Want More? Satan's Playbook
Bonus Post: Beware, Satan doesn't play fair
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President Ezra Taft Benson:
“The Book of Mormon brings men to Christ
through two basic means. First, it tells in a plain manner of Christ and his
gospel. It testifies of his divinity and of the necessity for a Redeemer. . .
.“ Second, the Book of Mormon
exposes the enemies of Christ. It confounds false doctrines and
lays down contention. . . . It fortifies the humble followers of Christ against
the evil designs, strategies, and doctrines of the devil in our day.” (in Conference
Report, Apr. 1975, 94; or Ensign,
May
1975, 64 ;
italics added).
2
Nephi 28:7-9 THERE IS NO
EASY FIX FOR SIN/NOT JUST A FEW STRIPES
Henry B.
Eyring, To Draw Closer to God: A
Collection of Discourses, p.64
It is a bad
estimate of your personal costs to believe that a choice to commit sin is made
so free by the power of the Atonement that we can have painless forgiveness. President Spencer W. Kimball said: To every
forgiveness there is a condition. The plaster must be as wide as the sore. The
fasting, the prayers, the humility must be equal to or greater than the sin.
There must be a broken heart and a contrite spirit. There must be
"sackcloth and ashes." There must be tears and genuine change of
heart. There must be conviction of the sin, abandonment of the evil, confession
of the error to properly constituted authorities of the Lord. There must be
restitution and a confirmed, determined change of pace, direction and
destination. Conditions must be controlled and companionship corrected or
changed. There must be a washing of robes to get them white and there must be a
new consecration and devotion to the living of all of the laws of God. In
short, there must be an overcoming of self, of sin, and of the world. (The
Miracle of Forgiveness, p. 353.) That
is not a description of an easy fix justifying a purposely flawed life. That is
not a description of a "few stripes." How much better to choose to be
good and to do it early, a long way upstream from the terrible effects of
sin. Upon hearing President Kimball's
description of the effort repentance requires, those who are now in serious sin
will have a thought delivered to their minds that goes something like this:
"Well, if it is that difficult to repent, I might as well go on in sin.
Later, when I need forgiveness, I'll just go through that once. That is so unwise. Let me tell you why.
First, people who postpone repentance may run out of time. And second, they
will find more misery in more sin, not the happiness they hope for but can't
find. Remember the warning from Samuel the Lamanite: "But behold, your
days of probation are past; ye have procrastinated the day of your salvation
until it is everlastingly too late, and your destruction is made sure; yea, for
ye have sought all the days of your lives for that which ye could not obtain;
and ye have sought for happiness in doing iniquity, which thing is contrary to
the nature of that righteousness which is in our great and Eternal Head."
(Helaman 13:38.)
2 Nephi
28:8 “LIE A
LITTLE”. President Gordon B. Hinckley (“Building Your Tabernacle,” Ensign, Nov.
1992, 52).
“Nephi so describes the people of his day, as he also
describes so many of our day. How easy it is for us to say, ‘We believe in
being honest, true, chaste, benevolent.’ (A of F 1:13.) But how difficult for so many
to resist the temptation to lie a little, cheat a little, steal a little, bear
false witness in speaking in gossipy words about others. Rise above it. … Be
strong in the simple virtue of honesty.”
2 Nephi 28:8 “GOD WILL BEAT US WITH A FEW STRIPES, AND AT
LAST WE SHALL BE SAVED” President James E. Faust
“[One deception] is
what some erroneously call ‘premeditated repentance.’ There is no such doctrine
in this Church. This may sound subtly appealing, but it is in fact pernicious
and a false concept. Its objective is to persuade us that we can consciously
and deliberately transgress with the forethought that quick repentance will
permit us to enjoy the full blessings of the gospel, such as temple blessings
or a mission. True repentance can be a long, painful process. This foolish
doctrine was foreseen by Nephi:
“‘And there shall
also be many which shall say: Eat, drink, and be merry; nevertheless, fear
God—he will justify in committing a little sin; … there is no harm in this; and
do all these things, for tomorrow we die; and if it so be that we are guilty,
God will beat us with a few stripes, and at last we shall be saved in the
kingdom of God’ [2 Nephi 28:8].
