Liar, Liar...

"Liar, liar, pants on fire!" - A familiar childhood chant we've all probably sang out to tease our friends. Think for a moment about why people lie. Obviously, to distort the truth, change someone's perception or perspective, or to avoid detection. Those are probably the main reasons for lying. We've all done it at some time(s) and to some extent. Most of us do not lie to cause harm, but unfortunately, not all lies are so innocent.

Ervin W. Lutzer says in 10 Lies About God and the Truths That Shatter Deception , that there are lies about God that permeate our culture.

• God is whatever we want Him to be.
• Many paths lead into God's presence.
• God is more tolerant than He used to be.
• God has never personally suffered.
• God is obligated to save followers of other religions.
• God takes no responsibility for natural disasters.
• God does not know our decisions before we make them.
• God helps those who help themselves.

92 percent of Americans say they believe in God. That make us a "Christian" society, right? Wrong... When pressed, statistics tell a different story. Americans believe in spirituality, but not necessarily the God of our Bible and Jesus Christ. Somewhere along the way, America has bought into lies about the God of the universe, and believers are standing silently by - allowing the Truth to be distorted.

To begin to really understand this dilemma and to begin to counteract it, we must know who the main players are in this drama.

One is God - the God of the universe - We must know our ally, His nature, and how He works:

• The One by whom all that is created was created (Rev. 4:11).
• The One who is all powerful, all knowing, and all present.
• The One who does not change (Malachi 3:6).
• The One who says, "I AM who I AM." ( Exodus 3:14).
• The One who says, "I AM the Way, the Truth, and the Light..." (John 14:6).

To know that One is to know Jesus and the Word. We need to study it and hide its truths in our hearts to foil Satan's attempts to veil our eyes (2 Cor. 4:3).

The other player is Satan himself. We must know our adversary, his nature, and how he works:

• 1 Peter 5:8 - ...your adversary, the devil, is prowling about like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour
• 2 Cor. 4:3-4 - ...Satan is the god of this world...and the one who tries to keep us from seeing Truth
• John 17:15, Eph. 6:16 - Satan is the evil one...
• Eph. 2:2 - Satan is the prince of power of the unseen world...
• John 8:44 - Satan is a murderer, a liar, and the father of lies...
• Rev. 12:9 - Satan is a dragon, the serpent of old, and the deceiver...
• 2 Cor. 11:14 - Satan disguises himself as an angel of light...

How easily deceived we can be when our eyes are not focused on Jesus consistently. Yet, it seems so simple. On one hand we have Truth, on the other hand we have the Father of Lies. But that liar will never come to us looking like the red guy with a tail and pitchfork. He will come dressed in all kinds of disguises trying to trick us, deceive us, and destroy us.

Believers need to choose to no longer stand silently by and let our world believe the enemy's lies about God.

As we begin a new week, I echo those words of Peter to all of you and to myself: "Be sober of spirit, be on alert...our enemy is seeking someone to destroy..."

I also echo the words of David, "But the Lord abides forever; He has established His throne for judgement...The Lord will also be a stronghold for the oppressed, a stronghold in times of trouble...and those who know Your name will put their trust in You. For You, O Lord, have not forsaken those who seek You." (Psalm 9:7-10)