The Lie (5)

“You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it.” John 8.44

Not of this world
Contrary to what many Christians seem to think, the provenance of the lie is not from this world, nor the best thinkers of this or any other age. We make a mistake if we focus our energies at overcoming the lie merely at the human and temporal level. Those who are trapped in the lie are only partly to blame for their dilemma. The provenance of the lie is from beyond the material world to which deceived men and women cling so fervently. People who are so blinded by the lie that they refuse to admit the evidence abounding on every hand, and who are so determined to have their own way in life that they will hold fast to every worthless idea or thing rather than fall at the feet of the Savior – such people are deceived in the depths of their souls by a fallen fiend who delights in keeping them prisoners to unbelief, delusion, and sin.

We do not expect our unbelieving neighbors to agree with Jesus’ assessment about the source of their deception; at the same time, their denials of what we (and they) know to be true, do not change the reality of which Jesus speaks. The devil is a real and active agent in the affairs of men and nations, and he roams and stalks about the earth sowing lies, deceit, and disinformation into the souls of those who turn away from God and depend only on themselves for the happiness they seek (1 Pet. 5.8; Rev. 12.9).

We must at all times bear in mind that the ultimate enemy of the truth is the father of lies, and only spiritual weapons can prevail in resisting and dispatching him.

The devil’s wiles
How does the devil ply his trade of deception and lies?

Scripture is clear enough. He undermines the authority of God’s Word and promise (Gen. 3.1-4), making the Word of God sound unreasonable, illogical, and unsuitable for human wellbeing. He leads people to regard God as an unreasonable tyrant, if He exists at all (Gen. 3.5; Ps. 10.1-4). He urges people to follow their own desires, to take full charge of their lives and to give in to their gut instincts (Gen. 3.3-5; Matt. 4.1-11). He paints grand scenarios of personal autonomy, complete satisfaction, and liberation from all constraints, insisting that people ought to be free to make all their own choices.

He invites people to make up their own minds, follow their hearts, be true to themselves, and to be their own god.

At the end of the day, however, what the devil seeks is to dethrone the truth of God and establish himself as ultimate, final, and alone the object of worship – even by God Himself (Matt. 4.9).

The devil plays on human pride (Gen. 3.1-4), the lusts of the eyes and the flesh (1 Jn. 2.16), the pressure to conform (Rom. 12.1, 2), and the false belief that God cannot know or will not hold us accountable for our sinful, selfish actions (Pss. 10.11-13; 73.11). All such folly, those who have rejected the truth are all too ready to believe.

The devil is able even to make the most outwardly noble aspirations and intentions stand opposed to the good and perfect will of God, as we see in Peter’s insistence that Jesus must not be crucified (Matt. 16.21-23).

“One little Word…”
Only the truth of God can thwart the devil’s schemes and overthrow the house of lies he erects in a person’s soul. Jesus thwarted the devil’s lies time and again by appealing to the truth of God as revealed in His Word. And Jesus, the very Word of God, assured us that, while in this world of deceived fools we can expect to know trouble and trial, still, we may be of good cheer, for He has overcome the world (Jn. 16.33).

They who are dead in their trespasses and sins, and trapped on the lie side of the human divide – enemies of God as we once were (Rom. 5.10) – can find their way over that divide and into the green meadows and still waters of Jesus Christ, but only as they are helped on their way by powers and practices this secular world roundly scorns. Prayer, sharing the Word of God or our personal testimony, explaining the Gospel – these are the only means whereby dying sinners may be extricated from their plight and born again into the Kingdom of light. If we neglect these resources, preferring instead to woo or argue with or humiliate those ensnared by the lie, we shall make no headway for their restoration.

The Prince of darkness grim, we tremble not for him
His rage we can endure, for, lo, his doom is sure:
One little Word shall fell him.

Thus Luther taught us to sing, and we must never forget that our only protection against, and best weapon in combating the lie, is the truth of God.

For reflection
1.  People in our day don’t believe in the devil. While the devil may not feature in our sharing of the Good News, why is it nevertheless important that we understand how he works?

2.  Meditate on Genesis 3.1-6. Can you see this same ploy at work in our own day? Explain.

3.  Meditate on Matthew 4.1-11. Discuss the use of God’s Word in resisting and thwarting the devil and the lie.

Next steps – Preparation: What is your approach to resisting the devil? Talk with a Christian friend about this question.

T. M. Moore

The Christian life is one of joy in the Spirit. We are called to be bringers of joy to the world. Our booklet, Joy to Your World!,shows why Jesus is the great Good News of Christmas. It’s the perfect stocking-stuffer for friends and coworkers. Order your copies by clicking here.

A PDF of this week’s study, The Lie, is available by clicking here.

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Except as indicated, Scripture taken from the New King James Version. © Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.