9 Deceptions Jesus Warned Us about and How to Guard Against Them

1. Human Accolades

Take heed that you do not do your charitable deeds before men, to be seen by them. Otherwise you have no reward from your Father in heaven. (Matthew 6:1 NKJV)

We are told to give offerings according to what we determine in our hearts, not under compulsion (2 Corinthians 9:7). We also shouldn’t do charitable deeds for recognition. The Father sees what we do, and His approval is all we need.

The Pharisees wanted human rewards and pats on the back. They reveled in attention from people regarding their deeds. These hard-hearted leaders announced their giving so all would see what they did.

2. Self-Righteousness

Then He charged them, saying, “Take heed, beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.” (Mark 8:15)

Most members of the Sanhedrin were more concerned about their positions and power than seeking truth. They didn’t see their own sin; rather; they saw themselves as better than others. As leaders of Israel they should have been pointing people to God instead of placing more legalistic rules upon the population.

And Herod lived as if he were a god and accepted praise from people as worship. His elevation of self caused his demise.

3. False Christs and False Prophets

And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.” (Matthew 24:4)

False prophets have existed since the beginning. Satan wasted no time in spreading lies that would draw people away from the Savior. We are instructed to test the spirits to see if they are true (1 John 4:1). The Scriptures are the exam we should use to determine if a message or person is truly from the Lord.

People who handle money daily, such as bankers, become so accustomed to the feel of the real paper bills, they can spot counterfeits quickly. When we know the real Christ, we will be able to recognize imitations.

4. Discernment of What We Hear

Therefore take heed how you hear. For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him. (Luke 8:18)

We are told that faith comes by hearing (Romans 10:17). This works in the negative also. We will have faith in whatever we hear the most. We can guard our hearts against deceptive words by filtering what we hear with the Holy Spirit and staying attentive to His voice.

We should tune our spiritual ears only to what we know is truth. The more truth we hear, the more knowledge we gain.

These words of Christ show us that if we aren’t careful about what we hear, we can lose what we have already gained because we will start to follow the wrong voice.

5. Not Listening

But take heed; see, I have told you all things beforehand. (Mark 13:23)

Jesus repeated His teachings to the disciples many times because they just didn’t seem to get it the first time (Matthew 11:15). They were preoccupied with other issues and didn’t perceive the meaning of what He said. They were guilty of this listening faux pas about His death and resurrection.

We can be guilty of a life too burdened with busyness that prevents our total absorption of what God says. Not listening can be the cause of some of the chaos in our lives because we didn’t take the time to adhere to instructions. He gives us these warnings so we can be ready to avoid the catastrophe that can attempt to take us down. If we don’t take heed about what He said, we can be overrun with tragedy.

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6. Hypocrisy and Pretension

Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness. (Luke 11:35)

Another negative attribute the Pharisees exhibited was pretension. They wanted to look important. They were so hypocritical when judging Jesus, they couldn’t recognize Him as the true Savior or see the darkness within their own souls. They proclaimed righteousness although their hearts were full of dead men’s bones.

They judged others and laid heavy burdens on them while they themselves didn’t honor the Lawgiver. They thought their works gained approval from Jehovah. Jesus saw their hypocrisy and warned them about tithing even on their mint and cumin but neglecting the heart of the Law.

They delivered the Son of God to Pilate because of envy (Matthew 27:18). They didn’t want to lose the power they had in Israel.

Pride has caused great people to fall because their eyes were only on themselves. When this occurs in a person’s life, they aren’t receptive to advice or to the needs of other people.

7. Covetousness and Greed

And He said to them, “Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one’s life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses. (Luke 12:15)

Placing priority on the Lord will guard us against greed and covetousness. We fall into these snares when we look to what others have that we don’t. We compare ourselves and feel like we fall short. Human nature is never satisfied (Ecclesiastes 5:10).

We don’t need to strive to gain more. When we are focused on who our true source is our needs will be met. Our real treasure is in heaven and that is where our hearts should be.

8. Unforgiveness

Take heed to yourselves. If your brother sins against you, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. And if he sins against you seven times in a day, and seven times a day returns to you, saying ‘I repent,’ you shall forgive him. (Luke 17:3-4)

Forgiveness is mentioned eighteen times in the New Testament. This shows us how important releasing debts against others is to God. We are forgiven by the Lord because of what Christ did for us (Colossians 3:13). We don’t have an expiration date or number on forgiving wrongs done to us because the Lord continues to show us how He has forgiven us.

9. Fleshly Pleasures

But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly. (Luke 21:34)

We are told to walk in the Spirit, and we won’t fall into the lusts of the flesh (Galatians 5:16). Believers are given a new nature, but we still have a soul and body that haven’t been redeemed yet. Our battle is in the mind and emotions; that’s why Jesus told us to take heed against those feelings. If we let our hearts become weighed down with those desires, we are ripe for falling into temptation.

If we pursue a diligent life through the Word and follow our Lord’s instructions, we will be free from the misery delusion can bring to us. His presence strengthens our souls against temptation and against the wrong desires of our own flesh.

The Remedy Against Deception

Christ didn’t leave us without the remedy for falling into the snares of our adversary. How do we take heed against the attacks on our hearts the Savior warned us about?

•  Abide with Him (John 15:4)
•  Renew our minds (Romans 12:1-2)
•  Value Scripture as the only truth (2 Timothy 3:16-17)

2 Peter 1:3-4 tells us we have been given everything we need for life and godliness. When we understand what we have been given through Christ we can recognize the bait Satan dangles in front of us.

Awareness of spiritual danger is not a one-time act. We should be on guard always because we do have an enemy (1 Peter 5:8).

The little hummer I rescued didn’t realize I had its best interest in mind and it was full of fear. But once I offered food, it lapped up the nourishment and was strengthened to be set in the right direction again.

We can be led astray the way the little treeswift was by something that appears to be what we want. But we can fall into a trap, and we need help getting out.

Our knowledge of righteousness is the nourishment that sets us on the right path into the Savior’s safe arms.

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