The Imperfect Work
An excerpt from a writing attributed to St. John Chrysostom

Not alone is Christ led by the Spirit into the desert, but so likewise are all the sons of God who have within them the Holy Spirit. For they are not content to sit idle; the Holy Spirit urges them, to take on some great task, such as to go out into the desert; going as it were to encounter the devil; for there injustice, in which the devil delights, is to be found. For all good is outside the world and the flesh, since it is not according to the will of the world of the flesh. So to such a desert all the sons of God go out, that they may be tempted. For example, if you should resolve not to marry, the Holy Spirit leads thee into the desert; that is, outside the boundaries of the world and of the flesh, to be tempted by the concupiscence of the flesh. For how can he be tempted by desire who is all day with his wife? We must know that the sons of God are not tempted by the devil, unless they have gone out into the desert. The sons of the devil, held fast in the world, and by the flesh, yield and are brought to naught.