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Preached on 05-23-99

TEMPTATION

A Sermon by the Rev. Patrick A. Rose

"Now there arose a new king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph." (Exod.1:8)

THE FIRST CHAPTER OF THE BOOK OF EXODUS marks the beginning of a difficult time in the history of Israel. The Israelites enter upon what would prove to be a long period of hardship and oppression. As such, this chapter stands in sharp contrast to the closing chapters of Genesis. Joseph, remember, had risen to a position of great power in the land of Egypt -- second only to Pharaoh himself. Eventually the whole family moved to Egypt, where they given land in Goshen. It was a time of peace and prosperity. Eventually both Jacob and Joseph, and indeed, that whole generation, died. But a new generation succeeded them, and the seventy people that had originally come into Egypt began to grow into a great nation. The Book of Exodus opens during this period of growth. In the seventh verse we read that "the children of Israel were fruitful and increased abundantly, multiplied and grew exceedingly mighty; and the land was filled with them" (Exod.1:7).

This period of peace did not last, though. Joseph had already died, and so had the Pharaoh. A new king occupied the throne, a king who "did not know Joseph." Suddenly, the Israelites, who had been guests of honor in Egypt, were now forced into slavery.

For the Israelites at the time, it was a catastrophe. All their good fortune had now suddenly disappeared, and they were now reduced to the role of slaves, building cities for the Egyptians. And yet despite this seemingly tragic turn of events, it was but part of a process. However prosperous they might have seemed for a time, the destiny of Israel lay not in Egypt, but in the promised land of Canaan. And so they were reduced to a state of oppression, so that, in time, they might, by the power of the Lord, be rescued from the harsh hand of Pharaoh, and be led out towards the land of Canaan. So it was that what seemed, at the time, to be the cruel and tragic loss of a state of prosperity, was, in reality, a step closer to an even greater blessing.

Now in the internal sense, the subject treated of is, of course, temptation. The promised land of Canaan is heaven. All the events, from the time when Abraham was first promised the land for his descendants, to the eventual entrance into and conquest of the land, represent the process by which the Lord leads those of the church to Himself in heaven. As temptations are an integral part of the path to heaven, the Israelites therefore underwent many hardships before they inherited the land. Indeed, one of the reasons these many hardships are recorded is so that we might come to better understand the nature and the purpose of temptation.

The life of religion can often seem discouraging. Of course, if a person doesn't make any effort to obey the Lord's commandments, he has every reason to feel troubled. But even when he does try, and succeeds, in doing what the Lord tells him to do, he finds there is no instant happiness. He is still periodically tormented by doubt, despair, and the desire to return to evil. The evil spirits do not leave him alone. Indeed, sometimes it seems as if the older he gets, and the more he progresses, the greater are his states of torment. As the years pass faster and faster, he may begin to doubt whether he can ever be saved. How many more states of spiritual despair must he endure before the heavens, rather than evil spirits, begin to find a resting place within his heart and mind?

What such a person tends to forget, or, perhaps, does not know, is that the things of heaven are not implanted after temptations, but during them. At the very time the person, in temptation, is in despair as to whether he can ever be saved, the Lord is already implanting in him the things of eternal life. Indeed, this is the very reason why temptations occur. Through temptations, heaven is implanted deeper and deeper within the mind.

This is something which can be seen clearly in the first chapter of Exodus. The enslavement of the Israelites was, of course, a necessary step towards their eventually coming out of Egypt and inheriting the land of Canaan. They underwent hardship for the sake of a future blessing. What is especially remarkable about this episode, though, is that it makes it clear that the Israelites were also blessed by the Lord even in the present -- even while they were being oppressed.

Pharaoh's concern was that the increasing numbers of Israelites might pose a threat to his military security. In time of war, the Israelites might enter into an alliance with his enemies. He assumed that the hard life of slavery might reduce their numbers. It had a completely opposite effect. The more he afflicted them, the more they multiplied.

This is why the Lord allows temptations. They are not something He causes. It was the new Pharaoh who enslaved the Israelites, and it is the evil spirits who oppress and tempt us. Nevertheless, it is the Lord who allows it to happen, because it is during temptation that heavenly things can multiply and gain a firm root within us.

This is not as surprising as it might at first seem. The Writings compare temptation to an argument. They give the example of a man whose opinion on something is attacked (AC 6663). He argues back. In doing so, he not only reviews the reasons for believing the way he does, but he tends to develop even more arguments for his belief. The result is that he ends up even more firmly convinced than he was before that his opinion is the right one. This is why argument for the sake of argument tends to be a dangerous thing. The focus, so often, tends to be on who is right, rather than what is right, and we can so easily end up confirming ourselves in false beliefs. But, in the context of temptation, when what we love and hold to be true from the Lord is attacked by evil spirits, the end result is a good one. Man, in fighting back, becomes even more strongly confirmed in the truths and affections of heavenly life. While Pharaoh afflicted the Israelites, they continued to multiply and grow, even more than they had before.

It is because of this that the Lord not only permits us to undergo temptations, but permits us to undergo them time and time again. We tend to assume that if we are surrounded by evil spirits, if we are in a state of temptation, then we are not making any real spiritual progress. Such states, though, are a necessary part of such progress. The Lord allows evil spirits to surround us and torment us at times, because it is the only way in which we can be purified of evil and confirmed in what is good and true. Furthermore, this takes place successively and repeatedly. When we have undergone a struggle against what is evil, we come for a time into the sphere of heaven, and feel happy and peaceful. This state is not permanent though. It is a plateau, a step or resting place on the way to heaven. Soon the Lord allows evil spirits to infest us once more, in order that we might progress still further. And this sequence, from temptation into peace, and from peace into further temptation, occurs many, many times.

