They Say the Truth Hurts, So I lied to You
That lyric expresses the ethos of our time. The truth is unwelcome and unwanted; it hurts. We would rather be lied to and live a lie than know the painful truth. This reality is impossible to explain unless you understand the nature of sin and sinners. A Bible prophet explained it to people living in his day. He wrote.
And if thou say in thine heart, Wherefore come these things upon me? For the greatness of thine iniquity are thy skirts discovered, and thy heels made bare. Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil. Jeremiah 13:22-23 KJV
The context of his words was of warning and were spoken to ancient Judah. God’s chosen people were hardened in their disobedience. For generations they had prayed to idols and refused to obey the decrees handed down to them by the Almighty, Himself. Although they had instructions written in stone and that if adhered to would ensure their lives and prosperity, they created their own rules and traditions. They preferred manmade lies to God ordained truth. In their pride they thought what they had made was better than what an omniscient God could provide.
Their pride and arrogance made it impossible for them to see their need and erased their desire to change, much like the leopard. Even when destruction headed straight for them like a freight train, they were stuck in place. The sad part is that when destruction came, they knew not where to turn. They cried to the idol that had brought them there, a deity as helpless as they were. The door of grace so long open to them had shut leaving only judgment.
Lies and deception are just that powerful, that we would choose to hold its fire to our breast and be consumed rather than release it and live. But it is no wonder that we do this; we have learned to do so. Our entertainment media make the lies so seducing that we shovel our precious resources to them so they can delude us! We pour our own cup of hemlock and savor the poison as it kills us! My evidence follows.
“Sinners” and “The Chosen” are two current phenomena that have many spellbound. Both teach a spirituality proffering acceptance, love, and oneness and they are packaged with such subtlety and sophistication that only a few see their disregard for Bible truth. Subtle falsehoods lead to the same destination as large ones. Their agenda is the same. As in Jeremiah’s generation, the agenda is to lead us away from truth and obedience, one small step at a time.
My experience with new age religion, transcendental meditation, and occult organizations, has made me supersensitive to their doctrines, even in their subtlest machinations. Indeed, subtly is their trademark. A word or phrase here, an intimation or suggestion there, can reveal the hidden agenda of the entertainment medium and pinpoint its source. Recovered alcoholics can divine secret alcoholics a mile away. Former alcoholics know the tricks of the trade so to speak, because they practiced them.
If you take the time to research the writers, producer, and lead actor of The Chosen series, you will find that they admit that the series is not representative of the Jesus of the Bible and that most of what they sell is a fabrication. My confirmation came by watching just one episode of The Chosen. The scene was Jesus’ riding into Jerusalem on a donkey amidst the throng of men and women shouting “Hosannas” and “Son of David.”
As He approaches the city, He is confronted by Jewish elders. The Pharisees and scribes come to Him and His disciples. He speaks to the elders while His disciples listen intently. In the conversation, Christ announces that if the crowd should cease their praises, then the rocks would cry out. He proclaims that the rock on which He will build His church is Peter.
That narrative is clearly unbiblical and suggests that the church of the Living God is built upon a frail human being, one that would deny Him in but a few days. If you saw that fiction, you may have fallen for it. It was captivating and compelling and it was a lie of the darkest dye. For an instant it took my imagination to that moment in time so long ago, so that I wanted to believe, except I knew better. I knew that the Roman Catholic Church formulated and espouses such blasphemy in its Petrine Doctrine. The Rock that the Christian faith is built upon is Christ, not a man called Cephas but God. I understood the real purpose of the fiction.
Fiction is designed to make us imagine things that did not happen and in a way that is contrary to truth. Obviously, it is working in the cases I cited, as so many Christians and non-Christians would attest. Sinners runs upon the same track as The Chosen.
The movie Sinners is eclectic fiction that mingles voodoo innuendo, Bible themes, ethnic cultures, and inter-racial vampires in a way that has never been done in American cinema. It has cast a spell over millions, literally. I listened to Christian ministers and fans explain why this movie was so important to see. One woman called it, “A spiritual manual.” She may be right, but any spiritual manual besides the Bible is a false one. Subsequently, with all the movies appeal it is just an invitation for people to go deeper into forbidden practices. “You just need to see it,” was the mantra I heard repeated. I knew better. I understood the supernatural mechanism behind spells and how they work with music and movies. They hitch-hike to our souls using both mediums.
When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation. Matthew 12:43-45 KJV
Demons and demon possession are real. I shared, in My Story, His Glory: A Lens on Racism and Religion and God’s Final Judgment, my personal demon possession experience. On page 132, I wrote:
“I was lying in bed one night trying to drift off to sleep. I turned on my side with my face toward the bedroom window. It was then that I heard a familiar voice inside my head. He whispered, “” Don’t be afraid, he’s leaving you.”” I was puzzled, but in the very next instant, I saw an enormous apparition leave my direction and pass through the closed window to the outside of my house. I was scared to death! I knew that it had left me on the command of the Most High, and I was relieved by what I had just witnessed. I did not feel any different and I could not tell any difference in my thinking, but maybe that is how possession and oppression work sometimes. It feels like you; it is part of you. Wow—scary, isn’t it?”
Father showed me that my activities, the things I had watched and heard and which formed my beliefs were all gateways for the enemy to access my mind and my body. Rather we realize it or not, everything we do has an impact on our eternity. Everything we do is either right or wrong and influences every prior act and every subsequent act. There are no “white lies” and no deception can be accepted without consequence to eternity.
Our every action is salvific! Look at it this way, everything that Christ did or believed acted upon His salvation and ours. Had he committed just one sin, we would all be lost! Therefore, His every action, thought, and belief was salvific i.e. pertained to salvation.
Jesus Christ is our “rule model.” Adherence to God’s rules makes His people unique and peculiar. We must then be a light to those in darkness and confusion. God’s laws are not arbitrary or capricious. His laws are clear and definitive. Gray areas are not necessary; His grace is all that is needed to cover the faults in our lives, and faith is how we access that grace.
The world’s laws are abstract, situational, and open to personal interpretation. Casuistry is our true code of law and behavior; as such, you can lie to someone to mitigate their hurt and be justified in doing so. You can tell a white lie if it is for a good purpose. Our world sanctions lies because the truth requires commitment to principles we no longer believe or espouse. Every lie we embrace takes us further and further away from God. God cannot lie and His truth is uncompromising.
The choice then is clear, the world or God. Should you choose truth or deception, reality or fiction? The answer to that question should always be truth, for only the truth can set you free. We cannot change the color of our skin, but the God who made us can change the nature of our character. We can turn to God in faith, repent of our wicked desires, and He will bestow upon us the miracle of salvation.
Additional Resources
For a deeper understanding of the topic I just discussed, please read My Story, His Glory (Book1) A Lens on Racism and Religion in America and God’s Final Judgment, page 132 and Unit Four: Understanding Satan’s Deceptions and Tactics, page 307 of my book: My Story His Glory (Book 2) Decoding Daniel, Revelation, and America’s Destiny.
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