A spirit of delusion that is common in all cultists. I’ve seen it many times.
Yet, as myself and many others out there know God is a rewarder of all those who diligently seek Him and He promises He WILL be found when we search for Him with all our heart. There has always been deception and Scripture warns us that the devil is out there as a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. I've heard that a roaring lion in a hunt is usually the older toothless ones and they scare the prey towards the lions that actually do the kill. Satan can NEVER snatch a soul away from God if the person is seeking the truth, but he is more than happy to continue to lead them astray. Those who reject the truth over and over again have their consciences scarred to the point that they can no longer feel their need to run away.
I wholeheartedly believe that even people bound up in cults and false religions CAN be freed when they sincerely want to know the truth and let go of their pride and come to Christ like a little child - it happened to me. Religions that teach man must deserve, merit or work for their salvation have the strongest hold on prideful people - because they are convinced of their own goodness. God will not force anyone to leave their religion but the Holy Spirit DOES soften the hearts of anyone who humbly turns to Jesus Christ and they will receive His gift of eternal life through faith because of the grace of God. Those who stubbornly hold to their works to merit their own justification will one day come to realize they cannot save themselves but it may come too late. We should pray for them to have their eyes and hearts opened to the urging of the Holy Spirit so they can be saved. It is why we here participate on these threads. We never know who might be reading. It is a mission field.