To the Soldiers of God Going or……Gone to the Heart of Africa
by C. T. Studd

The following article was originally a pamphlet written by C.T. Studd in 1915. His description of the devices used by Satan to tempt missionaries is no less applicable to us today in the comfort of modern society.

“We are not ignorant of his devices.”

Many, great, and very subtle are the devices of Satan everywhere, but nowhere do they so abound as in a land,which has never hitherto been attacked by the servants of Christ.

In the Heart of Africa no man, whoever he be, no matter how good his past life, acts, devotion, or vows, unless he is extremely watchful,stands any chance of not being beguiled by the devil.

Of one thing we may be certain—the attacks will not be from the quarters nor persons we anticipated, and they will always be hits below the belt or stabs in the back.

The Climate

One great device of the devil is to get us to put down to the climate such workings of Satan as bad temper, a spirit of criticism, and the making of unkind remarks. Now, if we hold the climate guilty for our ill humours,we shall excuse ourselves, with the result that the canker will eat more deeply into our souls, our natures, and our characters; whereas if we hold such things to be the works of the devil we shall with humility, contrition, and faith run to our Saviour, who came to destroy all the works of the devil, to save us to the uttermost, and so to make us like Himself.

When the Holy Ghost declared that our God and Saviour is able to keep us from falling,He did not add the words,“This applies to certain climates only,”so I trust we will not do so either.

Self-Pity

“Pity Thyself, Lord,” was the fiery dart that Satan caused an Apostle to shoot at our Lord Himself. Therewas considerable heat as well as haste in our Lord’s defence, and rejoinder,“Get thee behind Me, Satan,”and, being spoken to an Apostle, gives us the measure of our Lord’s indignation.

True Soldiers of Christ do not go to the Heart of Africa to have an easy time of it, nor to save themselves, but others. Did we not count the cost ere we left England? Is it greater than we expected? That should be a cause for thanksgiving:“I thank Thee, Lord, that things are not nearly so easy as I had thought they would be.”What cost can be too great? If any cost is too great, or even a matter for half a minute’s murmur, we should never have pretended we were Soldiers of Christ,nor embarked for the Heart of Africa, for so we prove ourselves guilty of repenting of our solemn vows to God and man, registered ere we left England. The only healthy attitude for a Christian Warrior is that which causes him to pray for the privilege of suffering additional afflictions in the cause of Christ. See Phil. 3:10.

Care

“Have a care,”says the devil.“Don’t care was hung.” Quite so—on Calvary, and thus bought Salvation for all.“Go and do thou likewise.”“Be careful for nothing.” “HE careth for you.” So mind your own business, and keep off the grass, else you’ll have trouble as well as care in abundance.

Loneliness

It is a favourite trick of the devil to suggest to us that we are “lonely.”Then have we lost our first love? Lonely in the presence of our Lover? “I am with thee always,” says Jesus. Is it possible for God to lie? Is Jesus not enough? If not,who is? “Thou,O Christ,art all l want, More than all in Thee I find.” That sounds like “a bit of all right,”and corresponds with “if any man cometh unto Me, and hateth not…he cannot be My disciple.”Alone with Jesus should be Heaven upon earth.“Thou art ever with Me, and all that I have is thine.” To complain of loneliness on honeymoon is an outrageous insult to one’s lover.

Discouragement

All discouragement comes from Satan, and generally through our vision becoming blurred. Abraham looked at his own body, then as good as dead, and Sarah’s also, yet he wavered not through unbelief,and so gave glory to God. The Apostles knew what it was to “toil in rowing,” nor were they exempt from “storms.” Do we desire to be carried to the skies on flowery beds of ease? Has the Cross lost its attraction? What about the sufferings of the Apostle Paul? Where do ours compare with his? Yet he called them “light affliction,” and asked for more, for he looked forward to the eternal weight of glory to follow at the Throne of God.

Discord

Discord is the opera of hell. Don’t let the devil call the tune when your band plays. “Oh, I can’t stand or get on with so-and-so.” Then more shame for you! And how on earth, then, do you expect Christ to get on with you? There’s a good deal of sound theology in “Love me, love my dog,” Slight His child, and you’ll have an uncomfortable settlement with the Father.

But if you think your brother has erred, your duty is clear.Go and tell him (or write him if you can’t), state your case, and prove it. If he neither answers nor repents, leave him and the matter to God. If you won’t meet him face to face to substantiate your charge when you have the chance, you are neither true nor brave, but contemptible. If, when face to face, you shook his hand, and were too cowardly to be straightforward and honest with him, at least when he has gone don’t be a contemptible whisperer accusing him behind his back. To play the coward or act a lie does not become a Christian profession.

Cowardice

The fear of man is another temptation or inoculation of the devil; with it come many snares. He who fears man fears not God, and he who fears God fears not man. The fear of man leads to condonation of sin, and seeks to excuse itself by pleading the fear of scandal. John the Baptist feared no such thing, but boldly unmasked hypocrites, and so also did our Saviour. Peter saved the Church in its infancy by his bold rebuke of Ananias and Sapphira, fearless of the almost certain result, a grave scandal, which, however, of course never happened; God saw to that. Such is His business, not ours. He caused a revival instead. Paul and James similarly denounced sin and rebuked sinners, while John blurted out the unvarnished truth. “He that doeth righteousness is righteous, but he that doeth sin is of the devil.” “Justice and Judgment are the foundation of Thy Throne.” If we condone sin in others, we shall presently be found condoning it in ourselves, for Charity, true or false, has a knack of beginning or ending at home.

