The TruMoo Deception

Well, in true Monday morning fashion, I couldn't get the proper video onto the page, but I can offer you the youtube link to what I will be using for today. You may have seen it before (it isn't really new), it is the commercial for TruMoo chocolate milk. The kid wants chocolate milk, the mom isn't sure, so up pops the "angel" milk man in white and later the "devil" milk man in red to give the pros and cons of the nutritional values of TruMoo. It has to be one of the cheesiest commercials out there, but I think it points to a deeper truth about how we think about the devil, if we even think about him at all.

I'd like to think that it would be a lot easier to stay away from sin if every time I was tempted it started with smoke coming up from the floor followed by a giant red beast, complete with horns and pitchfork. If he spit on the floor, cracked his neck, lit something on fire and said in a horrifying voice, "Follow my ways," I'd like to think that "no, thanks" would come to mind. Yes, Revelation describes him at the end of time to resemble a dragon or giant serpent and there are usually horns, but that isn't really how he seems to operate now. In 2 Corinthians, Paul says that "Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light" (11:14) and Revelation describes him as one "who leads the whole world astray" (12:9). And I think those descriptions change everything.

Rather than a pitchfork prodding us or a red guy on the shoulder trying to convince us, I think the devil tends to work with small distractions that slowly lead us astray. They are hard to notice at first. The sin may seem so insignificant that you don't even think to confess it. But as you continue to fall for Satan's schemes, you move further and further away from God's plan. Think of it like the alignment of a car. Have you ever played the how long can I leave my hands off the steering wheel and continue in the correct direction game? Sometimes it is off so slightly that it takes a few minutes to drift to the side of the road. If you let your hands go and you suddenly did a 180, you would be a bit more alarmed, but since it is only slight, it goes unnoticed. I think that is how the Devil works. 

C.S. Lewis said it far better than I ever could in his book called Screwtape Letters. The book is written as a set of instructions from and elder demon to a younger one. It is quite fascinating, and if you haven't read it, I definitely suggest it. In the book, the older demon (Screwtape) ends a letter to his young apprentice by saying, "Indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one--the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts." Because you see, the gentle slope is the one unnoticed. Donald Miller put it this way: "It occurs to me it is not so much the aim of the devil to lure me with evil as to preoccupy me with the meaningless." Not to say he won't try for evil first, but if that fails, the Devil will do whatever he can to take your mind off Christ.

 

I think it should also be pointed out that the Devil is quite intelligent. Paul warns the Corinthians to forgive one another "in order that Satan might not outwit [them]" (2 Corinthians 2:11). He is sneaky. He is the great deceiver.  Jesus himself called the Devil the "Father of lies" and said that "when he lies he speaks his native language" (John 8:44). He is no amateur and he is persistent. After tempting Jesus in the desert and failing, the Devil left. But he didn't leave to never return, Luke says he "left him until an opportune time" (4:13). I think we need to listen to Shakespeare and "give the Devil his due."

Kind of depressing, huh? But don't worry, here comes the good part! When I was a kid and started to understand that the Devil was real and an actual threat, I was terrified and had many sleepless nights. Thankfully, my patient mother pointed out to me once at two in the morning the beautiful passage from Romans 8, which talks about how with God, nothing can come against us and not even demons can separate us from the love of Christ.  1 John tells us that "the one who is in [us] is greater than the one who is in the world" (4:4). So don't fear. When Jesus died on the cross, he defeated the Devil once and for all. Now the Devil is simply prowling around trying to snatch those who don't hold onto the promises offered by God. So resist him by standing firm in your faith (1 Peter 5:8-9) and "submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the Devil and he will flee from you" (James 4:7).

The Devil is out there. He is a threat and he is definitely worth mentioning. But he loses in the end. So hold strong in your faith. Look for the small deceptions and distractions. A friend gave me a quote box for my birthday and one of the quotes was: "If Satan cannot tempt with destruction, he will settle for distraction." So do not be distracted from your true purpose in life. Align yourself with God each day. Pray that he will deliver you from the schemes of the Devil and stand firm, you will be rewarded for your perseverance. And be on the lookout for the Devil's tricks. Resist him and draw near to God, then the Devil will have no foothold in your life.