Quiet Talks by Samuel Dickey: Gordon, Samuel Dickey - Quiet Talks About the Tempter: 009. Our Ignorance of His Devices

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Quiet Talks by Samuel Dickey: Gordon, Samuel Dickey - Quiet Talks About the Tempter: 009. Our Ignorance of His Devices



TOPIC: Gordon, Samuel Dickey - Quiet Talks About the Tempter (Other Topics in this Collection)
SUBJECT: 009. Our Ignorance of His Devices

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Our Ignorance of His Devices

These simple talks about the tempter are to be wholly practical. We ought to know about our enemy if we are to resist him. I have no wish to go into any speculations, but only to bring such clear information from the old Book of God as shall make us stronger to resist temptation, and to lead a victorious, pure life, Paul said to his own generation of Christians about Satan, "we are not ignorant of his devices." Probably that was partly due to Paul's own faithful teaching, and to their acceptance of the simple teaching of the old Book. It certainly cannot be said to-day of any considerable number of professing Christians. There seems to be far more ignorance of his devices than knowledge.

And as a result prayer is often powerless; the simple faith that takes God at His word is reckoned remarkable because so rare; Christian lives are entangled with things that actually help Satan, though doubtless all unconsciously, surely, in most cases; and our minds are full of such hazy, beclouded ideas about the evil one that our activities and praying are terribly hampered.

It is a strange and striking characteristic of the Church to-day that people commonly do not believe in the personal existence of Satan, and freely say so. It is supposed to be rather a sign of mental strength to doubt his existence, and rather evidence of an old-fashioned childishness to believe in his being and in his power. And this seems to be felt even more than it is expressed, though it is freely enough expressed.

The change in this regard has been very radical within, say, the past hundred years or so. That is, in the eighteenth century, Satan swung in too far in people's consciousness. They remembered him but forgot to remember his Victor at the same time. Things were ascribed to Satan which could be traced to natural causes' and processes.

Now, we have swung clear to the other extreme. Doubt of his existence is freely and commonly expressed. One who knows his characteristics can easily detect his own cunning influence at work there. The very doubt of his existence becomes evidence of it. And he is so subtle that he is actually eager to have men doubt his existence for a while, if so be he can tighten his own grip.

It is of intensest interest to note, too, that this doubt exists only in Christian lands. It is only where the name of his Victor, and of his own terrific defeat, are so well known that such doubt is expressed. Surely his serpent-trail can be easily traced in this. Where his defeat is known, and so his own inherent weakness is known, he would have us doubt his existence, and so spike the guns of our resistance to him. Without doubt were he better known, he would be more heartily hated; I mean in practical ways hated, and fought and resisted, and utterly defeated all anew in the great name of his Victor.

It stands out In sharpest contrast with this that no such doubt is expressed or known in heathen lands. There he is known, and dreaded, and even slavishly worshipped, because of his power. His defeat is a thing unknown except where the Gospel has gone, and even there the knowledge is not full, nor practically effective, except in smaller part.