Nuggets Of Knowledge, Article 3

Blessed day to you all, and welcome to another installment of the Nuggets Of Knowledge series, here on metanoiameans.com! 

Today, we will be covering a very important and tricky little topic: deceit. Specifically, how the enemy– satan himself–makes things he offers you look good, when in fact, they are meant to derail your walk with GOD and destroy your faith.

satan is known by a few names, but this article will focus on three: “the father of lies,” “the tempter,” and “the deceiver.”

he does all three of these things both continuously and in many different ways to try to pull us off of our GOD-given paths and put us on his path, the path to destruction. 

Our gracious Lord YHWH, the great Jehovah, our Heavenly Father Who Is Holy, full of grace, love, and mercy, created us all for a purpose. Each of us has a specific Calling on our lives that we are to fulfill, and that is one of the many things that the devil tries to attack in us. 

he wants us to drop it, to abandon it, to let it die. 

Why? 

Simple, because he wants to have an easier time, not only dragging us to hell, but every human, right along with us. 

Even more importantly, though, I personally believe that he wants us to fail in our callings because that is what he himself did.  

Our Creator, our Heavenly Father, our GOD loves us. He loves us with His perfect love and has the greatest of desires to be with us. The devil and his demons hate our GOD and want to do everything they can to hurt Him. To that end, satan and his demons want to cut us off from YHWH to cause HIM a great and lasting pain in losing us. 

Wait, I don’t understand. What’s a “Calling,” and why is it so important to the devil that we not do them?

In the Bible, Calling is a central theme that refers to God’s summons to live a life of faith. It can also refer to a specific role or vocation. 

Meaning 

1. A call to practice spiritual gifts like teaching, preaching, or prophecy
2. A life ordained by God for the common good
3. A response to God’s summons to serve him
4. A metaphor for the life of faith
5. A calling to follow Jesus and participate in His redemption of the world

The Apostle Paul described calling as a summons from God. The Hebrew word for call in the Old Testament, qārā’ has a straightforward meaning. 

In the New Testament, calling is almost synonymous with salvation.

Biblical Examples 

1. Genesis 6:5-22 (Noah)
2. Genesis 12:1-5 (Abraham) 
3. Joshua 2:1-24 (Rahab)
4. Exodus 3:1-11 (Moses)
5. Judges 13:1-7,24-25, 14:5-6,18-20, 15:14-15, 16:20-22 (Samson)
6. Ruth 1:1-18, 4:13-18 (Ruth)
7. 1 Samuel 16:1-13,17:41-50, Acts 13:22 (David)
8. Luke 1:26-38, Matthew 1:19-21 (Mary and Joseph)
9. Matthew 3:13-17 (Jesus)

Reading through all of the above examples is a great way to see just how important GOD’s call on our lives is. No matter how small they may seem, our callings are part of GOD’s plan for our lives. They are His way of using us to redeem this fallen world. 

Our callings are the purpose for which our GOD–the Creator of all things good, right, just, and Holy–put us on this earth. 

Before he became the enemy of GOD and all of His creations, satan, too, had a calling, a reason for his existence, a purpose. 

he went by another name, lucifer, which means “light bearer.”

According to Biblical interpretations, lucifer, before his fall, was considered a high-ranking angel, often described as a “cherub,” who was likely responsible for leading worship and praise of God in heaven, essentially acting as a prominent figure in the heavenly court due to his beauty and exalted position; however, his pride led him to desire to be like God, causing his rebellion and subsequent fall from grace. 

Ok, but… what does satan’s fall from grace have to do with us and our callings?

A lot, actually. 

satan was known for his pride, which, as previously stated, was his ultimate downfall. 

he had the audacity to not only want to be like GOD, but to take His place and BE God, himself. 

In Isaiah 14:13-14, we read:  “you said in your heart, I will ascend to heaven; above the stars of God I will set my throne on high; I will sit on the mount of assembly in the far reaches of the north; I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.” 

his pride grew in him, a spirit of rebellion, and he fought for the throne of GOD. 

This rebellion got him cast out of heaven and down to earth, along with 1/3 of the angels in heaven. 

satan allowed his pride to swallow up his calling and have him fall from grace. To this day he has not let go of that pride, and has no chance of redemption. his fate is sealed. he and his demons will pay for their failed rebellion by burning eternally in the lake of fire. 

“…And the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever.” (Revelation 20:10)

In essence, as children of GOD, we are taking his place and worshiping the Most-High God… as lucifer himself was supposed to. 

So it stands to reason that lucifer, satan, being as prideful as he is, would not stand for us taking his place, nor would he want to be subject(ed) to GOD in the first place. 

his pride, his hatred for our GOD, and his hatred for us, as beloved children of the Most High, is the fuel that drives what he does here (on earth) to all of GOD’s creation, and to His beloved children. 

Oh boy….so he’s jealous of us? How does he intend to make us fail or abandon our callings?

Remember the names I mentioned in the beginning of the article? 

• “the father of lies”
• “the tempter”
• “the deceiver”

 That is exactly how he is going to try to get us to turn away from GOD. 

“father of lies”

Though people like to say that the devil is dumb for what he did (which is true), that does not mean he can’t think up clever lies to trick you. 

The most famous case of this would be his interaction with Eve in the Garden of Eden. 

From Genesis 3:1-5:

Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” ² And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, ³ but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” ⁴ But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. ⁵ For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 

Now, if you want to make a case for him being stupid…. he knew our LORD and SAVIOUR, Jesus, Is The Only Begotten Son of GOD Himself, and yet he still tried to lie to Him. 

