And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you.

Matthew 24:4

 

From the first bite of that forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden, man has been deceived and led astray by voices; voices that coerce us and compel us to turn our ear from the voice of the Almighty; voices that trick us and make lies sound like the Truth.  Eve turned her ear from God and listened to the voice of the serpent.  The serpent’s voice was enticing and persuasive.  He made the fruit sound inviting, innocent, enlightening, and so delicious.  Eve stopped listening to the voice of God for one short moment and listened to the lie of satan and all of mankind has suffered for that one deception. She didn’t see an immediate consequence of her sin so she used her voice to convince Adam that he, too, could enjoy the fruit without repercussions. But, there were deadly consequences to their sin and the reality that Eve was deceived did not free her from the guilt of listening to the wrong voice.  

 

Today, we hear voices that reason with us that “just this one time won’t hurt you”.  We hear voices that excuse sin by convincing us that “God just wants us to happy”; “if it feels good, do it”; “everyone sins, it’s no big deal”; “no one is perfect”.  I have even heard that sometimes it is ok to “act now and ask for forgiveness later”.  We are distracted by all the voices of the media.  Television shows have gone from rated ‘G’ to rated ‘R’.  I am appalled when I hear voices excusing movies that are full of foul language and sexual content.  They use a pretty compelling argument:  “It has a good moral to the story.”  Really?  Whose morals are we talking about?  The world’s or God’s?  Ephesians 5: 3-4 and 10a tell us this:  Let there be no sexual immorality, impurity, or greed among you.  Such sins have no place among God’s people.  Obscene stories, foolish talk, and coarse jokes – these are not for you…Carefully determine what pleases the Lord.  We are also told in verses 15-17 to be careful how we live.  Don’t live foolishly but wisely.  Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do. The Living Word of God tells us in verse 6:   Don’t be fooled by those who try to excuse these sins, for the anger of God will fall on all who disobey him.  Whose voice are you listening to?

 

Perhaps the most disturbing voices we hear and struggle with are the voices inside our own minds.  The voices that tell us that we’re no good and those that scream how guilty we are.  Voices that tell us “if only”.  If only I were richer; if only I were thinner; if only I had a bigger house, a better car; if only I were prettier; if only my husband were kinder, my children more appreciative.  If only I lived in perfect conditions then I would be happy!  These voices lead us from the Truth and promise greener pastures.  So we make more money, we lose weight, we get the “American Dream” and then we are greatly disillusioned when those same voices are screaming more, more, more.  And what about that voice that tells us we don’t have to listen to anyone else?  “If my own conscience doesn’t convict me then what I’m doing must be ok!”  Well, Proverbs 14:12 says this:  There is a way which seemeth right unto a man, but the end thereof are the ways of death.  We can do and think all kinds of things that seem ok for us to do…but, if these ways aren’t God’s ways, then the result is death.  Whose voice are you listening to?

 

So what is the answer?  How do we know what voices to listen to and which to run from?  How do we keep ourselves from being deceived?  How can we say with confidence and a clear conscience, as Paul did, that we have lived with a God-given holiness and sincerity in all our dealings? (2 Corinthians 1:12)  We must first know that it is our own responsibility to keep from being deceived. We start by getting to know the God we acknowledge as Holy.  We listen to voices of those God has placed over us to help guard us.  We search the Truth of the Scriptures for ourselves so we have no doubt what God says.  If the voice we hear contradicts the Bible, then stop listening to it!  And we must make a choice today to stop wavering between life and death.  Just as Joshua…and Elijah…and God Himself has shouted out this appeal:  Choose you this day whom you will serve!   We cannot serve two masters.  We cannot serve God and continue to do whatever pleases us.  Whose voice are you listening to?