Many of you no doubt saw the movie "The Titanic!" As you know 1,513 of the 2,224 people on her maiden voyage perished when, on April 14, 1912, the ship went down after striking an iceberg in the North Atlantic. Only six survivors are still living. The Titanic had double wall construction. It consisted of 16 water tight compartments, any four of which could be flooded without affecting the ship. It was billed as "unsinkable," yet it sank! The billing was a lie, and believing that lie, no doubt, cost some people their lives.

There is a popular idea in religion that says that if a man believes a thing to be true, honestly follows his convictions and is sincere, his course will ultimately lead to heaven. But, only in religion is this thought to be true. Suppose you had invested several hundred thousand dollars in James McDougle's savings and loan, sincerely believing that he was an honest man and that the institution was on a solid financial foundation. Would that have meant that your money was secure? Obviously not! Sincere belief in the integrity of the institution would not have protected you from financial harm!

Belief in a thing is no guarantee that it is true. Jacob believed that Joseph was dead, but he was not (Genesis 37:32-35). Though it was not true, Jacob's grief was real because he had believed a lie. Paul sounded an alarm regarding the danger of believing a lie (2 Thessalonians 2:10-12). We would be wise to listen. The consequences of believing a lie can be eternal damnation.

Here are four of the devil's most damning lies. 1) It doesn't matter what you believe as long as you are sincere! Read what Jesus had to say about that in Matthew 7:21-23. 2) No one will be lost. God is too loving to cast anyone into hell! Listen to the warning of Jesus in John 12:48. All the love in the universe cannot protect us from the consequences of our choices. We choose whether heaven or hell will be our destination. God's love cannot protect us from the wrong choice. 3) Salvation is God's gift and man need do nothing but accept it in faith! What about obedience (Hebrews 5:9)? Where do repentance, confession, baptism and godly living come into play? 4) There is time enough yet! Time is running out! We have no promise of a tomorrow. Now is the time for action (2 Corinthians 6:2).

We haven't begun to cover all the lies the devil has foisted upon man. The good news is that none of them can harm us if we refuse to believe them. However, believing a lie can cost us our souls. Test everything you hear under the microscope of God's Word and build your life and faith upon truth. The rewards of doing that are immeasurable and eternal!