The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1900-04-30
SATAN's FINAL DEFEAT.
POWER OF EVIL WILL EVENTU-
ALLY BE UTTERLY vANQUIsHED.

Battles with God and His Power
for Good-To-day the Enemy of
Man Puts Strange Thoughts Into
Their Minds, Leading Them From
True Standards of Rfght--In the
End satan's Power VIII BE De-
stroyed..
Rev. w. A. Nisbet preached at Lawton
Memorial last night upon the theme, "Sa-
tan's Defeat" The text was from Luke
9:42: And as he was yet a coming. the
devil threw him down and tare him. And
Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit and heal
| ed the child, and delivered him again to
his father"
1--WE find," said Mr.. Nisbet. according
to the history given of Satan even in the
sacred scriptures, that in his rebellion
against God and righteousness he has met
with a large measure of success, judged
from mans point of view. In his first re-
bellion he carried in his insurrection a
large number of the angels That his in
fluence has ever been and is still large
in the promotion of evil and in opposing
coed, cannot be disputed.
But we also find, in every definite con-
test between God and Satan that Satan
has been overwhelmingly defeated. Take
for example, the rebellion in heaven, in
! which Satan was overcome and hurled
down to hell accompanied by all his FOL
| lowers.
Again, in the case of Job, there was a
contest between the sustaining grace of
God and the destructive power Of mans
adversary. and, although Jobs family
wealth, friends and health were lost and
nothing left this old servant of God but
| his life, Gods grace and power were
magnifed and Satan defeated, for under
this severe test Job said: Though He
Stay me, yet will l trust in Him."
but Satan assailed Christ Himself
with threefold temptation.
First Because Christ was an hun
gered for forty days, Satan said: Your
Father has forgotten or neglected You;
You had better stop trusting Him If you
want to save Your life and turn these
stones into bread. But Christ Needed not
but replied that Man must not live by
bread alone, but by every word that pro-
ceedeth out of the mouth of God
"Second. Satan tried to tempe Jesus
presumptuously to cast Himself from the
pinnacle of the temple, saying to Him, in
the words of Scripture, For he shall
give his angels charge over Thee. to
keep Thee in all Thy ways. They shall
bear Thee up in their hands. lest Thou
L
Jesus answered, 1T is likewise written
"Thou shalt not tempt the Lord, Thy
God."'>
Third. Satan told Jesus if He would de
sert the souls of men and
yield them to him He should
have all the kingdoms of this world
but Christ said-"Get thee behind Me
Satan" Thus was fought in the Wilder
ness a fierce but bloodiess battle, and a
glorious victory was gained. So it was in
I;every contest in which Christ and Satan
met. Although Satan here had bit Of
apparent success in that he prevented
the disciples from casting the devil our,
and in that he threw the child upon the
earth, and held him short while in an
agony Yet when Christ spoke definitely
and commanded him. he could but obey.
Satan was totally defeated
Now, let us call brief attention to some
of the ways Satan tries to tear the com
fort and assurance from Christians. aud
prevent the unconverted from finding sal
walton in Christ
First. by getting them to doubt Gods
word He accomphshes this not so much
by d'sputing the truth as by perverting
il. He tries to feed mems vanity by per-
suading them that their reason must be
regarded as equal to or above inspiration,
and that everything must be passed upon
at the bar of reason, rather than at the
tribunal of inspiration. Then. when ne
gets men from the plain, practical inter-
probation of Scripture, he ventures to euS-
gest that the. Scriptures are mysterious,
and also Inconsistent with themselves,
and that God has said some hard things
in them and that if He means what He
SAYS, He is unjust. Thus Satan strives TO
take away the Christians comfort ana
prevent the salvation Of the Uncovered
"Then Satan trieste carry his point end
escape defeat by his faisehoods, he is the
father of lies He Says to men that there
is something that will answer instead OF
the religion of Christ, and we fear that
the number he deceives JUST here Is count
less AS substitute for faith in Christ
and part loyalty to his servants ofIers 10
one simply church membership, and many
we fear, accept it and never get an inch
nearer heaven than their church member
shin Another he deceiVes with MS So
tanic sophistry. that IL they live uprish' y
and treat their fellowmen honestly they
have done u the extent of all REQUIRE
ment He tells another that II he is only
conscientious and honest in what he be-
ueyes that he can need nothing more.
/ All these things are necessary and good
/ i'm their place but If men stop here and
fail 10 reach Christ with their faith and
fail definitely to take Him as their sure
~ and redeen1er, they have lost all.
l "Again, Satan tries to tear salvation
from the grasp of men by telling them
| when they are under conviction, 10 look
at themselves and do better, improve their
ways and all will be we'll and as long as
satan is successful in keeping them thus
engaged he need not be Afraid of losing
him, for never was soul yet saved by
looking at self; only when the soul looks
from self and unto Christ will 1t be re-
deemed and witness Satans defeat No,
my Christian friend, your hope of victory
over the world and the devil is in doing
as did this and father of our text-come
to Jesus, and let Him rebuke and cast
Satan out. The only hope for the uneon-
verified is to come to Jesus, and let Him
rebuke the power of the devil and set the
captive free
Lastly, let me say that Satan shall
have hrs last even partial success, for he
must meet eternal defeat at the hands of
this same Jesus. who rebuked him and
cast him from the child Then shall he
! say also unto them on his left hand. de-
part from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting
| fire prepared for the devil and his an
gels And the angels which kept not their
! first estate. but kept their own habitation,
| He hath RESERVED II. everlasting chains
,,odsr darknass unto the Judgment of the