Satan Desireth to Have Thee

It seems to me that one of the purposes of scripture is to warn us of the reality of Satan and his desire to destroy us and bring us down.  We are taught by Lehi that “because he had fallen from heaven, and had become miserable forever, he sought also the misery of all mankind,” and that “he seeketh that all men might be miserable like unto himself” (2 Nephi 2:18, 27).  In all four books of scripture we see warnings to specific people about this desire of Satan to have us or sift us or destroy us.  For example, in the Pearl of Great Price the warned Cain, “If thou doest well, thou shalt be accepted. And if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door, and Satan desireth to have thee” (Moses 5:23).  The Savior similarly said to Peter in the Bible, “Behold, Satan hath desired you, that he may sift the children of the kingdom as wheat” (JST Luke 22:31).  In the Book of Mormon the Risen Lord spoke in the same manner to the Nephite disciples, “Satan desireth to have you, that he may sift you as wheat” (3 Nephi 18:18).  Alma also warned his son Helaman in very stark terms about the potential power of the adversary, “I tell you by the spirit of prophecy, that if ye transgress the commandments of God, behold, these things which are sacred shall be taken away from you by the power of God, and ye shall be delivered up unto Satan, that he may sift you as chaff before the wind” (Alma 37:15).  In our dispensation Christ said something similar about Lyman Wight in the Doctrine and Covenants: “And let my servant Lyman Wight beware, for Satan desireth to sift him as chaff” (D&C 52:12).  In another revelation the Savior likewise warned concerning Edward Partridge: “Satan seeketh to destroy his soul” (D&C 64:17).  These scriptures testify in no uncertain terms that the adversary poses a dangerous threat to our spiritual survival. 

               So given this danger, how do we overcome the adversary?  These scriptures clearly teach that we have the power to choose so that he does not destroy us or sift us as chaff.  Lehi urged us to “choose liberty and eternal life, through the great Mediator of all men” as opposed to letting the adversary have power over us (2 Nephi 2:27).  To Cain Jehovah taught simply that he must “do well”—which we might rephrase as “keep the commandments of God”—in order to escape Satan.  Alma’s message was the same to Helaman: through disobedience to commandments would the adversary gain power over him.  Helaman’s son taught his own children that protection when “the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, yea, his shafts in the whirlwind” would come through a foundation built upon Christ, a foundation which is constructed as we keep the commandments and requirements of Christ’s gospel (Helaman 5:12).  Protection from the adversary also comes by fervent prayer.  The Lord told Peter after His warning, “But I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren” (Luke 22:32).  Even Christ Himself prayed for power for others to overcome the adversary, and He invited us to do the same thing: “Pray always, that you may come off conqueror; yea, that you may conquer Satan, and that you may escape the hands of the servants of Satan that do uphold his work” (D&C 10:5).  To the Nephite disciples, before His above warning about the adversary, the Savior urged, “Behold, verily, verily, I say unto you, ye must watch and pray always lest ye enter into temptation.”  The Saints in the days of Alma were likewise “watching and praying continually, that they might be delivered from Satan” (Alma 15:17).  To overcome the adversary and his desire to destroy us we must, then, strive to keep the commandments of the Savior and pray continually for that deliverance.  Then we can be confident that we will have this promise fulfilled in our lives, “The gates of hell shall not prevail against you; yea, and the Lord God will disperse the powers of darkness from before you” (D&C 21:6).