Text - Proverbs 29:5 – “A man who flatters his neighbor spreads a net for his feet”
Who does not like to hear nice things being said about him? Surely everyone wants to be praised and applauded, and this isn’t bad in itself. But when praise is exaggerated to inflate a person and distort is self-image, it becomes flattery, and that is bad.
There are two issues with flattery – firstly, the person who is being is not really all that he is being praised to be. Secondly, the one giving the praise does not actually believe what he is saying about the person being praised. Therefore, at the root of flattery is deception, and all deceptions originate from satan.
Some intentionally flatter others for their own selfish reasons; they want to warm themselves into the heart of whoever they are flattering, so as to gain special favors from him/her even to the point of commending someone who needs to be corrected.
In some other cases however, some flatter in order to set a trap for the one they are flattering. And then, there are also times that people flatter others out of sheer folly. Whichever be the case, flattery is wrong… full stop!
Beloved, as you go about your daily activities today, watch your tongue when you give praise to others. Don’t set a trap for people with your mouth by inflating their pride, thus setting them up for a fall. It is evil.
The dangerous elements that make up flattery include lying, deception, falsehood, insincerity, disloyalty, folly, manipulation, mischievousness, and so on. These are qualities that must not be associated with a Christian.
Learn to genuinely compliment, praise and encourage others without resorting to flattery; that is healthy and edifying. Tell people how much you respect, love and appreciate them, but do not flatter them.
Even as parents, learn from the very beginning, never to flatter your children if you really want them to be sane and successful in life. Flattered children are the most dangerous children ever. They may be quiet and seem gentle, but they find it difficult to adapt themselves to school, and to society; because their ego and pride has been over-inflated. They usually become addicted to flattery, looking for it in the most unlikely places and from the most unlikely people.
The Lord Jesus instructs us to be truthful and honest to one another. He said in Matthew 5:37, “But let your ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes,’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No.’ For whatever is more than these is from the evil one.” Watch out for flattery, lest you become a tool in the hand of the evil one!
PRAYER
Lord, please remove every form of falsehood from my heart and mind today. Help me never to engage anymore in the evil behavior of flattering others.
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