(This is a talk I gave at Outlook Christian Church on Wednesday, April 15th, 2026.)
I’ve been a believer since 1983. I came to Christ in the middle of an intense demonic attack. Some of you know the story; I’ve shared it a few times. A few of you might also know that, years later, God brought me into a situation where a church and an attached elementary school were basically infested with supernatural evil. If you don’t know my story, and you’re interested, you can find some of the details on my website.
I’m telling you all this just to make it clear that I do have some experience with the direct, supernatural manifestation of demonic evil. It’s a very real thing, and it can be a very dangerous thing. Dealing with that sort of outbreak is an important facet of spiritual warfare. However, the message that I sense the Holy Spirit wants me to deliver tonight is not about that kind of spiritual warfare, but about a type that every one of us faces again and again, but that we often don’t even recognize is spiritual warfare at all. I’m talking about the devil’s hidden lies, and specifically about a pattern where an obvious lie is used to disguise a more subtle, and more dangerous lie.
As Dan said on Sunday, it’s all about seeing what is unseen, identifying what is beyond the veil. If we fall for the hidden lie, we’ll end up fighting the wrong fight.
Let me give you an example. This might be a bit of a surprise to some of you, but I’m not perfect. And those of you who know my wife Catherine will no doubt be even more shocked to hear that she’s not perfect either. Sometimes we argue. And afterward, when I’m somewhere by myself cooling off, sometimes lies about Catherine will start popping up in my thoughts: she doesn’t really love me, she’s never respected me, I’d be better off without her. These are thoughts that come out of anger. If you’re married, you probably know what I’m talking about, although the lies in your head might be different than the ones in mine.
Now, I’ve said that they’re lies, and they are. But if I confront them at that level, if I push back by reminding myself of all the ways Catherine has been good to me, and good for me, I risk buying in to a more subtle lie; the lie that I should treat my wife the way she treats me. And that genuinely is a lie; the truth is that I have an obligation before God to treat Catherine the way Christ treats me. If I’m good to her only when she’s good to me, the devil has still won. Now I have to confess that I don’t live up to that nearly as well as I should, but if I allow myself to forget what my response is supposed to be, I won’t even try to live up to it. If I miss what the real issue is, I won’t be able to make the right decisions. And at the end of the day, the real question is always “what am I going to do?”
So the first level, the lies about my wife, is a diversion. It’s the second level, a lie about how I ought to respond, that’s the real threat. I don’t recall ever hearing anybody talk about this double-lie tactic, but I’ve experienced it many, many times in my own life, and I see it also in Scripture. I’ll give you a couple of biblical examples to show what I mean.
In Genesis 3 we have the first temptation ever recorded:
“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).
So right here there’s this claim by the serpent, “you will not certainly die.” According to Genesis 2:17, God had told Adam that if he ate from the tree he would die, so this is a direct contradiction. It’s the obvious lie. So what’s the hidden lie? How about this: you should consider what is best for you, personally. So whether you don’t eat (because you think it will kill you) or you do (because you think it won’t) do whatever you think is in your own best interest. If you think that it won’t kill you, and you’ll gain a benefit, do it!
Let’s look at another Biblical example. In Luke 4, we read about Jesus being tempted by the devil. About one of those temptations the Scripture says:
The devil led him up to a high place and showed him in an instant all the kingdoms of the world. And he said to him, “I will give you all their authority and splendor; it has been given to me, and I can give it to anyone I want to. If you worship me, it will all be yours.”
Jesus answered, “It is written: ‘Worship the Lord your God and serve him only.’” (Luke 4:5-8).
Now, I have heard some people argue that because Jesus didn’t deny this claim, it must mean that the devil really does own the world. The problem with that, however, is that it contradicts Scripture. In Psalm 24 we read:
The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it,
the world, and all who live in it;
for he founded it on the seas
and established it on the waters (Psalm 24:1-2).
