"PREPARE YOUR SOUL FOR TEMPTATION"

A word by St. Nicholas of Japan, delivered in Japanese before the Council of the Japanese Orthodox Church (July 1887).

 

In the Holy Scripture, it is written: "My son, when you come to serve the Lord God, prepare your soul for temptation; set your heart right and be steadfast, and do not be dismayed in times of visitation from God; cling to Him and do not depart, so that in the end you may be exalted" (Sirach 2:1–3). All of us here, of course, have come to serve God, and therefore we well know that serving God means compelling oneself to labor. Yet we also know that in this service lies great joy. For the All-Seeing God not only observes those who serve Him but also helps them and, being Merciful, loves them. However, the path of serving God is filled with dangers and obstacles, with weaknesses and falls, and it is precisely for this reason that Holy Scripture teaches us that whoever desires to serve the Lord God must prepare their soul for temptations.

Temptations are of two kinds. The first are trials sent from above, and the second are seductions coming from below. Concerning temptations from above, Holy Scripture says: “The crucible is for silver, and the furnace for gold, but the Lord tests hearts” (Proverbs 17:3). Gold may be pure, mixed with impurities, or counterfeit. When tested by fire, pure gold suffers no harm; on the contrary, it becomes even more splendid. From gold mixed with foreign impurities, the pure part is separated. Counterfeit gold, in the end, turns into something worthless. Similarly, a person’s virtues may be genuine, may be mixed with vanity, pride, or other passions, or may be entirely counterfeit, false, as was the case with the hypocritical Pharisees. Thus, temptation sent from above determines the quality of a person’s virtues. God knows the human heart from the very beginning; therefore, temptations are not sent for God to learn the quality of our virtues but for the sake of the person—to see if there is any mixture of falsehood or deceit within and, seeing this, to repent and turn toward the good. May we not be deprived of such temptations sent from above!

Furthermore, there also exist another kind of temptations, namely seductions coming from the devil, who casts darkness into the thoughts of a person, pours various kinds of impurity into their heart, disturbs them, and in this way pushes them to commit evil deeds with the aim of turning away from God the souls of those who serve Him.

Having come to serve God, we must remember that we are constantly surrounded by such temptations and seductions. Scripture says: "Be sober, be vigilant, because your adversary the devil walks about like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour" (1 Peter 5:8). The devil closely observes all catechists and priests and, desiring to bring them down, sends many fiery arrows. The most dangerous of these arrows is self-satisfaction, pride, because many catechists begin preaching while still very young, and people already call them teachers and instructors. It is no wonder that the devil, taking advantage of this, easily sows pride within them. And how many servants of the Church have already been struck by this arrow! Every year we prepare many catechists, yet not a few of them fall. What is the reason for this? It is due to self-satisfaction and pride. If a Christian tries to admonish them, they—on the contrary—fall into anger. The devil has many other fiery arrows with which he strikes those who cannot resist him. Without exception, all who have fallen away from the list of catechists are among such. And brothers, how many are there who have come to serve God but have not managed to overcome temptations and have fallen! How sorrowful this is!

This is why it is very important always to prepare for temptations, because this is the foundation of our strength. If we do not do so, seductions will continually overcome us. Such people will be struck by the devil’s arrows and will perish. Now, before the [work of the] Council begins, I, recalling the past and envisioning the future, have decided that it is necessary to tell you all of this as the most essential and most important.

Regarding the means we must use to prepare for temptations, Holy Scripture speaks to us clearly.

First and foremost—"set your heart right," that is, guard your heart, correct your deeds, and acquire virtues—thus you will avoid falling into seduction. Just as with a ship, if it is well-monitored and well-steered, neither storms nor raging waves will be fearful, but if it is not carefully watched, there is a danger of it being wrecked. Similarly, with a horse, if it is not properly guided, it may bolt, overturn, or fall into a pit. So it is with the human heart—if you do not govern it well, what will happen to it? Only this: the devil will draw near to us, begin to sow various evil thoughts in our mind, and create chaos in our heart and deeds.

Secondly—"be steadfast." A person is inherently inclined toward sin, and therefore, to overcome temptations, one must willingly endure all kinds of labors and sorrows and direct their heart toward the truth. If we do not endure sorrows and labors, we will not be able to overcome anything, for without them, who can defeat the enemy?

Thirdly—"cling to God and do not depart." When we cling to God, we will be safe in any temptation, just as a ship that has reached the harbor is no longer threatened by storms.

This is what I wanted to say to you, brothers, in my word before the beginning of the Council, and I would like you to place this word in your hearts and keep it.

 

Source: Православно слово, Nos. 1-4, 2012.