The lie that spreads like wildfire in a dry forest is that you don’t need God. The devil—the “father of lies” Jesus refers to in this passage—slithered up to our first parents, Adam and Eve, and in essence said, “You don’t need God; in fact, you can just be God yourselves.”
Many whom I have visited behind bars testify that a life lived independent of God has led only to a life of dependence. Without Him fear, anger, debilitating addictions, and spiritual death dominate. Our enemy knows firsthand that mankind was created to live in a dependent, loving relationship with our Heavenly Father. The moment we turn from Him, we, like Adam and Eve, find ourselves exposed, ashamed, and seeking to cover up in any way possible.
The radical call of the gospel is for us to give up our independence and fall into the arms of our Father. He will clothe us with beautiful garments of salvation that Jesus purchased for us on the cross. There the father of lies was exposed, truth triumphed, and our relationship with our Father was restored.