The Actualized Life PDF

The Actualized Life A psalm of David. I. Yahweh is my shepherd, I shall not lack.. 2. He causes me to lie down in green pastures. He pastures me near the waters of rest. 3. He renews my soul. He directs me in paths of righteousness £or His name's sake. 4. Even when I go through the valley of death-s...

The Actualized Life A psalm of David. I. Yahweh is my shepherd, I shall not lack.. 2. He causes me to lie down in green pastures. He pastures me near the waters of rest. 3. He renews my soul. He directs me in paths of righteousness £or His name's sake. 4. Even when I go through the valley of death-shadow, I will not fear evil, for You are ever with me. Your rod and staff comfort me. 5. You prepare a table before me in the presence of my adversaries. You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows. 6. Certainly, goodness and mercy shall pursue me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of Yahweh for all time. PSALM 23 ICs+====:::::::x»t =::>INX: =====x 74 THE ACTUALIZED LIFE 75. A gift can be made personal only by employing it for its intended use. That which God has provided by His grace must be appropriated with reverence and diligence. (Phil. 2 :1213). There is no short cut to the making of a Christian person. THEME No passage more simply or beautifully expresses the vindication of life-in-God than the beloved Twenty-Third Psalm. The theme "I shall not lack" (vs. 1) could easily be repeated as a refrain throughout the psalm. The text impresses one as being deeply personal; it is a reflection upon God's faithfulness through the various aspects of life past and confidence in regard to the future. It has the nostalgic vividness of imagery recalled from an earlier shepherd's experience and applied to the deep lessons of abiding in Yahweh. Two figures, the good shepherd (vss. 1-4) and the good host (vs. 5), blend into one confident refrain (vs. 6). The designation of Yahweh as shepherd was a familiar one (Gen. 49:24), as was that of Israel as His.flock (Psa. 74: l; 100:3). It is a refreshingly idyllic picture. The shepherd leads his.flock, after Eastern custom, rather than driving them before him. He knows them by name and is able to ptek the individual sheep from a surging mass of seemingly identical creatures. Now and then an animal pauses to pull at especially luscious herbage or to satisfy his curiosity over an unusual phenomenon. But at the call of the recognized voice, he bounds to the shepherd's side, fondly nuzzling the outstretched hand. Yet the Judean hillsides could be inhospitable. There was the need of seeking out grazing accommodation and fresh water, the possibility of losing the way or tumbling into a deep ravine, or of attack by wild beast or roving thief. The shepherd, experienced in the vicissitudes of pastoral life and anned to ward off the enemy, was the guarantor of good things and of safety. The fact that there is but one shepherd ( vs. 1) does not mean that his sheep are identical. There is always the danger of what Erich Fromm calls "being an automaton among automata"-that is of conforming to what others expect of you. The error is the 76 PSYCHOLOGY IN THE PSALMS more serious for being perpetrated in God's name. Christians should be the most different people imaginable, not simply from non-Christians, but from each other. This differentiation of personality around the reality of authentic living is the goal of the actualized life. It cannot be reproduced by imitation; it is produced only by the experience of fellowship through the tensions of spiritual growth. Carl Jung has made a major contribution to our understanding of individuation, the means by which selfhood may be achieved. He explains: "It is a relatively rare occurrence, which is experienced only by those who have gone through the wearisome but, if the unconscious is to be integrated, indispensable business of coming to terms with the unconscious componentS of the personality. "1 Contrary to much popular expectation, Christianity offers no simple solution to man's problems or to the integration of his personality; it does promise the abiding presence of Christ in the resolution of difficulties and toward the development of Christian character. There is no offer of e.a.se, but the promise of grace for the experience. The psalmist steers between the presumption of total control over either the exigencies of life or his personal responses, and despair concerning the external and internal forces which resist progress. He is not like the neurotic who "calls for a goal of absolute, godlike power, [and] with his customary dogmatism, must attain absolute success or nothing at all." 2 He knows that life consists of imperfectly realizing the total sufficiency of God. He can rejoice in the availability of grace and grow through the demands which life places upon it. PAUSE BY THE WAY Life is made up of a variety of experiences. Some of these the psalmist pictures in a series of pastoral episodes: the watering of the flock, the shepherd's guidance over the uncharted paths, and 1Carl Jung, "Patterns of Behavior and Archetypes," Theories of Personality, Lindzey and Hall, eds., p. 71. 