power and mercy of Christ, is given in the Scripture account of the
healing of the demoniacs at Gadara. Those wretched maniacs, spurning all
restraint, writhing, foaming, raging, were filling the air with their
cries, doing violence to themselves, and endangering all who should
approach them. Their bleeding and disfigured bodies and distracted minds
presented a spectacle well-pleasing to the prince of darkness. One of the
demons controlling the sufferers declared, “My name is Legion: for we are
many.”(908) In the Roman army a legion consisted of from three to five
thousand men. Satan’s hosts also are marshaled in companies, and the
single company to which these demons belonged numbered no less than a
legion.
At the command of Jesus, the evil spirits departed from their victims,
leaving them calmly sitting at the Saviour’s feet, subdued, intelligent,
and gentle. But the demons were permitted to sweep a herd of swine into
the sea; and to the dwellers of Gadara the loss of these outweighed the
blessings which Christ had bestowed, and the divine Healer was entreated
to depart. This was the result which Satan designed to secure. By casting
the blame of their loss upon Jesus, he aroused the selfish fears of the
people, and prevented them from listening to His words. Satan is
constantly accusing Christians as the cause of loss, misfortune, and
suffering, instead of allowing the reproach to fall where it belongs,—upon
himself and his agents.
But the purposes of Christ were not thwarted. He allowed the evil spirits
to destroy the herd of swine as a rebuke to those Jews who were raising
these unclean beasts for the sake of gain. Had not Christ restrained the
demons, they would have plunged into the sea, not only the swine, but also
their keepers and owners. The preservation of both the keepers and the
owners was due alone to His power, mercifully exercised for their
deliverance. Furthermore, this event was permitted to take place that the
disciples might witness the cruel power of Satan upon both man and beast.
The Saviour desired His followers to have a knowledge of the foe whom they
were to meet, that they might not be deceived and overcome by his devices.
It was also His will that the people of that region should behold His
power to break the bondage of Satan and release his captives. And though
Jesus Himself departed, the men so marvelously delivered, remained to
declare the mercy of their Benefactor.
Other instances of a similar nature are recorded in the Scriptures. The
daughter of the Syro-Phenician woman was grievously vexed with a devil,
whom Jesus cast out by His word.(909) One “possessed with a devil, blind,
and dumb;”(910) a youth who had a dumb spirit, that ofttimes “cast him
into the fire, and into the waters, to destroy him;”(911) the maniac who,
tormented by “a spirit of an unclean devil,”(912) disturbed the Sabbath
quiet of the synagogue at Capernaum,—all were healed by the compassionate
Saviour. In nearly every instance, Christ addressed the demon as an
intelligent entity, commanding him to come out of his victim and to
torment him no more. The worshipers at Capernaum, beholding His mighty
power, “were all amazed, and spake among themselves, saying, ‘What a word
is this! for with authority and power He commandeth the unclean spirits,
and they come out.’ ”(913)
Those possessed with devils are usually represented as being in a
condition of great suffering; yet there were exceptions to this rule. For
the sake of obtaining supernatural power, some welcomed the satanic
influence. These of course had no conflict with the demons. Of this class
were those who possessed the spirit of divination,—Simon Magus, Elymas the
sorcerer, and the damsel who followed Paul and Silas at Philippi.
None are in greater danger from the influence of evil spirits than those
who, notwithstanding the direct and ample testimony of the Scriptures,
deny the existence and agency of the devil and his angels. So long as we
are ignorant of their wiles, they have almost inconceivable advantage;
many give heed to their suggestions while they suppose themselves to be
following the dictates of their own wisdom. This is why, as we approach
the close of time, when Satan is to work with greatest power to deceive
and destroy, he spreads everywhere the belief that he does not exist. It
is his policy to conceal himself and his manner of working.
