Listen to Solomon contrast the righteous and the wicked…
The mouth of a righteous man is a well of life: but violence covereth the mouth of the wicked.
(Proverbs 10:11)
When you hear a righteous person talk, you hear words of comfort, peace, encouragement, and “life.” Curiously, you might listen to a wicked person utter all the same words. The difference is the wicked man’s intentions are not sincere: Violence is concealed behind his words.
I don’t want people to be cynical or distrustful of others. I strongly believe in giving the benefit of the doubt. I think doing so is a loving Christian principle we all must uphold (1 Corinthians 13:7). That said, when you are burned by someone’s deceitful words and ulterior motives, and if that deceitful person does not repent, but keeps on living and acting that way, it would be foolish for anyone to keep on believing him. By his fruits you will know him, and if his fruits are untrue, then he should be regarded as a liar until he shows himself to be otherwise.
Not everyone who says nice things to you is a flatterer with ulterior motives, but some are, and we should beware of them. That sort of awareness is not cynicism, but wisdom.
~Matthew