Someone asked Reb Uri Zohar zt'l "Who do you think will receive a greater Olam HaBa? You came from an irreligious background, and you partook in the culture that is immersed in all the tumah of this world. Then, you worked hard to succeed in your teshuvah to change all your past habits. In contrast, some people were raised with Torah and mitzvos their entire lives. They learned in cheder, attended yeshivah, and studied in a kollel. For their entire lives, they lived in a holy and pure environment, surrounded by Jews who followed the path of Torah. It is easy for them to observe the Torah and mitzvot. Don't you think that your tests are far greater than theirs? And, therefore, don't you agree that you will receive a far greater reward in Olam HaBa than them?
Reb Uri Zohar replied that it isn't so. "Those who were raised with kedushah, Torah, and mitzvos their entire lives, will earn a greater reward than I because their tests are greater than mine. I experienced all the pleasures this world has to offer, and I know that they are empty, unfulfilling pleasures. When I did teshuvah, I experienced the joy of studying Torah, the joy of keeping Shabbos and performing mitzvos – a joy that has no limit! It cannot be described. The joy of Torah and mitzvos is so great, and the other world has nothing to offer, so it is easy for me to choose ruchniyus and despise gashmiyus. However, in contrast, those who were raised with kedushah could think that the other world has something to offer. They are sacrificing to live as religious Yidden. Nevertheless, they remain steadfast, and they don't follow the temptations of their heart. They remain within the world of kedushah. Therefore, their reward will certainly be greater."
(He added that the yetzer hara comes to him as well. There isn't a person who isn't tested. Nevertheless, since he knows from experience that the yetzer hara has nothing to offer, it is easy for him to say "no" to the yetzer hara.)
Sifsei Tzaddik (#20) writes: "We learn from this that a person whose heart continually changes, back and forth, all the time, sometimes he goes up and sometimes he goes down, nevertheless, the one moment when he was good is very precious to Hashem."
The Reward is from the Struggle
It states (Koheles 10:1) סִכְלוּת מ ִכָּבוֹד מֵח ָכְמָה יָקָר מְעָט, and this can be translated as, "More precious than wisdom and honor is a drop of foolishness." The Remak (Or Yakar on Tikunei Zohar, Shaar 2:10) explains that the pasuk is explaining the greatness of the Jewish nation over the malachim. Malachim don't struggle with their yetzer hara, and therefore, they can't make tikunim (spiritual rectifications), and they can't grow to higher levels. Only the Jewish nation, which has a yetzer hara, can accomplish so much when they serve Hashem. The pasuk is saying, מ ִכָּבוֹד מֵח ָכְמָה יָקָר, more precious than the wise and honored malachim are מְעָט סִכְלוּת, the Jewish nation who have a drop of foolishness, which is the yetzer hara. The yetzer hara factor makes our avodas Hashem far more precious than that of the malachim.
Moshe told the Miraglim (13:17) אֶת וַע ֲלִיתֶם הָהָר, "climb the mountain." Bris Avram (from the Rebbe of Zalzi'tz zy'a) writes that הר represents the yetzer hara (see Succos 52a). The pasuk is telling us that when we are confronted with the yetzer hara, ההר את ועליתם, you can ascend to very high spiritual levels. The struggles we go through give us our spiritual levels, and they are what make our avodas Hashem precious to Hashem.
