“The way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen to advice.” (Proverbs 12:9-15, NIV)

On October 7, 2018, Conor McGregor and Khabib Nurmagomedov faced each other in the biggest UFC fights of all time. It was the highest-selling watched fight. Before the fight, UFC promoted it by running an ad featuring the two opponents facing each other, with large print reading “Khabib vs. McGregor.” Not just the UFC, but any time a big face-off happens, a similar picture is used to demonstrate the conflict with the words “So and so vs. So and so.” As I read today’s passage, I had a picture in my mind of a promotional ad: “Truth vs. Delusion.” Read it for yourself and see if a similar picture comes to mind. It says,

“Better to be a nobody and yet have a servant than pretend to be somebody and have no food. The righteous care for the needs of their animals, but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel. Those who work their land will have abundant food, but those who chase fantasies have no sense. The wicked desire the stronghold of evildoers, but the root of the righteous endures. Evildoers are trapped by their sinful talk, and so the innocent escape trouble. From the fruit of their lips people are filled with good things, and the work of their hands brings them reward. The way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen to advice.”

There is a particular kind of blindness that does not affect the eyes, but our hearts. It is called being “delusional.” It happens when a person begins to believe he is always right and does not listen to anyone. The book of Proverbs describes such a person as a “fool.” This isn’t someone who lacks intelligence, but someone who lacks the moral and spiritual clarity to see reality as it truly is. Verse 15 perfectly sums it up: “The way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen to advice.” Anyone who believes they are always right is living under a falsehood. Thinking they already know enough, they stop listening and growing. In the end, their poor decisions harm not only themselves but also those around them. They live in a trap of their own making, created by their own words and pride. They pretend to be somebody but have no food. They are cruel to their pets and animals. They chase fantasies and live in a delusional world. They trap themselves with their words. Because they cannot admit when they are wrong, they often blame others for their problems. This creates drama and pain for their family, friends, coworkers, and church members. Such a self-anchored perspective is destructive, and the only way out is humility, a willingness to listen to God’s truth and the counsel of wise people.

Furthermore, while we often view delusion as a personal failing, the New Testament suggests a more disturbing revelation: it can be a form of God’s judgment. In 2 Thessalonians 2:11-12, Paul describes how those who refuse to love the truth will face God’s judgment through delusion. It states, “And for this reason God will send upon them a deluding influence so that they might believe what is false, in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in wickedness.” The phrase “for this reason” refers to the preceding verses about the coming of the Antichrist. Essentially, before the Great Tribulation and Christ’s Second Coming, God will send a powerful “deluding influence” to the world to draw a line between truth and deception. Consequently, people will choose either the team of truth or the team of delusion, and God will judge everyone who rejects the truth. This means that if people keep rejecting what is true, God may eventually let us have exactly what they want: a life based on a lie. They try to make their own rules instead of following God’s rules, and they get lost in a world of confusion.

What is the cure? Solomon makes a simple statement: “The wise listen to advice.” It means we must willfully bring ourselves down regularly from a pedestal and see ourselves as flawed, like everyone else. It means acknowledging, “I can be right, or I can be wrong.” True wisdom begins with the humility to admit that our own perspective is finite, flawed, and in need of accountability. It means being accountable to truth in God’s words and to His Spirit, the Spirit of Truth. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life,” and promised to send the Spirit of Truth to his followers when he ascended to heaven. This is the greatest weapon we have in fighting the team delusion. Also, we must abide in His spiritual community, the body of Christ, and seek accountability from others who have the Spirit of Truth. Being isolated from other believers is a dangerous place to be and can lead us into a delusional life in which we believe we are always right.

• What do the words “seems right to them” suggest about the person’s perspective?
• Can a person not be a part of a Christian community and overcome delusional thinking in the world?