1 Abraham and Edith Luchins, Rigidity of Behavior, p. 21. THE ACI'UALIZED LIFE... 77 protection through the dangerous ravines. In each of these instances the psalmist finds his Lord sufficient. When the sun beats down fiercely from overhead, the shepherd leads his flock to cool meadows (vs. 2). Nahul is a distinctively pastoral word, implying gentle leading. The shepherd is solicitous in his concern. W airing for the flock is tender growth to soothe the warm bodies, and waters by which they rest. It is a time for relaxing and refreshing. The shepherd draws water to quench the thirst, and allows the flock to relax upon the soft green growth. Man needs time to contemplate, restore his energies, and gain perspective. He must find occasions to move out of the torrid pace of life. In the quietness his anxious thoughts are tempered and his obsessive drives are stilled. He draws upon.the resources of God, and is refreshed in spirit. Ahead are difficult testings, but this is the time to prepare for them rather than to pursue their resolution. The pause will sustain the rugged climb. LIGHT ON THE SECULAR Again the shepherd's voice is heard (vs. 3b ). It is time to pass on. He goes before. The sheep leave behind the pleasant pastures which were not meant for continuous repose. As Jung observes: "Individuation does not shut one out from the world, but gathers the world to oneself."3 It is by living totally in the world that Christian personality is formed. The man who rejects serious deliberation for easy prayer makes a mockery of his faith. When he shirks responsible decision for pietistic pretense, he discredits his testimony. When he excuses inaction in the name of God's will, he denies Christ A man can only plumb the Christian life in the world. It involves "taking life in one's stride, with all its duties and problems, its successes and failures, its experiences and helplessness. It is in such a life that.we throw ourselves utter!y into the arms of God and panicipate in his sufferings in the world and watch with Christ in Gethsemane. That is faith, that is metanoia, and that is what makes a man a Christian."' 'Jung., op. cit., p. 72. Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Letters and Papers from Prison, p. 125. 4 78 PSYCHOLOGY IN IBE PSALMS The intensity of such participation explains the need of renewal. We can shield ourselves against other persons by manipulating them as things, but true interpersonal involvement is demanding. Such was the Lord's experience (John 4: 6), and so will be that of His disciples. Homeostasis, a tensionless state, is not the personal ideal to covet. What man requires is "the striving and struggling for some goal worthy of him. What he needs is not the discharge of tension at any cost, but the call of a potential meaning waiting to be fulfilled by him." 5 Each step forward requires leaving behind something familiar and satisfying, and involves something unknown and threatening. It demands more and more of leaving the world of egocentricity, and entering into the orbits of other persons. It is an experience of paradoxical gain and loss (Matt. 10:39). As the Christian throws himself wholly into the world, he casts himself fully on God. There is the promise of guidance coupled with renewal ( vs. 3). Christianity is a distinctive involvement which invites our more detailed investigation. The Christian Perspective Oliver Barclay suggests that the Christian norm for guidance is "sound judgment based on a truly Christian sense of values." 6 He adds that this wisdom is not identical with common sense, but is rather man's judgment elevated by revelation. Scripture is explicit: "You shall therefore keep my statutes and my ordinances, by doing of which a man shall live. I am Yahweh" (Lev. 18: 5); and "I have laid up Thy word in my heart, that I might. not sin_ag~inst Y.9u'' (Psa. 119: 11). Rabbinic commentary is quite helpful at this point. For instance, it reflects that the study of the Torah by the. heathen makes him as good as the High Priest. Devotion to the Torah is not an excuse from but occasion for piety. As "Resh Lakish said: 'The commandment of the Lord is pure' [Psa. 19:9]. Hone's intent is pure, the Torah for him becomes a life-giving medicine, purifying him to life. Bu·t if one's intent is no! pure, it becomes a 'Frankl, op. cit., p. 107. "Oliver Barclay, Guidance: Some Biblical Principles, p. 9. THE ACTUALIZED LIFE 79 death-giving drug, purifying him to death." 