Devotion #5: Twisted Truths
If you know anything about me, you probably know of my love for the “The Lord of the Rings” movie trilogy. One character that I love in the films is named Boromir. He is well known as the one who attempts to take the evil Ring of Power from Frodo. I love this character and what we can learn from him in our attempt to resist sin and the corruption of the enemy. Yes, Boromir attempts to take the Ring from Frodo, but not because Boromir is evil; he is misled by the temptation of the Ring and desires to use its power to fight back against the evil army that threatens to take over the world. While he was corrupted and misled, his intentions were good. This is a tactic that the enemy often uses when dealing with servants of the Lord. If we can be tempted by half-truths or enticing lies that may even appear righteous, we might risk being misled away from the truth of God’s Word. This is what is being warned against in our passage for today.
Romans 16:17-20 says, “I appeal to you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine that you have been taught; avoid them. For such persons do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive. For your obedience is known to all, so that I rejoice over you, but I want you to be wise as to what is good and innocent as to what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you.” What is being talked about here is the idea that there are deceivers out there that will cause division and attempt to divide God’s people. A strategy that these deceivers may employ is that of enticing language, teaching half-truths, or twisting words and contexts to try and trick the Church into believing a falsehood. It is far harder to detect a partial truth that has been twisted to serve a purpose contrary to God because it sounds so close to the truth! This strategy is especially effective if the deception sounds like it may even be righteous and God-honoring!
Notice, in verse 18, the author states that this strategy works on the naïve. A follower of Christ who knows the contents of God’s Word well and studies their Bible daily is far harder to deceive than one who only has a surface-level understanding of God’s character and expectations of His Church. This is why we are urged in verse 19 to be wise to what is good. If we want to be a useful instrument for the Lord, and we want to avoid the temptations and deceptions of the enemy, we must vigilantly stand on God’s Word. We must study it, know it, dwell on it, and ask God to reveal the truth in His Word to us while removing any misconceptions we have about Scripture. A church that does this will see God “crush Satan” under its feet.