There is nothing that the great deceiver fears so much as that we shall
become acquainted with his devices. The better to disguise his real
character and purposes, he has caused himself to be so represented as to
excite no stronger emotion than ridicule or contempt. He is well pleased
to be painted as a ludicrous or loathsome object, misshapen, half animal
and half human. He is pleased to hear his name used in sport and mockery
by those who think themselves intelligent and well informed.
It is because he has masked himself with consummate skill that the
question is so widely asked, “Does such a being really exist?” It is an
evidence of his success that theories giving the lie to the plainest
testimony of the Scriptures are so generally received in the religious
world. And it is because Satan can most readily control the minds of those
who are unconscious of his influence, that the word of God gives us so
many examples of his malignant work, unveiling before us his secret
forces, and thus placing us on our guard against his assaults.
The power and malice of Satan and his host might justly alarm us, were it
not that we may find shelter and deliverance in the superior power of our
Redeemer. We carefully secure our houses with bolts and locks to protect
our property and our lives from evil men; but we seldom think of the evil
angels who are constantly seeking access to us, and against whose attacks
we have, in our own strength, no method of defense. If permitted, they can
distract our minds, disorder and torment our bodies, destroy our
possessions and our lives. Their only delight is in misery and
destruction. Fearful is the condition of those who resist the divine
claims, and yield to Satan’s temptations, until God gives them up to the
control of evil spirits. But those who follow Christ are ever safe under
His watchcare. Angels that excel in strength are sent from heaven to
protect them. The wicked one cannot break through the guard which God has
stationed about His people.
32. SNARES OF SATAN.
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The great controversy between Christ and Satan, that has been carried
forward for nearly six thousand years, is soon to close; and the wicked
one redoubles his efforts to defeat the work of Christ in man’s behalf,
and to fasten souls in his snares. To hold the people in darkness and
impenitence till the Saviour’s mediation is ended, and there is no longer
a sacrifice for sin, is the object which he seeks to accomplish.
When there is no special effort made to resist his power, when
indifference prevails in the church and the world, Satan is not concerned;
for he is in no danger of losing those whom he is leading captive at his
will. But when the attention is called to eternal things, and souls are
inquiring, “What must I do to be saved?” he is on the ground, seeking to
match his power against the power of Christ, and to counteract the
influence of the Holy Spirit.
The Scriptures declare that upon one occasion, when the angels of God came
to present themselves before the Lord, Satan came also among them,(914)
not to bow before the Eternal King, but to further his own malicious
designs against the righteous. With the same object he is in attendance
when men assemble for the worship of God. Though hidden from sight, he is
working with all diligence to control the minds of the worshipers. Like a
skilful general, he lays his plans beforehand. As he sees the messenger of
God searching the Scriptures, he takes note of the subject to be presented
to the people. Then he employs all his cunning and shrewdness so to
control circumstances that the message may not reach those whom he is
deceiving on that very point. The one who most needs the warning will be
urged into some business transaction which requires his presence, or will
by some other means be prevented from hearing the words that might prove
to him a savor of life unto life.
Again, Satan sees the Lord’s servants burdened because of the spiritual
darkness that enshrouds the people. He hears their earnest prayers for
divine grace and power to break the spell of indifference, carelessness,
and indolence. Then with renewed zeal he plies his arts. He tempts men to
the indulgence of appetite or to some other form of self-gratification,
and thus benumbs their sensibilities, so that they fail to hear the very
things which they most need to learn.
Satan well knows that all whom he can lead to neglect prayer and the
searching of the Scriptures, will be overcome by his attacks. Therefore he
invents every possible device to engross the mind. There has ever been a
class professing godliness, who, instead of following on to know the
truth, make it their religion to seek some fault of character or error of
faith in those with whom they do not agree. Such are Satan’s right-hand
helpers. Accusers of the brethren are not few; and they are always active
when God is at work, and His servants are rendering Him true homage. They
will put a false coloring upon the words and acts of those who love and
obey the truth. They will represent the most earnest, zealous,
self-denying servants of Christ as deceived or deceivers. It is their work
to misrepresent the motives of every true and noble deed, to circulate
insinuations, and arouse suspicion in the minds of the inexperienced. In
every conceivable manner they will seek to cause that which is pure and
righteous to be regarded as foul and deceptive.