1 The word is to be handled with reverential devotion and enthusiastic obedience: "Hasten to perform the slightest commandment, and flee from sin; for the performance of one commandment leads to another an one transgression leads to another. The reward of a commandment is another to be fulfilled, and the reward of one tranSgression is another. " 8 The Christian is involved in life's struggle along with others who may or may not share his faith. He is perhaps least sensitive to the difference caused by his allegiance to Holy Writ. His peculiarity is not one of his own making or maintained by his determination, but is the result of God's grace. Guidance is a natural development of the life in communion with the WordChrist; devoutly immersed in the word-Scripture. The growing Christian will experience the frustration of unsheltered living (Job 1: 10-12). His life can border on the line of despair, so intense may stress become, for his faith makes him more rather than less human. In the depth of living he finds the true extent of God's ·grace, and the means which mold him into the image of Christ. There he realizes the resources of God for himself, and makes them available to his fellows. He does not come empty-handed to the human struggle. Authentic Reality The believer has not only the advantage of perspective, but the personal reality of grace (II Cor. 3: 3). We dare not conclude that he per se knows more than other men or has some special insight into the course of action which should be taken. He does nQt become as a result of his conversion an expert on labor relations, population explosion, or civil rights. What he does bring to these and other critical areas is the concern for righteousness, the honor of God's name (vs. 3). His prayer is for God's will to be done, and the promise he claims is to be led into IYcLths of righteousness. He does not play God, but prays to Him. The Christian can forgive because he has been forgiven. He 'Yoma, 72b, quoted in Judaism, A. Hertzberg, ed., p. 76. 'Misbmtb Avot, 4:2, quoted in ibid., pp. 183-4. 80 PSYCHOLOGY IN THE PSALMS can love because he has been loved. Grace received can be mediated. Some years ago I became acquainted wtih a young man of most desolate character. He was abhorred by his associates, who singled him out for extreme mental cruelty and even physical brutality. He had no home and no friends 'and was fed on a constant diet of hate. Some time passed. It was reported to me that this man had been converted to Christ, and subsequent observation seemed to confirm it. There was a lack of pretension, and a quiet confidence that seemed now to commend him to his peers, a winsomeness and concern about him which exuded the reality he had found in Christ. A dynamic of love had replaced that of hate. His life illustrates better than words the authentic reality which the Christian brings to the routine of existence. We have seen that God's preferred classroom for building Christian character is the world rather than the monastery. The Christian is in the world, but not of it. He brings a perspective sharpened in Scripture and a continuing experience of grace. Perfection always escapes him. He is in the process of proving the sufficiency of God, and the process ( rather than the goal set be-fore him) is God's witness to men. EVEN THERE The "death-shadow" ( vs. 4) traditionally has been interpreted as a reference to the passing of life; as such, the verse has been of the greatest comfort to those going through this experience. The best that can be said for the idea is that it is an application of the text. "Death-shade is a strong poetical expression for the profoundest qarkness. " 9 The Judean hill country is broken up by narrow and precipitous fissures, shrouded in forboding darkness, abounding with caves concealing robbers and wild beasts. Such is the nature of the danger awaiting the flock. Something of the idea of death-shadow is seen in the use of the word in reference to Hades (Job 10:21), uninhabited desert (Jer. 2:6), and mine shaft (Job 28: 3). John Calvin, Commentary on the Book of Psalms, I, p. 196. THE ACTUALIZED LIFE 81 Even in the death-shadow the psalmist will not fear. More threatening than finding the right paths of the hills are the deep, forbidding ravines. Though the psalmist will not be without fear, he will surmount it_ with confidence in the shepherd. His eyes shift from the terrifying darkness to the dim outline of the staff. It is likely that the psalmist had only one implement in mind, but one with a double use: the rod to protect and the staff to guide. By calling it a staff, the psalmist may imply that the shepherd leans upon it as he carefully watches the sheep, or uses it to extricate them from a precarious situation. The tendency to be afraid or agitated over the death-shadow and any imaginative speculation is checked by the protector's presence. The symbol of his office dispels the gloom. The passage describes God's working with His people in the most extreme and threatening of life's experiences. The nature of the experience which terrifies differs from person to person. An Army buddy of mine was so frightened at the thought of snakes that the turning of a twig underfoot could and sometimes did cause him to dash for "safety" yards away from the object. His death-shade was a snake pit. Man wants to think that when he