Screwtape revisited
While browsing through the Discipleship Journal archives at the Lifetime Guarantee website, I came across a classic article by Preston Gillham in which he conducts a mock “interview with the Devil.” Echoing the verbose devil of C.S. Lewis’ Screwtape Letters, Lucifer candidly discusses with the interviewer the tactics by which good Christians can be pulled into sin. Here’s a sample from the interview:
Q: If it wouldn’t be a breach of security, could you discuss in more detail what you mean when you say, “employ the simplest attack possible”?
A: Oh, certainly, and there’s no breach of security…. Even the most advanced management and marketing theories strive for simplicity in their product development. We are no different. While we do have stratagems calling for direct frontal assaults, such as XXX rated movie theaters to tempt the sensual needs, most of our negotiation, that is temptation, is directed at the simple, mundane areas of life. Granted, it is great to make a big sale by enticing a strong Christian into a porn house while he’s away from home on business. But, we have far more success with a simpler approach: compromised values while watching HBO; self-justification for a “small” impropriety; a novel with indiscretions that stick in the mind, etc. Ultimately, these pay off far more lucratively than a large, complex assault. This methodology has been implemented into every conceivable area of life.
All tongue-in-cheek, of course–but Gillham makes some interesting points about the deceptive power of “little sins,” which can often ensnare well-intention Christians who would never fall for the “big” sins and temptations.
