A great amount of praying and more praying went into this post before any writing took place. Even in the night watches when sleep expired, a prayer for clarity was made. When God places a truth upon your heart you can either repress it or say, “yes Lord, now please give me the words from YOUR WORD that will create a thought-provoking effect so others will recognize these are your words.”  

I am so thankful that God did not leave us helpless. He gave us His Word and the greatest teacher: the Holy Spirit. And when I trusted in Christ as my Savior from sin as a little girl the Holy Spirit immediately took up residents in my heart. So, through the truth of Scripture and the teaching of the Holy Spirit a wall of protection from deception is provided when one follows the principles laid out in God’s perfect Word. Like Colossians 2 instructs, “Walk in Christ” not the empty philosophies and high-sounding nonsense that come from human thinking and from the spiritual powers of this world (Colossians 2:8).

Quite frankly many are being led astray following the teaching of mere humans. I am totally shocked by the weight a child of God will give to someone who does not even have a relationship with our Lord. How can a person proclaim they know better than the truth of what we find in God’s Word? The Bible says, “Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth” (John 17:17). Unfortunately, DECEPTION has been around since the garden of Eden.

The very first woman who ever lived was deceived (Genesis 3:13). Eve was deceived by our enemy Satan, also called the Devil, who is the “great deceiver” (Revelation 12:9). I often wonder how Eve—beautifully created without blemish, having a weedless garden, no worries or cares of what to eat or to wear, or if the temperature would drop midday, and besides that, a husband whose eyes were wowed when she was created—could allow herself to be deceived. And for me, the many cares and concerns that so easily find life too heavy or burdensome can become a weight of deception! Yet the Apostle James wrote, do not be deceived (misled), “Whatever is good and perfect is a gift coming down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow. He chose to give birth to us by giving us his true word. And we, out of all creation, became his prized possession” (James 1:16-18, NASB/NLT).

“But I am afraid, lest as the serpent (Satan) deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds should be led astray from the simplicity and purity of devotion to Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3).

In the book of Proverbs Agur is an amazing example of knowing full well the potential for drifting from a sincere and faithful devotion to Christ, and so he asks for lies and deception to be kept far from him (Proverbs 30:8). The Bible sounds the alarm for bad company: don’t be deceived—it corrupts good morals (1 Corinthians 15:33)! The alarm continues clanging: don’t be deceived concerning the lust of the flesh when it is allowed to reign it becomes sin and then sin brings forth death (James 1:15-16)! Even the arrogance of our hearts deceives us (Jeremiah 49:16; Obadiah 1:3)! What are you arrogantly/pridefully boasting about on social media or to your friends?

The first time the word “DECEIVED” (The Hebrew word “nasha” (נָשָׁא)) is found in the Bible is in the very first book third chapter where Satan (disguised as the serpent) deceives Eve (Genesis 3:13). The last time “DECEIVED” is used is in the very last book of the Bible when Satan (the Devil) is being eternally cast into the pit of hell: “And the Devil who deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire – forever” (Revelation 20:10).

The words deceit, deceitful, deceitfulness, deceive, deceived, deceiver, deceivers, deceives, deceiving, deception, deceptions, deceptive have been implemented by the devil all throughout history and is found throughout the Old and New Testaments of God’s Holy Word confirming the seriousness of this matter. It is possible to live in a stronghold of deception not realizing who or what has your heart and mind. And maybe you think you aren’t following the devil when you have been captivated by a “soapbox” from a confident writer who you hold in high esteem, or a Religious Cult, even a person who sounds like they know God, yet intend to mislead, to beguile – Don’t be DECEIVED; God is not mocked (Galatians 6:7)!