3 Nephi 28:39

Now this change was not equal to that which shall take place at the last day; but there was a change wrought upon them, insomuch that Satan could have no power over them, that he could not tempt them; and they were sanctified in the flesh, that they were holy, and that the powers of the earth could not hold them.

Power over the earth is truly rare and miraculous, but power over Satan is available to all. Satan has no power except the power we give him. We can dismiss him any time we want. All we have to say is "Get thee behind me, Satan! Get thee hence." If we really mean it, he has no choice but to depart.  Those who have bodies always have power over those who do not.  According to this scripture the three Nephites received additional power so that Satan COULD NOT tempt them.  In other words,  when they banished him, he had to stay banished, so they did not have to waste time and energy constantly casting him out. This is a marvelous gift, and in the Millennium we will all have this gift to truly bind Satan. For now,  however, we must depend on the gift we already have, which is to be able to cast him out regularly. Recall from the experience of Moses, who cast Satan out of his presence, that he may not go quietly or happily.  But if we are firm in our determination, he must leave us, at least for a period.

3 Nephi 18:15

Verily, verily, I say unto you, ye must watch and pray always, lest ye be tempted by the devil, and ye be led away captive by him.

The defenses against temptation and apostasy are watchfulness and prayer. To be on watch is to be on guard, to be vigilant, to be awake and aware and ready. Wise leaders set watchmen on towers so they can spot the enemy while he is yet a long way off. We need to be able to spot the enemy of our souls from a great distance so we can be prepared to mount a defense. If we wait until he is right next to us before we react, we may not be strong enough to fend him off. If we let him whisper in our ear, we may not be able to shut him out. We want to keep him as far away as possible. So we watch. We learn of his tactics, angles of attack, and deceptive maneuvers, and we learn the proper defenses so that when we see him coming, we know what to do. 
 
Nevertheless, even with vigilant faithfulness, we may not be able on our own to counter his every move. Satan has been at this game for a long time, and we are relative new comers to mortality. We need more power and wisdom than we can muster on our own to be victorious, and that is where prayer comes in. Prayer is like binoculars to help us see farther and clearer than our natural eyes alone can see. Prayer gives us intelligence and strength because it puts us in direct contact with the Commander and Chief of our souls. He can make up what we lack on our own and send reinforcements when we are overrun. 
 
We need both our own efforts through faithfulness and God's power through prayer. We cannot do it alone, and the Lord will not do it for us without our contributing effort. With both weapons, we can defeat the enemy and land safely home.

3 Nephi 13:34

Take therefore no thought for the morrow, for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient is the day unto the evil thereof.

Each day contains enough evil and temptation to keep our attention fully occupied without worrying about tomorrow's possible trials and afflictions. We are not to put our heads in the sand, but we are to get the most we can out of the day at hand. We have many opportunities each day to serve and do good. We must put everything we've got into making today the best day possible and don't leave any chips on the table. God gave us our strength for this day, and he will give us strength for the next day when it comes. One day at a time is all we can do.

Alma 57:4

But the people of Antiparah did leave the city, and fled to their other cities, which they had possession of, to fortify them; and thus the city of Antiparah fell into our hands.

For all his blustering, Satan is a coward at heart. If we stand up to him and refuse to bargain, he will back down. When we take an unequivocal stand against a temptation, he will abandon it and pour his energies into some other weak area of our lives. We may not be able to drive him out all at once, but if we take him on one step at a time, with a full determination to not yield, and leaning on the arm of God for support, we can gain the advantage in increments until we have squeezed the adversary out of our lives.

Alma 56:29

And the Lamanites, thus seeing our forces increase daily, and provisions arrive for our support, they began to be fearful, and began to sally forth, if it were possible to put an end to our receiving provisions and strength.

We make Satan nervous when he sees us preparing to defend ourselves against his temptations. The more we prepare, the more unsettled he becomes and the bolder he becomes in trying to get our attention and distract us from our preparations. Just when we think we are finally starting to make progress, everything seems to go wrong. It is a great sign that we are going in the right direction when the opposition increases.  Satan is never a gracious loser.

Alma 51:21

And thus Moroni put an end to those king-men, that there were not any known by the appellation of king-men; and thus he put an end to the stubbornness and the pride of those people who professed the blood of nobility; but they were brought down to humble themselves like unto their brethren, and to fight valiantly for their freedom from bondage.

Before we can do battle without, we must win the battle within. We must conquer ourselves and put down the natural man and his pride. Satan doesn't usually have to mount an all-out attack from the outside because he knows he has a strong and treacherous ally already on the inside. He just needs to stir up the natural man from time to time. Our internal enemy makes enough commotion to keep us occupied, distracted, and off balance almost all the time. He is well ensconced within us, and we lack sufficient power on our own to dislodge him from his strongholds. We may be able to harass him, but we cannot win without a strategy and additional power. Christ and his atonement are the reinforcements we need, and the Holy Ghost conveys the strategy from headquarters. The battle plans are in the scriptures. If we obey our captains, the living prophets, we can overcome and force the natural man to surrender. But we must be diligent and faithful.

Alma 49:4

But behold, how great was their disappointment; for behold, the Nephites had dug up a ridge of earth round about them, which was so high that the Lamanites could not cast their stones and their arrows at them that they might take effect, neither could they come upon them save it was by their place of entrance.

In another war metaphor, the ridges of earth we dig up to shield ourselves from the stones and arrows of temptation vary depending based on our need. We barricade ourselves against impure thoughts by filling our minds with good things. We put up fences of humility to protect us from pride. We cut the supply line of pornography. We build walls of daily service to ward off selfishness. We prepare resorts of prayer to keep the communication line open with headquarters. We stockpile scriptures to ensure we have sustenance to withstand a siege. We make sure we have a good supply of the living water of revelation. If we are prepared, we need not fear.

