Page 240

[Alexandr Korol]

In Christian doctrine, the temptation was aimed at the human nature of Jesus, through which the Devil hoped to lead Christ onto a false path. With regard to the divine nature of Christ, this temptation was a battle between the Devil and the Son of God, who had taken on flesh for the salvation of mankind, over maintaining dominion over people.”

And so it’s said there was temptation by hunger — but I won’t retell the story itself, because it’s sacred and not meant to be taken literally. Temptation by hunger, temptation by pride, and temptation by faith. But let me now explain in a more modern way what that means, because this is a trial I have gone through, or am going through, or may still go through — and it’s a trial every other person will also face. So this applies to every human being, which makes it incredibly important and relevant.
So then, the temptation of hunger — if we interpret it in today’s world — is not just about food. It’s the temptation that comes when your inner voice, which is not from God but from Satan, starts provoking you with the thought that what you have isn’t enough. That your small apartment isn’t good enough, your modest meals don’t satisfy you, your humble husband doesn’t please you, your quiet family annoys you, your small town bores you, or your simple job or modest salary bothers you. A person under the temptation of hunger begins to crave more and more of everything. Just like the devil told Jesus, “you can turn stones into bread” — he was tempting him. The same applies here: you could, at any moment, choose to commit wrongdoing, to mislead others, to engage in deceit, or choose a shameful, immoral path to make quick money, thinking no one will ever know — that is temptation. Temptation is when what you already have doesn’t satisfy you, and any desire to change things for the sake of more — that is the hunger temptation. Keep that in mind.
The temptation of pride. In the biblical account, the devil tempted Christ to perform miracles in front of people so that everyone would believe him — and questioned why he didn’t do it. This is precisely why it’s called the temptation of pride. It’s like — say you’re a writer, as I’ll use myself as an example — and no one is reading your books. And the devils might tempt you: “Come on, you can launch a promotion, get attention, make everyone read your book. Do it. Prove to everyone how smart you are.” That’s pride. Or maybe you’re an artist,