I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve . . . , so
your minds may be corrupted. - 2 Corinthians 11:3
It's often difficult to understand why people give in to certain temptations. From our
vantage point, their problem should be easy to handle.
We may even wonder how Adam and Eve could have been so foolish as to have thrown aside all
that God had given them in the dawn of their existence. We wouldn't have fallen so easily
- or would we?
Part of the problem is that Satan wears a disguise when he slithers into our lives. As
Mephistopheles says in the drama Faust, "People do not know the devil is there
even when he has them by the throat."
The Bible tells us that the serpent was "more cunning than any beast of the
field" (Genesis 3:1). No ominous hissing or rattling warned of danger. He didn't ask,
"Pardon me, may I have 20 minutes to destroy your life?"
Public Enemy No. 1 uses the same tactics today as he did back then. He appeals to our
sinful desires (1 John 2:15-16). Satan even disguises himself as an angel of light, and
his cohorts appear as ministers of righteousness (2 Corinthians 11:14-15; 1 John 2:18-19).
To resist temptation and to detect Satan's deceptions, we must live in close fellowship
with Christ (1 John 2:28). Then we won't be fooled by Satan's disguises.
-HWR
When sin entices and allures,
Its lies must be ignored;
The strength to gain the victory
Comes when we trust the Lord.
-Sper
You need to know God's truth to see through Satan's lies.