling a lie to keep an innocent person out of jail, over the innocent person possibly being sent to prison for the rest of their lives or in an extreme case, facing the death penalty.

To me, the greater sin is allowing an injustice to take place, when you have the power to stop it.

seeker777 said:

Yikes, I hope you tell your husband you would never lie for him, even to keep him from going to jail or facing the electric chair and all for a crime you know he didn't commit.

I just can't understand how you think the greater sin is telling a lie to keep an innocent person out of jail, over the innocent person possibly being sent to prison for the rest of their lives or in an extreme case, facing the death penalty.

To me, the greater sin is allowing an injustice to take place, when you have the power to stop it.

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Yep, I have. He's said the exact same thing. I do not have the power to stop it. Lying could land ME in jail as an accessory if that lie is found out. If I have children, where would that leave them? If I don't, I have no intention of going to jail. If husband is innocent, I have enough belief in God that it is truly in His hands.

As for your previous post regarding Santa/Easter Bunny: I have no intentions of telling those stories as truth. They will be told as what they are, stories.

Your little puppy didn't go to puppy heaven, little Fido is buried in the backyard and his corpse is being eaten by worms.

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There is no need to tell your child at all that his corpse is being eaten by worms. I'd simply tell my child that I wasn't sure whether or not his puppy went to heaven but that some people, like his nanny, do. It's not in the bible that they don't go to heaven.

I love God more than I love you, remember that, your second best next to God...Yes I know, we can't see God, but my faith requires me to love God more than you.

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There are better, gentle ways of telling the truth.

When I told you that Mommy was too tired to play a game with you, the truth is that I wasn't tired, you were completely on my nerves, you sometimes act like a spoiled brat at times and it took everything in my being to prevent myself from screaming at you.

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I believe in telling children the truth. I'd simply tell my child that I needed a time out and that I needed to be by myself for a little bit so they could play by themselves.

Grandma doesn't come over to visit, not because she lives far away, but it's because she hates your Daddy.

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Not telling your children something is NOT lying to them. If grandma hates daddy, that's between the adults. If my mother didn't come visit her grandkids for that reason, I wouldn't be trying to foster a relationship with them and if my kids asked why I'd tell them it was between the adults.

Lying to protect a spouse could and most likely would backfire, landing the liar in a pot of hot water. That would be particularly true of me, and I suspect a slew of others here who indicated they were no good at lying. Why, you ask, are we no good at lying? Probably because we consider it wrong and mostly pointless and haven't felt it was a trait that we needed to cultivate.

If you want to lie for your spouse, be my guest. For your sake, I hope the lie is never found out or YOU might headed to prison.

Crazy Liz said:

What has God asked me to do/or not to do in the OP's hypothetical?

Did Rahab willfully go against what God asked her to do or not do?

By faith Rahab the harlot did not perish along with those who were disobedient, after she had welcomed the spies in peace. --Hebrews 11:31

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Just wanted to highlight this again, in case it was missed the first time around.

seeker777 said:

Geez, so you know your spouse is 100% innocent and you wouldn't lie to protect his freedom?

Where are your priorities.

People are actually wrongly convicted, it happens...

I cannot understand anyone who would not protect a loved from injustice.

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I should probably not respond. But I will.

Where are my priorities? If my husband is innocent, I'm not interested in tainting or cheapening that with lies. I absolutely would want to protect him from injustice...by hiring a good lawyer and perhaps a private detective to help me exonerate him.

seeker777 said:

Leave out the horrible liar part.

Are you scared to lie?

Whats a bigger sin.

A) Lying to protect someone from injustice.

B) Refusing to lie and allowing a person to be wrongly convicted.

Or do you even believe that B is a sin?

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If my husband has no alibi for the time in question and has no explanation for his whereabouts....then I can not be 100% certain that he is innocent no matter what I would like to believe. Therefore, I would not lie. I am sorry that you do not like that answer, but you will not convince me to say I would do otherwise. The truth shall set you free....not lies.

LisaU said:

I should probably not respond. But I will.

Where are my priorities? If my husband is innocent, I'm not interested in tainting or cheapening that with lies. I absolutely would want to protect him from injustice...by hiring a good lawyer and perhaps a private detective to help me exonerate him.

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You could have done more to have assured his freedom....lied to protect him from an injustice. Lawyers, in some cases, perpetuate lies in order to protect their clients from being found guilty...so you wouldn't lie, but you'd hire a lawyer to do the lying for you?

Ryanswife said:

If my husband has no alibi for the time in question and has no explanation for his whereabouts....then I can not be 100% certain that he is innocent no matter what I would like to believe. Therefore, I would not lie. I am sorry that you do not like that answer, but you will not convince me to say I would do otherwise. The truth shall set you free....not lies.

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That's not the question....the hypothetical question is that you know beyond all doubt that your husband is innocent. The only way that your husband will be exonerated is if you lie for him.

That is the question.

No, I'm not a troll.

I just want people to look beyond their cookie cutter " I'm a good Christian who never lies" answers.

If people genuinely would refuse to lie to save a loved one from an injustice, then I'm Ok with that.

If someone actually took the time to think about the real implications that prison would actually have on an innocent person...you'd probably come to the conclusion that beatings, sexual assaults and living in constant fear of death while in prison is not for the greater glory of God. ( as some have suggested)

That's where I have a problem and believe that people are either refusing to seriously consider what prison is all about or they just aren't interested in challenging what they are supposed to believe as a Christian.

And what if it were discovered that the alibi was a lie? Wouldn't that throw even more suspicion on to your spouse? Wouldn't it look like they were trying to hide guilt? And then what would happen to the spouse that lied? They would both be in hot water and it would create an even bigger mess in my opinion.

seeker777 said:

If someone actually took the time to think about the real implications that prison would actually have on an innocent person...you'd probably come to the conclusion that beatings, sexual assaults and living in constant fear of death while in prison is not for the greater glory of God. ( as some have suggested)

That's where I have a problem and believe that people are either refusing to seriously consider what prison is all about or they just aren't interested in challenging what they are supposed to believe as a Christian.

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If Christians actually took the time to think about the real implications that prison would actually have on a person - innocent or guilty - would we be campaigning for prison reform like Christians in the 19th century?

I don't believe my husband would ever be in this situation.... unless I was murdered maybe. In this case, I wouldn't be able to help anyways.

If he was in this situation, I would instantly have doubts about my husband.

Most people falsely convicted have had previous criminal activities, or other reasons behind the allegations, which my husband has none.

seeker777 said:

That's not the question....the hypothetical question is that you know beyond all doubt that your husband is innocent. The only way that your husband will be exonerated is if you lie for him.

That is the question.

No, I'm not a troll.

I just want people to look beyond their cookie cutter " I'm a good Christian who never lies" answers.

If people genuinely would refuse to lie to save a loved one from an injustice, then I'm Ok with that.

If someone actually took the time to think about the real implications that prison would actually have on an innocent person...you'd probably come to the conclusion that beatings, sexual assaults and living in constant fear of death while in prison is not for the greater glory of God. ( as some have suggested)

That's where I have a problem and believe that people are either refusing to seriously consider what prison is all about or they just aren't interested in challenging what they are supposed to believe as a Christian.

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I think you are getting at an interesting point. It's much like honesty studies in other areas. When asked directly most people say if they were given too much change they would return it to the cashier. Studies done where people are put in the practical situation of receiving more change than they were due show the truth, few people return the money. I strongly think you would see the same results here among those that claim they would refuse to lie.