DECEPTION:
Matthew 24:3-8 NKJV
[3] Now as He sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? And what will be the sign of Your coming, and of the end of the age?” [4] And Jesus answered and said to them: “Take heed that no one deceives you. [5] For many will come in My name, saying, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. [6] And you will hear of wars and rumors of wars. See that you are not troubled; for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. [7] For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. And there will be famines, pestilences, and earthquakes in various places. [8] All these are the beginning of sorrows.
One day the disciples of Jesus came to ask Him, when will all these things you are talking about take place, what will be the sign of your coming, and what will be the sign of the end of the age? The first thing that Jesus tells them is “Take heed that no one deceives you”. Why? Because deception itself is going to be a sign of the end of the age. Many people will come pretending to be Christ, the Saviour and deceive many with the aim of drawing followers after themselves.
Friends, let us run from anything that does not point us to follow Christ, lead us closer to God, and prevents us from consistent and regular fellowship with fellow believers (Hebrews 10:24-26). Deception comes in so many forms and shapes that if we are not aware of them, we will end up as innocent victims.
This is the definition of the word deceive, from which comes the word deception, by Oxford Languages online.
deliberately cause (someone) to believe something that is not true, especially for personal gain.
“I didn’t intend to deceive people into thinking it was French champagne”
Similar: swindle, defraud, cheat, trick, hoodwink, hoax, dupe, take in, mislead, delude, fool, outwit, misguide, lead on, inveigle, seduce, ensnare, etc
pull a fast one on, pull someone’s leg, take for a ride, throw dust in someone’s eyes, put one over on, take to the cleaners.
(of a thing) give (someone) a mistaken impression.
“the area may seem to offer nothing of interest, but don’t be deceived”
fail to admit to oneself that something is true.
“it was no use deceiving herself any longer—she loved him with all her heart”
This is a mouthful! I know, but we need to have a clear understanding of this massive subject. Deception is all around us. We are being deceived into spending needless sums of money for new improved versions, ultra this and ultra that adverts. Why don’t we want to know? Maybe we are self deceived.
Christ says, “Take heed that no one deceives you”. May the Lord grant us understanding of all these things so that we can be strong, stable and resilient Believers in Jesus’s name. Amen!