How can I know when I’m being deceived?

Judges 16:6So Delilah said to Samson, “Please tell me what makes you so strong and what it would take to tie you up securely.”

Ask yourself if your conscience still has a strong voice inside you. When your conscience tells you no and your desire tells you yes, can you still hear and follow your conscience? In this case, Delilah’s beauty and promise of sexual pleasure completely convinced Samson that she was sincere. Samson had a calling as a spiritual leader in Israel, yet he was spending the evening in the home of an ungodly woman who was sexually tempting him. What had happened to his conscience? When you make a practice of not listening to your conscience, soon you will hardly hear it. Then you are extremely vulnerable to deception. Don’t put yourself in a position where you can no longer hear or follow your conscience.

Acts 17:11They searched the Scriptures day after day to see if Paul and Silas were teaching the truth.

2 Timothy 3:16All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right.

If someone is trying to convince you to do something that contradicts Scripture, you can be sure that it is wrong. Know the Bible well enough to discern when someone is telling you something false.

Genesis 3:6The woman was convinced. She saw that the tree was beautiful and its fruit looked delicious, and she wanted the wisdom it would give her.

If something seems too good to be true, ask yourself if you are being deceived. Sometimes you are wildly blessed and it is for real. But most often if it sounds too good to be true, it is.

Proverbs 14:7Stay away from fools, for you won’t find knowledge on their lips.

Distance yourself from people who frequently act foolishly, lie, or bend the truth.

2 Timothy 3:13Evil people and impostors . . . will deceive others and will themselves be deceived.

As long as Satan has power to deceive, he will deceive people, and they in turn will try to deceive you. The worst kind of deceiver is the false teacher, who appears to give good advice but really wants to lead you down a path of destruction. This is another reason it is so important to know Scripture for yourself.