But none need be deceived concerning them. It may be readily seen whose
children they are, whose example they follow, and whose work they do. “Ye
shall know them by their fruits.”(915) Their course resembles that of
Satan, the envenomed slanderer, “the accuser of our brethren.”(916)
The great deceiver has many agents ready to present any and every kind of
error to ensnare souls,—heresies prepared to suit the varied tastes and
capacities of those whom he would ruin. It is his plan to bring into the
church insincere, unregenerate elements that will encourage doubt and
unbelief, and hinder all who desire to see the work of God advance, and to
advance with it. Many who have no real faith in God or in His word, assent
to some principles of truth, and pass as Christians; and thus they are
enabled to introduce their errors as scriptural doctrines.
The position that it is of no consequence what men believe, is one of
Satan’s most successful deceptions. He knows that the truth, received in
the love of it, sanctifies the soul of the receiver; therefore he is
constantly seeking to substitute false theories, fables, another gospel.
From the beginning, the servants of God have contended against false
teachers, not merely as vicious men, but as inculcators of falsehoods that
were fatal to the soul. Elijah, Jeremiah, Paul, firmly and fearlessly
opposed those who were turning men from the word of God. That liberality
which regards a correct religious faith as unimportant, found no favor
with these holy defenders of the truth.
The vague and fanciful interpretations of Scripture, and the many
conflicting theories concerning religious faith, that are found in the
Christian world, are the work of our great adversary, to confuse minds so
that they shall not discern the truth. And the discord and division which
exist among the churches of Christendom are in a great measure due to the
prevailing custom of wresting the Scriptures to support a favorite theory.
Instead of carefully studying God’s word with humility of heart to obtain
a knowledge of His will, many seek only to discover something odd or
original.
In order to sustain erroneous doctrines or unchristian practices, some
will seize upon passages of Scripture separated from the context, perhaps
quoting half of a single verse as proving their point, when the remaining
portion would show the meaning to be quite the opposite. With the cunning
of the serpent, they entrench themselves behind disconnected utterances
construed to suit their carnal desires. Thus do many wilfully pervert the
word of God. Others, who have an active imagination, seize upon the
figures and symbols of Holy Writ, interpret them to suit their fancy, with
little regard to the testimony of Scripture as its own interpreter, and
then they present their vagaries as the teachings of the Bible.
Whenever the study of the Scriptures is entered upon without a prayerful,
humble, teachable spirit, the plainest and simplest as well as the most
difficult passages will be wrested from their true meaning. The papal
leaders select such portions of Scripture as best serve their purpose,
interpret to suit themselves, and then present these to the people, while
they deny them the privilege of studying the Bible and understanding its
sacred truths for themselves. The whole Bible should be given to the
people just as it reads. It would be better for them not to have Bible
instruction at all, than to have the teaching of the Scriptures thus
grossly misrepresented.
The Bible was designed to be a guide to all who wish to become acquainted
with the will of their Maker. God gave to men the sure word of prophecy;
angels and even Christ Himself came to make known to Daniel and John the
things that must shortly come to pass. Those important matters that
concern our salvation were not left involved in mystery. They were not
revealed in such a way as to perplex and mislead the honest seeker after
truth. Said the Lord by the prophet Habakkuk, “Write the vision, and make
it plain, ... that he may run that readeth it.”(917) The word of God is
plain to all who study it with a prayerful heart. Every truly honest soul
will come to the light of truth. “Light is sown for the righteous.”(918)
And no church can advance in holiness unless its members are earnestly
seeking for truth as for hid treasure.
