Self-Deception is a very common trait among people. It is very easy to be convinced within one's own soul that he or she is okay, complete, and good enough. First John helps a person realize that what he or she thinks he or she knows about themselves may not be as sure as they believe.
For example, a person can be deceived about their fellowship with God. Chapter one verse six says:
“If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:”
Some people believe that they can live their lives in any fashion they desire and still have fellowship with God. According to John the Apostle, this is not so. If a person has a proclivity to walk in dark ways, he or she has deceived him or herself if they believe they have fellowship with God.
Next John says a person can be deceived if they believe they have no sin. Chapter one verse eight says:
“If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.”
Sin is an archery term that literally means, “to miss the mark”. Archers would put a hoop on top or attach a target to a tree and pull back an arrow and shoot. If they missed the hoop or target it was a “sin”, “to miss the mark”. The question becomes, “Well, what is the mark in a person's life?” Jesus said, “Be therefore perfect even as your Father in Heaven is perfect.” If any reader, or writer for that matter, is perfect, then they “have no sin”, otherwise to believe that they have “no sin” shows only that the truth is not in them.
John then addresses those who believe they abide in God. In Chapter two verse six it says:
“He that saith he abides in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.”
For a person to truly walk as Jesus walked, he or she must become familiar with the way Jesus behaved when He was on the Earth. Jesus said if a person really wanted to know what God was like, they should look at His example: “He that has seen me has seen the Father.” For a person to simply say they abide in God but do not walk the same as He did, they are deceived.
John next says a person can be deceived if they believe they know God, and do not keep His commandments. In Chapter two verse four it says:
“He that says, I know him, and keeps not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him.”
People often claim to know God, however it is imperative for a person to keep the commandments of God if they truly know Him. Although people fail and make mistakes at times, the idea in this verse is that if a person perpetually breaks the commandments of God without any regard or hesitation whatsoever, that person is deceived and as John says, “is a liar, and the truth is not in him.”
Finally John says a person can be deceived by saying they love God but at the same time hate their brother. In Chapter four verse twenty it says:
“If a man say, I love God, and hates his brother, he is a liar: for he that loves not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen?”
To make the declaration “I love God” is a wonderful claim, however, according to John, if a person says “I love God” and yet hates another person, that claim is invalid. There is a direct relationship between the love of God and the love of others. They cannot be separated. John emphasizes that the truth is that the person who hates another person and claims he or she loves God “is a liar”. That is a pretty strong case for loving others isn't it?
So there are many claims that John reveals that are nothing less than self-deception. It is definitely time for this writer to review John's words and examine his heart. May those who read these words do the same, and let deception be put away.
Until tomorrow...there is more...
Look for the new devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation” in all major bookstore sites, www.amazon.com ; www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, find locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore
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