Matthew 4:8-9:

“8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. 9 And he said to him, “All these I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me.”

To me, the above passage is the most striking and poignant example of the devil attempting to destroy someone’s calling. 

If the Son of God, our LORD and Savior Jesus Christ, had fallen for that foolish little lie that the devil told, He would’ve committed a sin and been tainted, therefore no longer being the blemishless Lamb of God. 

This would have ruined our chance at Salvation, our chance at redemption, our chance at freedom from sin, our chance to be in eternity with The One, True God. 

“tempter”

Many of the verses that I used previously to show that satan is, indeed, the father of lies can also be used as proof that he is the tempter as well. 

Why? It’s because he NEVER speaks the truth. 

He makes his lies convincing, containing little bits of truth, but he will never speak just the truth. 

Genesis 3:1-5:

Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You  shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” ² And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, ³ but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’” ⁴ But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. ⁵ For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 

In this verse, he makes Eve question God’s orders so that he can then lie to and tempt her. 

“Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” 

That is how he tries to get us, too. 

This is why it is so, so very important to study your Bible, to commit The Word Of GOD to your hearts, because that is the only way you will know if the devil is trying to lie to or tempt you. 

satan doesn’t just tempt people who are ignorant of GOD’s Word; he also tempts those who may be angry with Him. 

To do this, satan may try to influence those around an angry follower of GOD, through those who may feel animosity towards our Loving Creator. 

The example that comes to mind here for this particular instance is Job. He was in the midst of being tested by both GOD and satan, when satan decided to speak through Job’s wife and tempt him. 

Job 2:9 

“Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast to your integrity? Curse God and die.”

“deceiver”

The final name that we will be discussing today, the deceiver, seems to be a combination of the other two previously-mentioned names. 

This is because to lie is to deceive, and the devil’s temptations are always deceptive. 

Remember what I mentioned previously, he NEVER speaks the truth, only lies… with a little sprinkle of truth, to make them more potent. 

Every word out of his mouth is like the venom of a snake; it can and will kill you, if not treated with anti-venom. The only anti-venom for the lies of the devil Is The Word Of GOD. 

We must be well versed in It if we are to be able to avoid the traps of the deceiver. 

The Bible shows Satan deceiving people in many places, including Genesis 3, 2 Corinthians 11, and Matthew 24. 

1. Genesis 3: In the Garden of Eden, Satan deceives Eve by promising her that eating the forbidden fruit will make her like God. ( notice that this was proven to be his desire earlier in this article)
2. 2 Corinthians 11:14: Satan disguises himself. 
3. Matthew 24:24: Jesus warns his disciples that false prophets and Christs will deceive people. 

Other Bible verses about Satan’s deception:

4. Matthew 16:23: Jesus tells Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me”. 
5. 2 Thessalonians 2:9–10: Satan will continue to deceive people until the lawless one is revealed. 
6. Revelation 20:8: Satan will deceive people worldwide during the millennium. 

Ok, that’s all well and good but what does all of this look like to us modern day followers of Christ?

In modern times, (this article was written on February 21, 2025), this world is full of evil; satan and his demons are running wild, and many people don’t even notice. 

his deceitful practices, his lies, and his temptations are almost embedded into our culture. 

The world is immeasurably darker than it was when the Bible Was Written, or even before that, when Jesus, our loving Savior, Walked the Earth. 

Truth has become lies, in the eyes of the world, and lies have become truth in those same eyes. 

Men think they can be women, women think they can be men. God-given, masculine traits are now labeled as toxic. 

Women who are in tune with the world and aren’t seeking Jesus are seeking “freedom” in other ways. They are seeking freedom from something that does not exist, “the patriarchy.” They are seeking freedom from the “shackles” of womanhood, i.e. being a wife and a home-maker; they are seeking “freedom” from what God made them to do. They don’t want to follow men, they want to lead them. They want to control them. 

It’s not just women who have deteriorated thusly. Men have, as well. 

Men want to be home-makers, they want to be child-bearers, they want to be pampered. They wanna be protected. They want to be taken care of. 

They don’t want to lead. They don’t want to provide, they don’t want to work. 

They don’t want anything to do with what it means to be a man, they don’t want anything to do with God’s definition of masculinity. 

Society, as a whole, has fallen for the devil’s lies. Society, as a whole, has fallen for the devil’s tricks; society, as a whole, has fallen for the devil’s temptations. Society as a whole has fallen for the devil’s venomous words. 

That is just a sample of what this article looks like in the modern day, in “real life.”

As the title of this article reads, “don’t eat the poisoned chocolate.” 

the devil is waiting for you to take the bait. He’s waiting for you to cry out for freedom from something he himself fabricated. 

he wants us all to not only eat the poisoned chocolate, but to devour it with glee. 

he wants us all not to care about Holiness, righteousness, faithfulness, or anything to do with God, for that matter. 

he wants us to abandon our callings that God gave us even before the earth itself was formed.

he wants us all to abandon GOD and the promise of heaven, in order to willingly jump into hell. 

Ladies and gentlemen, stay true to our God. Read His Word, study His Word, talk to Him through prayer, worship Him, follow Him. 

Stay with Him, no matter what. 

In the end, He loves you and wants what is best for you.

You may not like what He says or does at times, but trust me, everyone: the alternative is far, far worse.

I thank you all for reading this installment of Nuggets of Knowledge, here at metanoiameans.com. 

God bless you all. 

-MB