“… All of our
covenants must not only be received through ordinances but to be eternal must
also be sealed by the Holy Spirit of Promise. This divine stamp of approval is
placed upon our ordinances and covenants only through faithfulness. The false
idea of so-called premeditated repentance involves an element of deception, but
the Holy Spirit of Promise cannot be deceived” (“The Enemy
Within,” Ensign, Nov. 2000, 46).
2
Nephi 28:7-9 - SATAN HIDES THE AWFULNESS OF SIN--Harold B. Lee, Decisions for Successful Living, p. 88
Let me impress upon you that one never can hold quite
the same relation to a law of God which he has transgressed, as if one has
lived in conformity with its requirements...He may and will be forgiven if he
repents; the blood of Christ will make him free, and will wash him clean though
'his sins be as scarlet;' but all this will not return to him any loss
sustained, nor place him on an equal footing with his neighbor who has kept the
commandments of a better law. Nor will it place him in a position where he
would have been, had he not committed wrong.
He has lost something which can never be regained, notwithstanding the
perfection, the loving mercy, the kindness and forgiveness of the Lord God. (Joseph F. Smith, Gospel Doctrine, p.
374) Many...beautiful human butterflies
winged for heavenly flight have fallen with wings singed and badly seared
because of their curiosity about the forbidden.
The more I see of life, the more I am convinced that we must impress you
young people with the awfulness of sin rather than to content ourselves with
merely teaching the way of repentance.
2
Ne, 28:7-8 EAT, DRINK, & BE MERRY Dallin H. Oaks (BYU Fireside, 8-5-90)
"The idea that one is better off after one has sinned
and repented is a devilish lie of the adversary. Does anyone here think that it
is better to learn first-hand that a certain blow will break a bone, or a
certain mixture of chemicals will explode and sear off our skin? Are we better
off after we have sustained and then been healed from such injuries? I believe
we all can see that it is better to heed the warnings of wise persons who know
the effects on our bodies . . . [as well as our spirits]."
2 Nephi 28:12-15 WO,
WO, WO BE UNTO THEM…FOR THEY SHALL BE THRUST DOWN TO HELL
2 Ne. 28:19-22 THE CAREFUL CHAINS OF SATAN Ezra Taft
Benson (A Nation Asleep, p. 44)
"We live in a day of slick, quiet, and clever sins."
Richard C. Edgley (Ensign, Nov. 1994, p. 40)
"Every transgression, regardless of how minor, makes us more
susceptible to Satan's influence the next time he tempts us. Satan
takes us an inch at a time, deceiving us as to the consequences of so-called
minor sins until he captures us in major transgressions. Nephi describes this
technique as one of pacifying, lulling, and flattering us away until Satan `grasps
[us] with his awful chains, from whence there is no deliverance."'
2 Ne. 28:21, 24-25 ALL IS WELL IN ZION Spencer W
Kimball (Miracle of Forgiveness, pp. 211-212)
"We
have discussed elsewhere that other class of people who are basically unrepentant because they are not doing the
commandments. They are Church members who are steeped in lethargy. They neither
drink nor commit the sexual
sins. They do not gamble nor rob nor kill. They are good citizens and splendid neighbors, but spiritually speaking
they seem to be in a long, deep sleep. They are doing nothing seriously wrong
except in their failures to do the right things to earn their exaltation."
2 Nephi 28:21, 24-25
Pres. Henry B. Eyring, Gen. Conference October 2009
Yet all is not perfect in Zion. Not all
of the youth choose to prepare. That choice must be their own. They are
responsible for themselves. That is the Lord’s way in His loving plan. But many
young men have little or no support from those who could help as they prepare.
