Have You ever been "Wall - Dogged?"

The Devil “has no truth in him.  When he lies he speaks out of his own character,

For he is a liar and the father of lies.”

John 8:44b

Today I will test your powers of observation.  I wonder how many of you, watching my blog videos ever noticed this dog up on the top shelf behind me.    This is “wall dog.”  Let me tell you his story.  When we were in Flower Mound, every Christmas we were invited to the Christmas Party of one of the small groups.  As part of that party people brought gifts to exchange.  When the time came for the exchange, people would take a number.  When your number came up you could either pick a gift from the pile of gifts, or steal a gift from someone who already picked theirs.  These gifts could be really nice gifts or “white elephant” gifts. “White-elephant” gifts were all wrapped up and looked just like the nice gifts.  But no one really wanted them.  If you got a white elephant gift – no one would ever steal it.   Wall Dog is the perfect example of a elephant gift.  It was such a great white elephant gift that people kept bringing it back to give away at each succeeding Christmas Party.  People would go to great lengths to disguise this gift, so that people would pick it without knowing they were picking it.  I made a whole photo book about Wall Dog.  Then I wrapped up the book. When someone unwrapped the book, they also then got the dog.  Such people had been “wall dogged.”  They had been led to believe a lie – that they were getting a wonderful gift but instead they got this dog.  I was the last person to get “wall dogged.”  Our first Christmas here in Germany I unwrapped a big box from the states only to find Wall Dog inside. 

Have you ever been “wall dogged?”  Have you ever been promised one thing, then when you got whatever it was, it turned out to be a lie?   One example that comes to mind was Bethany’s first car.  We bought it used for her to take to College in Wisconsin.  It looked like a great little used car. The dealer said it was a great little car.  It ran fine at the dealership.  However that whole year in Wisconsin, that car gave her nothing but trouble.  Every time she turned around it was breaking down.  I believe we had been “wall-dogged.”

My friends, I am sure you have wall-dogged too.  I know that we all have.  If you have ever given in to temptation, which all of us have, then you have been “wall dogged.”  That’s the very definition of what the temptation to sin is.  In the temptation you are promised something wonderful but that promise turns out to be a lie.   Adam and Eve were tempted with the idea that they could be like God.  What they ended up with was separation, frustration, pain and death.    Many people get tempted to get a divorce with the promise of happiness, only to have that decision inflict all sorts of unhappiness on all sorts of people whom they love, including themselves.  We are tempted to lie, with the promise that the lie will keep us out of trouble, only to find ourselves trapped in a web of deceit as one lie leads to another and then another.    Every temptation is a wall dog, a lie because the tempter, the devil himself, is the greatest “Wall Dogger.” Jesus warns us of this in John 8 - The Devil “has no truth in him.  When he lies he speaks out of his own character,   For he is a liar and the father of lies.”

How much better are the promises of God!   He will never “wall-dog” you.   Jesus declared, “I am the way, the TRUTH and the life…”   God is the very essence of truth.  He keeps His promises.  He promised an offspring to Adam and Eve who would crush the serpents head.  He promised that through one of Abraham’s descendants all the nations of the world would be blessed.  He promised David a son who would have an eternal throne.  He promised Israel a child who could be born of a virgin, a child who would be “Immanuel” which means “God with us.”  He promised them a Shepherd who would be born in Bethlehem.  He promised them a savior who “would be wounded for our transgressions.”  On and on the promises of God are given again and again in the Bible.   In the birth, life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, God keeps every one of them. 

God will never “wall dog” you.   For “no matter how many promises God has made they are all yes Christ.  And so the Amen is spoken by us to the glory of God the Father.”     There is no deceit or lie in Him.  That’s why when tempted by the devil’s lies, the best place to turn is where Jesus turned when He was tempted.  The best place to turn is to the truth of God’s Word.  After all Jesus promised, “If you abide in my word, you are truly my disciples, and you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.”  Amen!