Thought for Today
Genesis 3:1 Now the serpent was more crafty than any other wild animal that the LORD God had made. He said to the woman, "Did God say, 'You shall not eat from any tree in the garden'?"
Genesis 3:12 The man said, "The woman whom you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit from the tree, and I ate."
Mark 8:18 Do you have eyes, and fail to see? Do you have ears, and fail to hear? And do you not remember?
Luke 10:23 Then turning to the disciples, Jesus said to them privately, "Blessed are the eyes that see what you see!
The local news this morning included a story about the latest local scam. Evidently, scammers are selling tickets to free events for which there is no charge. Unbelievably (?), the scam is working. My mind once again is focused on our human propensity toward self-delusion. Our capacity to see and misinterpret or to totally ignore is amazing.
Eve was the first to fall victim to a scam. Her only excuse, offered to her Creator God, was "Genesis 3:13 The serpent tricked me, and I ate." Lame as it is, it’s better than Adam’s excuse above. Loosely interpreted, Adam told God, “there are only 3 of us here, and it wasn’t me!” We all know how that story turned out. Was that serpent the first scammer? Or, did Adam and Eve “have eyes, and fail to see?”
The history of mankind, and the history of our faith are replete with examples of those who “have eyes, and fail to see.” Seriously, David knew Uriah was away at war. David certainly knew all about ‘the birds and the bees.’ Did David convince himself that no one would notice Bathsheba’s pregnancy? At least that time there was no scam artist involved. David was fully capable of deluding himself.
Roman history, Josephus’ Antiquities of the Jews and the Bible all record examples of false prophets. Repeatedly God’s people flocked to false messiahs, imposters and ancient scam artists who promised what cannot be delivered by human hands alone. Only God could (and did) send the Messiah.
We don’t have to look solely to religion and/or ancient history for examples. Did any of those who imposed the penalties on Germany at the end of WWI truly deceive themselves into believing things would end well. As Germany’s economy collapsed and the Weimar Republic teetered, did all other political eyes really fail to see? Amazingly, while in prison, Adolph Hitler even wrote a book outlining what he was going to do . . . and when released, proceeded to do exactly what he wrote.
Scams and self-delusion are not limited to politics or governments. To some extent, all advertising involves exaggerations and sometimes outright falsehoods. Even though we should know better, we are promised a simple and easy solution to almost every one of life’s problems. Dietary supplements and over-the-counter drugs purport to cure everything from the common cold to ‘the agony of psoriasis, the heartbreak of seborrhea.’ Instead of eating a healthy diet we are promised weight loss by a simple pill.
Regrettably, sometimes the scams and conspiracies get in the way of both science and religion. Throughout history there have been false messiahs and prophets. During my lifetime we have seen cults and sects develop and lead followers into tragedy. The Brach Davidians of Waco, Heavens Gate in California, the Peoples Temple Project (Jonestown) and others are examples of people who “have eyes, and fail to see.”
If you own a computer, especially if you use email, you have been the victim of attempted scams. Maybe not as overt as the one I heard about this morning. But, you probably receive as many false emails as I do purporting to be from legitimate entities and urging you to just “click on the link below to resolve the problem.”
This is not strictly a Christian issue. It is not strictly a religious issue. But as a Christian, I can rely on the words and promises of Jesus for guidance. I can always look to God and the Bible for guidance. I can also remember the Better Business Bureau’s motto, “If it seems to be too good to be true, it is.”
Now, I need to finish this and go reply to an email from this nice Nigerian prince who needs my help of a few gift cards to unfreeze his family’s bank account.
Stay safe, be alert, trust God,
Pastor Ray