Ignorant? Or, Liar?

Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we are not ignorant of his devices. (2 Corinthians 2:11 KJV)

Or, are we? We are if we haven’t learned about Satan’s devices. What? You don’t believe Satan exists? I take it then you don’t believe God exists, either, because the Bible is very explicit concerning Satan’s experiences with mankind.

OK, with womankind first:

And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die: (Genesis 3:4 KJV)

Liar. The first lie from the father of lies, according to Jesus:

Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. (John 8:44 KJV)

I agree with one blogger quoting M. Scott Peck (though I have not read Peck’s work) where he states “while evil manifests itself in many ways, its common identifier is the lie.”

We know that advertisements lie, yet we allow them to set our expectations and standards. We know we lie, the little white ones that are meant to be pleasant chatter to keep from offending. We know that politicians lie, some hedged with a bit of truth, but designed to mislead. We live in a world of lies that we put down to ignorance.

People lie to further their own desires, their own agendas. No need to list them, I may find on that list some things my readers see as truth. There is a standard laid out in the Bible for truth:

And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free. (John 8:32 KJV)

Jesus also told us how to find that truth:

Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6 KJV)

Other verses proclaim God as truth:

For the word of the LORD is right; and all his works are done in truth. (Psalms 33:4 KJV)

We have the word of God explaining what is true, giving examples of what are lies and the results of those lies.  How, then, can we remain ignorant?

Because it takes looking into our own lives and finding the ‘v’ removed. We are of this world and we are of the lies of this world. We remain ignorant because we can’t stand to have the light of truth turned into our own hearts and find the devices of Satan have deep roots.

He is not all knowing, though. He will leave when rebuked, as he did following Christ’s temptation.

Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him. (Matthew 4:10-11 KJV)

Don’t lie. Don’t believe others’ lies – no, that IS doable.  We usually accept lies because there’s a benefit for us, even if that benefit has consequences we’d rather not face. Choose truth, coming out of our mouths, going in to our hearts.