Let’s talk about deception.
In The You Testament I open with a question. When was the first time you were deceived? How old were you? That question made me look beyond my own story and ask, when did deception first enter the world at all?
The First Deception
Genesis shows us how God created a good world. He made the heavens and the earth. He made us to walk with Him in trust. In the garden He set one boundary. Do not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. That boundary was not to punish but to protect. It marked the line between trust and distrust, between life and death.
Then the serpent came. He twisted God’s words. He questioned God’s character. Eve ate. Adam ate.
Their eyes were opened, but not in the way they expected. Deception promised more and delivered less. That is still how it works today.
People ask, why put the tree there at all. Because love requires choice. Relationship without choice is not love. The tree gave humanity a real decision. God did not force Adam and Eve to trust Him and He does not force us either.
What Scripture says about deception
Ephesians 6:12 says:
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”
— Ephesians 6:12
From Eden until now, this is the fight we are in. Jesus warned in Matthew 24 that deception would only increase. He told us to stay alert.
How deception worked in my own life
I worked in media and creative advertising for nearly two decades, building campaigns for major corporations. My job was to target audiences, shape behavior, and influence perception. When the smartphone first entered the market, I was part of the push to get it into people’s hands.
Now, when I see that glowing apple logo I can’t help but think of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Just like in the garden, it offers something that looks appealing and endless information at our fingertips. But behind the shine, it also carries the power to shape minds, shift desires, and blur the line between truth and deception.
Everything we click leaves a Digital Footprint. Corporations track it, study it, and use it. What you see online is rarely random. It is designed to provoke emotion, shift desire, and normalize behavior. For years I pushed products and ideals without realizing how much deception was woven into it. That is how crafty the enemy is. You can promote lies without knowing it.
Questions to pause on
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What temptations pull at me most through my phone or feed?
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What am I calling good that God has called harmful?
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Am I being desensitized just because I see something enough times?
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Is my mind shaped more by culture or by God’s Word?
Where this is leading
Deception started in Eden. It spread through history. It shaped cultures, governments, and systems. And today it hides in plain sight through screens, narratives, and devices we carry everywhere.
But there's Good News Darkness is not the final word. Jesus is the Light of the world and He came to open blind eyes. What the enemy meant to deceive, God can use to awaken. What was meant to trap, God can use to free.
The choice Adam and Eve faced in the garden is still ours today. And every time we choose to trust God’s Word over the world’s lies, we take back ground the enemy thought he owned. That is why there is hope. Because even in a world thick with deception, the truth of Jesus still breaks through, one life at a time. Bet!
If this opened your eyes to how deception began, don’t stop here. In the next article, we look at how that same lie is still operating in our world right now.
Read the next article: Escaping Deception in Today's Modern World
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