This post defines a type—a personality that we’ve all met in one form or another. Much blood has been shed, much fear and guilt have been endured because of this type. Whether it’s a person, a spiritual entity, or a voice in our heads, we do well to ignore it.
I’ll start with a couple of pertinent quotations.
Now have come the salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God,
and the authority of his Messiah.
For the accuser of our brothers and sisters,
who accuses them before our God day and night,
has been hurled down. (Revelation 12:10)
and
You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies. (John 8:44)
Taking these passages as a point of departure, we find that the Accuser and the Liar are the same entity: the devil or Satan. That’s not a coincidence. Accusations and lies go hand in hand. The more one lies, the more easily one can accuse others.
Accusations temporarily indemnify the accuser. As long as I’m accusing others, my faults escape notice. Accusations give the accuser the superior vantage point from which the accuser can make others feel guilty and shameful.
Some accusations are based on facts. Of course they are. Each of us has a complete repertoire of things we’ve done wrong or not done right. In the hands of the accuser, though, they become the sole focus. The fact that love covers the multitude of sins is ignored. The statement that mercy triumphs over judgment is silenced. The truth that Jesus has become our redemption is completely forgotten.
Once lies are mingled with facts, the picture gets exceedingly dark. The accuser knows no limit to the fear and shame that may be inspired in others. If anything goes wrong, it is the fault of others. If anything goes right, it is the achievement of the accuser. This is how dictators are made, both spiritual and political.
All people do bad things, meaning everyone is selfish. Some curb their selfishness, others do not. There’s enough need for ownership and honesty in these matters to occupy the human race. But it gets worse: some people are evil. The evil person first injures others and then makes them feel responsible for their injury. Child abusers are expert in this. They sexually or emotionally damage a child and then tell the child it is really the child’s fault. The shame and fear they inspire insures they are unlikely to be exposed. To seal this assurance, they threaten the child (you or your family or friends will suffer even worse if you ever talk about this).
Accusers may be found in many disguises: as teachers, pastors, bosses, spouses, parents, and presidents. We must not listen to them, for when we are, we are listening to Satan.