11 so that we would not be outwitted by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his designs. ~ 2 Corinthians 2:11
8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. ~ 1 Peter 5:8
Every good legend or even every good lie has some kind of truth to it, but just because there is a little truth in something doesn’t make it truth or reliable. See, when Satan tempted Eve in the Garden of Eden, he didn’t fully lie to her. He told her truth mixed with deception. He said, ‘You won’t die but become like God knowing Good and Evil.’ That wasn’t a lie with no truth in it.
Satan was telling the truth; Eve wasn’t going to die in the natural sense, but in the spiritual sense. She didn’t understand that she was being deceived. That she only knew part of the truth. This is how the enemy still works today. He’ll give you some truth. Partial truth. Half truth, but not the full truth. Not all that it entails. Jesus loves you. God loves you. True statements. But there’s more to it. It’s not just a full-stop. It’s not just a do-whatever-you-want free pass. We must remain in His love. But Satan doesn’t push that part of the truth.
When He tempted Jesus in the wilderness, used Judas, used Peter, etc. all the same MO. The same pattern of behavior. Paul told the Corinthians that we are not unaware of Satan’s schemes. Peter says we have to be watchful because Satan is a roaring lion seeking someone to devour. We have to know the Word in order to combat half the Word being spoken to us. If we don’t pay attention to the past and implement it into our present, it’ll become our future.
One of my favorite verses that I think really sums this up well is God’s judgment in Hosea.
6 My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge
because you have rejected knowledge,
I reject you from being a priest to me.
And since you have forgotten the law of your God,
I also will forget your children.
Hosea 4:6
Peace. Love. Go Forth and Learn The Full Truth.