THE CHEATER: PEOPLE ARE "NOT" BASICALLY GOOD!

The cheater: PEOPLE ARE "NOT" BASICALLY GOOD

 “…. Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.  For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; …” (Galatians 6:7-8 KJV).

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 A cheater is “ANYBODY” who behaves in a dishonest way, on any level (financially, emotionally, spiritually, or physically) in order to gain some selfish advantage. “…Lying lips are abomination to the Lord…” (Proverbs 12:22 KJV).

A cheater gains this dishonest advantage by deliberately deceiving, tricking, misleading, being sexual unfaithful, swindling, defrauding, and eluding others. “…Her princes in the midst thereof are like wolves ravening the prey …to destroy souls, to get dishonest gain…” (Ezekiel 22:27 KJV).

Cheaters will cheat you out of your material possessions, your emotional health, your spiritual wealth, and your physical well-being if possible. “…he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption…” (Galatians 6:8 KJV).

Today we will focus, mainly, on how people are cheated out of their emotional health, material possessions, and spiritual well-being by real-life cheaters. “…Do not steal. “Do not deceive or cheat one another…” (Leviticus 19:11 NLT).

If someone can get you to trust them and gain control over you, then your material possessions, spiritual well-being, and emotional health will follow. Woe to the CHEAT or CHEATER who does this. “..What sorrow awaits you who lie awake at night, thinking up evil plans. You rise at dawn and hurry to carry them out, simply because you have the power to do so. When you want a piece of land, you find a way to seize it. When you want someone’s house, you take it by fraud and violence. You cheat a man (woman) of his (her) property, stealing his (her) family’s inheritance. But this is what the Lord says: “I will reward your evil with evil; you won’t be able to pull your neck out of the noose. You will no longer walk around proudly, for it will be a terrible time…” (Micah 2:1-3 NLT).

A cheater can be so good at cheating and taking advantage of people that some people will never know or won’t ever realize they’ve been cheated until it’s too late. “…This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come . For men shall be lovers of their own selves, … unholy,… false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. For of this sort are they which creep into houses, and lead captive silly women laden with sins, led away with divers lusts,… men of corrupt minds, reprobate concerning the faith. ….  evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived…”(2 Timothy 3:1-13 KJV). “…Ye shall know them by their fruits…” (Matthew 7:16 KJV).

 Why do Cheaters THINK they’re getting away with this? “…Because sentence against an evil work is not executed speedily …the HEART of the sons of men is fully set in them… to do evil….” (Ecclesiastes 8:11 KJV).

Cheaters ARE NOT listening to God. “…But my people would not listen to me. They kept doing whatever they wanted, following the stubborn desires of their evil hearts. They went backward instead of forward” (Jeremiah 7:24 NLT). “But the people replied, “Don’t waste your breath. We will continue to live as we want to, stubbornly following our own evil desires…” (JEREMIAH 18:12 NLT).

The cheater, like a false prophet, can become a harmful and misleading attachment. “…Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves…” (Matthew 7:15 KJV). “…Many false prophets will arise and will mislead many….” (Matthew 24:11 NASB).

Victims, of cheaters, often don’t know until they have spent their good, youthful years with him or her. They will, unknowingly, have, given away or linked most of their material possessions to the cheater, invested much of their livelihood to them, risked their physical and emotional health for them, or lose sight of their own personal, spiritual journey with God, the Creator.

“…Don’t let the excitement of youth cause you to forget your Creator. Honor him in your youth before you grow old and say, “Life is not pleasant anymore.” Remember him before the light of the sun, moon, and stars is dim to your old eyes, and rain clouds continually darken your sky. Remember him before your legs—the guards of your house—start to tremble; and before your shoulders—the strong men—stoop. Remember him before your teeth—your few remaining servants—stop grinding; and before your eyes—the women looking through the windows—see dimly. Remember him before the door to life’s opportunities is closed and the sound of work fades. Now you rise at the first chirping of the birds, but then all their sounds will grow faint. Remember him before you become fearful of falling and worry about danger in the streets; before your hair turns white like an almond tree in bloom, and you drag along without energy like a dying grasshopper, and the caperberry no longer inspires sexual desire. Remember him before you near the grave, your everlasting home, when the mourners will weep at your funeral. Yes, remember your Creator now while you are young, before the silver cord of life snaps and the golden bowl is broken. Don’t wait until the water jar is smashed at the spring and the pulley is broken at the well. For then the dust will return to the earth, and the spirit will return to God who gave it…” (Ecclesiastes 12:1-7 NLT).