By the cry, Liberality, men are blinded to the devices of their adversary,
while he is all the time working steadily for the accomplishment of his
object. As he succeeds in supplanting the Bible by human speculations, the
law of God is set aside, and the churches are under the bondage of sin
while they claim to be free.
To many, scientific research has become a curse. God has permitted a flood
of light to be poured upon the world in discoveries in science and art;
but even the greatest minds, if not guided by the word of God in their
research, become bewildered in their attempts to investigate the relations
of science and revelation.
Human knowledge of both material and spiritual things is partial and
imperfect; therefore many are unable to harmonize their views of science
with Scripture statements. Many accept mere theories and speculations as
scientific facts, and they think that God’s word is to be tested by the
teachings of “science falsely so called.”(919) The Creator and His works
are beyond their comprehension; and because they cannot explain these by
natural laws, Bible history is regarded as unreliable. Those who doubt the
reliability of the records of the Old and New Testaments, too often go a
step farther, and doubt the existence of God, and attribute infinite power
to nature. Having let go their anchor, they are left to beat about upon
the rocks of infidelity.
Thus many err from the faith, and are seduced by the devil. Men have
endeavored to be wiser than their Creator; human philosophy has attempted
to search out and explain mysteries which will never be revealed, through
the eternal ages. If men would but search and understand what God has made
known of Himself and His purposes, they would obtain such a view of the
glory, majesty, and power of Jehovah, that they would realize their own
littleness, and would be content with that which has been revealed for
themselves and their children.
It is a masterpiece of Satan’s deceptions to keep the minds of men
searching and conjecturing in regard to that which God has not made known,
and which He does not intend that we shall understand. It was thus that
Lucifer lost his place in heaven. He became dissatisfied because all the
secrets of God’s purposes were not confided to him, and he entirely
disregarded that which was revealed concerning his own work in the lofty
position assigned him. By arousing the same discontent in the angels under
his command, he caused their fall. Now he seeks to imbue the minds of men
with the same spirit, and to lead them also to disregard the direct
commands of God.
Those who are unwilling to accept the plain, cutting truths of the Bible,
are continually seeking for pleasing fables that will quiet the
conscience. The less spiritual, self-denying, and humiliating the
doctrines presented, the greater the favor with which they are received.
These persons degrade the intellectual powers to serve their carnal
desires. Too wise in their own conceit to search the Scriptures with
contrition of soul and earnest prayer for divine guidance, they have no
shield from delusion. Satan is ready to supply the heart’s desire, and he
palms off his deceptions in the place of truth. It was thus that the
papacy gained its power over the minds of men; and by rejection of the
truth because it involves a cross, Protestants are following the same
path. All who neglect the word of God to study convenience and policy,
that they may not be at variance with the world, will be left to receive
damnable heresy for religious truth. Every conceivable form of error will
be accepted by those who wilfully reject the truth. He who looks with
horror upon one deception will readily receive another. The apostle Paul,
speaking of a class who “received not the love of the truth, that they
might be saved,” declares, “For this cause God shall send them strong
delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned
who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”(920)
With such a warning before us, it behooves us to be on our guard as to
what doctrines we receive.
Among the most successful agencies of the great deceiver are the delusive
teachings and lying wonders of Spiritualism. Disguised as an angel of
light, he spreads his nets where least suspected. If men would but study
the Book of God with earnest prayer that they might understand it, they
would not be left in darkness to receive false doctrines. But as they
reject the truth, they fall a prey to deception.
Another dangerous error is the doctrine that denies the deity of Christ,
claiming that He had no existence before His advent to this world. This
theory is received with favor by a large class who profess to believe the
Bible; yet it directly contradicts the plainest statements of our Saviour
concerning His relationship with the Father, His divine character, and His
pre-existence. It cannot be entertained without the most unwarranted
wresting of the Scriptures. It not only lowers man’s conceptions of the
work of redemption, but undermines faith in the Bible as a revelation from
God. While this renders it the more dangerous, it makes it also harder to
meet. If men reject the testimony of the inspired Scriptures concerning
the deity of Christ, it is in vain to argue the point with them; for no
argument, however conclusive, could convince them. “The natural man
receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness
unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually
discerned.”(921) None who hold this error can have a true conception of
the character or the mission of Christ, or of the great plan of God for
man’s redemption.
