The Biggest Scam of All Time

But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed.…Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. James 1:14,16

Wow! I just got another amazing email in my inbox! It’s from Elon Musk, informing me that I own $9 million in Tesla stock! The message advises me to take this matter seriously and reply promptly.

That’s following an earlier one from MacKenzie Scott Tuttle (ex-wife of Jeff Bezos, founder of Amazon) letting me know I’m a potential recipient of $4.5 million in a random giveaway from her philanthropy organization. Her email has also been joined by a letter from Susan Thompson Buffett, offering $1.5 million. I find it fascinating that Mrs. Warren Buffett, who passed away in 2004, is just now notifying me. She ends the letter nicely, though, hoping to “put a smile” on my face.

Along with official-looking emails from U.S. government offices, totaling more than $100 million in payouts, the word is that I’m going to be a very wealthy woman. Let’s move to California and join the Beverly Hillbillies! 

Actually, the only amazing thing about these silly stories is that someone somewhere is going to believe this stuff. That sobering thought, along with the nefarious nature of the email authors, keeps me from laughing out loud when I receive their messages. 

It’s very sad. I had a great-aunt who, while slipping into Alzheimer’s disease, believed the constant letters and calls she received from fraudsters. She waited all day in her living room when her big checks were reported to arrive, and she sent thousands of dollars to people in Canada who were supposed to make her millions in investments. Nothing ever came back. Her money was completely gone. 

Deception is nothing new. Even with all our modern cybersecurity measures, fraud and embezzlement continue to abound wherever money is found. One of the largest scams in recent years was the brainchild of Bernie Madoff, who “made off” with billions of dollars in what is reported as the largest Ponzi scheme in history, ripping off celebrities and prominent investors. 

In biblical history, Abraham half-lied to foreign rulers about Sarah, claiming her as his sister, to avoid being killed on account of her beauty. Jacob bilked Esau out of his birthright and then tricked his father Isaac into giving him Esau’s blessing…only to be deceived himself by his father-in-law Laban with a bride switch. The Gibeonites duped Joshua into granting them immunity by disguising themselves as travelers from a far-away land. And Judas Iscariot betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver. 

In any deception, the set-up is built on lies. Those who stand to gain at our expense are always going to make our benefits look very generous and appealing. 

Of course, the father of lies is our old nemesis, Satan, the perpetrator behind the biggest scam of all time—conning Eve into believing she could be as wise as God by eating the forbidden fruit. We all know how that ended. She took Adam down with her, and together they lost everything—their beautiful garden paradise, their pain-free existence, and ultimately their lives—all because the forbidden fruit sounded better than God’s plan.

The devil is still quite active today, and his schemes are getting trickier. Images that couldn’t be faked in the past are now commonplace and difficult to discern from reality, thanks to artificial intelligence. Deception is much more easily accomplished and believed. 

Friend, you and I face two battlefields. The first is to avoid being deceived, by anyone on earth or by the devil’s demons. They use earthly things to capture our hearts and turn us away from God. Moses could see that the Israelites were prone to imitate the nations around them, so he warned his people about the real outcome: “Take heed to yourselves, lest your heart be deceived, and you turn aside and serve other gods and worship them, lest the Lord’s anger be aroused against you, and He shut up the heavens so that there be no rain, and the land yield no produce, and you perish quickly from the good land which the Lord is giving you” (Deuteronomy 11:16-17). 

The second struggle is to preserve our integrity—to avoid becoming deceivers ourselves. It’s all too easy to tell little white lies that quickly grow into monster-sized dishonesty. Maybe we don’t envision robbing a bank, but padding our expense accounts and fudging our tax returns are just as deadly to our souls. 

Our weapons for both scenarios are identical. Pray and listen to the Holy Spirit when you find yourself in tempting situations. He will not give you true peace if you start to head down the wrong path. Ask for His guidance and wisdom to help you choose the right way. Put on God’s full armor…and add discernment to that list while you’re at it. 

Don’t kid yourself…we’re just as susceptible to getting scammed as Eve was. The only truth in life is found in Scripture, and there’s nothing in there about instant wealth, health, beauty, or power. Instead, we are told we’ll encounter suffering and persecution if we follow Jesus. Yet we’re also promised a bounty of His riches—love, joy, peace, and more.

Jesus Christ has the only true offer for the greatest treasure of all time, eternal life with Him. And that’s no scam!

Lord, I need Your help daily as I’m bombarded by attacks from Satan…his sneaky arrows lure me away from You with temptations of a better life. I praise You that You defeated every one of his offers while You were in the wilderness. Please guard my soul with Your armor, and grant me an abundance of discernment that I may avoid being deceived and avoid deceiving others. In Your name I pray, Amen.

Nancy C. Williams is a Christian wife/mom with a writing career spanning more than 40 years in business and journalism. Williams is the author of the novel To Love a Falcon and the devotional book A Crocus in the Desert: Devotions, Stories, and Prayers for Women Experiencing Infertility. Her blogs are featured on Crossmap.com and AriseDaily. To follow Nancy’s posts and news, go to her home page at NancyCWilliams.com and subscribe at the bottom. 

© Copyright 2026 Nancy C. Williams (text and photography). Unless otherwise noted, Scripture verses are taken from the New King James Version®, Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved. #temptation #scams #scamming #email #inbox #healthandwealth #berniemadoff #ponzischeme