False Coin

Another specious device of the Evil One is to make us the coiners of new sins other than those mentioned in the Scriptures. This was the curse of the Pharisees. The infallible Word of God needs not the additions of fallible sinners. There are quite enough sins mentioned in the Bible, without our manufacturing others.When we add to them we declare the Scriptures to be insufficient;to do so is folly and presumption.A manufactured sin is a mote which is the unerring proof of a beam in the factory. When you think you see a mote,look in the looking-glass for the beam.

Disloyalty

Disloyalty is the devil’s submarine, a nasty, sneaking sort of thing like a crocodile or snake.Satan’s whispers often seem so true and reasonable, and his agent as pretty as an angel of light, and some times even with a good record in the past. For three years Judas apparently did as good work as any of the other Apostles;none of his colleagues suspected him.Did not each say,“Is it I? “ He healed the sick,cast out devils,and proclaimed the Gospel.His damning sin was a matter of a few days.Yet in spite of his good past we brand him with the ugly name of “Traitor,”while the Scriptures call him the “Son of Perdition,” and declare that he went to “his own place,”for he betrayed his Master with a kiss, and sold him for thirty pieces of silver.Traitors can be detected by our applying the simple tests of righteousness. If a man deliberately break his contract with God and man,if he speaks fair to a man’s face,but falsely accuses him behind his back,that man is not of God.

Pride

Shun pride as you would shun the devil and hell. Satan changes his methods of attack.When a man is unsaved he tries to keep him so by doubt and lusts and cares;when saved he seeks to make him barren. A proud Christian is a mule which produceth naught: a disciple lacking humility is a modern Samson shorn of his locks. To the unsaved Satan says, “You are unworthy “; to the saved,“You are worthy.”When a man has sacrificed his all for Christ, the devil at once counter-attacks him with a view to get him to think he is better than so-and-so.The only safe position is that of the Apostle.“Sinners of whom I am the chief,”or as the poet sang “I am a poor sinner, and nothing at all, But Jesus Christ is my all in all.” “Let each esteem other better than himself.”

Priestcraft

Priestcraft is the patent plan of the devil to prevent progress. One of the tin tacks he strews on the road to cause punctures.We have One Great High Priest, and He says that all Believers in Jesus Christ are Kings and Priests unto God.God’s Priests are all right,like Paul they esteem all others better than themselves.

Who is to baptize the converts? The best person to do so is the human agent that God used to convert them.What about the Lord’s Supper? Who should administer it? Why, He Who presides. When Jesus is there He should preside, of course.When Jesus is not there, it matters not who presides, for any president is useless. If anyone can consecrate the Bread and Wine Jesus can, and if He can’t nobody can. Jesus will always do it if we ask Him, and if we will keep out of the Chair ourselves.He that exalts Christ is in the Apostolic succession, and he that doesn’t isn’t.When Christ is exalted HE draws us all unto HIMSELF, and so to one another.

So also the ordination of our Lord Jesus Christ is the one sine qua non for every Apostle, and such is worth more than ten million of the ordinations of fallible men whosoever they be. Christ’s ordination is simple and direct, and all turns on the answer to His one question “Lovest thou Me?” Not Church, Chapel,Denomination nor Man, but Me.

Evangelism

“Oh! anything else,”says the devil.Christ sent us to preach the Gospel to every creature, to be His witnesses unto the uttermost parts of the earth.Beware of getting things in their wrong proportions. Education is an excellent handmaid, but needs to be kept in her proper place.She is rather apt to give herself airs and desire to monopolise the conversation. Give her an inch, but take care she does not take an ell. You can sometimes use her as a decoy to enable you to get near the game to shoot it. But we are Evangelisers,not Educationalists.When the whole world has been given The Bread of Life, we will consider about becoming Educationalists perhaps, but not before.

Knowledge puffeth up,but love,especially that of God,breaks hearts and buildeth up. Preach Christ and teach the Scriptures— not to some, but to all.Your business is to cause every creature in your sphere of influence to know Christ and to feed on the Scriptures. For such purpose it is necessary to teach folks to read and write. Our idea of Higher Education is that Native Christians should go and impart the knowledge of Christ and the Scriptures to their fellows, far as well as near.

The Cure

If one of these or other fiery darts finds its billet in you, go to Christ. He will not only extract the dart, but also the poison, and make you a whole,healthy soul again.

But prevention is even better than cure, and the only orthodox preventive is the Shield of Faith; it not only wards off, but quenches each and every fiery dart of the devil. It’s a heavy shield with a motor attachment which enables you to lift and wield it. The motor is love. “Faith which worketh by love.” Faith in Christ depends on our love for Christ, and that depends on our knowledge of His love for us, and such is imparted by the Holy Ghost. Hence we are told to watch and pray. “How much more will He give the Holy Ghost to them that ask Him.”

Nobody doubts the one who loves him and whom he loves. No company so good as His. No sacrifice too great to make far Him. If we love Him we love His Relations, all of them, for so He desires. White, Black, Rich, Poor, Nobodies, Somebodies, Cranks and Critics. Faint-Hearts and Fuss-boxes. Thus He tests our faith and love. Don’t serve Christ for Heaven; you cannot serve Him for naught—Serve Him for Love.

And if you do you will have three leading Characteristics :
1.Eagerness for the Glory of God.
2.Touchiness concerning the interests of Jesus.
3.Zeal for the Salvation of Souls.

May God melt us all and mould us into this image, “That no advantage may be gained over us by Satan.”