I don’t know how a Notre Dame football player gets tricked into loving a girlfriend that does not exist. I don’t understand how a cyclist can lie to millions of people for several years and appear to be telling the truth. I don’t really care if Beyonce sang live or used a tape. But apparently there are millions of people who do care.
But I do know that deception is as old as mankind. Deception is real and when we discover that we are being deceived it makes us angry. Can we really believe anything we see on TV anymore? Do we really think reality TV is real? Are there any athletes that don’t cheat?
We know from Scripture that Satan is author of deception.
Genesis 3: 13 - Then the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this you have done?”The woman said, “The serpent deceived me, and I ate.” This is what Satan does; he deceives. He allures people with false advertising. He lies. He tricks. He takes something fake and makes it look real. Deception doesn't appear false or dangerous at first. If it did we wouldn't buy into it. Instead deception misleads us with subtlety, allure, attractive and enticing words that twist the truth. Satan is the father of lies and we must live discerning lives.
Jesus said, “The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy… (John 10:9). Satan is stealing marriage. He’s destroying homes. He is killing relationships. He is ripping people off. Taking their joy, their identity, their future, their hope and every good thing that God wants to put into their lives. And he is doing all of this through deception.
I’m watching our culture get all upset about being deceived through athletes and through singers and through TV. We should be getting all riled up about Satan deceiving our minds, ripping off our families and killing relationships.
Can we overcome this deception? YES. Let me share with you a couple of verses that are helpful.
Revelation 12:10-11 – “Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say:
“Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God,
and the authority of his Christ.
For the accuser of our brothers,
who accuses them before our God day and night,
has been hurled down.
11 They overcame him
by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony;
they did not love their lives so much
as to shrink from death.”

We overcome him by the by staying near the cross. We overcome him by the word of our testimony. By believing and claiming the things that Scripture say about us. We overcome him by loving God more than we love anything else. Satan still tries to deceive us but the Truth will set us free!