The Slippery Slope of Deception

  

John 8:43-45 “Why do you not understand My speech? Because you are not able to listen to My word. You are of your father the devil, and the desires of your father you want to do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it. But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me.”

The term “slippery slope” is defied by Webster’s Dictionary as a course of action that seems to lead inevitably from one action or result to another with unintended consequences. Wikipedia explains that the slippery slope argument states that a relatively small first step leads to a chain of related events culminating in some significant effect, much like an object given a small push over the edge of a slope sliding all the way to the bottom. The strength of such an argument depends on the warrant.

When I was little and watching those old movies, like Tarzan, I developed a great fear of “quicksand”. Those poor unsuspecting people would be walking or running through a seemingly safe path through the jungle and the next thing you know, they had fallen into this sticky situation of being stuck and sinking slowly to their death. I read an article lately about another related situation at Stone Mountain in Decatur, Georgia, where there is a warning railing that keeps sightseers from getting anywhere near the edge of that great rock. So gradually does it slope downward that if one were to get within 75 to 100 feet of the edge, they would find themselves slipping towards the precipice and would be unable to recover themselves. With no way to stop, they would continue to slide downward until they plunge over the edge to their death hundreds of feet below.

James 1:16 “Don’t be deceived, my dear brothers and sisters.”

The Hebrew word “Satan” (שָּׂטָן) means "adversary" & “Satanas” meaning accuser. The word “devil” means “tempter” of humankind. He first blinds his victims of dangers and consequences before he binds them unto destruction. Sin, like the slippery slope of Stone mountain or jungle quicksand, pulls us down into things that we never expected we would do. But, there is hope in Jesus Christ, the blessed redeemer of mankind. Almighty God reversed our path and provided a way to salvation. 

In Christ, Brian