08/24/2022
There are several ways we can deceive ourselves, such as:
By building upon the sand just like the foolish man in Matthew 7:26-27. “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”
By not bridling our tongues and letting whatever we think come out. The Bible says in James 1:26, “If anyone among you thinks he is religious, and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this one’s religion is useless.” Also, James 3:6 tells us, “And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell.”
By trying to balance evil with good. We are told in Matthew 6:24, “No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.” Some Christians try to be good one day of the week – Sunday – and live like the devil the other six days of the week. We cannot straddle the fence, trying to serve God and Satan.
By listening to human philosophers, against whom we are warned in Colossians 2:8. “Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ.”
By hiding our sins. Others may not see our sins, but our Heavenly Father knows all and sees all. We are told in 1 John 1:8-10, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us.” Our spouses may not even know our sins, but God does.