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Posted on January 25, 2010 in Orthodoxy - 1 COMMENTS
Assaults of the Enemy
by Rev Fr Chris Flesoras
“Remember that the enemy incessantly seeks to destroy you, and attacks you at the time when you least expect it. His malice is infinite.” These words were spoken by St. John of Kronstadt, who like other holy men and women of the Faith, encourage us to constantly and humbly examine our standing with Christ so as to discern the means by which we are being attacked by the devil and his minions. Each of us should then with humility, honesty and clarity seek to answer the following questions:
Am I a slave to sin, impulsively yet habitually sinning because of my spiritually blindness? Am I lulled into complacency, telling myself: ‘later, later; tomorrow, tomorrow’ rather than doing what is unto my salvation today? Am I under attack on all sides by the enemy since I desire to be freed from the bondage of sin? Are obstacles placed in front of my Godly pursuits to divert me from what is good? Steadfastly following the path of virtue, do I now consider my whole life pleasing to God; have I fallen to prey to flattery, self-importance, or pride?
Reflecting upon these vary temptations in the twenty-ninth chapter of his classic writing, Unseen Warfare, St. Nicodemos explains, “Know, my beloved, that the devil cares only for compassing the ruin of everyone of us, but that he does not use one and the same method of warfare against us all.” He concludes that there are in fact “…five inner states of people and the corresponding wiles, and circuitous approaches and enticements of the enemy.” The aforementioned are but states of sin:
Some people remain in the slavery of sin, with no thought of liberation; others, although thinking of this liberation and desiring it, do nothing to achieve it; there are also people who, having been freed from the shackles of sin and having acquired virtues, again fall into sin with still greater moral corruption. In their self-delusion some of these latter think that, in spirit of it all, they are still advancing towards perfection; yet others turn the very virtue they possess into a cause and occasion of harm for themselves.
Ultimately, “the enemy influences each of them in accordance with their state and disposition.”
This is in fact why the devil is called the enemy and also the adversary. St. Dorotheos of Gaza explains:
He is called ‘enemy because he is a hater of men, one who hates what is good, a traitor; an ‘adversary’, because he always puts obstacles in the way of good. If someone wants to pray he puts obstacles in the way through evil suspicions, shameful thoughts, and spiritual torpor. If a man wants to give alms he obstructs it through avarice or procrastination. If a man wants to keep vigil he obstructs it with hesitations or laziness. In every single thing he is against us when we desire to do good. This is why he is called the enemy and the adversary…
C.S. Lewis in The Screwtape Letters cleverly illustrates the workings of the devil and his minions. Screwtape an administrator in hell serves as a mentor to Wormwood, an inexperienced tempter. Throughout the thirty-one chapters he offers detailed advice on the methods of promoting sin in the patient, that is the Christian. In one instance Screwtape explains, “The safest road to Hell is the gradual one — the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts.”
Knowing full well the clever, unending onslaughts of the devil that ever so slowly yet methodically lead us down the paved road to perdition, St. Tikhon of Zadonsk therefore emphasizes our need for constant vigilance. We must make haste to guard against every sin.
The devil leads man to sin. Of this the Apostle says, exhorting Christians to be on guard against him, “Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walks about, seeking whom he may devour. Oppose him firm with faith. (1 Peter 5:8-9) The Apostle says the same in another place, Be strong in the Lord, and in that you are able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places (Eph. 6: 10-12).
Heeding the Apostles command, it is through sobriety and vigilance that we place ourselves squarely against the devil and his devices. Possessing these virtues and also with great degrees of humility and honesty, Dorotheos admonishes:
Let each one of us then take the trouble to find out where we are: whether we have left our own city but remain outside its gates by the rubbish heap, or whether we have gone forward a little or much, or whether we are half way on our journey, or whether we have advanced two miles, the come back two miles, or perhaps even five miles, or whether we have journeyed as far as the Holy City and enter into Jerusalem, or whether we remain outside and are unable to enter it.
Regardless of our location on the road or the condition of our inner state, or even the tactics of the enemy, it is sincere and heartfelt prayer, which will advance us, cleanse us and ever safeguard us as Christians. I close with a prayer of St. Ephraim the Syrian,
Grant me, O Lord, enlightenment to recognize the wiles of my adversary, the hater of all good; for he places in my path countless multitudes of seductions and pitfalls – both profits and losses, the comforts of this age and carnal pleasure, the length of the present life, timidity in ascetic labors, slothfulness in prayer, sleep and rest for the body during the singing of psalms.
In as much as the enemy strives for my ruin, so do I, who am miserable, surrender myself to recklessness and apathy. The more snares he sets out for me, the more careless I become.
Be wary, O my soul, watch over thy conscience; pay no attention to the falls of others, but be instead more attentive to thine own falls. Hasten, forestall thy ruin, and be reconciled to Christ, crucified in the flesh for thy sake. If we have condemned ourselves, we will not be condemned then, at the great and eternal judgment.
Be kind to me, O Lord, according to Thy compassions; and save me according to Thy singular goodness, through the prayers of our All-Pure Lady the Mother of God and of all the Saints. Amen.
Kenneth L Peters 01/26
Hi Father Chris, I know exactually the entirety of this blog in a sense where it delayed my cresmation for several years. I now have to develop a stratigy to combat this evil one! I could use some assistance from you when you have time.
Kenneth