BE NOT DECEIVED

And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.–Matthew 24:4

There is simply no way of telling just how much damage has been done as a result of having been deceived. Commenting on this verse, David Jeremiah wrote:

The Greek scholar Erasmus made an astute point in saying, “Man’s mind is so formed that it is far more susceptible to falsehood than to truth.”—- Pascal, added, “We like to be deceived.”

Our fallen natures are easily deceived. Deception, after all, was the first sin. Eve cried out, “The serpent beguilded me, and I did eat.” At the end of the Bible we’re told that the Antichrist will deceive the whole world (Revelation 13:14). Between the devil and the Antichrist are millions of deceivers, and the Lord warns us to think clearly and to be on guard. The Bible says the last days will be characterized by “evil men and seducers” growing worse and worse, “deceiving and being deceived” (2 Timothy 3:13).

The way to avoid deception is to study God’s Word daily, confess your sins quickly, pray for wisdom, and live a life of integrity and honesty. As 1 John 3:7 puts it: “Little children, let no man deceive you: He that doeth righteousness is righteous, even as He is righteous.” (Scripture references changed to KJV)

Take heed that no one deceives you.

Discernment is not a matter of simply telling the difference between right and wrong; rather it is telling the difference between right and almost right.
Charles H. Spurgeon