Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God (I John 4:1)
The holy fathers…were great ascetics who existed only on the roots they found in the desert, and they often fought the devils. One of them was working on weaving a basket and the devil came to him in the form of Christ, but he ignored it. The devil shown like the sun, but the elder closed his eyes.
The devil called to him, ‘Elder, look at me!’
‘And who are you?’ asked the monk.
‘Don’t you see that I am Christ?’
The monk clenched his eyes shut even tighter and said, ‘I am a sinner and am not worthy to look upon Christ.’
‘You cursed old man! You knew who I was!’ And with that the devil fled because he saw that the monk recognized him.
Elder Cleopa of Sihastria, “Counsels to Laity,” Elder Cleopa of Sihastria, Ioanichie Balan (ed), Mother Cassiana (tr), New Varatec Publishing: Protection of the Holy Virgin Monastery, Lake George, CO, 2001, pp. 175-176.
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