Who Are We Deceiving?

Who Are We Deceiving?

This month’s Feature articles address the question, “What does the Bible say about lying?” The writers cite a lot of verses from both the Old and New Testaments to show us that lying is not something to be taken lightly, even though that seems to be a growing trend today.

I appreciate their diligence in telling us what the Bible says about lying, in helping us better understand the different ways we lie, and showing us the consequences of lying. After reading their articles, it’s safe to say that those who say they never lie are only deceiving themselves.

In his first epistle, John warns us about the serious sin of self-deception: “If we claim to have fellowship with God yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live by the truth ... If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us” (1 Jn. 1:6-8 NIV). Some serious observers of the Church in America today see self-deception as a sin that’s on the upswing.

In his 2002 survey of the health of America’s churches, George Barna, of the Barna Research Group, discovered that self-deception pervades the thinking of both church leadership and laity. For instance, while pastors said that evangelism and outreach were top priorities in their churches, the survey shows that the actual number of unbelievers and unchurched adults has remained the same since 2000, in spite of population growth and the spiritual revival that followed the 9-11-01 terrorist attack.

As for churchgoers, while four out of five Americans claimed to be Christians, and half of them saying they were born-again, most said they believed that the Holy Spirit was only a symbol, and that Satan didn’t actually exist.

John was right. Self-deception is a serious sin that really weakens our testimony before men and our relationship with God. We hope this month’s Features can help us overcome the sin of lying, especially self-deception.

By Larry Ondrejack