Daily Devotional For Monday, March 11, 2024

Well, you might be like the rest of us today — yawning. Whew, losing an hour this weekend was tough. Saturday evening, every time I looked at the clock, I had to tell myself, “Think one hour later.” I understand why we do this hour change in the spring and fall but the spring one — I drag all day on Sunday and Monday. Yesterday, we looked at heart issues. Every sin, every error, every mistake, every misunderstanding, every bias and prejudice, every hatred word and statement, lust and uncontrolled anger is a heart issue. The heart of the problem is a problem of the heart.

Look at Proverbs 12:20, “Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil, but those who plan peace have joy” (ESV). Deceit by it’s very nature implies a deception by which one person either lies intentionally misleads or manipulates a second person to believe something is true so that the second person thinks, or acts, or decides or responds on something false. We see this all the time and when caught, the deceiver rarely thinks that what they did was wrong. And when such deceit comes from the very people we trust, the pain and betrayal is worse. Read this below about Dexter Wade:

“Calls for a federal investigation by the Department of Justice (DOJ) are mounting after the latest discovery into the unjust death and burial of Dexter Wade of Jackson, Mississippi. Both attorney Ben Crump, representing the Wade family, as well as civil rights activist Rev. Al Sharpton, have publicly called for an investigation into Wade’s death.

In March, Wade’s mother Bettersten Wade called police for help, anxious about the whereabouts of her son, who’d gone missing. After repeatedly asking for updates, Bettersten was eventually notified in August--more than six months later. She was told that Dexter had been killed by a police cruiser while attempting to cross the highway. By the time Bettersten was notified of Dexter’s death, he’d already been buried anonymously in a plot of land owned by the county.

Initially, Bettersten says local officials explained the time gap by saying that Dexter had been found with no identifying information. After his body was exhumed, however, an independent pathologist confirmed in an autopsy that Dexter had been carrying a wallet that included the local address that he shared with his mother. These findings suggest that authorities knew where Dexter lived. Yet they made no attempt to contact her about her son, despite the fact that she’d already filed a missing person report.

Their attorney said, “The fact that Dexter had a state identification card and several other identifying items shows us that there was a concerted effort to keep the truth and manner of his death from his family. There is no excuse, not even incompetence, for not notifying a next of kin of an identified man’s death” (Source: on Schuppe, “Dexter Wade, buried without his family’s knowledge, had ID on him with his home address, lawyer says,” NBC News (11-16-23).

While this is a horrible tragedy today of deceit from what is suppose to be someone we can trust, there is another type of deceit that is growing exponentially called Phishing. This is the word given to a type of online scamming where you receive an email claiming that some account you have (ex. Facebook, a credit card, and etc). Is about to be cancelled because of some bogus reason.

“The FBI reports over 300,000 complaints and over 50 million dollars in phishing losses in 2022. Phishing occurs when someone sends you a bogus communication, usually by email or text message, disguised as a missive from a legitimate source, such as a bank or government agency. Usually the sender is angling for information, a credit card number or a transfer of funds. Sometimes there is an attachment containing malware, or a link where you can go to log in—which is to say, to have your password stolen. Phishing grows and grows, demanding continual vigilance; billions of phishing emails are sent every day, some narrowly targeted and others broadcast widely. You have no doubt seen the con artists’ bait dangling in your inbox” (Source: (Daniel Akst, “How Much Do You Know About Phishing? Take Our Quiz,” The Wall Street Journal (6-7-23).

I get these bogus, phishing emails all the time. They look legit. They have the company logo and are written many times with either technical or legal terms. I have personally know people to either click on the link or scan the QR code and before they know it, their bank accounts are being drained. Look at Proverbs 20:5, “The purpose (or plan) in a man's heart is like deep water, but a man of understanding will draw it out” (ESV).

What does this tell me? Take a moment to read what Chuck Swindoll writes on this:

The thoughts and motives of a person lie deep within, and deep in this sense doesn’t mean “profound.” Think of a deep well or cistern, where reaching the water requires special effort and lots of energy. Similarly, reaching the thoughts and motives deep within a troubled heart requires special effort and lots of energy, but a wise, discerning, insightful friend can help us pull up our feelings and examine them honestly. As one experienced counselor remarked, “The issue is never the issue.” 

We think we understand our own thoughts and motives, but very often we’re driven by internal forces we do not fully understand. At any given time, we might need someone to help us examine our inner self, or we ourselves might be in a position to help someone else do the same. Personally, I believe this is exactly what Paul had in mind when he wrote in Galatians 6:2, “Bear one another’s burdens, and thereby fulfill the law of Christ” NASB. Source: Charles R. Swindoll, Living the Proverbs: Insights for the Daily Grind, Kindle Edition, pp. 75-76). 

What does that tell mean? We have a deep capacity to rationalize our sin and deceit. You’ve heard me say this many times in sermons, every time we rationalize, we are making up rational-lies and this especially true with deceit. Look at Proverbs 12:20 again: “Deceit is in the heart of those who devise evil, but those who plan peace have joy” (ESV). Many times those using deceit do not think that they are being dishonest. Their heart has become so hardened to deceit and lying that it seems natural to them. They can use deception on you because they have been using self-deception on themselves. This gives them the satisfaction that the “end-justifies-the-means” as below:

A communist sympathizer once tried that approach with Romanian writer Panait Istrati. Admitting that Stalin’s Russia was, indeed, guilty of oppression and persecution, he said, “One cannot make an omelet without breaking eggs.” Panait exclaimed, “All right, I can see the broken eggs. Where’s this omelet of yours?” (Source: Quoted in Victor Serge, Memoirs of a Revolutionary, trans. Peter Sedgwick (Iowa City: University of Iowa Press, 2002), p. 278).