But if the devil’s claim here is an lie, which I think it is, why didn’t Jesus dispute it? Hopefully, by now you’re looking for a hidden lie. And it’s there. If Jesus had started arguing about whether or not the devil was really able to fulfill this promise, he’d have been buying into the idea that he should worship whoever could give him the greatest authority over the world. In other words, that Jesus should do whatever is best for himself, rather than listen to his Father. It’s the same hidden lie that was used in the garden.
Are light bulbs starting to go on? Once you know to look for this pattern, you’ll probably see it in your own life as well. The first level, the obvious lie, is usually a statement about the way something is, or about something that will happen. The second level, the hidden lie, is always a lie about how you should respond. It involves something you should do.
And when I say that this is spiritual warfare, that doesn’t necessarily mean there’s a demon on your shoulder, whispering in your ear. There doesn’t need to be: both the world and our own flesh repeat the devil’s lies all the time. But regardless of who you hear it from, the origin of those lies is, ultimately, satanic.
Let’s look at some more examples of this. Consider these obvious lies:
If I talk about God to my friends or family, they’ll think I’m crazy.
So-and-so always acts like a jerk toward me.
If I don’t do what my boyfriend/girlfriend wants, they’ll leave me.
If I confess this sin, people will lose respect for me.
What’s the hidden lie in each of these? It’s that what I do should be controlled by what somebody else does.
How about this one: If I do such-and-such a thing for God, I won’t have enough money to live on.
And the hidden lie: my actions should be based on my ability to plan for my future. Which is basically the same thing as saying that I should do what I think is in my own best interests, the same hidden lie that was in the garden.
In all these cases, I’ve called the first level “the obvious lie” because it’s intended as a diversion, but it doesn’t necessarily have to be false. Maybe somebody really is acting like a jerk. Maybe my friends really will think I’m crazy. Maybe my money really will run out. But even if those things happen, the second level, that I should obey something other than God, is still a lie.
In fact, all of these hidden lies come down, in the end, to one thing: what I do should be based on something other than obedience to God. I should obey myself, or the people around me, or anything at all that isn’t God. And what is the truth?
Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires. The mind governed by the flesh is death, but the mind governed by the Spirit is life and peace. The mind governed by the flesh is hostile to God; it does not submit to God’s law, nor can it do so. Those who are in the realm of the flesh cannot please God
You, however, are not in the realm of the flesh but are in the realm of the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you (Romans 8:5-9).
So how do we see through to the hidden lie behind the obvious one? How do we put on the “spiritual polarized glasses” that Dan talked about? The first step is to look for a hidden lie. When you encounter ideas or thoughts that are questionable, or that seem to come from a place of fear, or anger, or desire, take a step back, mentally, and ask what the real issue is.
And one of the best ways to do this, I’ve found, is to ask myself, “so what?” So what if my wife doesn’t honor me the way I think she should. Does that change the obligation God has given me toward her? So what if my family thinks I’m crazy, or my girlfriend leaves me? (and no, I don’t actually have a girlfriend.) So what if I go broke and can’t makes ends meet? Does any of that change what God is telling me to do? The answer to that question will reveal the lie, but to get there we also need to know what God actually is telling us. This might possibly come as a surprise, but studying the Bible is one of the most powerful forms of spiritual warfare available to us. It’s there that I learn what God is really like, and what he is telling me to do. It’s a basic truth that you can’t live in obedience to God’s word if you don’t know God’s word.
Then once you see through the lie, once you know who you’re being told you should obey, you’ll still have to decide what you’re going to do. But you can make that decision without deception; you’ll either obey God, or you’ll deliberately, knowingly, disobey. And I will point out that in this church, going to a brother or sister and saying, “please pray with me, because I know what God wants me to do, but I’m afraid to do it,” is likely to get you an immediate prayer partner.
Remember always that the devil’s primary strategy is never persecution or oppression, it’s deception. Look for his lies and you’ll see them. They’re all around you, every day. Everywhere you go. Train yourself to look for the hidden lie that tells you what you should be controlled by, that isn’t the Spirit of God. And then call it out as a lie. Freedom from deception gives you the freedom to choose.
Let’s pray.