Something of this cycle can be seen reflected in the outward course of our lives. It a matter of common experience, that problems, of one kind or another, are part and parcel of life here in this world. Life has its ups, but it has its downs as well. Even if things should go well for a time, almost inevitably some other problem arises to disturb our sense of peace and happiness. Life is full of such set-backs. Indeed because of this some people become very cynical and pessimistic about life. And yet, however much we might dread the various problems and vicissitudes we face, they are, or can be, periods of growth and progress. People can develop more in adversity than they do when things are going well for them. This is one reason why the Lord, even though He does not cause problems, and certainly does not will us to be unhappy, nevertheless allows or permits us to struggle.

And it is the same in the realm of spiritual growth. When things are going well for us spiritually, when, after temptation, the things of heaven have begun to find a deeper resting place within us, we are then ready and strong enough to endure a further period of spiritual adversity and purification. This the Lord allows because He wishes us to come as fully into the life of heaven as possible. This is the nature of the Divine love . . . to draw us not simply towards Himself, but as close to Himself as possible. This is why, even when somebody is far advanced along the way to heaven, he still undergoes periodic infestation by evil spirits. Indeed it is precisely this kind of temptation -- the temptation of a person far advanced in his regeneration, which is represented by the enslavement of the Israelites after the death of Joseph. Joseph represents the culmination of a long period of spiritual progress. The Lord led Joseph in miraculous ways to assume at length the government of Egypt. When Joseph governs Egypt on behalf of Pharaoh, what is represented, in general, is a state in which a person has come to love what is good. Love from the Lord flows into him. This love gives new life to all the things he has learnt from the Word -- that is, the factual knowledge represented by Egypt. He no longer has to force himself to obey the truth in order to do what is good. Rather, his love of what is good leads him to see what is living within the truths of the Word.

This is a state that is far along the path of regeneration. But even such a state, so advanced, is but a stepping stone to an even closer conjunction with the Lord. Joseph died, representing the end of one state and the beginning of another. And, in explaining this, the Arcana says that "the church in man . . . successively undergoes new states; for as man is strengthened in the truth of faith and the good of charity, so he is introduced into other states, the former state then serving as a plane for the following state, and so on continually" (AC 6645). The reason for this continual succession of states is, we are told, that the Lord from love "wills to draw man even to Himself" (ibid.). As the Lord says in His intercessory prayer to the Father, "Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am . . ." (Jn. 17:24).

That same love for the human race which the Lord showed us when He was in the world, is, the Arcana says, the very reason He permits us to undergo successive temptations. Through temptations, the things of heaven grow and are strengthened in us. Even in that spiritually advanced state represented by Joseph, there are impurities, false ideas and attitudes, which are to be removed during infestation by evil spirits.

Now the teaching that temptations occur time and time again can, in one sense, seem discouraging. It makes the path to heaven seem a difficult one indeed. But, on the other hand, when a person is in temptation, when he is in despair and anxiety, there is comfort to be found in knowing that in these very states, heaven may well be taking deeper root within him. The fact that he continues to undergo temptations even until late in life, does not mean he needs to be unduly discouraged. Indeed, for most people, we are taught, the infestation represented by the slavery in Egypt does not even happen until after death. Those who are regenerating, but who have not yet been fully prepared for heaven, continue to undergo temptations, or vastations as they are then called, in the world of spirits, until finally, they are ready to be uplifted into heaven. Then, since they are in an angelic state, such infestations by evil spirits finally cease. With some, regeneration is completed in this world. In most cases, though, the process of regeneration, and the temptations it involves, continue for the whole of life in this world and beyond.

In all of this, though, we are governed and led by the Lord's love. He does not allow us to undergo temptations we cannot endure. And always these temptations are permitted for a reason, that heaven may find a firmer and deeper dwelling place within us. Always the end, the goal, is eternal peace. Through the adversity of temptation evils are laid aside. We are gradually purified of those very things which would prevent us enjoying eternal happiness in heaven.

Once we realize that life in this world has its ups and downs, we are less likely to get discouraged by the things which happen to us. It is the same with the ups and downs of the spirit. They are inevitable. But when we remember that they are a means, used by the Lord, to lead us to eternal happiness, we need not be overly discouraged. If anything, it is the evil spirits, represented by Pharaoh, who should feel discouraged.

Pharaoh feared that the Israelites would join with his enemies. So too, the evil spirits fear that we will become fully associated with their enemies, that is, with the angels, and that they will then be cast out of our minds. And so as Pharaoh oppressed the Israelites, so do the evil spirits oppress us. But despite all their efforts, the goods and truths of the church -- the Israelites -- continue to multiply within us. And so what does Pharaoh do? He makes them work harder. The temptation increases in intensity. He tries to get the Hebrew midwives to kill the newborn male infants. This fails. He orders his own people to cast these babies into the river. But despite all this, Moses is protected, and later grows to become the leader of the people, the one who was to lead the Israelites out of Egypt towards the promised land.

In the internal sense, the story is extremely complex. There are many, many things which happen before the Israelites enter the land of Canaan. The Lord regenerates us in ways far more complex than we could every fully understand. But one thing is clear. Pharaoh's cause is doomed. If a person trusts in the Lord, and obeys His Word, then no matter how great and how many the infestations from the hells might be, he is safe. He is protected from evil. Despite the maliciousness and cunning of evil spirits, all their efforts to ensnare us, become, in the Lord's hands, a way of leading us forth from the slavery of evil, and introducing us further and further into the happiness of heaven.

"The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He makes me to lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside the still waters. He restores my soul; He leads me in the paths of righteousness For His name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; For You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; You anoint my head with oil; my cup runs over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me All the days of my life; And I will dwell in the house of the LORD forever" (Ps. 23).

Amen.

Lessons: Exod.1; Jn.17:13-26; AC 6645:2