Detecting and Decoding the Lies
But thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.1 Corinthians 15:57 (NIV)
In 1938, on the eve of the Second World War, the British government established a code and cypher school at Bletchley Park. Here, ordinary citizens were taught decoding and intelligence-gathering techniques. Part of this intelligence-gathering operation involved intercepting messages transmitted by the Nazis. To intercept these messages, they needed to be trained to detect and decode encrypted messages and send back misleading messages to the enemy. The decoders at Bletchley Park became important players in the British intelligence operation during the war. Historians believe that without this intelligence-gathering and decoding operation, the outcome of the war would have been uncertain.
As followers of Jesus Christ, we are in a perpetual state of war. Most often we are not aware of this because it is an invisible war that takes place in the spiritual realm. This war is spearheaded by the enemy of our souls, Satan. Satan, we are told, is a liar and a deceiver. In fact, Jesus says in John 8:44 that there is no truth in him and calls him the father of lies. The NIV translation puts it this way: “When he lies, he speaks his native language.” In other words, every lie that enters our hearts and minds has its origin in Satan, and he will use any means possible to do this.
The Lies We Believe
Satan will whisper his subtle messages into our ears in many different ways. He will do this through the plethora of negative information we feed our minds with through influencers on social media, global news, and people we engage with daily. He will use the negative words spoken into our lives by parents, teachers, bullies or our peers. Words that echo in our minds and leave indelible scars on our souls, causing resentment, anger, and unforgiveness to take root. This can happen very subtly. So we need to be alert to Satan’s schemes.
Stay alert! Watch out for your great enemy, the devil. He prowls around like a roaring lion, looking for someone to devour. 1 Peter 5:8 (NLT)
Satan’s lies will always evoke negative emotions. They will bring accusations against us that target our self-worth and our identity in Christ. But just as the decoders at Bletchley Park were given the tools to detect the enemy’s messages, we have been empowered to detect Satan’s lies. We have been given the truth of Scripture, which is sharper than any two-edged sword (Hebrews 4:12). We have the promised Holy Spirit (John 16:13) to lead us into all truth. So, we are not impotent against Satan’s lies. We have the authority of our omnipotent God to reject Satan’s lies so that we can have the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ 1 Corinthians 15:57
Satan is a ruthless enemy, but he is a defeated foe. When we stand in the victory of Christ, his lies lose their power over our minds. A.W. Tozer
Reflection:
Take time to think about how you can combat Satan’s lies so that you can overcome fear and anxiety.
Prayer:
Lord, help me to be alert to the schemes of Satan. Empower me with Your Word and Your Holy Spirit so that I can detect Satan’s lies. Help me to use the authority You have given me to reject the lies of Satan so that I can have Your victory. In Jesus’ name, amen.