trusts, he will not fear; but the more realistic confession is: "When I am afraid, I put my trust in You" (Psa. 56: 3). Courage is born when man faces fear in a cause. There is a sense in which the extremity is welcomed, not for the terror involved, but for the opportunity it holds for growth and witness. The Christian does not ask for such a testing, but he is content to believe that if he is called upon to go through it, he will rtot be alone. GOOD TIMES Life is not for most an unbroken chain of mishaps or nea.rtragedies. There are the good times. Our metaphors now shift from the flock to that of the guest-right (vs. 5). It was considered a sacred duty to extend protection and hospitality (Gen. 19: 1-11; Judg. 19:22-25). A more recent incident illustrates the same attitude. A missionary was handed a piece of mutton, accompanied by his host's explanation: "By that act I have pledged you every 82 PSYCHOLOGY IN THE PSALMS drop of my blood, that while you are in my territory no evil shall come to you. For that space of time we are brothers."10 While the image of the over.fl.owing cup is meant to reinforce the idea of the host's liberality, anointing with oil symbolizes the happiqess of the occasion (Psa. 45:7; 104: 15). Such exhilarating times are part of Christian experience. These are appropriate occasions for re.fleeting on God's faithfulness. The two metaphors merge in retrospect (vs. 6). The psalmist looks back, as if expecting to see the enemy in pursuit. Instead, he sees only the personification of goodness and mercy acting as rear guard. As often as he turns about, they stand watchful. The same is true of the hospitality extended to him. He continues to enjoy the protection, bounty, and fellowship of the home. The favor which he experiences is so great that he regards all else as unworthy to be cOnsidered even as an exception. As pain is soon forgotten, the blessing of God bathes the wounds and recalls the good learned through leaner times. · We have seen how God plans to build Christian character through the varied aspects of life. While the experience of each person differs from the experience of others, and from rime to time alters radically from what he has experienced in the past, the faithfulness of God remains the same (Heb. 13: 8). There is no lack for the Christian who is in the process of acrualizing his life, no want of sustaining grace. THE GOOD SHEPHERD When Jesus called· Himself "the good shepherd," he was not only calling to mind the familiar imagery of the psalmist, but He was also clearly identifying Himself with Yahweh by using the formula: "I am" (cf. Job 8:58). Ethelbert Stauffer succinctly summarizes the significance of the testimony: "He was in all deliberation using the Old Testament and liturgical formula of God's self-revelation. He wished to convey that in his life the historical epiphany of God was taking place. " 11 The radical 11 Ethelbert Stauffer, Jesus and His Story, p. 193. itH. Clay Trumbull. Studies in Oriental Social Life, p. 110. THE ACTUALIZED LIFE 83 nature of His claim was attested by the miraculous nature of His acts and the still more astounding character of His person. The Good Shepherd discourse is introduced by the words "Truly, truly" (John 10: 1). This phrase appears never to be used to introduce a new situation. This fact along with a consideration of the content of the passage, gives us sufficient reason to treat the discourse in connection with the earlier claims of Christ, and the subsequent excommunication of one who embraced His way. The religious leaders in Jerusalem were concerned because Christ had healed a blind beggar on the Sabbath. Some protested: "This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath"; others wondered, "How can a man who is a sinner do such a sign?" (John 9: 16). They turned on the beggar, first interrogating and then dismissing him from the synagogue. Christ responded to their hostility in the form of a parable (John 10). Religion professes to deal with divinity. The religious leader approaches God on behalf of his constituency, and presumes to speak for God to man. The temptation is for the leader to conclude that he is not only a guide of men, but also a manipulator of the holy. He believes that through the prescribed rites, he has contained the Almighty and enslaved Him to a system. God then becomes the means of sanctioning man's subjection of his fellow. This tendency is evident in the legalistic attitude expressed here by the Ph1tisees toward the Sabbath, in their insensitive feeling for the man restored to sight and their subsequent excommunication of him which carried not only religious but social and economic sanctions. The good shepherd, by contrast, does not treat man as a thing to be manipulated but as a person to be aided (John 10:3). He does not prey on the sheep (vs. 10), but gives himself to them (vs. 15). He does not take flight as thooe who are afraid of the excommunication ban (vs. 13), but lays down his life for the sheep (vs. 