The Screwtape Letters
The Screwtape Letters (1942) by C. S. Lewis
‘The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist.’
While that’s a line from the brilliant Oscar-winning film The Usual Suspects, rather than from Scripture, it nevertheless rings true.
The Bible tells us that, while Jesus came to give us life and life to the full, there is one who wants nothing more than to destroy our lives and derail our faith (John 10:10; 1 Peter 5:8-9). We don’t often think about this reality, but we avoid it at our peril.
How Does the Enemy Work?
So how does the enemy work? What should we look out for so that we can see his tactics for what they are and not be tripped over by them?
Enter C.S. Lewis, who, in 1942, wrote a brilliant little book on this subject. It’s one of those books I’ve found myself going back to regularly over the past few years.
The Screwtape Letters is an imaginary series of letters written by a senior demon, Screwtape, to his nephew, Wormwood, who is still learning the ropes, in which he offers advice on different tactics which should be used to try to stamp out the faith of a new Christian.
A Key Warning from Screwtape
The warning contained in this quote is particularly on point:
‘The long, dull, monotonous years of middle-aged prosperity or middle-aged adversity are excellent campaigning weather. You see, it is so hard for these creatures to persevere. The routine of adversity, the gradual decay of youthful loves and youthful hopes, the quiet despair (hardly felt as pain) of ever overcoming the chronic temptations with which we have again and again defeated them, the drabness which we create in their lives and the inarticulate resentment with which we teach them to respond to it - all this provides admirable opportunities of wearing out a soul by attrition. If, on the other hand, the middle years prove prosperous, our position is even stronger…’
Insights into God’s Nature
Reading The Screwtape Letters not only wakes you up to the tactics which the devil may use in your life, but it also offers massive encouragement because it provides a wonderful insight into the nature of God himself and his ongoing commitment to us:
‘One must face the fact that all the talk about His love for men, and His service being perfect freedom, is not (as one would gladly believe) mere propaganda, but an appalling truth. He really does want to fill the universe with a lot of loathsome little replicas of Himself—creatures, whose life, on its miniature scale, will be qualitatively like His own, not because He has absorbed them but because their wills freely conform to His. We want cattle who can finally become food; He wants servants who can finally become sons. We want to suck in, He wants to give out. We are empty and would be filled; He is full and flows over.’
A Final Encouragement
So, I encourage you to buy a copy of The Screwtape Letters. Read it. Be warned. Be encouraged. Learn to resist the devil, knowing that, as you do so, he will flee from you.
The Screwtape Letters - Contents:
