Day 362/365- Revelation 3:17-18

"Deceived"

You say, ‘I am rich. I have everything I want. I don’t need a thing!’ And you don’t realize that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked. So I advise you to buy gold from me—gold that has been purified by fire. Then you will be rich. Also buy white garments from me so you will not be shamed by your nakedness, and ointment for your eyes so you will be able to see. (Revelation 3:17, 18 NLT)

Do you think you are deceived? Most of us would probably answer that question with a no. No one wants to be deceived or intends to be deceived. That's what makes deception what it is. Everyone who is deceived thinks they are right & things are fine & nothing is out of sorts or not how it should be. But we know from Scripture that deception is not just possible but actually quite prevalent.

And deception is more dangerous than unbelief isn't it? Isn't it more dangerous to think that we are ok when we really aren't rather than knowing that we aren't to begin with?

The church at Laodicea was deceived. They thought they were rich. They thought they had everything they needed. They thought they were doing just fine. But instead of being rich they were actually "Wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked." They were deceived into thinking they were something they were not. They were deceived into thinking that they had everything they needed. They were wrong.

God's advice to them was this, "So I advise you to buy gold from me—gold that has been purified by fire. Then you will be rich. Also buy white garments from me so you will not be shamed by your nakedness, and ointment for your eyes so you will be able to see."

God tells them that he has what they really need. They don't have what is most needed but he does & only he can supply it.

Have we been deceived? How would we know unless God reveals it to us? Do we think everything is ok? Could that be an indication of deception?

Are our lives filled with things that we have supplied or he has supplied? Have we gotten our righteousness from him or from us? Have we been given riches in him or in us? Do we really see or are we blind?

We must examine our souls to ensure that we aren't deceived. We must stay dependent on God & his resources for our lives & salvation & not us. We cannot assume that we are ok. If we do, we may just be waking a dangerous road that leads to description.