Mark of a Cult: Deception

Introduction

Cults are just false prophets at work. One of the distinguishing marks of a cult/false prophet is that they have refused “out of hand” (with no exceptions) the will of God and the correct doctrine of the Bible. Their reasons are a wonder, but basically they prefer to work their will in their own way of doing things rather than submit to God’s will. This is covered up so that their followers don’t get wise to what is going on and leave the group.

After having studied a number of these kinds of groups, and talking to people personally, I think that in many cases they are “sincere” people, in the sense that they themselves are under the lie and delusion of Satan that this way that they do stuff is God’s way, or approved of God.

Truth is a commodity, not an absolute

There are two kinds or aspects of truth in the Scripture. First, something is “truth” because it is true. This refers not to moral truth, but the reality in the existing world. “A pen is on my desk.” This is either true or not. It speaks to reality in the sense of our world.

The other kind of truth is one which has a moral character to it. There is no real moral element to the statement, “A pen is on my desk.” That is “truth” in the sense that it is a fact or a “lie” (not a fact). But moral truth demands a disposition towards it from every moral being. “A man should not covet a woman.” You either agree with, and submit yourself under that truth, or you do not. You cannot be neutral or excluded from that truth or spiritual principle.

What cultists and false prophets do with truth is to remove it from being absolutes or spiritual principles which we must be submissive to or by default we are rebellious towards them if not submissive to them, and they make these spiritual principles commodities.

Truth is a commodity for them in that it is something that they buy and sell at will. These principles are not things that guide their life, but rather things that they use in order to get something they want (a commodity). They pretend to be honest and “truthful” because by doing so in their church group, that gets them respect, honor, and income. Being truthful is not something that is a moral principle that they cling to as part of their soul, part of their moral being, but rather, these things are things that they pick up and use as needed and just as quickly drop them when it is convenient for them.

Satan as the Father of Lies

Satan is the father of lies, or deceptions. Has Satan never said anything “truthful” in his dealings? Of course he has. He quoted Scripture to Jesus, and God’s own words to Eve. Satan is a master at “USING THE TRUTH” to get what he wants. Satan knows that by using truth, he gains confidence of the people. He can twist truth “out of its context”, or tell a half truth, or color the truth (like he did with Eve). He can even take truth and set it in a context of many truths, and overemphasize and carry one truth to an extreme, and by doing that, he still gets his way.

Why do people lie? Because telling the truth would not get them what they want (at least in their minds). Why does a married man tell a young single lady that he is single? Because he wants a adulteous relationship with her, and he fears telling her the truth would not get him what he wants. Lying is basically a technique by which a person manipulates other people to forceably get what they want without their wills entering very much into the deal. The liar is a person who works (deceives) another person to get something from that person, even if it is sympathy.

Truth: God’s Banner over Us

The child of God is marked as not being of “father Satan the liar”, but of being a child of God, a child of truth. What should be the identifying mark of all children of God, and much more so of God’s ministers, is truth.

Why is this not so obvious? Cults, false prophets, and a lot of supposedly “good pastors” use lying as a integral part of their ministry. Why? These ingeniously carved lies are what motives and moves people to give, to work, to sacrifice, participate in, support, etc, what they would not do if they knew the truth.

Satan has so created an atmosphere in our modern churches that make it a “nothing important” thing if a preacher or pastor lies to people. I am talking about knowingly telling people things that (1) are not true (factual), (2) are false, deceptive, or twisted in order to get people to think and do things that otherwise they probably wouldn’t do.