In the Genesis account concerning the fall of man we are told: " Now the serpent was more subtle than any beast of the field which the LORD God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die." (Gen3:1-3) In reply to this the serpent says: " Ye shall not surely die: For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil. And when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat, and gave also unto her husband with her; and he did eat. (Gen. 3:4-6) Later,when they are confronted by God in the garden to give an account for their disobedience,Adam not only blames Eve but even implies that God is indirectly at fault,saying: "The woman whom thou gavest to be with me,she gave me of the tree and I did eat." (Gen3:12) In turn,Eve`s response is to blames the serpent for her misdeed: "And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat." (Genesis 3:13)
In this Genesis scenario we find the three fundamental ingredients :deceit,denial,deception which are the forerunner of what is prevalent in our society today. That is,the ability to portray or present situations in such a way that what is WRONG is made to seem right and to become acceptable behavior. Whether it be through lies, deceptions, distortions, or by blaming others, there are those who,through a devious process of rationalization, and adeptness of speech are able to make things wrong seem right. Just as the serpent lied and distorted God`s commandment so that sin became no sin, so also do the modern day serpents. In their reasoning,they ignore all moral or ethical standards, values or laws ,. In their scheme of things there is no absolute "RIGHT," and the individual is free to do whatever seems good or right. A parallel for this brand of thinking can be found in Sophism, a 5th century philosophy that stated that nothing is absolutely good or bad,true or false,that truth and morality were matters of opinion and that the final authority for determination rested with each individual. In other words man is the final judge of all things. And so it is that we are revisited in our society today by the Neo-Sophists,if you will. And,just as the Sophists of old were able to argue and reason so that the worse seemed the better,so it is that this new breed of Sophist attempt to insult our brain with the same erroneous reasoning.
The apostle Paul,writing in Ephesians 5:6 says: "Let no man deceive you as the serpent did Eve,that sinful things are not sinful." Yet, in spite of this warning,there are these latter day Sophist who ,using fallacious reasoning and arguments,would have us believe that such issues as deviant behavior, abortion,pornography,homosexuality,adultery, and divorce,to name a few, are justified on the basis of so-called RIGHTS, women's rights,alternate lifestyles,free speech,and so forth. Crimes such as murder,rape, and robbery, are explained away using outrageous arguments that disclaim personal responsibility for their actions. We constantly hear the expression: "I have a right to ............" You fill in the blanks with the current philosophy being used to justify today's societal sins of wrong behavior, wrong speech,wrong actions and wrong thinking.
Unfortunately,this NeoSophism is not limited only to the secular world. It also has its counterpart in the religious world of denominationalism. The same fallacious reasoning is used to excuse perversion of the gospel . In Acts 19:13 we read of the vagabond Jewish exorcists who attempted to act as apostles and drive out the evil spirits. Today we have those who likewise presume to have miraculous powers to heal and prey upon the impressionable. Just as the Jewish exorcists were punished for their false claims so perhaps one can assume that these too will receive their just reward for their presumption and claims that they are followers of Jesus Christ Jesus, In His day Jesus warned:" Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.Ye shall know them by their fruits." (Matthew 7:15,16) Paul also,in his letter to the Roman brethren,had this to say: "Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offenses contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned; and avoid them..For they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own belly; and by good words and fair speeches deceive the hearts of the simple." (Romans 16:17,18) As Christians, we are to judge men and institutions ,whether on secular or doctrinal principles, according to this standard . We are to expose and reject deceit, immorality and all other forms of sin as the wrongs they are. Just as Jesus exposed the lies and deceit of the Pharisees,saying: "Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it. " (Jn 8:44,45) Likewise,Paul condemned Elymas,the sorcerer, saying: " O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord?" (Acts 13:10)
Jesus also condemned those who would use "sugar coated" words with which to justify their sin. For such He had this admonition: "But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment." (Matthew 12:36 ) We also find a parallel warning in II Cor. 5:10. We are told: "For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad." Finally,there are these rather sobering thoughts which should make everyone give serious consideration for sins in their life: "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." (Galatians 6:7)
There are many other warnings in the Bible for those who would subvert God`s Word. However, this final thought. In the final judgement that awaits all who would seek to make "WRONG" seem "RIGHT," there will be no one else to blame. No psychologists to explain away failings;no more opportunity to lie,to distort, to deceive,to disclaim personal responsibility. No mater what logic or argument one has used during their lifetime, all deceivers who would make "SIN" seem "NOT SIN" will be condemned by God`s word: "Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God." ( I Corinthians 6:9) And again,"For this ye know, that no whoremonger, nor unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, hath any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God." (Ephesians 5:4-6)
Certainly,there is no excuse available to those who will face Jesus in the final judgement. For those who persist in their smugness and agile use of words to support their conduct and believe they are immune from this final judgement. Paul tells us: "Every one of us shall give account." (Ro 14:12). That means everyone will receive justice in proportion to the wrongs which have been perpetrated in one's lifetime,and there will be no court of appeal.
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Page last updated: March 03, 2003