The Lie

We know that Satan is "the father of lies" (John 8:44). I believe, in fact, that the lie is Satan's most common and most effective tool. Even in his temptations to other things, it is simply based on a lie. "You need this." "There's nothing wrong with this." "You will not die." I threw that last one in to illustrate the first lie. The serpent asked Eve, "Did God say ...?" and, when she answered, he accused God of lying (Gen 3:1-4). It is an effective approach. Eliminate "truth" and you can lead people anywhere you want.

In Paul's letter to the church at Rome he wrote about the Fall of mankind. "Therefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, to the dishonoring of their bodies among themselves, because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen" (Rom 1:24-25). Scholars tell us that "a lie" would be best translated "the lie," and you can see why that makes sense. It is a singular lie -- worshiping the creature rather than the Creator. All other sin rolls out from that one lie.

Lies are the problem. They come from the father of lies and we listen to them, heed them, tell them to ourselves, and pass them on. The endpoint is sin, but the starting point is always the same: God is not enough. God is not reliable. God is not all-loving, all-powerful, all-knowing. God is not Sovereign. Who is? You are. So Jeremiah warns, "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?" (Jer 17:9). Why? Because we don't even see it coming. We don't even recognize it. With the truth -- God's Word -- staring us in the face, "I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing" (Rom 7:19). Yes, even us Christians. Our highest aim, then, should be pursuing the truth about God rather than our natural tendency to serve the creature -- ourselves.