Do Not Surrender to a Deception – August 6, 2022

See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.
Colossians 2:8

Do Not Surrender to a Deception

During the Civil War, Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest encountered a fort under Union command. When the Union regiment refused to surrender, Forrest asked for a meeting with the Union commander. General Forrest took the Union commander on a tour of his Confederate troops. As they methodically made their way from one Confederate camp to the next, the Union commander counted the men he saw and finally concluded that his regiment could never hold out against such a large number of troops. He surrendered his fort without a fight.

But here’s what the Union commander didn’t know: Every time he and General Forrest had left a Confederate camp, the men in that camp had quickly packed up and raced to another position before he and Forrest arrived. The Union commander had been seeing the same men many times over. He had surrendered to a deception.

As you and I eat and sleep and work in this fallen world, the devil is constantly trying to get us to surrender. He wants us to give in to despair. He wants us to give in to temptations. He wants us to give in to our sinful pride. He wants us to conclude that Jesus and his promises are no match for the difficulties and dark pleasures of life.

What the devil hopes you won’t notice is that it’s all a deception. The reality is that nothing can match Jesus and his promises. Jesus’ blood has washed you clean and made you his own. He will carry you through this life and take you home. The best the devil can do is put up some fake scenery and hope you’ll fall for it.

Don’t surrender to a deception. Trust your Savior instead.

Prayer:
Lord Jesus, the devil works very hard to discourage me. Remind me that he is the deceiver, and you are the truth. Move me never to surrender. Amen.