Appeal to the Young
339
If the youth could only awake to deeply feel their need of strength
from God to resist the temptations of Satan, precious victories would
be theirs, and they would obtain a valuable experience in the Christian
warfare. How few of the young think of the exhortation of the inspired
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apostle Peter: “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil,
as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: whom
resist steadfast in the faith.” In the vision given to John he saw the
power of Satan over men and exclaimed: “Woe to the inhabiters of the
earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great
wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.”
The only safety for the young is in unceasing watchfulness and
humble prayer. They need not flatter themselves that they can be Chris-
tians without these. Satan conceals his temptations and his devices
under a cover of light, as when he approached Christ in the wilderness.
He was then in appearance as one of the heavenly angels. The adver-
sary of our souls will approach us as a heavenly guest, and the apostle
recommends sobriety and vigilance as our only safety. The young who
indulge in carelessness and levity, and who neglect Christian duties,
are continually falling under the temptations of the enemy, instead of
overcoming as Christ overcame.
The service of Christ is not drudgery to the fully consecrated soul.
Obedience to our Saviour does not detract from our happiness and
true pleasure in this life, but it has a refining, elevating power upon
our characters. The daily study of the precious words of life found in
the Bible strengthens the intellect and furnishes a knowledge of the
grand and glorious works of God in nature. Through the study of the
Scriptures we obtain a correct knowledge of how to live so as to enjoy
the greatest amount of unalloyed happiness. The Bible student is also
furnished with Scripture arguments so that he can meet the doubts
of unbelievers and remove them by the clear light of truth. Those
who have searched the Scriptures may ever be fortified against the
temptations of Satan; they may be thoroughly furnished to all good
works and prepared to give to every man that asketh them a reason of
the hope that is in them.
The impression is too frequently left upon minds that religion is
degrading and that it is a condescension for sinners to accept of the
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Bible standard as their rule of life. They think that its requirements
are unrefined, and that, in accepting it, they must relinquish all their