Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”

Genesis 3:1

The best deception techniques are subtle.

When the enemy began to undermine God’s authority with the woman following God’s creation, he didn’t challenge God directly. He opened the dialogue with a question.

I’ve sat through many training sessions over the years suggesting the same tactic because a clever question can help direct a conversation as it did with Eve.

The woman said to the serpent, “We may eat fruit from the trees in the garden,  but God did say, ‘You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die.’”

Genesis 3: 2-3

And now Satan, through the serpent, attacks more directly:

“You will not certainly die,” the serpent said to the woman.  “For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God,knowing good and evil.”

Genesis 3: 4-5

And you know the rest of this story, don’t you? Eve and her husband Adam did eat the fruit and while they did not die physically that day, their disobedience brought on spiritual death and separation from God. They were banished from the Garden of God and it all began with what appeared to be a simple question that began with “Did God really say…”

That same question is being asked again and again in our world today and over the next few days let’s consider what God really says about the lies of our day.