The Beguiling Serpent

Today's Verse:

And the LORD God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat. ~Genesis 3:13 

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Donna Kalil made the news as the only female python hunter employed by the South Florida Water Management District. She was an expert in snakes who understood how invasive pythons were to the Florida Everglades. She understood the nature of snakes and how to not be fatally bitten or crushed. Unfortunately, one woman in the Bible did not do so well in her first encounter with a serpent. Let us see how the serpent beguiled Eve. 

We see the Satanic metaphors. 

Satan is pictured through different illustrative metaphors to give us an intelligent understanding of his dangerous tactics. He is first introduced to us in the Bible as a serpent. Serpents slither on their bellies and move without being heard. Their colors allow them to blend into the environmental landscape and not be noticed. Their tongue is highly sensitive to the air, which allows them to detect food sources and potential danger. They are quiet, stealthy, and dangerous. In another part of Scripture, Satan is pictured as an angel of light, who uses false teachers with persuasive speech to sway men into embracing wrong beliefs. He is also pictured as a roaring lion, walking about and announcing to the prey around him that he is hungry.

We see the seductive means. 

“But I fear, lest by any means, as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ” (2 Corinthians 11:3). Satan comes in disguise as a serpent to deceive and to trick his victims. His means of attack is to catch us when we are unaware of his presence. He blends in with the situation we are in. He entices us through our fleshly senses, turning an urge for something forbidden into a strong craving. Through this beguiling, our mind and conscience become corrupted. We go from realizing something is wrong to justifying in our mind that it is not an endangerment or a sin. The beguiling process makes what is wrong and sinful appear harmless and even beneficial. He beguiles victims into accepting false doctrines and teachings by appealing to our intellectual pride. The beguiling process is always done through lies and half-truths. He beguiled Eve by appealing to her through her eye and ear gates. She saw, and then she coveted.

We see the sorrowful misfortune. 

Eve bought into the serpent’s lies. He appealed to her senses and suggested that she could be a “god.” He instilled dissatisfaction with who she was and duped her into believing that God was holding out on her. She took one bite of the forbidden fruit, and sin entered into the world. The moment she and Adam sinned, they brought the curse of sorrow, mortality, and death into the world. Sin is when we cross a forbidden line and come short of God’s holiness. All sin must be punished by God. Satan has one goal, and that is our destruction and failure. 

We see the strategic measure. 

First, we must be sober and vigilant at all times. Be always on the lookout. Be aware of your surroundings, as a beguiling serpent is possibly within striking distance. Second, resist the devil and he will flee from you. When he starts talking to you, don’t talk back to him. Tell the devil, “Get thee behind me.” Third, take heed to 1 John 4:1: “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” New translations of the Bible, new twists on Bible doctrine, and new trends in Christianity should prompt you to search the matter out. In all cases, they are manipulations of the devil seeking to take advantage of you. 

Don’t be a victim of the beguiling serpent! Be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might. Put on the whole armor of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

Have a vigilant God Morning! 

Bible Reading Schedule: Isaiah 1-4

#Genesis #Deception #Eve #Satan #Serpent