Discernment ~ the Antidote for Deception

Valerie Cullers 29 Comments

Deception – 1. the action of deceiving someone, 2. a thing that deceives. The Oxford Language Dictionary

We live in a world cloaked in deception. In every area of society, lies are told as truth and then expected to be believed. Whether it is in the political, educational, social, or spiritual arena, we are fed lies daily. How do we sort through the fog and get to the truth? Well, for sure, we are going to have to do some digging to find the truth. However, sometimes the lies are so egregious that we wonder how those telling them can say them with a straight face. What we really need is discernment as we make our way through this miasma. What is called for is discernment.

Discernment – 1. the ability to judge well 2. (in Christian contexts) perception in the absence of judgment with a view to obtaining spiritual guidance and understanding. The Oxford Language Dictionary

Some of the lies we are being told are so obvious we can reject them outright. Others are presented by the media in a way that is portrayed as positive when, in reality, it is just the opposite. Have you ever seen a movie where people are hooking up with one another? It is just a bunch of fun and portrayed as normal. What could be wrong with a simple one-night stand? No one ever mentions pregnancy, STDs, or the emotional wreckage that can go along with the negative consequences of this type of behavior. A person needs discernment, i.e., the ability to judge well, before engaging in this kind of behavior.

What about the lies that are told daily in the political arena? “Age doesn’t matter,” The border is secure,” and “We care about crime,” are just a few we hear spouted daily and are obviously untrue. One doesn’t need much discernment to know they are lies; we just need to open our eyes and see what is going on around us to discover the truth.

Soon, we will need more than human discernment to pierce through the deception that is coming in the spiritual arena. We will need the discernment that only the Holy Spirit can give to be able to sort out the truth. Jesus warns us over and over in Matthew 24 to watch out for deception. It will be the hallmark of the end of the age. Many will be sucked into and fall for the spiritual deception that is coming. As they look for a savior to bring the world peace, they will fall for those who pretend to have the answers to the world’s problems. Jesus said in Matthew 24:24: “For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand.”

For your own sake, don’t wait until these things come upon the world, seek the Lord now while He may be found. Get in His word and discover the truth for yourself. Pray for the discernment that only the Holy Spirit can give so you will not get sucked into the lies that are coming just over the horizon.

Photo by Stefan Keller. Courtesy of Pixabay.

29 thoughts on “Discernment ~ the Antidote for Deception”

  3. Amen Valerie! It’s getting harder and harder these days to know what the truth is. Now they’re actually using AI to portray people on the Internet and TV saying things they’ve never said and even having interviews they’ve never have done. Right now they’re doing it as a joke, but we all know where it’s headed. And you’re right, we’re only going to be safe as we cling to God and rely on his discernment in us. Thanks so much for posting. Blessings to you and yours. ❤️

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  4. Nice to meet you friend again my news site is closed so i re-opened today I re-subscribe to your site and go… 😸💦 Then I hope you have a peaceful and happy day today🌷

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  6. Yes, so true the world is cloaked with deception and it is complete spiritual warfare taking place. Unfortunately, it is tearing our country and families apart. We must continally fight and ask for the truth to shine through by putting on the armor of God through prayer and his word.
    A constant battle that has become so difficult to navigate the way through that I do believe a movement is currently happening where people have to consider that Jesus must be the only answer.
    Thanks Valerie for all you do to shed light during this dark time in our world.

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    • Yes, it is a constant battle to figure out truth from lies. Some of the answers are very clear and others take a while to dig out and other times we still are not sure what the truth is. We get varying truth from different sides of the cultural spectrum so sorting it all out is difficult. Thanks so much for stopping by and adding to the conversation!

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  8. I find the timing of this post interesting, as if possibly an answer to prayer. I’ve been struggling with concerns about a certain young lady taking the Christian music industry by storm. I asked God for guidance concerning the matter. In the last hour I’ve heard a sermon on Bott radio concerning the Holy Spirit’s role in discernment and read this post. I think He’s telling me that He’s behind these concerns and I should take them seriously.

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    • Yes, we should always listen to that still small voice. When I am unsure about a person, even if others are raving about that person, I sit back, pray and wait. I don’t want to rush in to be a follower of someone that might be leading us down the wrong path. Thank you so much for your input!

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  9. Agreed! I don’t know about all the specifics you mentioned, but I totally agree with what you wrote overall regarding the times that we live in and the prevalence of deception in all areas of life. So many liars! Yes, we must be seekers of truth and righteousness who test what we are hearing against the Scriptures and in prayer because, as you implied, not all deception is that obvious, which is why it is called “deception.” I find one of the biggest forms of deception today is in misimpressions (indirect lies), because they are subtle, and thus they are harder to prove, which is the point. You know where they are headed with what they are saying because you have seen it so much, but since it is indirect it is difficult to prove it to be a lie.

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      • Here is one example: “Stop Hate. We Need Love and Unity.” So you are to get the impression that this is a good thing and that you should desire this for, after all, shouldn’t we want to stop hate? Wouldn’t it be nice if everyone loved everyone else and we just got along? But at what cost? What is the hidden message here? Well, if you have paid attention to the speeches of world leaders over the past 20 years you might realize that what they are talking about is getting rid of all that divides us as the people of the world, and our faith in Jesus Christ divides us, and so this would require that we compromise with the world in order to be at peace with the world, but that is not what we are supposed to do. And then who defines “love.” God does. But his agape love prefers what he prefers which is all that is holy and righteous and godly and morally pure and honest and faithful, and that is not what they are talking about. They are talking about us all just loving on one another and accepting everyone for who they are and us not getting in anyone’s face about anything. And then who defines unity? God defines it as unity with him and with his will and purpose for our lives, but what they are talking about is the world all joining hands together in singing Kumbaya, and us all agreeing to rid our lives of everything that divides us as a people so that all the people of the world are of one mind and heart and purpose. When Obama was president, he and the Pope sang a continual duet on this “song” and President Trump followed with something similar, but more on a national level. Even the institutional churches in America, perhaps not all of them, are preaching a unity with marketing schemes and goals for how to build their churches, which then denies much of what Jesus and his NT apostles taught us regarding our salvation and eternal life with God and the whole purpose for the church to exist. This is all leading up to the rule of the beast and anyone who is “different” will be called out and persecuted. So on a surface read it sounds good. But when you examine the words and what they mean and then pay attention to what is going on in the world and the messages we are hearing from the world and within many gatherings of what are called “churches,” then it doesn’t take much to realize that if we agree to that message that we are agreeing to compromise our faith in order to make nice with the people of the world, which is what so much of “the church” is doing today, sadly so.

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