Truth Liars

“My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and in truth.”
— 1 John 3:18

“I cannot tell a lie…I did cut it with my hatchet,” George Washington is often quoted in a confession to his father bolstering his integrity. The only problem is it never happened. The story was completely invented by Mason Locke Weems in one of the first biographies of the president in his book The Life of Washington (1800). Taught to school children in America for generations, the “white” lie had merit. A nation without honesty is in peril.

I’ve experienced this in my own life. I’ve worked with several high profile individuals who had extraordinary stories that taught amazing life lessons. I’ve also learned many of them aren’t true. They were exaggerated or completely made up. Neither am I immune. In my early years, I will admit I concocted a story or two about what my grandparents taught me in order to drive home a point. I was always ashamed of it, but felt people would consider what a wise old grandparent would say over the ideas of a twenty-something upstart.

The tactic is a total fallacy—a false argument. It is known as an “Appeal to Authority.” The presenter is basically saying, “These people, who are greater than you, hold this position, therefore, you cannot question it.” And it is always wrong! Arguments have to stand on their own.

I was in a meeting today where the presenter stated that he had spoken to U.S. Presidents, Congressmen, CEOs and even actors in Hollywood. The implication; so if they listened to me, who are are you to question me? Well, I know a lot of idiots who have also talked to those people. What’s your argument, logic, point and proof of what you are saying? That is what matters, not to whom you have spoken.

Yet, we somehow feel compelled to make the truth bigger than ourselves. To leverage other people’s names, stories or inferences to give our truth more weight. What a shame!

Truth is truth. You don’t need a Washington to lead a future nation into truth. You need a child who tells the truth to become a Washington. You don’t need someone who speaks to presidents to guide a nation, you need a child who tells the truth to become a president.

1 John 3:18 states, “My little children, let us not love in word or in tongue, but in deed and truth.” Let our lives be the witness of our truth. You don’t need a Washington or a cherry tree to teach about the importance of truth. You just need to be a person who lives it.

You don’t need a nifty story about truth for people to believe it is important. When they see the importance of truth in their own life, they will definitely get it.

We have become TRUTH LIARS in our society. Follow social media and you will see numerous false stories aimed at teaching a greater truth. What a tragedy! If you need a lie to teach a truth, your beliefs about truth are a lie. Truth is truth. It is lived in deed and in word, but never in a lie.

The ends never justify the means when it comes to truth. Rather, truth dictates the ends.

I’m challenged this week to be more honest in my conversations. To resist the urge to amplify my speech, appeal to authority, allow false assumptions to be embraced or flat out make something up to win an argument. If we want to create something real, it has to be built on truth. I don’t need Washington and his cherry tree to express how important truth really is to society. I just need to live it in word and deed.

© 2026 Warren Martin. All rights Reserved.