Those of us who can help will be held accountable by the Lord. A father who
neglects or interferes with a son’s development of faith or his ability to
follow inspiration will someday know sorrow. That will be true for anyone
placed in a position to help these young men choose wisely and well in their
days in the preparatory priesthood.
2 Nephi 28:19-20 STIR THEM UP
TO ANGER Pres. Monson Conference Oct. 2009, Priesthood Session
By the time they graduated and returned
to their home state, they were expecting their first child and the husband had
employment in his chosen field. The wife gave birth to a baby boy. Life was
good.
When their son was about 18 months old,
they decided to take a short vacation to visit family members who lived a few
hundred miles away. This was at a time when car seats for children and seat
belts for adults were scarcely heard of, let alone used. The three members of
the family all rode in the front seat with the toddler in the middle.
Sometime during the trip, the husband
and wife had a disagreement. After all these years, I cannot recall what caused
it. But I do remember that their argument escalated and became so heated that
they were eventually yelling at one another. Understandably, this caused their
young son to begin crying, which the husband said only added to his anger.
Losing total control of his temper, he picked up a toy the child had dropped on
the seat and flung it in the direction of his wife.
He missed hitting his wife. Instead,
the toy struck their son, with the result that he was brain damaged and would
be handicapped for the rest of his life…To be angry is to yield to the
influence of Satan. No one can make us angry. It is our choice. If we desire to
have a proper spirit with us at all times, we must choose to refrain from
becoming angry. I testify that such is possible.
Anger, Satan’s tool, is destructive in
so many ways… My brethren, we are all susceptible to those feelings which, if
left unchecked, can lead to anger. We experience displeasure or irritation or
antagonism, and if we so choose, we lose our temper and become angry with
others. Ironically, those others are often members of our own families—the
people we really love the most.
2
Ne. 28:22 THE DEVIL WHISPERETH
IN THEIR EARS James E. Faust (Ensign, Nov. 1987, p. 34)
"Some of Satan's most appealing lines are `Everyone
does it'; `If it doesn't hurt anybody else, it's
all right'; `If you feel all right about it, it's OK';
or `It's the in
thing to do.' These subtle
...[whisperings] make Satan the ... master deceiver. . . . Nephi has given to
us the pattern or formula by which Satan operates."
2
Nephi 28:21 LULL THEM AWAY Thomas S. Monson, “Constant
Truths for Changing Times,” Liahona, May 2005, 19–22
In this challenging world, the youth of
the Church are the very best ever. The faith, the service, and the actions of
our members are praiseworthy. We are a prayerful and faith-filled people, ever
striving to be decent and honest. We take care of each other. We try to show
love to our neighbors..However, lest we become complacent, may I
quote from 2 Nephi in the Book of Mormon:“At that day shall [the
devil] … lull them away into carnal security, that they will say: All is well
in Zion; yea, Zion prospereth, all is well—and thus the devil cheateth their
souls.” Someone has said that our complacency tree has many
branches, and each spring more buds come into bloom. We cannot
afford to be complacent. We live in perilous times; the signs are all around
us. We are acutely aware of the negative influences in our society that stalk
traditional families. At times television and movies portray worldly and
immoral heroes and heroines and attempt to hold up as role models some actors
and actresses whose lives are anything but exemplary. Why should we follow a
blind guide? Radios blare forth much denigrating music with blatant lyrics,
dangerous invitations, and descriptions of almost every type of evil
imaginable. We, as members of The Church of Jesus Christ of
Latter-day Saints, must stand up to the dangers which surround us and our
families.
2
Nephi 28:26-29 WE NEED NO MORE OF THE WORD OF GOD, FOR WE
HAVE ENOUGH James E. Faust (Ensign May 1980, 13)
“Does God love us less than those led by
the ancient prophets? Do we need His guidance and instruction less? Reason
suggests that this cannot be. Does He not care? Has He lost His voice? Has He
gone on a permanent vacation? Does He sleep?” The unreasonableness of each of
these proposals is self-evident.”
Spiritual
Crocodiles: http://www.lds.org/media-library/video/2010-06-13-spiritual-crocodiles