The devil was a murderer from the beginning. He has always hated the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, it is consistent with his character; for he is a liar and the father of lies. – John 8:44
2 Corinthians 11:14-15
14 No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light.
15 Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness, whose end will be according to their deeds.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5
3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh,
4 for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.
5 We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,
Many commentators and wonks agree that the year 2018 could be characterized by one word, “misinformation.” There are unintended consequences of the information age. One is misinformation, closely followed by disinformation. Misinformation often involves delusions, lies, and blind, adamant beliefs. Prevarications proliferate from Russian troll farms, media, Facebook, Congress, and the White House. Consider the confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh. The reality of evidence-based objective truth was brought into question.
On Aug 19, 2018, Rudy Giuliani acting as a lawyer for the White House declared “truth isn’t truth.” Truth it seems is inherently partisan and becomes whatever you prefer to believe. The goal of misinformation and propaganda is to create doubt about the obvious. So much misinformation pervades storylines, with alternate explanations, interpretations, and views that the facts are simply crowded out.
The Father has given us something unique in the world, Absolute Truth. Absolute Truth never varies, never compromises, never synthesizes. It stands alone in opposition to all other conflicting opinions and points of view.
How do we know when we are being told a lie? We test all information by the standard of the truth of the Word of God. This of course necessitates that we actually know what the Word of God says. Therefore, it is important to be in the Word, reflecting and meditating on what we read, and internalizing it in our hearts and minds.
A staff member at a major university quipped he could always tell when his boss was lying. There was one simple giveaway, his lips were moving.
The enemy of our souls is the father of lies and the ultimate master of misinformation and disinformation. He commands an army of demonic double-agents. The devil loves darkness and falsehood and ultimately inspires every lie. Deceit and deception are the very center of the devil’s strategy. Duplicity is employed to accomplish the devil’s work. Darkness hates the light; falsehood hates the truth and tries to destroy it.
The devil leads those that follow him to death and eternal separation from the Father. The enemy murders goodness, chastity, honor, honesty, beauty, and all that makes life lovely. The enemy of our souls murders peace of mind and happiness and even love. Evil routinely destroys. In stark contrast, Christ brings life, and Christ leads to life. He provides the Way, and the Truth, and the Life which leads to the Father.
John 8:44 [The evil one] speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
When the evil one speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature. The Greek phrase which is translated from his own nature is ek ton idiom. The enemy of our souls speaks from his own stuff, his own nature, and his essential character. He is doing what comes naturally. He disassembles and prevaricates.
REFLECT & PRAY
Each of us can remember when we were confused and immature regarding the truth of the Father’s Word. For some of us, that might not have been too long ago. It may still seem so.
Father kindle within me the desire and energize me to get into and remain in the Word of Truth. Let the truth of Scripture permeate my mind, and soul, and spirit.
INSIGHT
The enemy and the Lord Jesus Christ are complete opposites. The Lord Jesus Christ loves us and desires our best. The enemy hates us and seeks our worst. The Lord Jesus Christ brings life and light. The enemy offers death and destruction.
The ultimate battlefield is the mind. The apostle Paul emphasizes the need for preparing and training the mind to engage in spiritual warfare. We are to take captive every thought and bring it into agreement with the Truth of Christ. We wage war against invisible, intangible spiritual forces. Satan is behind these forces. Satan is repeatedly spreading misinformation, propaganda that contradicts the Father’s revealed Truth. His half-truths often appear lofty, erudite, enlightened. But in fact, they are hollow, pretentious, and fallacious. Embedded within are despair, misery, and death.
It is incumbent upon each child of the King to develop a sophisticated Truth filter. We must equip ourselves to separate what is precious and useful from what is worthless, tangential, and base.
Jeremiah 15:19 If you extract the precious from the worthless, you will become My spokesman.
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Dr H Reflections 