Can A Christian Be Deceived? Nah! I KNOW I Won’t Be
Ξ September 7th, 2007 | → 17 Comments | ∇ Christian Living, End Times, Growing In The Lord, New Christians |
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After yesterday, I was wondering if this particular subject would actually be written today. During my Bible study time yesterday and this morning, the words “do not be deceived” kept running through my head. Usually when that happens, God wants me to pay particular attention to where that’s written.
I have been writing here about the Book of James for the last few days and God will not allow me to leave the first chapter yet. There are three notations about being deceived in James 1.
The first one comes when he says that we are not to be deceived, that only God is the giver of the good gifts. That reminds me of a person who is able to buy a pretty expensive car with a loan. Then, when they get it home, they call their Christian friends and tell them what a blessing God has given them. That’s a self-deception. God does not give a person debt which is what happens when you sign for a car loan. God gives GOOD gifts. Now if that same person had gotten a gift of a car, that would be God’s good gift.
The second instance of deceive is found in James 1:22 where it says that we are to be doers of the word not hearers only because if you only hear, you deceive yourself. That brought to mind a person who goes and sits in church every week. They are quite faithful in that. They love everything in the preacher’s sermon, nothing bothers them in the least. It’s all a joy every week.
But the problem is that they simply sit and listen. When they go home, do they do anything all week to help anyone? Do they teach someone about the Lord? Usually the answer is no. I call them Pew Potatoes (couch potatoes? Yeah.). They love everything about church. However, if they were truly listening and the preacher was speaking God’s word, something should have been uncomfortable at times. That would be God teaching. When God teaches, it isn’t always comfortable but it sure is going to change your life!
Then a person would want to share with friends and family what they have learned. Some of my most enjoyable times have been after a church service when we could sit and talk about what we learned from the sermon. It is absolutely amazing to find out that although each had heard the same sermon, each one has learned a different lesson. That never ceases to amaze me!!
The third time deceived is mentioned, is when God says that if a person thinks they are religious and do not stop their tongue, they deceive themselves. I can picture the one person who is sitting in church that believes they have not sinned all week but do look around at all the sin that’s running rampant in the church. The person decides to tell someone about it trying to get support in their thinking. Pretty soon the tongues of others are wagging just like the first person’s did. That’s called “gossip”. God is so against that. He says that if a person feels righteous and religious but does not watch what they say, it means nothing and that person is deceived.
You know, I used to think that I was not going to be deceived because I read the scriptures a few times. HA! That in itself is a deception. I used to think that I could spot the anti-christ with no sweat at all. Not really. As long as we are deficient in any part of the scriptures and getting to know God, then we are open to a deceptive spirit who will convince us that what we are doing is right, no matter what happens, no matter who it might hurt in the process.
Today is the first day of the rest of your life. Do you believe that? Good saying. Perhaps we need to feel that way since God says that we are renewed each day (Eph. 4:22-24)and by the washing of the water of the Word! I praise God that He is so faithful to us even when we are not faithful to Him. We need to learn to be DOERS of the Word and not just hearers. Hearers are everywhere. Doers are few and far between. We need the doers for our army of God! It’s time to march!
For more information about getting to know the Lord better, please come to Lura’s Bookcase where you will find many articles on learning to grow in the Lord Jesus! Thank you for reading.
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