Evagrius on fighting the long battle God has already won

 In my last post, I did some wrestling with the song "I'm fighting a battle you've already won", feeling that its bold faith and jaunty tune are hard to square with longterm experiences of hardship until balanced with songs of lament and union with Christ. 

I have one further thought, as I pick up a book from the stack on the floor. This June, I ordered a copy of John Mark Comer's Live No Lies, in a fit of compulsive bookbuying. When it came, I flipped through and found the best part: a neat little appendix on how to create your own handbook for fighting demons. This in turn directed me to the fourth-century monk theologian Evagrius of Pontus, and his book Talking Back. See below (from Book 2, Sections 2-3), where Brother Evagrius speaks the word of God from Exodus to his own tempting voice...

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Against the thought of sadness that arises in us due to the many temptations of ____ that come upon us and cut off our hope by saying to us, "What beautiful thing do you expect after all this labor?":

"If you indeed listen to my voice and do all the things that I will say to you, I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries. For my angel will go as your leader and will bring you to the Amorite, the Hittite, and Perizzite, and Canaanite, and Gergesite, and Hivite, and Jebusite, and I will destroy them." (Exodus 23:22-23)

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Against the thought that supposes that in a single hour the evil thoughts of ____ will flee from it:

"I will not cast them out in one year, lest the land become desolate and the beasts of the land multiply against you. Gradually I will cast them out from before you, until you have increased and will inherit the land." (Exodus 23:29-30)

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Thank you, Evagrius -- and Moses. Here is both an acknowledgement of the long struggle and the solid hope from Scripture, telling us why the long struggle is part of the plan, and why it is worth it -- and how it is that all our striving is part of God's plan to lead us through and save us from every danger and foe, even and especially our false selves. He will do it and we will do it and it will take a long time and a lot of work and we will be stronger in the end and more aware of our weakness, and of his powerful help supporting us on every side.

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And here is the famous song mentioned at the top of the post, so you can come to your own conclusions. I want to take seriously my friend and worship leader Tyler Newkirk's recommendation to read the song as a poem apart from the music and savor the truth it presents:

You've Already Won

(by Shane and Shane, found here)

[Verse 1]

There's peace that outlasts darkness

Hope that's in the blood

There's future grace that's mine today

That Jesus Christ has won

So I can face tomorrow

For tomorrow's in Your hands

All I need, you will provide

Just like you always have

[Chorus]

And I'm fighting a battle

You've already won

No matter what comes my way

I will overcome

Don't know what you're doing

But I know what you've done

And I'm fighting a battle

You've already won

[Verse 2]

There's mercy in the waiting

Manna for today

And when it's gone, I know you're not

You are my hope and stay

When the sea is raging

Your Spirit is my help

He'll fix my eyes on Jesus Christ

I'll say that it is well

Oh, I know that it is well

[Chorus]

I'm fighting a battle

You've already won

No matter what comes my way

I will overcome

Don't know what your doing

But I know what you've done (thank you, God)

I'm fighting a battle

You've already won

[Bridge]

I know how the story ends

We will be with you again (you're the one who saves)

You're my Savior, my defense (so we don't have to be afraid)

No more fear in life or death

I know how the story ends (we will be with you)

We will be with you again

You're my Savior, my defense (no more fear)

No more fear in life or death (alright, y'all, with everything you've got, here we go)

I know how the story ends (we will be with You)

We will be with you again (You're my Savior)

You're my Savior, my defense (no more fear)

No more fear in life or death

I know how the story ends (oh, I need no other, need no other)

[Chorus]

I'm fighting a battle

That You've already won

No matter what comes my way

I will overcome

Don't know what you're doing

But I know what you've done (thank you, God)

I'm fighting a battle

You've already won

[Outro]

I'm fighting a battle

You've already won (hey)

Evagrius on persevering with persistent thoughts

 I have had a persistent fascination with Evagrius of Pontus, ever since I read about him in John Mark Comer's book Live No Lies. His notebook entitled Antirrhetikos or Talking Back (translated by David Brakke, 2009) is a long list of specific tempting thoughts classified under eight headings, with each thought countered by a verse from Scripture. 

Here are three of my favorites, creatively addressing the feelings of impatience, laziness, and loneliness that try to make me think of giving up the fight:

Against the thought that supposes that in a single hour the evil thoughts of fornication will flee from it:

'I will not cast them out in a year, lest the land become desolate and the beast of the land multiply against you. Gradually I will cast them out from before you, until you have increased and will inherit the land' (Exodus 23:29-30).

Against the intellect that is contending with thoughts of fornication, but does not want to shake them off of it completely and does not recognize the fetter of sin and the anxiety of evils:

'And Delilah said, “The Philistines are upon you, Samson!” And he woke up from his sleep and said, “I will go out just like every other time, and I will shake them off.” And he did not know that the Lord had departed from him. And the Philistines seized him, cut out his eyes, brought him down to Gaza, and bound him with fetters of brass; and he ground at the mill in the prison house' (Judges 16:20-21).

Against the soul’s thought that succumbs to distress and sadness and supposes that it is the only one that is tempted so severely:

'Discipline yourselves, keep watch. Like a roaring lion your adversary the devil prowls around, looking for someone to devour. Resist him, steadfast in your faith, for you know that your brothers in all the world are undergoing the same kinds of suffering' (1 Peter 5:8-9).

As Evagrius says in Praktikos 6, "There are eight general and basic categories of thoughts in which are included every thought. First is that of gluttony, then impurity, avarice, sadness, anger, acedia, vainglory, and last of all, pride. It is not in our power to determine whether we are disturbed by these thoughts, but it is up to us to decide if they are to linger within us or not and whether or not they are to stir up our passions."