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keepers. We must excite popular indignation against them. We will
enlist great men and worldly-wise men upon our side, and induce
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those in authority to carry out our purposes. Then the Sabbath
which I have set up shall be enforced by laws the most severe and
exacting. Those who disregard them shall be driven out from the
cities and villages, and made to suffer hunger and privation. When
once we have the power, we will show that we can do with those who
will not swerve from their allegiance to God. We led the Romish
Church to inflict imprisonment, torture, and death upon those who
refused to yield to her decrees, and now that we are bringing the
Protestant churches and the world into harmony with this right arm
of our strength, we will finally have a law to exterminate all who
will not submit to our authority. When death shall be made the
penalty of violating our Sabbath, then many who are now ranked
with commandment-keepers will come over to our side.
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“But before proceeding to these extreme measures, we must exert
all our wisdom and subtlety to deceive and ensnare those who honor
the true Sabbath. We can separate many from Christ by worldliness,
lust, and pride. They may think themselves safe because they believe
the truth, but indulgence of appetite or the lower passions, which
will confuse judgment and destroy discrimination, will cause their
fall.
“Go, make the possessors of lands and money drunk with the
cares of this life. Present the world before them in its most attractive
light, that they may lay up their treasure here, and fix their affections
upon earthly things. We must do our utmost to prevent those who
labor in God’s cause from obtaining means to use against us. Keep
the money in our own ranks. The more means they obtain, the
more they will injure our kingdom by taking from us our subjects.
Make them care more for money than for the upbuilding of Christ’s
kingdom and the spread of the truths we hate, and we need not
fear their influence; for we know that every selfish, covetous person
will fall under our power, and will finally be separated from God’s
people.
“Through those that have a form of godliness but know not the
power, we can gain many who would otherwise do us great harm.
Lovers of pleasure more than lovers of God will be our most effective
helpers. Those of this class who are apt and intelligent will serve
as decoys to draw others into our snares. Many will not fear their
influence, because they profess the same faith. We will thus lead
Snares of Satan
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them to conclude that the requirements of Christ are less strict than
they once believed, and that by conformity to the world they would
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exert a greater influence with worldlings. Thus they will separate
from Christ; then they will have no strength to resist our power, and
erelong they will be ready to ridicule their former zeal and devotion.
“Until the great decisive blow shall be struck, our efforts against
commandment-keepers must be untiring. We must be present at
all their gatherings. In their large meetings especially our cause
will suffer much, and we must exercise great vigilance, and employ
all our seductive arts to prevent souls from hearing the truth and
becoming impressed by it.
“I will have upon the ground, as my agents, men holding false
doctrines mingled with just enough truth to deceive souls. I will also
have unbelieving ones present, who will express doubts in regard to
the Lord’s messages of warning to his church. Should the people
read and believe these admonitions, we could have little hope of
overcoming them. But if we can divert their attention from these
warnings, they will remain ignorant of our power and cu
we shall secure them in our ranks at last. God will not permit his
words to be slighted with impunity. If we can keep souls deceived
for a time, God’s mercy will be withdrawn, and he will give them
up to our full control.
“We must cause distraction and division. We must destroy their
anxiety for their own souls, and lead them to criticise, to judge, and
to accuse and condemn one another, and to cherish selfishness and
enmity. For these sins, God banished us from his presence; and all
who follow our example will meet a similar fate.”
The Scriptures declare that upon one occasion, when the angels
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of God came to present themselves before the Lord, Satan came
also among them, 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 skillful 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 cu
control circumstances that the message may not reach those whom
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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.
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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 color-
ing 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,