The earliest form of deceit we see in Scripture is from the serpent who comes to Adam and Eve and convinces them to rationalize their sin because he led them to believe that God Himself had been deceptive to them. They believed that what they perceived as God’s deception to them justified their deception to God. Read below what happened and see if you can detect the deception in Genesis 3:1-5 below:

“Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” (2) And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, (3) but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” (4) But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. (5) For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil” (ESV).

The Hebrew word translated as “crafty” in Genesis 3:1 is [עָר֔וּם, arum]. It means “to be shrewd in disguise through cunning manipulation.” This creature is called a “snake.” The Hebrew word translated here as “snake” is more than just a reference to a type of reptile. It is the Hebrew word [נָּחָ, ahas] which is later used in the Old Testament to refer to divination, or occult practices. When Jesus sent His disciple out, He said this to them in Matthew 10:16, “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves” (ESV). “Be wise as serpents , , ,”

I want to close with this interesting study done with children on being truthful verses lying or being honest verses being deceitful:

In 2008, New York Magazine ran a comprehensive article about research concerning kids and lying. In one study researchers gathered a group of children together and read them a version of The Boy Who Cried Wolf where the little boy is eaten by the wolf because he lies. In a survey of adults taken before the study, most thought the negative consequences in The Boy Who Cried Wolf would lead the children to be more honest in controlled experiments on honesty and deceit. 

However, after hearing the story, researchers observed that the children continued their usual rate of lying. Researchers then taught the story of George Washington and the cherry tree. In the story George goes to his father and confesses he cut down the tree. His father replies, "Hearing you tell the truth instead of a lie is better than if I had a thousand cherry trees." Researchers found that the story of George Washington and the cherry tree reduced lying by 43%. They concluded that the threat of punishment simply teaches children to learn how to lie better. When children learn the worth of honesty, as they did in the story of George Washington, they lie less.

In a study of teenagers regarding degrees of honesty and deceit, researchers found that most parents believe being permissive will encourage openness and honesty from their kids. Parents of teenagers would rather be informed than strict and "in the dark." However, researchers discovered a "no rules" policy simply doesn't work. One researcher noted: "Kids who go wild and get in trouble…have parents who don't set rules or standards. Their parents are loving and accepting no matter what the kids do, but the kids take the lack of rules as a sign their parents don't care—that their parent doesn't really want [the] job of being the parent… Ironically, the type of parents who are actually most consistent in enforcing rules are the same parents who are most warm and have the most conversations with their kids." Though some rules result in arguments between parents and teens, only 23% of the teenagers surveyed considered these conflicts harmful to their relationship with their parents.

In a final study, adults were asked to disclose the worst lie they ever told. Surprisingly, many adults disclosed minor childhood lies. Researcher Dr. Bella DePaulo of the University of California, Santa Barbara, comments: "I had to reframe my understanding to consider what it must have been like as a child to have told this lie. For young kids, their lie challenged their self-concept that they were a good child and that they did the right thing." Lies told during childhood affected their behavior later on. If they got caught and felt bad, they vowed never to do it again. But if they were good at it and got away with it, they would lie more often into their teens and adulthood” (Source: (Po Bronson, "Learning To Lie," New York Magazine (2-10-08).

Verses to Consider

• Proverbs 12:22, “Lying lips are an abomination to the Lord,  but those who act faithfully are His delight” (ESV).
• Proverbs 12:19, “Truthful lips endure forever, but a lying tongue is but for a moment” (ESV). 
• Proverbs 28:13, “Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper, but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy” (ESV).
• Zechariah 8:16,  “These are the things that you shall do: Speak the truth to one another; render in your gates judgments that are true and make for peace” (ESV).
• John 8:31-32, 43-45, “If you abide in My word, you are truly My disciples, (32) and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free . . . (43) Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear My word. (44) You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father's desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. (45) But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me” (ESV). 

Questions To Consider

• Do you ever believe it is okay to lie, even to tell a “little white lie”? Why or why not?
• Based on your answer above, have you ever told a “little white lie?” Why? Or why not?
• This phrase “little white lie” dates all the way back to the 14^th century. The use of the word “white” is to imply that you are telling a lie in order to not hurt the feelings of someone. So, what if someone asks you how their hair or clothes look?  You do not want to hurt their feelings, so instead of being honest, you lie. Have you ever done that? Do you consider that sin?
• Research has shown that the people who tend to get the most angry when they learned they have been lied to are those who are experts in deception and manipulation. They learn that someone else tried to con the one who cons others. 
• So, would Jesus say you are always truthful or deceitful? You are an accelerator of the unadulterated truth, or at times a manipulator of some kind of truth? Why? 
• So, pause and reflect. What needs to change in your life with regards to the truth and why?
• Do you consider exaggeration or adding your own additional material to a story that was not originally part of it a lie? Why or why not?

Scripture To Meditate On: John 17:17, “Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth” (ESV). 

Prayer To Pray: “Dear Jesus, help me to be truthful in every word and statement. I do not want to like the devil — the father of lies — the great deceiver. Jesus, when You were here, You always spoke the truth. You called it like it was and still do today. God, I don’t want to hurt people’s feelings, but I also so not want to be a liar. Since truth is what sets me free, I want to be a person who is known by You and others as being truthful, honest, no guile, no misdirecting, and no manipulation. I ask You help me with this. In Jesus’ name, Amen!”

I love you, Southside — Pastor Kelly