Sabbathought: We are in enemy-occupied territory

And it is getting more and more occupied by the enemy! . . . Have you noticed?

I first saw that trenchant phrase, "enemy-occupied territory," around thirty years ago in some writings by Elder Neal A. Maxwell. It should not surprise you or me that he got it from C.S. Lewis in Mere Christianity. Here's the full paragraph, introduced by the one before to give us context:

"One of the things that surprised me when I first read the New Testament seriously was that it talked so much about a Dark Power in the universe---a mighty evil spirit who was held to be the power behind death and disease, and sin. The difference is that Christianity thinks this Dark Power [Satan] was [originally] created by God, and was good when he was created, and went wrong. Christianity agrees with Dualism that this universe is at war . . . a civil war, a rebellion, and that we are living in a part of the universe occupied by the rebel.

"Enemy-occupied territory, that is what this world is. Christianity [the gospel] is the story of how the rightful king has landed, you might say landed in disguise, and is calling us all to take part in a great campaign of sabotage. When you go to church you are really listening-in to the secret wireless [radio broadcast] from our friends: that is why the enemy is so anxious to prevent us from going" (1952 rev. ed, pp. 51--2).

What an interesting way to think of personal revelation, and of the appearance of angels with keys and powers as part of the Restoration of the true gospel of Jesus Christ, and of the dreams and visions associated with this work and so prevalent among us!

And then this from Elder Boyd K. Packer of the Twelve nearly twenty years ago in October 1991 general conference:

"No one of us can survive in the world today, much less in what it soon will become, without personal inspiration. The spirit of reverence can and should be evident in every organization in the Church and in the lives of every member [so that personal revelation may come to each one of us]".

At church, of course, but more so in the privacy of our homes as we pray and study scripture, and in the sacred confines of the holy temple, we can get in tune with those "friends" Jack Lewis spoke of, chief among whom for us would be the Holy Ghost. This will be a reality if we are hungering and thirsting after righteousness. It is not unconditional, and it will not be automatic. But the revelation of survival and safety will be ours if we go seeking in deep humility.

I know this is so.

Steve