Believing A Lie

II Thessalonians 2:10-12 reads “And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: That they all might be condemned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”According to this passage, a wrong action (sin) based upon a belief in a lie leads to us perishing spiritually. It doesn’t matter how strongly a person believes in that lie, if it runs contrary to God’s will, it will cause that person to be lost.This is well illustrated by the man of God in I Kings 13:15-22. He believed a lie, and committed a sin of ignorance (verses 18-19). He was slain for it even though he thought what he was doing was okay (verses 21-22ff).Here are some lies that many religious people believe:· doctrine doesn’t matter (II John verse 9)· faith only salvation (James 2:24)· it is okay to stay in an unscriptural marriage (Matt 19:9)· women preachers are authorized (I Cor 14:34-35)· homosexuality is acceptable to God (Rom 1:26-27)· all churches are okay no matter what they teach or stand for (II John verse 10-11)II Thess 2:10-12 shows us that the reason many believe such lies is because they don’t have a proper “love of the truth.” Love for the truth would motivate us to diligently seek God (Heb 11:6), his truth (John 8:32), and his righteousness (Matt 6:33). Instead many take the easy way out and don’t study as they ought, or they accept what they like or think the truth ought to be according to their own human reasoning. When we believe religious lies, that reflects upon our love for the truth.Matt 15:14 says “if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.” Make sure you are not a blind follower of a false teacher. Instead, accept all of what God’s word says on every subject, and put it into practice in your life.