Something's Phishy
“…be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour.”
I Peter 5:8
This past week I received an exciting email that invited me to speak at a Vineyard Church conference over in the UK (United Kingdom). The person inviting me noted that my travel, food, and lodging would all be taken care of and that I would be given an honorarium.
All I had to do was send them my direct phone number and a recent picture to start the process. Suddenly something smelled fishy, and I showed the email to Gwen.
She agreed. “You have never heard of this guy,” she said. “And you don’t make such a big-time invitation through an email. Moreover, the conference is scheduled for two months from now. No one would have waited that long to get their keynote speaker.”
Gwen then said, “Let me do a bit of digging.” Within a matter of minutes, she had accessed a website that noted some of the most common “phishing emails” sent to pastors. Sure enough, the exact email I received led the list!
My exciting invitation was nothing more than a scam.
It’s known as “phishing.” Phishing is defined as “the fraudulent practice of sending emails or other messages purporting to be from reputable companies in order to induce individuals to reveal personal information.”
Analogous to “fishing,” phishing trolls for data from a “sea” of users. As of 2020, according to the FBI, it is the most common type of cybercrime.
Be Alert
I’m grateful that we were able to avoid being drawn into this subtle net. Yet I also got to thinking that there’s a spiritual parallel.
In the New Testament book of I Peter, we’re told to “…be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour” (I Peter 5:8).
The thing is, this one who is so dedicated to the destruction of God’s children is often quite subtle in his methods. In fact, the Apostle Paul notes that “…Satan often masquerades as an angel of light” (2 Corinthians 11:14).
That is to say, he employs a sort of “spiritual phishing.” As with the spurious email I received, he promises something quite enticing.
the allure of someone other than your spouse
the opportunity to move up in the company by cutting a few corners
the endorphin rush when peeking at pornography
the financial gain realized by cheating on your taxes
The thing is, as with cyber phishing, you don’t realize what such “little compromises” can end up leading to. I can’t tell you how many people have come to me over my more than forty years of ministry weeping and saying, “How could I have been so foolish?”
But by that time, it’s too late. The damage to reputation and relationships has already been done.
Scripture warns us to be careful that Satan doesn’t outwit us – to not be unaware of his schemes (2 Cor. 2:11). So let me encourage you to keep your spiritual antenna sharp.
Just as there will be no end to the efforts made by cybercriminals through their phishing, so there will be no end to the efforts made by the Evil One through his spiritual phishing. Be alert and of a sober mind.
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