Flattery
Scripture Reading - Psalms 78:36 KJV
Nevertheless they did flatter him with their mouth, and they lied unto him with their tongues.
Greetings fellow believer in the Name of Jesus, we hope this day finds you in health and peace. We are happy to share a solid word that is often not taught on much in regular church services, at least we (ihlcc) can’t remember an entire message dedicated to this topic in our history in church. Therefore we thought it is good to have some understanding of this topic because if you don’t your lack of knowledge could lead you to believe a lie and that could hurt you or others in the future to come. Notice in today’s verse that certain people will use “flattery” to capture your heart. Truth and love, which is Jesus and your Heavenly Father, should capture your heart mere words without weight shouldn’t do it. Yes, it is a very subtle trick of the enemy to deceive people when they have certain things they want to hear. If you notice in life typically those people who like to use “flattery” to their own selfish or wicked advantage typically start out on a positive note because they know they need something from you. They will come across as a true friend but you will find them to be your enemy if you believe in their lies over time. We can remember being young and looking as far back as we came remember when certain evil men who liked to date many women would consistently speak favorable words to the women they dated making them feel Oh, so special when they listened to them implying that they are the only one for them. Typically later on in the relationship they would find out the young man has an appetite for multiple women, one true love just isn’t enough (one good woman won’t do). When you couple good nice words that one desires to hear with a lying heart you have the simple definition of “flattery”. Yes, we can say good kind works to people, like God Himself does, but when we do such things it should always be in truthfulness and love. We should never have an ulterior motive for personal gain. Doesn’t Proverbs 6:23-24 KJV remind us that evil women use this ploy too, “For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life: To keep thee from the evil woman, from the “flattery” of the tongue of a strange woman.” We notice two important things in those verses. The first is that evil people use “flattery” to get their desire or lust. The second is the most important and that is the only way to stay clear of being deceived by “flattery” is to keep the commandments of God. In other words by thinking upon, speaking forth and practicing the Word of God you can know the difference between truth and error. This is why we must warn you that this evil device is not just common for men and women but starts with the wicked one Satan. We have examples of this tactic all the way back in Genesis chapter three when the serpent promised increased knowledge of good and evil by one simple act of eating some fruit. After listening to the serpent the woman then thought the tree looked good for food and that same tree could make her wise and she ate the forbidden fruit because she believed what she wanted to hear. This approach from the subtle serpent was considered “flattery”. Yes, good words of personal gain and honor when the speaker is really the one looking to gain is “flattery” and it is evil. Speaking false information is referred to as lying and that is why we can not separate “flattery” from lying. The two are always coupled together (paired). We can liken this to the coin of “flattery”, if one side is “flattery” the other side will always be lying. Liars don’t always “flatter” their victims but rest assured that all “flatters” are also liars in heart. Again looking at today’s reference scripture many mouths will speak out “flatteries” without a second thought but don’t be deceived those speakers are liars in their own heart so it is easy for them to lie to your heart. We (ihlcc) can recall a specific situation when we were hoping for a good report and instead of the evil one speaking contrary to what we were expecting he spoke like a false prophet to our mind saying yes, yes this shall happen quickly, yes this is all over or already done. Satan knew if he tried to speak too negatively about the promise we were standing on we would quickly discern it was the devil and resist those evil thoughts of doubt or unbelief, and yes he was right about that. However, when he used the other angle of “flattery” he did deceive us for a little while (a short season) until the Lord told us to look only upon God’s Word and follow His Witness instead of various voices (yes even false prophecy can come through people who don’t know any better). Yes, and Amen to the wise counsel of God because we knew when certain things didn’t happen the way we thought that Satan had deceived us by using something we wanted to hear against us. The correct remedy to that situation and others likewise is to want for nothing concerning our future. For example we walk by faith and not by sight, so we don’t want for a certain thing to happen on a certain day but we rather delight that the promise God made to us had already been done in our life the moment we prayed and we constantly thank God for the full manifestation of that specific promise spirit, soul and body (or physically). This walk of faith is not open for future “flatteries” but abides strong and faithful to God in the now, for now faith is. So be encouraged dear faith friend that God loves you, so when He uses kind, good, wholesome words to speak to you it is not “flattery” to pump you up but rather His genuine truth for your mind to comprehend and for your heart to rejoice. However, when wicked men or any evil spirit (those who produce evil thoughts) speak “flatteries” to your heart believe them not because we must consider the source first, to know the truth afterwards. Remember, you don’t need to be “flattered” to know if someone loves you because you can know this by their consistent deeds (actions) and the witness of truth in your heart. Just remember to follow the pattern of God who gave first, then told you He Loved you by the great deed He had already done. This is no “flattery” but the plain simple truth unto all those who choose to believe, “no flattery” necessary only the demonstration of God’s Great Love for all mankind, that personally included you. Amen!