Why you shouldn’t cheat in an exam

Lessons from one of the Bible's most shocking stories.

Just before the Christmas break, Year 11s across the UK (where I live) took their mock exams for GCSEs. Exams reveal the good and the bad side of people. In this article, I want to explore one of the ‘bads’ – cheating.

Lessons from Ananias and Sapphira

Acts 5:1-11 tells the story of Ananias and Sapphira who both sold a property. When it came for them to give the money to the church, they both decided to keep some of the money and gave only a part of it to the church. However, Peter knew of their dishonesty. When it was Ananias’s turn to give the money, Peter told him “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit… You have not lied to man but to God”. After this, Ananias took his last breath and dropped dead (Sapphira, his wife also died after she also lied to God). We can learn some lessons from this sad story.

Guard your hearts from the lies of Satan

We should not allow Satan or the world to fill our hearts. The world says ‘It’s no big deal, just ask for the answers before the test’. The world says ‘Just add another fake job to your CV so you look more experienced’. On the other hand, we as Christians must not conform to the patterns of this world (the acceptance of cheating), but rather we should be transformed by the renewing of the mind through Christ.

Lying to God

Yes, cheating is lying to our peers and authority. But it is more importantly lying to God. Just as Ananias lied not to man, but to God ... when we cheat, we are also lying to God. And the Bible is very clear on God’s stance on lying and cheating. Proverbs 6:17 and 19 says it is one of the abominations to Him.

Our Father sees everything

Just because people of authority may not see our dishonesty does not mean that God does not see our shady businesses. In Jeremiah 23:24, God asks us “Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him?” God sees everything that we do and think.

An abominable thing.

Now, although Ananias and Sapphira dropped dead because of their dishonesty, that doesn’t mean that we going to die if we cheat or lie. However, it goes to show how seriously God takes our cheating and lies.

Honesty is the best policy

We should always work hard towards our goals. Colossians 3:23 says, "Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men". We should do everything that we do in honesty. Yes, we may fail sometimes or not get the results we hoped for, but through Christ we are more than conquerors!