18). Jesus identifies Himself as that Good Shepherd (vs. 11). The previously blind man was faced with a decision between the demand of religion and the call of Christ. The former attempted to bribe him into the religious sanctuary, while the latter invited him into human struggle. He had to decide between being 84 PSYCHOLOGY IN THE PSALMS immobilized by sanction, or striving for acrualization. It was not an easy decision; and it was one which he would have to face time and again. At the heart of the religious escape from life is indolence, the unwillingn~ to bear the pain of responsible decision. "Religious people speak of God when human perception is ( often just from laziness) at an end, or human resources fail. " 12 God becomes the convenient excuse for lack of preparation or laziness in pursuit of the task, and carelessness in reappraisal. The religious person thus answers every question with the blanket response: "God wanted it this way." He supposes that guidance dehumanizes man, rather than lifting human capabilities to new potential. The religious person fails to understand that what he presumes to be God's voice is more likely that of his parents, his society, and/ or his interest. His mistake is not only that he fails to discern God's word, but perpetuates his error on posterity. Clues to the existence of the religious mentality are a summary treatment of others, and the effort to coerce faith. Christ stood in sharpest contrast to these characteristics. He associated with the outcasts of society. He accepted persons as He found them, and dismissed them only as they were unwilling to look with similar honesty to themselves (John 9:41). Christ knew best the dire consequences of rejection of the gospel, but never took advantage of circumstances or applied inordinate pressure to gain a following. His treatment of the restored man is a commentary on tenderness with the personality of another (John 9:7, 30-39). The road to the actualized life also has two clues: openness to all, and openness with every man. The term "fullness" ( pleroma) best describes the universal availability of the growing Christian (John 10: 10). Paul uses it to describe the gathering of the Gentiles (Rom. 11: 2 5). "This 'incoming' can and shall take place only because Christ is already the pleroma himself, the totality of the Word of God made flesh; for from him there flows the whole fulness of divine grace and truth."13 The life cannot be expected 12 Bonhoeffer, Letters and Papers from Prison, p. 93. George A. F. Knight (ed.), Jews and Chrirtians: Preparation for Dia- 13 logue, p. 49. THE ACTUALIZED LIFE 85 to mature in Christ so long as the disciple restricts from his consideration those who are part of his Lord's concern. The disciple must enlarge his horizons not only to embrace all but to accept each man as he finds him. It is possible to live with another person in close proximity over an extended period without ever seeing him as he is. The person we know is actually only the figment of our imagination. Christ did not make men over in order to accept them, but accepted them in order to make them over. The world of self-actualization is an interpersonal society where the dynamic of Christian love is being realized. TERMINATION It is not surprising that the Christian faith should have first been described as "the way" (Acts 19:9, 23; 24: 14). God's gift does not come neatly packaged; it is mediated through the experiences of life. Each step of faith is calculated to reap spiritual benefit The actualized life does not come vicariously from but through Christ. It is forged in life's crucible. We have traced the detail of life from the restorative retirement, over the rocky path of daily routine, through both the threatening experience and the good time when evil seems held at bay. Most will recognize such varied aspects of their lives, although these overlap and crowd in upon each other. In the variation of life's circumstances the Christian finds God's sufficiency and the potential to cope with life's demands. Grace does not come in advance, as if to allow us to squander it upon ourselves; but it is there when it is needed. There remains the abiding confidence that "I shall not want." In the words of Aaron Wolfe and Ja~es M. Gray: Complete in Thee-each want supplied, And no good thing to me denied; Since Thou my portion, Lord, will be, I ask no more, complete in Thee. Christ still looks upon the multitude with compassion (Matt. 9:36). They are described as flayed (skullo), skinned by friction 86. PSYCHOLOGY IN THE PSALMS with ~he hard realities of life, and cast down or away (hripto), discarded like an old coot by society. The Master's concern is translated into the ministry of His people. The Christian must turn his back on every pressure to turn him into an automaton, and most emphatically from anything which smacks of religious escapism. The gift of authentic life is meant to be actualized in the world of interpersonal relationships and service.