Our enemy is subtle.
The Bible describes him as a lion (1 Peter 5:8), and for good
reason. Lions will chase prey across an
open savanna if they have to, but they prefer to use stealth, hunting at night
or ambushing from the cover of tall grass.
This is why Peter admonishes us to be "alert and of sober
mind." One of the enemy's most
insidious tactics is to mask his lies with the ring of truth so that they go
unnoticed until they have taken root. He
takes advantage of our fallen human natures, playing on our sense of
self-worth, our hunger for encouragement, our need to feel empowered. If we're not careful, even well-meaning
Believers can fall for these traps and end up boldly proclaiming lies that
directly contradict the truth of God's Word, holding them up for all to see,
and calling them "wisdom."
Social media is full of such lies, often in pretty
infographic format. On the surface they
can seem positive, and encouraging, but looks can be deceiving. Remember the Turkish Delight the White Witch
gave to Edward in The Lion, The Witch,
and The Wardrobe? Satisfying and sweet
to taste, but designed to keep Edward's mind off of his siblings and on the
Witch. And to keep him coming back for
more.
Some recent examples I've seen:
1. "You're enough. You are so enough." No, you're not. But that's NOT bad news! It's part of the Good News! We were all created on purpose to be insufficient in ourselves, because God desires a relationship with us wherein He completes us. God is our sufficiency. God
is more than enough (2 Cor 9), and we can do all things through Christ (the very Word of God) who gives us strength (Phil
4:13). If we want to encourage others when they are
feeling overwhelmed and insufficient, we should be pointing them to the One who
is sufficient, and not back to
themselves where they will eventually only find failure once again.
We cannot underestimate how dangerous and destructive it is
to tell someone that they have what they need to survive and succeed in and of
themselves. Apart from God we can do nothing! (John 15:5), and therein lies the diabolical nature of this lie. There is no ability to do good in our flesh (Romans 7:18). I cannot help but wonder how
many suicides have been committed because a person at the end of their rope
went back to the well of themselves for what they needed to go on, only to come
up dry once again.
But praise be to God that God's very name means "More Than Enough" (El Shaddai). Let's point one
another to the One who can give living water from which we can drink and never
thirst again (John 4 & 7). Let's point people not themselves, which can never be enough, but rather to El Shaddai, Who is always more than enough.
2. "Follow your heart." Really?
Jeremiah 17:9 tells us that "the heart of man is deceitful above
all things and desperately wicked."
Is that what we should be following?
Your heart will lie to you every time, and inevitably it will take you
down a path of wickedness, because ultimately our hearts are selfish. Our hearts, when left to their own devices, seek self-satisfaction and self-preservation. Contrast this with God, who calls us to put others
first, and risk our very lives for His sake and the sake of the Kingdom. It is God's Spirit we need to listen to and follow. Don't follow your heart, follow Christ! Seek first after God, His Kingdom, and His
Righteousness (Matthew 6:33).
In fact God, Himself, is looking for people after His own
heart (1 Samuel 13:14). Ironically, when
we encourage someone to "follow their heart," it's usually because we
want to help ease their sense of dissatisfaction. But Scripture is clear that we are only truly
satisfied when we seek God and His righteousness (Psalm 37:4, Psalm 16, 17, 63,
Matthew 5:6, etc.).
I could go on and on...hopefully you get the idea. Do you see the subtlety of these lies? Some reading this will undoubtedly say that
I'm overreacting, and that these things I'm talking about are no big deal. But they are
a big deal. Any time a lie that
contradicts God's Truth is planted in a mind and points to self and away from
God, it's a victory for the enemy and for humanism, and a step away from God on
a path that leads to death. God calls us
to "demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against
the knowledge of God, and take captive every thought to make it obedient to
Christ" (2 Cor 10:5).
I know that going forward, before I click "share"
on that encouraging platitude with the pretty picture in the background, I'll
ask myself: is this in line with God's Word?
Or does it "set itself up against the knowledge of God?" And of course to be able to answer that
question, I must be in God's Word daily, allowing the Holy Spirit to hide it my
heart (Psalm 119:11) so that when I come across these, subtle, pretty lies I can stop and say,
"Hey, now wait a minute..." :)
