Screwtape approves of Wormwood’s efforts to encourage a spiritually harmful relationship that his patient has develop with a couple that is fun, wealthy and worldly. This relationship will prove to be more effective if he can guide the man into living a double life, one at church and another with his new friends.
Growing up in a Christian home and attending a Christian School and attend church on Sunday morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday, I figured I must be okay. I was comfortable and life was good. I played football and tried to play basketball. I had friends that were living the same life I was. I would go to Church and listen to sermons but I did not have a personal relationship with God. I could leave church and not give God a thought throughout the week. I didn’t hunger for God’s Word because I was unsaved. And, I was hanging around people that were just like me.
Satan enables many of us to live double lives where we act one way and live another. We can put on our Christian mask and go to church and even lead a Sunday school class, and then leave for the week and not hunger for God’s word, not pray, not study the Bible, and associate with unsaved people that keep us from spending time with our Lord and savior.
Screwtape understands the powerful influence that our minds and imaginations can eventually have on our actions. Lustful thoughts, envious thoughts, hateful thoughts are often the precursor to sinful actions. As Matthew says, if we lust in our minds we have already committed adultery. 1 John 2:15-17 says that we are not to love the things of this world because it is temporary. We also cannot love the world and God at the same time. We can only have one god — either the one True God or temporal gods like money and materialism.
We should strive to be authentic Christians that hunger for God’s word, strive to talk to God, and obey God’s commands. We should strive to reach others for Christ. I am a believer that PRIDE is one of the main reasons we fail to share God with others. We should swallow our pride and share the good news of the Gospel with our friends, and family. We can’t take any of our material goods to heaven; why don’t we use our money to reach others for Christ.
