WEDNESDAY April 24, 2019
Self-Deceived
Then Samuel went to Saul, and Saul said to him, “Blessed are you of the Lord! I have performed the commandment of the Lord.”
But Samuel said, “What then is this bleating of the sheep in my ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?”
1 Samuel 15:13-14
Notice the spiritual hypocrisy of Saul––sad. Even though Saul acted hypocritical and lied, Samuel had a spiritual ear, He heard the Word of the Lord. He rebuked Saul. Samuel saw straight through Saul’s hypocrisy, he could not be fooled.
At times, Christians can become like Saul. They can act spiritual in front of other people when their hearts are not right before the Lord. There is no confession of sin or true repentance in their lives. They believe they are doing the will of the Lord, when they are not. Blinded by sin, they really do not see what they are doing wrong. Instead, they make all kinds of excuses. Disobedient Christians can become self-deceived.
Understand, spiritual people can see straight through carnal people, they are not fooled. If God sends someone to confront your sinful behavior how do you receive it? Are you willing to receive their godly counsel and repent? How open are you to productive criticism? If your reaction is to place up defenses––putting up a wall around you––so you are not touchable, then you do not have an open spirit or heart to listen to them.
Many Christians do not care for other people telling them what they see wrong in their lives. Be careful of pride. Remain approachable and open to concerned people who are attempting to speak with you because they may be right. Those who come to you are trying to help you not go astray. They do not want to see your life messed up. If only you would listen.
Of all forms of deception, self-deception is the most deadly, and of all
deceived persons the self-deceived are the least likely to discover the fraud.
~A.W. Tozer~
For more from Raul Ries, please visit SomebodyLovesYou.com!