Madisonville Church of Christ

In II Thessalonians 2:10-12, Paul wrote to the members of the church of Christ in Thessalonica about some people who would be lost in their sins, because they "believe a lie." They believe this lie, because God has sent them a "strong delusion," because they "believed not the truth." Some assert that this text contradicts the rest of the Scriptures, because it would be contrary to God's nature for Him to hinder anyone from obedience by sending them a "delusion" of any kind (II Pet. 3:9). What these critics of the Bible fail to realize is that God is responsible for this "delusion" only inasmuch as it is He who gives everyone a choice between belief and unbelief (Rom. 6:16-18). God is responsible for creating the possibility that we may become deluded into believing something that is false, and then be led down the wrong spiritual path (Mat. 7:13,14).

In almost every aspect of life (justice, politics, war, science, etc.) man is deeply concerned about knowing the truth. But, when it comes to religion, the philosophy of many is, "It doesn't matter what you believe, as long as you are sincere in your beliefs." Yet, the text that was cited in the previous paragraph clearly teaches that what we believe is just as important as how fervently we believe it! A lie is a lie, and it will not become the truth, even if one believes it with all of his heart. The Bible indicates that, on the day of judgment, there will be multitudes of people who will be shocked to find out that the system of faith they believed was false, and that it has cost them their home in Heaven (Mat. 7:21-23). Indeed, a great deal can be learned from the examples of Biblical personalities who believed lies, and then foud out what their misplaced belief had cost them.

First, there is the example of the Old Testament patriarch, Jacob. He had a son named Joseph, who was exceptionally blessed by God (Gen. 37:1-11). Joseph's brothers resented him so much that they could not say even one kind word to him (Gen. 37:4). Because of their intense jealousy, Joseph's brothers took advantage of their first opporutunity to get rid of him, selling him to a band of slave traders, who were on their way to Egypt (Gen. 37:12-28). To cover up what they had done, Joseph's brothers told their father that a wild animal had killed him, offering his bloodstained coat as proof (Gen. 37:29-33). Later, Jacob learned that he had been deceived into believing a a lie (Gen. 46:28-30). But, the lie that he believed had cost him many years of heartache and pain (Gen. 37:34,35).

Then, there is the example of a nameless prophet from Judah. He came from Judah to Bethel, in order to deliver a message from God to King Jeroboam (I Kin. 13:1-6). Although the king invited him to stay and refresh himself, the Lord had instructed the prophet not to eat or drink in Israel, and to return by a different route than the one he had used on his way there (I Kin. 13:7-10). On his way home, he met an older prophet, who lied to him, saying that the Lord had instructed him to take the younger prophet home and feed him (I Kin. 13:11-19). Although this young prophet from Judah sincerely believed that he was doing what God wanted him to do, he had believed a lie, and it cost him his life on Earth (I Kin. 13:20-24).

Believing a Lie