More of Satan's Wily Ways

Bear with me for a couple more parallels between the battles in the Book of Mormon and our own battle with temptation.  When I read

And now, behold, the Lamanites could not retreat either way, neither on the north, nor on the south, not on the east, nor on the west, for they were surrounded on every hand by the Nephites.  And thus had Coriantumr plunged the Lamanites into the midst of the Nephites, insomuch that they were in the power of the Nephites, and he himself was slain and the Lamanites did yield themselves into the hands of the Nephites. ~Helaman 1:31-32

I couldn't help but think of how Satan will lead us down a path full of treachery and leave us there, alone to fend for ourselves.

The only way to really come out of a situation like that is to yield to truth as the Lamanites had no way out except to yield to the Nephites.  To repent of our sins, the full process of repentance.  I love how the Nephites took possession of their city and "caused that the Lamanites who had been taken prisoners" were sent out of the city "in peace."  Nothing terrible was done to them, they just had to go in peace.  If we repent, the Lord will forgive us and we can be clean, we can have peace.
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Another tool that Satan uses to lure us down the path of treachery is contention and pride.  Chapter 4 of Helaman is a great example of the "Price Cycle" we hear so much about in the Book of Mormon.  Both are rooted in selfishness, which is the opposite of what we hope to be if we want to be like our Savior Jesus Christ.
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Our emotions don't "make" us do anything.  We each choose what we do in any given situation.  It is when we choose to follow the temporal man or to let our passions run free that we choose to sin.

Sin really is like a slippery slope.  For example, look the the Nephites in Helaman chapter 4:23-24

And because of their iniquity the church had begun to dwindle and they began to disbelieve in the spirit of prophecy and in the spirit of revelation... 

...the Spirit of the Lord did no more preserve them; yea it had been withdrawn from them because the Spirit of the Lord doth not dwell in unholy temples.

A direct result of sin is disbelief!  Yikes.  That's pretty scary.  Guess I better shape up!  Thankfully, repentance is real!