Lies They Tell Us

Jesus told us about the devil in John 8:44. In just a few words we find that the devil is a murderer and a liar. Those who live under the yoke of the prince of this world will behave as he does. The lies they tell us should come as no surprise to us. However, if the world constantly told us lies then we should have no trouble discerning truth. The lies are mixed in with facts, hidden in true stories, buried in red tape, camouflaged, obscured, and of course lied about.

Almost no one is fooled by one who lies constantly. His stories grow more outlandish with each telling and the likelihood of his facts become the stuff of bad fiction. A stranger in town may be taken in for a bit, but soon he too sees the constant liars game. What we are up against is far more difficult. Look at the temptations of Christ: the devil used scripture to tempt the Lord to sin. In much the same way, those who believe in Jesus will also face the temptation by scripture. We will hear the lies that sound good. Scripture will be quoted to us in ways that give the flesh excuse for behavior that is not like Christ. Our defense? Scripture.

What? The same words used to mislead us are also our best hope? Not quite. Jesus answered the devil with the Word, and so must we. However, where our Lord was tempted by the enemy to use the promise of God in a selfish and self-serving way, He answered with words that glorified God. It isn't that Jesus didn't need food for His body, He very much did after 40 days without any, but that He could not obey a command of the devil. Serving Himself by obeying the rebel enemy was the test Jesus faced in an extreme circumstance but our Lord did not fall. Serving herself in normal circumstances at the command of the enemy was what Eve faced, but she fell and brought Adam along with her. Eve needed food for her body too, but not from that tree in disobedience to God's command and not in obedience to the Serpent.

We face the same testing. Using God's word to serve ourselves at the command of the enemy may change a good scriptural promise into a bad sin. We must obey God above all, and sometimes that may mean skipping something that the enemy encourages or commands us to do. Seem confusing? Discernment or wisdom may well be one of the toughest Christian skills to master. Praise God we have the Master to help us.

Bucky