The devil is not particularly creative. He has been using the same strategy since the beginning of time, and tragically, we keep falling for it. It's what I call "truth, truth, twist"—he takes something that is genuinely true, acknowledges it honestly, and then adds just enough of a twist to lead us astray. If Satan simply lied outright, it would be too obvious. We'd see through it immediately. But when he wraps deception in undeniable truth, we're much more likely to accept the whole lie.
Look at the very first recorded temptation in the Garden of Eden. When the serpent approached Eve, he didn't begin with an outright lie. Instead, he started by drawing her attention to something she could see with her own eyes: "the fruit of the tree was good for food and pleasing to the eyes, and also desirable for gaining wisdom..." (Genesis 3:6). Every single part of that observation was true! The fruit was good for food; God doesn't create junk. It was pleasing to the eyes; beauty reflects God's own nature. It was desirable for gaining wisdom; knowledge itself is a gift from God.
Truth, truth, truth. And then came the twist.
The serpent's fatal addition was the implication that followed: Therefore, you should eat it. That's where the truth became twisted into deception. Yes, the fruit was everything the serpent said it was, but God had clearly commanded Adam and Eve to not eat from that particular tree. The serpent took accurate observations and used them to justify disobedience, as if he had found a loophole in God's direction.
The Art of Finding Loopholes
This is exactly what the devil specializes in: finding loopholes, or more accurately, convincing us that loopholes exist where they don't. This is why he's dubbed the tempter. He whispers, "Surely God didn't mean that specifically," or "Look at all these good reasons why this restriction doesn't apply to this situation." He takes the genuine goodness of something and uses it to justify why we should have it, even when God has said otherwise.
Think about how often this plays out in our own lives. We look at something we want—a relationship, a purchase, a choice, a compromise—and we start with what's true about it. Maybe we say to ourselves, "I deserve to be treated well" (true), or "God tells us to love one another." (true). But then comes the twist: "Therefore, it doesn't matter that he's married," or "Therefore, it's okay to pursue her even though it goes against my marriage vows.”
Or we might think, "I work hard and support my family" (true), "Everyone needs rest and recreation" (true), "I'm not directly hurting anyone" (true). But then the twist: "Therefore, it's fine to spend hours escaping into pornography, gambling, or video games.” No one sets out to pour his or her life into destructive behaviors that slowly erode the soul and relationships. It always starts with a small, seemingly minor little twist.
The Loophole Mentality
This is the loophole mentality at work. We become like lawyers trying to find technicalities in God's law rather than children seeking to understand our Father's heart. We spend our energy looking for ways around God's commands instead of recognizing that His boundaries exist for our protection and flourishing.
The devil knows that once we start looking for loopholes, we're on his slippery slope. Unlike God's gifts which are freely given out of love, the devil's offerings always come with hidden obligations. The hidden strings attached to a generous gift can end up tangling you in compromise, and what looks like freedom to have whatever we want can quickly place us in bondage to the giver.
But God's law isn't a legal contract designed to trap us. It's a love letter written by a Father who knows what leads to life and what leads to death. When God says "don't eat from that tree," it's not because He's withholding something good from us out of spite—it's because He knows that the fruit of that particular tree leads somewhere we’re not supposed to go.
The problem with the "truth, truth, twist" strategy is that it gets us focused on the wrong question. Instead of trying to figure out, "How can I get around this?" we should be asking, "What is God protecting me from?" Instead of "What's the minimum I can get away with?" we should ask, "How can I live in a way that brings life to myself and others?"
Our Own Truth-Twisting
If we're honest, we don't just fall victim to the devil's truth-twisting; we’ve become quite skilled at it ourselves. We've learned to take genuine truths and use them to justify whatever we want to do. We say things like:
“God is forgiving and I am loved by Him" (true) "therefore it doesn't really matter what I do" (twist).
"God wants me to be happy" (true) "therefore whatever makes me happy in the short term can’t be that bad" (twist).
"Jesus ate with sinners" (true) "therefore there are no boundaries I need to maintain" (twist).
"God understands my heart" (true) "therefore He'll overlook this particular sin because I mostly have good intentions" (twist).
It's an ancient pattern. We take beautiful, accurate theological truths and twist them just enough to give ourselves permission to do what we wanted to do anyway.
Living in Truth Without the Twist
So how do we break free from this ancient pattern? I certainly haven't mastered that! But a few things do seem to help.
First, try playing a little game with yourself. Call it, “find the twist.” When we find ourselves building little justifications for questionable choices, we can pause and ask God: "Am I looking for loopholes, or am I seeking Your will?” When the question is sincerely asked, the heart will know the answer.
Second, it may help to remember that God's commands aren't arbitrary restrictions—they're guardrails on the highway of life. A loving father doesn't tell his daughter to stay out of the street because he wants to limit her fun, but because he knows that kids who play in traffic are more likely to be hit by cars.
Third, we can try to cultivate what Scripture calls "a healthy eye." Jesus said, "If your eye is healthy, your whole body will be full of light" (Matthew 6:22). A healthy eye looks for truth. It doesn't ask, "How can I get around this?" but rather, "How can I more align my life with what is good, true, and beautiful?”
The devil's strategy remains the same: truth, truth, twist. But we don't have to keep falling for it. When we learn to recognize the pattern, and when we choose to trust God's Word and Heart, rather than hunt for loopholes, we discover that His truth—without the twist—is freedom.