A cheater slowly, but surely kills, steals and destroys the other person while making themselves an indispensable stronghold (entrenchment, domination, fortified place, etc.“…The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy…” (John 10:10 KJV).

The cheater is sufficiently benefitted at the other person’s expense. “…They …serve ….their OWN belly…” (Romans 16:18 KJV).

A cheater will break ALL the ethical, moral, spiritual, or unwritten rules of conduct in their relationship with others if it gets them what they want. “..You rise at dawn and hurry to carry them out (cheating plots), simply because you have the power to do so. When you want a piece of land, you find a way to seize it. When you want someone’s house, you take it by fraud and violence. You cheat a man of his property, stealing his family’s inheritance. …” (Micah 2:1-3 NLT).

It matters nothing to cheaters that what they want is obtained through deceit or dishonesty. “…Don’t do as the wicked do, and don’t follow the path of evildoers. Don’t even think about it don’t go that way. Turn away and keep moving. For evil people can’t sleep until they’ve done their evil deed for the day. They can’t rest until they’ve caused someone to stumble. They eat the food of wickedness and drink the wine of violence!” (Proverbs 4:14-17 NLT).

A cheater is commonly linked to infidelity. Infidelity, however, also refers to cheating, betrayal, disloyalty, thieving (stealing), robbing, or unfaithfulness. “…if you fail to keep your word, then you will have sinned against the Lord, and you may be sure that your sin will find you out…” (Numbers 32:23 NLT). “…You have also heard … ‘You must not break your vows; you must carry out the vows you make to the Lord…” (Matthew 5:33 NLT). “… to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin…” (James 4:17 KJV). “….Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these, my brethren, YE HAVE DONE IT TO ME…” (Matthew 25:40 KJV).

A cheater doesn’t cheat ALL the time, but will rely on cheating when necessary to gain or sustain his or her dishonest advantage. After all, they are a CHEAT or CHEATER even when they are not actively cheating. “…They lie awake at night, hatching sinful plots. Their actions are never good. They make no attempt to turn from evil…” (Psalms 36:4 NLT).

A CHEATER CHEATS. They will CHEAT you out of respect, honor, dignity, true love, the truth, the ability to trust, and the innate right to dwell safely or peacefully in God’s world.

A cheater is ALWAYS dishonest. There is NOT a “little” dishonesty; dishonest “IS” dishonest. “…Whoever can be trusted with very little can also be trusted with much, and whoever is dishonest with very little will also be dishonest with much…” (Luke 16:10 KJV).

 “…Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. The commandments “You shall not steal (cheat, rob),” … and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no harm to a neighbor…” (Romans 13:8-10 KJV).

“….But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of GREED, because these are improper for God’s holy people…” (Ephesians 5:3 KJV).

“…You know the commandments …. ‘you shall not steal (cheat, rob), …you shall not defraud (cheat or deprive somebody of something by dishonest means)…” (Mark 10:19 KJV).

“…The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery …selfish ambition, dissensions  …and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God…” (Galatians 5:19-21 KJV).

“…Their actions are never good. …” (Psalms 36:4 NLT). “…Ye shall know them by their fruits…” (Matthew 7:16 KJV).

Cheaters have unique fruit or traits that distinguish them from other people. Identifying a cheater can be a preventive measure that may protect you from getting involved with one. “…Ye shall know them by their fruits…” (Matthew 7:16 KJV).

The following is a short list of SOME, not all, of the traits of a cheater. These are the most damaging and destructive to others:

Cheaters are emotional thieves and robbers

Cheaters are master manipulators.

Cheaters are liars, good liars, and/or compulsive liars.

Cheaters are selfish, greedy, and make a practice of exploiting people.

Cheaters are never satisfied.

Cheaters are jealous and suspect people are being dishonest like they are.

All cheaters don’t have all the obvious traits mentioned above. They are slick, clever, and try not to be obviously wicked, but they are, nevertheless, ALL thieves and robbers. “…Their actions are never good. …” (Psalms 36:4 NLT).

Cheaters are thieves and robbers because they secretly and wrongfully trying to steal, rob, or deprive another person of their property (emotional, physical, material, financial, etc.) through dishonesty, lies, manipulation, seduction, or exploitation. “…They …serve ….their OWN belly…” (Romans 16:18 KJV).

