Away with you, Satan! For it is written. Matthew 4:10.

Satan had been defeated in the first temptation. He next took Christ to the pinnacle of the temple at Jerusalem and asked Him to prove His Sonship to God by throwing Himself down from the dizzy height. “If thou be the Son of God,” he said, “cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone.” But to do this would be presumption on the part of Christ, and He would not yield. “It is written again,” He replied, “thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.” Again the tempter was baffled. Christ was victor still.

Presumption is a common temptation, and when Satan assails us with this, he gains the victory almost every time. Those who claim to be enlisted in the warfare against evil frequently plunge without thought into temptation from which it would require a miracle to bring them forth unsullied. God’s precious promises are not given to strengthen us in a presumptuous course or to rely upon when we rush needlessly into danger. The Lord requires us to move with a humble dependence upon His guidance. “It is not in man that walketh to direct his steps.” In God is our prosperity and our life…. “Commit thy way unto the Lord; trust also in him; and he shall bring it to pass.” As children of God, we are to maintain a consistent Christian character.

While you pray … that you may not be led into temptation, remember that your work does not end with prayer. As far as possible you must answer your own prayers by resisting temptation. Ask Jesus to do for you that which you cannot do for yourself. With God’s Word for our guide and Jesus for our teacher, we need not be ignorant of God’s requirements or of Satan’s devices.

“Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; and saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.” Then divinity flashed through humanity. “Get thee hence, Satan,” Christ said, “for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.” Satan did not then present another temptation. He left the presence of Christ a conquered foe.—Youth’s Instructor, December 21, 1899.