The acceptable sin of self-deception
Common to all mankind
I’m sure at some point in your life, you’ve been tricked, duped, hoodwinked, bamboozled, conned, beguiled, swindled, and just plain deceived. We all have. For some of us, the deception was for a minor matter, like being lied to about who had a crush on us, or some sort of high school prank. For some, it’s been a more significant deception, like a spouse hiding an adulterous affair, or someone stealing from you. Still for some, the deception has been outrageous, like Barack Obama being a lizard-man, or thinking the earth is flat.
There are several reasons for our susceptibility to these kinds of tricks and delusions. It could be due to misplaced trust in a particular person such that we would never imagine they could lie to us. It could be due to a radical skepticism that forces us into a narrow lane of trusting no one while, at the same time, believing anything that seems credible to us (I’ve written about that).
Whatever the specifics, we’ve all been deceived; the frequency or intensity varies with our lack of diligence, shrewdness, and caution. What do we do when we’ve been “had?” We chalk it up to simple human error and limitations. We say, “Man, you really got me,” laugh it off, and try not to be too upset about it. Afterall, while intentionally deceiving someone else is wrong, surely there is no issue with us being deceived, is there?
A sober command
Well, that’s not totally the case. In fact, for certain issues (primarily of a spiritual and theological nature), we are commanded to not be deceived. Here is a list of these instances in the New Testament (emphasis mine):
1 Corinthians 3:18-19a
Let no one deceive himself. If anyone among you thinks that he is wise in this age, let him become a fool that he may become wise. For the wisdom of this world is folly with God.
1 Corinthians 6:9-10
Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.
1 Corinthians 15:33-34
Do not be deceived: “Bad company ruins good morals.” Wake up from your drunken stupor, as is right, and do not go on sinning. For some have no knowledge of God. I say this to your shame.
Galatians 6:7-8
Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life.
Ephesians 5:6-8, 10
Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not become partners with them; for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light, and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord.
2 Thessalonians 2:3-4
Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.
James 1:16-17
Do not be deceived, my beloved brothers. Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change.
1 John 3:7-8a
Little children, let no one deceive you. Whoever practices righteousness is righteous, as he is righteous. Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning.
Every instance (with the exception of one with a slight difference) puts the command to not be deceived in what is known as the present passive imperative. What is that? Great question. The present passive imperative is a command or request that expresses an ongoing action being performed upon the subject. It is often used to convey the idea of allowing oneself to be acted upon by an external force.
These imperatives might be better rendered, “Do not actively allow yourself to be passively deceived by some other person or idea, either internal or external,” but that would be quite awkward, so it is simplified as, “do not be deceived.” Now you understand the force of the Greek structure, that we are being commanded, by God, not to allow ourselves to be deceived.
What’s Greek got to do with it
As we consider this, at least three questions should come to our minds. First, about WHAT should we not allow ourselves to be deceived? Second, WHY should we not allow ourselves to be deceived? Third, HOW do we not allow ourselves to be deceived?
What should we not allow ourselves to be deceived about? Essentially, matters of truth, or more specifically, issues, ideas, and beliefs that God has revealed in His Word to be true. Let’s look again at the example passages listed above.
We are not to deceive ourselves into thinking that adopting worldly wisdom is superior to godly wisdom (1 Corinthians 3:18).
We are not to deceive ourselves into thinking that habitual, persistent, and unrepentant sin is appropriate and even possible in the life of a true follower of Jesus (1 Corinthians 6:9).
We are not to deceive ourselves into thinking that we can fellowship with God-haters and not have our spiritual life negatively affected (1 Corinthians 15:33).
We are to not deceive ourselves into thinking that we can entertain sinful thoughts and desires and not have them manifest themselves as outward sinful behaviour (Galatians 6:7).
We are to not deceive ourselves into thinking that there is nothing wrong with joining non-believers in their sinful activities, and that we won’t be affected by it (Ephesians 5:6).
We are not to deceive ourselves into thinking that Christ won’t deal with Satan, sin, and death once and for all when He returns (2 Thessalonians 2:3).
We are not to deceive ourselves into thinking that good gifts don’t in fact come from God, or that God ever tempts us to sin (James 1:16).
We are not to deceive ourselves into thinking that we can profess to follow Christ and live lives marked by unconfessed and unrepentant sinfulness (1 John 3:7).
Those are eight pretty basic and foundational truths concerning the Lord, His will, His Law and commands, our thoughts and actions, and repentance and obedience in our lives.
It’s only a little bit of deception
Knowing the what, the next question is the why. Why should we not allow ourselves to be deceived? Why the command from the Lord in His Word to be actively working to not allow ourselves to be passively deceived by some thought, idea, teaching, or doctrine?
Because if we are in Christ, we are a new creation, with a new mind, and new heart, and a renewed spirit. Because Jesus is the standard and personification of truth, and everyone who is of the truth hears His voice and listens to His commands (John 18:37). Because we have been fitted with the Belt of Truth to hold our spiritual loins together so as to not get caught up and tangled as we war in the spiritual realm (Ephesians 6:14). Because we have come to know the truth, and we have been set free by the truth to no longer be slaves to lies, sin, death, and the Law (John 8:32). Because God the Father sanctifies us in truth as the Holy Spirit guides us in all truth (John 16:13; 17:17).
Being deceived by lies, and therefore believing lies, are marks of the old life and the old man, the one that was dead in sin, futile in its thinking, and darkened by a suppression of the truth (Romans 1:21-22). “One who is deceived by lies regarding the Lord and His truth” is an identity a person possesses, and that is not who we are anymore, so we shouldn’t live like it. We don’t hate other people because that is not who we are anymore. We don’t give in to sexual sin because that is not who we are anymore. We don’t allow ourselves to be deceived because that is not who we are anymore. It’s really just as simple as that.
Strengthening the mind-muscle
Now, for that ever-important third question, “How do we not allow ourselves to be deceived?” Right off the bat, if you’re hoping for some novel silver bullet to living deception-free, you won’t find that here. The answer is nothing new, and it hasn’t been new for thousands of years. The only way to grow in faithfulness and obedience in this era of not allowing yourself to be deceived is by regularly and intentionally engaging in the Word of God. That means reading it, memorizing it, meditating on it, praying it, studying it, singing it, and speaking it.
When Jesus prays for His disciples to be sanctified in truth, He says this to God the Father, “I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one. They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world. Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth” (John 17:15-17). Did you catch that? We are sanctified in truth, as in we grow in our ability to not allow ourselves to be deceived, through the Word of God.
“Consider how I love your precepts! Give me life according to your steadfast love. The sum of your word is truth, and every one of your righteous rules endures forever” (Psalm 119:159-160). While we’re in the Psalms, consider these verses, which I heartily recommend committing to memory, “The law of the Lord is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple; the precepts of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes; the fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; the rules of the Lord are true, and righteous altogether” (Psalm 19:7-9).
But the portion of the Scriptures that is most significant is found in Hebrews 4:12-13, which says, “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.” God’s Word pierces us, exposes us, lays our thoughts and intentions bare, and forces us to give an account to God.
Having your thoughts and intentions revealed to you, exposing the depths of who you are to God and yourself, and giving an account before God for what you do and believe, these things will necessarily produce in the follower of Jesus a sharpened mind – better equipped to discern truth from error, and better strengthened so as to not allow oneself to be deceived.
We all want to obey the Lord in every way He commands that we follow Him as His disciples. One of those ways is not allowing ourselves to be deceived by the lies that can come from both external and internal lies and half-truths. The Word of God is the primary means the Lord has given us to aid in our obedience. Be people of God’s Word. Be people of the truth.