Today’s Scripture Reading (February
20, 2013): Psalm 31
Christianity
has a tendency to become very dualist in nature. What I mean by that is we
sometimes separate the body and soul so much that we almost begin to believe
the heresy that the body really does not matter – it is only the soul that
counts. But that belief is totally missing in the biblical story. Absolutely
nowhere does it say that all that counts is your soul – your body is part of
you – and it is important.
So we come
to Psalm 31 (and as Christians these words have special significance because
they are the final words spoken by Jesus before his death) and what we hear is
the idea that no matter what happens to the body – at least the spirit will be
safe. But that misses the significance of the passage. The word translated
spirit here is “ruwach” which is translated as soul in other place – and it is
also the word used to describe the Holy Spirit – but at its most basic level it
simply means breath. So this verse could be translated “Into your hands I
commit my breath.” Breathing is one of the most basic functions of the body,
and we know that the body can no longer function when the breath is gone. And
as much as that is a great illustration of what happens when our spirit leaves
us, but breath is as much about keeping the body healthy as it is a description
of the spirit.
Neither
David nor Jesus intended to elevate the spirit above the body. But there is a significant
difference between these words quoted by David and the words quoted by Jesus.
For David, he was committing his breath to God in hopes that his body would
continue to live in this world. The meaning of Ruwach in this Psalm is really
that David intends to commit everything he is to God – body, soul and mind. For
Jesus, he commits his breath to God knowing that he is about to die – that the
moments for his body in this world are swiftly counting down to zero. But,
either way, both David and Jesus were asking God to keep them safe – all the
parts of them - soul, mind and body.
Jesus use of
these words has made them memorable. Countless saints have used these very
words when they were departing life. But the intent of the words is always a
petition to God to keep all of us safe, because in a very real way our soul,
mind and body are all very intimately connected. And God’s requirement of all
of us is that we commit all that we are to him.
Tomorrow’s Scripture Reading: Psalm
35
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