Alma 49:2

And behold, the city had been rebuilt, and Moroni had stationed an army by the borders of the city, and they had cast up dirt round about to shield them from the arrows and the stones of the Lamanites; for behold, they fought with stones and with arrows.

The "war chapters" of Alma are rich with metaphors. In this case Moroni used wisdom in strengthening the weakest cities. We should likewise recognize our weaknesses and try to strengthen ourselves in these areas. Satan certainly knows our weaknesses, and he will strike us first in our most vulnerable spots. If he succeeds once, he will keep picking at that scab. He may win a battle, but if we are wise and seek God's strength to shore up our weaknesses, Satan will not win the war. Properly prepared and defended, we can turn away his attacks and disappoint him.

Alma 19:33

And it came to pass that when Ammon arose he also administered unto them, and also did all the servants of Lamoni; and they did all declare unto the people the selfsame thing—that their hearts had been changed; that they had no more desire to do evil.

This changing of the hearts and no more desire to do evil are signs of genuine conversion. They do not mean, however, that these people will never sin again. Nor do they mean that their conversion is complete. They still have a long ways to go. Repentance for them will be a lifelong pursuit, as it should be for all of us. They will be tempted by their carnal natures as are we all every day. The difference--what the Holy Ghost has done for them--is to remove the desire to sin. They don't want their sins any longer. They want something better. Though I make mistakes all the time and lose the battle with temptation daily, I do not want to sin. I want my life to be better. I fall short, but not for lack of desire. Truly the Spirit is willing but my

flesh is weak.

Alma 7:11-13

And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions and temptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will take upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people. And he will take upon him death, that he may loose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to their infirmities. Now the Spirit knoweth all things; nevertheless the Son of God suffereth according to the flesh that he might take upon him the sins of his people, that he might blot out their transgressions according to the power of his deliverance; and now behold, this is the testimony which is in me.

Many aspects of Christ's atonement are described in these few verses. Christ suffered not only for our sins, but he suffered all things that we experience in mortality. He can help us in our troubles and afflictions because he has experienced them, endured them, and overcome them. He could have learned about us by the power of the Holy Ghost, but he wanted to know us directly so he could even better understand us and help us. He knows every temptation, and he knows how to resist it. He even knows how to overcome death. He is ready, able and willing to help us with everything we face in this life. We have but to ask.

Mosiah 2:37

I say unto you, that the man that doeth this, the same cometh out in open rebellion against God; therefore he listeth to obey the evil spirit, and becometh an enemy to all righteousness; therefore, the Lord has no place in him, for he dwelleth not in unholy temples.

There is a distinct and obvious difference between a person who desires to follow evil and rebels openly and persistently against God and a person who makes mistakes and falls into temptation from time to time but whose genuine desires are for righteousness. The first is lost unless he changes his character. The second is within reach of salvation and eternal life through the atonement.

Second Nephi 9:39

O, my beloved brethren, remember the awfulness in transgressing against that Holy God, and also the awfulness of yielding to the enticings of that cunning one. Remember, to be carnally-minded is death, and to be spiritually-minded is life eternal.

To be carnally minded is to be focused on the appetites of the flesh. To be spiritually minded is to focus on the appetites of the Spirit. If we let the flesh overcome us, we are headed away from God. If we encourage the spirit to overcome the flesh, we are headed towards God. We never escape the flesh completely in this life, but where we focus our thoughts and intentions is critical.

Second Nephi 4:18

I am encompassed about, because of the temptations and the sins which do so easily beset me.

"Beset" means to trouble or threaten persistently. Sin is a constant problem for as long as we are mortal. Paul says that sin is in his very flesh. Though his mind wants to obey God, his body rebels constantly. (See Hebrews 12:1, Romans 7:21.) If Paul and Nephi struggle with sin, how can the rest of us expect to escape unscathed? Not unscathed, but redeemed and healed through Christ. Though Nephi seems to be down on himself at the moment, he is about to remind us of the glorious hope of Christ.

First Nephi 15:24

And I said unto them that it was the word of God; and whoso would hearken unto the word of God, and would hold fast unto it, they would never perish; neither could the temptations and the fiery darts of the adversary overpower them unto blindness, to lead them away to destruction.

Having earlier taught us how to receive personal revelation, Nephi now provides guidelines for how to avoid personal apostasy.

1. Listen to and obey the word of God, which is the personal revelation we receive as the answer to our inquiry. We must respond and do what the Lord tells us to do when we ask him for instructions.
2. Do not get distracted by contradictory ideas or the persuasions of others. When those moments come, as they inevitably do, when we start to wonder if the answer we got was real, do not doubt. Remember. If it was true then, it is true now. Stay focused.
3. Know that temptations and fiery darts will come. The Apostle Paul taught us to hold tight to our shield of faith to protect us from the fiery darts. Hold the shield high and with a firm grasp. Trust it. No weapon has been formed by man or Satan that can overpower God.
4. Keep our eyes open and our feet on the path. As a skydiving instructors tells all of his first-time students, "After you jump from the plane and are hurtling at 120 miles per hour through the air, if everything around you seems black and you cannot see the ground, open your eyes!" And avoid the temptation to take a few steps down other attractive paths just to see if maybe they are better than the path God has set you on. They are not. Stay the course. See rule #2 above.

The result: We will not get lost.

First Nephi 8:33

And great was the multitude that did enter into that strange building. And after they did enter into that building they did point the finger of scorn at me and those that were partaking of the fruit also; but we heeded them not.

The secret to avoiding temptations – heed them not. That was Jesus’s formula. “He suffered temptations but gave no heed unto them” (D&C 20:22).