A cheater is a thief, just like the devil, because he or she secretly steals, whatever they want, from another person. “…The thief (cheater) cometh not, but for to steal (take, rob, cheat, etc;), and to kill, and to destroy…” (John 10:10 KJV).

A cheater is a robber, just like the devil because he or she threatens to rob openly, whatever they want, from another person through deathly conduct and destructive behaviors. “…The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill (the other person’s  emotional health), and to destroy (the other person’s emotional health)…” (John 10:10 KJV).

Cheaters are not always obvious to their victims, but are often blatant to others on the outside looking in.

A CHEATER CHEATS and it is not merely through infidelity. A cheater is “ANYBODY” who USES dishonest behaviors, on any level in order to gain some selfish advantage or deprive another person of their belongings. “…They …serve ….their OWN belly…” (Romans 16:18 KJV). AND ARE “…like wolves ravening the prey …to destroy souls, to get dishonest gain…” (Ezekiel 22:27 KJV).

A cheater gains his or her dishonest advantage by deliberately and intentionally deceiving, tricking, misleading, being sexual unfaithful, swindling, defrauding, and eluding others. “…Like wolves ravening the prey …to destroy souls, to get dishonest gain…” (Ezekiel 22:27 KJV).

Cheating is a person’s sinful reaction to getting what they want in life. In their minds, cheating has become a habit or practice. However, the longer a cheater goes undetected, the worst they become.

It seems years and years, go by, and the cheater is getting away with stealing, killing, and destroying others. But there is a guarantee, in God’s word, that a sin sown, demands a harvest to be reaped. “…. Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.  For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; …” (Galatians 6:7-8 KJV).

What this means is that eventually life will begin to treat the cheater exactly as she or he has treated others. The reason it is not automatic is because God is gracious and gives every cheater TIME to repent.

Life MAY SEEM to go well with cheaters or favor them, but eventually they will have to deal with the seeds of sin they’ve sown. “…. for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. …” (Galatians 6:7-8 KJV). Even with God’s mercy to save the cheater’s soul, they will still receive their harvest.

The problem with a harvest is that it will greatly multiply whatever you sow. If you sow a seed for an apple, not only will it produce an apple tree with apples, but those apples will have multiple seeds, which can produce more and more apples trees. This harvest could go on and on and on.

The Cheater is doomed, especially in those areas where he or she has sown the seed of dishonesty. The same thing seed they have sown will bring them a harvest of the same, only MULTIPLIED! “…They sow the wind And they reap the whirlwind…” (Hosea 8:7 NASB). “…Whatever a man sows, this he will also reap…” (Galatians 6:7 NASB).

A cheater will cheat you and maybe IT SEEMS like they’ve gotten away or are getting away with it, but every day they are closer to reaping the PROMISED harvest.

But a cheater’s fate, without repentance, will ONLY lead to his or her own ruin. “...A person's own folly leads to their ruin...” (Proverbs 19:3 NIV). “...People ruin their lives by their own foolishness...” (Proverbs 19:3 NLT).

There are cheaters in THIS world. We would like to think all people are basically good, but without God and his indwelling Holy Spirit, mankind is basically a sinful nature.

The longer a person remains a cheater, the sin of cheating will eventually harden their hearts. Cheating becomes a learned and life-long practiced behavior that is habitual, or a pattern, or an automatic way of functioning through life.

A cheater may have cheated you, but don’t let it harden your heart. Let whatever they took from you GO. Their fate is sealed, but you have bright future a head, in this life and the life to come.

The cheater DOES NOT have a bright future ahead, in this life, or the life to come. “…They sow[ed]... the wind And they ...[will]... reap the whirlwind…” (Hosea 8:7 NASB). “…Whatever a man sows, this he (she) will also reap…” (Galatians 6:7 NASB).

EVERY DAY the cheater gets closer and closer to the WHIRLWIND! “...Even now the ax of God’s judgment is poised, ready to sever the roots of the trees. Yes, every tree that does not produce good fruit will be chopped down and thrown into the fire...” (Matthew 3:10 NLT). "...The axe is already laid at the root of the trees; therefore every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire...” (Matthew 3:10 NASB).

“…. Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.  For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; …” (Galatians 6:7-8 KJV).

“…They sow[ed]... the wind And they ...[will]... reap the whirlwind…” (Hosea 8:7 NASB).