Sunday of Temptation & St. Pope Kyrillos VI
Some sayings of the blessed St Pope Kyrillos VI about Temptation and Fasting.
+ “By fasting we also receive spiritual gifts and draw closer to God, we get our requests, and our demands are answered.”
+ “…because it is a fact of life that a man will go through different temptations and spiritual wars. God arranged Fasting to deal with temptation and spiritual wars. As God commanded his people in the Old Testament to fast, He also commanded us in the New Testament to fast as the Lord said, “And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterwards He was hungry” (Matt. 4:2) The faithful [Christian] is a soldier in the spiritual wars; and prayer and fasting are our weapons….
+ “Fasting is a duty to all Christians; our Lord fasted, even though he did not need to fast, but to teach us that the temptations of the devil can not be overcome except by fasting.”
+ “Those who do not fast are called carnal, which means they are lustful. They are exposed always to temptations, and the devil overcomes them. Satan leads them to always follow the desires of their bodies, and keeps them away from eternal life. The devil tempted many, and he led them to lust, they died and fell in sin; among them were our first parents Adam and Eve, Cain, and David. The devil guided Israel until they worshiped foreign Gods. By fasting we overcome the devil and defeat him, and overcome his traps, and conquer his forts; as our Lord said, “However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” (Matt. 17:21)….
+ “If you happen to fall into temptation, do not let the guilt of sin be an obstacle to prayer. If you cease praying till you repent, you will never repent, for prayer is the door to genuine repentance.”
+ “My children, walk in reliance upon the Lord’s blessings being very careful of every step we take. Study the books and the teachings of the saints, because they function as our guidance during these times. We should walk quietly step by step, not too rushed, or coveting the rewards of the hermits. The rewards that the hermits receive, certainly are the result of extensive struggles to the extent of shedding their blood. These rewards are not manifested immediately, rather through perseverance and long suffering.
+ As a horse has a bridle, the body also has to overcome its lusts and pleasures. This is what the apostle says, “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. 17 For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. 19 Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, 20 idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, 21 envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. 24 And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” (Gal 5:16-24)
Those who do not fast are called carnal, which means they are lustful. They are exposed always to temptations, and the devil overcomes them. Satan leads them to always follow the desires of their bodies, and keeps them away from eternal life. The devil tempted many, and he led them to lust, they died and fell in sin; among them were our first parents Adam and Eve, Cain, and David. The devil guided Israel until they worshiped foreign Gods. By fasting we overcome the devil and defeat him, and overcome his traps, and conquer his forts; as our Lord said, “However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting.” (Matt. 17:21)
We want fasting to be according to the Spirit where the apostle said, “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God. But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.” (Rom. 8:5-9)
Those who worship God, and seek to live in solidarity with him were not just satisfied with fasts arranged by the church, but they were spending most of their days fasting, like Bishop Daniel the wonder-worker who said, “Because of my long fasting I looked like the dead.” Others fasted all their lives, and never ate good food; as the Apostle Paul said, “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God” (Rom 8:7)
+ “My children, walk in reliance upon the Lord’s blessings being very careful of every step we take. Study the books and the teachings of the saints, because they function as our guidance during these times. We should walk quietly step by step, not too rushed, or coveting the rewards of the hermits. The rewards that the hermits receive, certainly are the result of extensive struggles to the extent of shedding their blood. These rewards are not manifested immediately, rather through perseverance and long suffering. A youth once approached an elder and complained to him about his trials and tribulations. The elder beheld the youth and said, ‘My son you are young and God would not permit that you enter into temptation’. The youth said, ‘Yes, I am indeed a youth, but the trials and tribulations of strong men befall me’. The elder said to him, ‘Keep silent, the Lord loves you’. The youth said, ‘How can He love me, when I taste death every day’? The elder replied, ‘The Lord will grant you the gift of peace and joy. My son, I want you to know that during my thirty years of seclusion, not a single day passed without trials and tribulations. But, I tell you, after the first eighteen years, I began to feel rest with the Lord, and now, after thirty years, this feeling has grown. The peace and joy in God that one is granted, is boundless. Today, when I begin my service, my mind is in heaven with God. The struggle of few days can result in the acquisition of great blessing’. The youth was comforted by these words. He accepted his struggles and the Lord granted him peace. “