Still another subtle and mischievous error is the fast-spreading belief
that Satan has no existence as a personal being; that the name is used in
Scripture merely to represent men’s evil thoughts and desires.
The teaching so widely echoed from popular pulpits, that the second advent
of Christ is His coming to each individual at death, is a device to divert
the minds of men from His personal coming in the clouds of heaven. For
years Satan has thus been saying, “Behold, He is in the secret
chambers,”(922) and many souls have been lost by accepting this deception.
Again, worldly wisdom teaches that prayer is not essential. Men of science
claim that there can be no real answer to prayer; that this would be a
violation of law, a miracle, and that miracles have no existence. The
universe, say they, is governed by fixed laws, and God Himself does
nothing contrary to these laws. Thus they represent God as bound by His
own laws—as if the operation of divine laws could exclude divine freedom.
Such teaching is opposed to the testimony of the Scriptures. Were not
miracles wrought by Christ and His apostles? The same compassionate
Saviour lives to-day, and He is as willing to listen to the prayer of
faith as when He walked visibly among men. The natural co-operates with
the supernatural. It is a part of God’s plan to grant us, in answer to the
prayer of faith, that which He would not bestow did we not thus ask.
Innumerable are the erroneous doctrines and fanciful ideas that are
obtaining among the churches of Christendom. It is impossible to estimate
the evil results of removing one of the landmarks fixed by the word of
God. Few who venture to do this stop with the rejection of a single truth.
The majority continue to set aside one after another of the principles of
truth, until they become actual infidels.
The errors of popular theology have driven many a soul to skepticism, who
might otherwise have been a believer in the Scriptures. It is impossible
for him to accept doctrines which outrage his sense of justice, mercy, and
benevolence: and since these are represented as the teaching of the Bible,
he refuses to receive it as the word of God.
And this is the object which Satan seeks to accomplish. There is nothing
that he desires more than to destroy confidence in God and in His word.
Satan stands at the head of the great army of doubters, and he works to
the utmost of his power to beguile souls into his ranks. It is becoming
fashionable to doubt. There is a large class by whom the word of God is
looked upon with distrust for the same reason as was its Author,—because
it reproves and condemns sin. Those who are unwilling to obey its
requirements, endeavor to overthrow its authority. They read the Bible, or
listen to its teachings as presented from the sacred desk, merely to find
fault with the Scriptures or with the sermon. Not a few become infidels in
order to justify or excuse themselves in neglect of duty. Others adopt
skeptical principles from pride and indolence. Too ease-loving to
distinguish themselves by accomplishing anything worthy of honor, which
requires effort and self-denial, they aim to secure a reputation for
superior wisdom by criticising the Bible. There is much which the finite
mind, unenlightened by divine wisdom, is powerless to comprehend; and thus
they find occasion to criticise. There are many who seem to feel that it
is a virtue to stand on the side of unbelief, skepticism, and infidelity.
But underneath an appearance of candor, it will be found that such persons
are actuated by self-confidence and pride. Many delight in finding
something in the Scriptures to puzzle the minds of others. Some at first
criticise and reason on the wrong side, from a mere love of controversy.
They do not realize that they are thus entangling themselves in the snare
of the fowler. But having openly expressed unbelief, they feel that they
must maintain their position. Thus they unite with the ungodly, and close
to themselves the gates of Paradise.
God has given in His word sufficient evidence of its divine character. The
great truths which concern our redemption are clearly presented. By the
aid of the Holy Spirit, which is promised to all who seek it in sincerity,
every man may understand these truths for himself. God has granted to men
a strong foundation upon which to rest their faith.