Jesus Gained the Victory for Us, July 31

The name of the Lord is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe. Proverbs 18:10. There was never a time when Christian men and women, in all walks of life, were in so great need of clear spiritual eyesight as now. It is not safe to lose sight of Christ for one moment. His followers must pray and believe and love Him fervently.... Satan demanded of Christ a miracle as a sign of His divinity. But that which is greater than all miracles, a firm reliance upon a “Thus saith the Lord,” was a sign that could not be controverted. So long as Christ held to this position, the tempter could gain no advantage. It was in the time of greatest weakness that Christ was assailed by the fiercest temptations. Thus Satan thought to prevail. By this policy he had gained the victory over both men and women. When strength had failed and the willpower weakened, and faith ceased to repose in God, then those who had stood long and valiantly for the right were overcome. Moses was wearied with the forty years’ wandering of Israel, when for the moment his faith let go its hold upon Infinite Power. He failed just upon the borders of the Promised Land. So with Elijah, who had stood undaunted before King Ahab; who had faced the whole nation of Israel with the four hundred fifty prophets of Baal at their head. After that terrible day upon Carmel when the false prophets had been slain and the people had declared their allegiance to God, Elijah fled for his life before the threats of idolatrous Jezebel.... Whenever one is encompassed with clouds, perplexed by circumstances, or afflicted by poverty or distress, Satan is at hand to tempt and annoy. He attacks our weak points of character. He seeks to shake our confidence in God, who suffers such a condition of things to exist. We are tempted to distrust God, to question His love.... Christ declared to the tempter, “Get thee behind me, Satan.” ... So we may resist temptation and force Satan to depart from us. Jesus gained the victory through submission and faith in God, and by the apostle He says to us, “Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” We cannot save ourselves from the tempter's power; he has conquered humanity, and when we try to stand in our own strength, we shall become a prey to his devices; but “the name of the Lord is a strong tower: the righteous runneth into it, and is safe.” Satan trembles and flees before the weakest soul who finds refuge in that mighty name.—Manuscript 15, 1908.

Christ Knows Just How to Help Us Overcome, July 30

Thou shalt fear the Lord thy God, and serve him. Deuteronomy 6:13. We should not present our petitions to God to prove whether He will fulfill His word, but because He will fulfill it; not to prove that He loves us, but because He loves us. “Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain ... and saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.” This was Satan's crowning effort. Into this effort he threw all his beguiling power. It was the charm of the serpent. He exerted the power of his fascination upon Christ, striving to make Him yield His will to him. In His weakness Christ laid hold of God. Divinity flashed through humanity. Christ stood revealed as the Commander of heaven, and His words were the words of one who has all power. “Get thee behind me, Satan,” He said, “for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.” Satan had questioned whether Jesus was the Son of God. In his summary dismissal he had proof that he could not gainsay. He had no power to resist the command. Writhing with humiliation and rage, he was forced to withdraw from the presence of the world's Redeemer. Christ's victory was as complete as had been the failure of Adam. Christ knew of the long years of conflict in the future between human beings and their subtle foe. He is the refuge of all who, beset by temptation, call upon Him. Temptation and trial will come to us all, but we need never be worsted by the enemy. Our Saviour has conquered in our behalf. Satan is not invincible. Day by day he meets those who are on trial, striving by his wiles to gain the mastery over them. His accusing power is great, and it is in this line that he wins more victories than in any other. Christ was tempted, that He might know how to help every soul that should afterward be tempted. Temptation is not sin; the sin lies in yielding. To the soul who trusts in Jesus, temptation means victory and greater strength. Christ is ready to pardon all who come to Him confessing their sins. To the tried, struggling soul is spoken the word “Let him take hold of my strength, that he may make peace with me; and he shall make peace with me.” Thank God, we have a high priest who is touched with the feelings of our infirmities, for He was in all points tempted as we are.—Manuscript 113, 1902.

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Better to Suffer Than to Yield to Temptation, July 29

He humbled you ... in order to make you understand that one does not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord. Deuteronomy 8:3, NRSV. The duel between Christ and Satan was fought in the wilderness, Christ with apparently not a friend to aid Him. Satan was subtle; falsehood is his stock in trade. With all the power that he possessed he tried to overcome the humanity of Christ.... Satan charmed the first Adam by his sophistry, just as he charms men and women today, leading them to believe a lie. Adam did not reach above his humanity for divine power; he believed the words of Satan. But the second Adam was not to become the enemy's bond slave. Adam had the advantage over Christ in that, when he was assailed by the tempter, none of the effects of sin were upon him. He stood in the strength of perfect manhood, possessing the full vigor of mind and body. He was surrounded with the glories of Eden and was in daily communion with heavenly beings. It was not thus with Jesus when He entered the wilderness to cope with Satan.... Every device that the enemy could suggest was brought against Him. It was when Christ was in a weakened condition, after His long fast of forty days, that the wisest of the fallen angels used the most enticing words at his command in an effort to compel the mind of Christ to yield to his mind.... “If thou be the Son of God,” he said, “show thy power by relieving thyself of this pressing hunger.”“Command that these stones be made bread.” ... When Christ said to Satan, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God,” He repeated the words that, more than fourteen hundred years before, He had spoken to Israel. [Deuteronomy 8:3, quoted]. In the wilderness, when all means of sustenance failed, God sent His people manna from heaven; and a sufficient and constant supply was given. This provision was to teach them that while they trusted in God and walked in His ways, He would not forsake them. The Saviour now practiced the lesson He had taught to Israel. By the word of God succor had been given to the Hebrew host, and by the same word it would be given to Jesus. He awaited God's time to bring relief. He was in the wilderness in obedience to God, and He would not obtain food by following the suggestions of Satan. In the presence of the witnessing universe, He testified that it is a lesser calamity to suffer whatever may befall than to depart in any manner from the will of God.—Manuscript 113, 1902.

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Through Divine Aid We Can Be Victors Against Satan, July 27

Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 15:57. It is at an immense cost that we have been placed on the high vantage ground where we can be liberated from the bondage of sin, which has been wrought by the fall of Adam.... Never can we understand the value of the human soul until we realize the great sacrifice made for the redemption of the soul upon Calvary. Adam's sin in Eden plunged the human race into hopeless misery. But in the scheme of salvation a way has been provided for all to escape if they comply with the requirements. A second probation has been granted by the sacrifice of the Son of God. We have a battle to fight, but we can come off victor through the merits of Christ's blood. God saw that it was impossible for us to overcome and gain the victory in our own strength. The race has ever been growing weaker in every succeeding generation since the fall, and without the help of Christ we cannot resist the evil of intemperance. How thankful we should be that we have a Saviour and that He consented to lay off His royal robes and leave the royal throne, and to clothe His divinity with humanity and become a Man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.... After His baptism, He was led by the Spirit into the wilderness and was tempted of the devil. Christ commenced the work of redemption just where the ruin began, and the future welfare of the world depended on that battle fought by the Prince of life in the wilderness. Thanks be to God that He came off victorious, passing over the same ground where Adam fell and redeeming Adam's disgraceful failure. Satan left the field of battle a conquered foe. This victory is an assurance to us that through divine help we may come off victorious in our behalf on our own account in the conflict with the enemy.... Satan felt that all the power of this fallen planet was in his possession, but when Christ came to measure strength with the prince of darkness, Satan found One who was able to resist his temptations. The words of Christ are, “The prince of this world cometh, and hath nothing in me.” ... All heaven was watching the result of the controversy between Christ and Satan.... Now the question is, Will we take advantage of the situation and come off more than conquerors through Him who loved us?—Manuscript 26, 1887.

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