An Explanation of Leviticus (2)
Do nothing from selfishness or empty conceit, but with humility of mind regard one another as more important than yourselves; do not merely look out for your own personal interests, but also for the interests of others. Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, Philippians 2:3-5 NASB
Selfishness – Ah, it seems so clear, at least in writing. But even the word here is, ah, not quite what we thought. In spite of the fact that there are no examples in classical Greek, this very rare word apparently originally was tied to the day worker. It describes the “attitude or disposition of the day-labourer.”[1] In the writings of the philosophers, this word becomes a description of those who work for their own interests, that is, like the day-laborer they are preoccupied with their own ambitions. The epithos in a person is concerned with personal gain and willing to do whatever it takes to bring it about. As Büchsel notes, the word “had no more than the general sense of baseness, self-interest, ambition, contention, etc.”[2]
Now we may amplify Paul’s statement. “Not a single time direct your action and attitude from the desire for self-interest.” Or as Luzzatto might explain, “Nothing must find its origin in the drive of the yetzer ha’ra for self-protection or gain.” It’s not the outward action, the observable behavior, that’s in focus here. It’s the motivation. Suddenly the examination that must accompany worship of the Father is applied to interactions with others. It is no longer sufficient to fulfill the outward requirement. Now that fulfillment must arise from a heart empty of selfish desire.
“We do best to see a reference to the despicable nature of those who do not strive after glory, honour and immortality by perseverance in good works,”[3] not determined by the frame of our human existence but by the values of the Kingdom.
There is nothing easy here. How many of our noble efforts, our supposed actions on behalf of others are still tinged with a calculation of what gain it will bring or how it will serve to protect our fragile egos? How many times have we caught ourselves thinking of the results for us rather than a pure intention to help another? And when it comes to our emotions, how often have those deeper “needs” really been the things that propel our acts? So much of what we do seems to be driven by our desires, even when the outward acts appear to be primarily of benefit to our neighbor or spouse or child. Purity of heart is rare indeed, and for that reason, all the more important. To have the mind of the Master is much more than to fulfill the outward requirements of the Torah. It is to act like God because we think and feel like God.
May the Spirit help us.
Topical Index: selfishness, epithos, day-laborer, motivation, emotions, Philippians 2:3-5
[1] epitheia, TDNT, Vol. 2, p. 660.
[2] Ibid.
[3] Ibid.
Perhaps this is why Paul said, “Let this mind be in you, that was in Christ.”
Maybe that is why Yeshua says that it is the spirit that quickens, the flesh profits nothing.
What is ‘the’ motivator for the kingdom of self? Isn’t it to supply the love I so desperately need FOR MYSELF? Like a drowning person, I then grab at any and every straw at hand to do that, because I believe that it all starts (and ends) with me. What is the motivator for the Kingdom of Heaven? Isn’t it to glorify the King? It all comes down to who gets the glory.
What drives the yetzer hara? We in the West want to call it the ego, and we have a love/hate relationship with it, because we seem to be chained to it, for better or for worse, but we were created with our egos, so they have a proper and necessary function. I think our egos are our love barometer; they are supposed to register whether or not we are, in fact, experiencing (giving and receiving) love. When we are not, in fact, in a loving place, the ego, like all the other pain centers, starts to scream, for we cannot live without love. I think we make choices in the name of our egos, and then blame or honor them accordingly. We shoot the messenger (or throne him), and throw away the key, but the problem has not been solved!
Emotions are the results of experience, but we tend to want to blame or throne them too. Emotions are like a supercrunch of data; they quickly filter experience through previous experience and give us an instantaneous conclusion to go on. This is useful for me to know how to react to any given circumstance. I need my emotions! If I want to change my emotional response, then, I need to give myself a new platform, a new paradigm, to do so. I can change my emotional responses with my choices. I can choose to believe that the sheet blowing in the wind is not a ghost, and my amygdala, which sorts out whether or not something is a threat, proceeds accordingly, and I experience the event without adrenaline, without fear. We are not prisoners of our egos or our emotions, UNLESS we decide to throne them in our insane attempts to glorify self. At that point, we have shut down, to a large degree, our ability to change them, for we have made a decision to change OURSELVES in response to them, like we do with anything we perceive as having power over us (which is what a god is).
So what ARE we created to respond to life with, and where are we supposed to get these proper motivators, if they do not reside in us? Ah, frame the question! Now we are talking. I must go to the trading post for all that I need, and why would not the proper motivation also be a need I have? If I am to ask for this gift, what am I to ask for? Enter the fruits of the Spirit. Notice that they are not MY fruits, nor do they ORIGINATE with me. I do not manufacture them. They are the result of the Presence of the Spirit in me. It is a package deal; when I ask for His will to be done, His Spirit shows up to accomplish that. My part is to trade in ‘my’ motivators for His! Its a deal!
Very well stated.
I think we would all benefit from paying closer attention to the Hebrew/Jewish idea of yetzer ha’ra/yetzer ha’tov. I am conducting a sort-of weekly session on the study of Luzzatto’s Mesillat Yesharim and his analysis and the commentary of Ira Stone have been very helpful in this regard. All these discussions have been recorded and will eventually be available. The crucial point is that yetzer ha’ra is NOT ego. It is the will to survive. It is not about getting or receiving love. That is only one of the modalities where it is expresses. It is basically about the ESSENTIAL need to stay alive. The problem is that the yetzer ha’ra often views others and the wishes and obligations of others as threats to self-existence, and this in turn causes egocentric behavior. But without the yetzer ha’ra we would simply die. We may be able to turn from ego, but we cannot turn from yetzer ha’ra. What we must do is turn it toward higher ends.
That is very helpful! So the ego, which is where we start to notice the yetzer hara, ends up taking all the heat, because the western mind has a hard time whenever it cannot pin something down, and the need to survive, of which the ability to recognize the transmission, or experience of love, is but a part, is much more comprehensive than just the ego that does that recognizing. I am thinking out loud, please forgive me, and please correct me, too. Thank you!
I have tried to write about this recently on TWs. Try a search on yetzer ha’ra
Cut to the quick.
I can see that the will to survive is a greater “need” than the desire for love. Think of what (moral) humans are willing to do in each of these cases. I am certainly in “need” of this teaching, Skip.
And yet, w/out love orphans, of all species, perish.
When I Grow Up
~ But speaking the truth in love, may grow up into Him in all things, Who is the head, even Christ.. ~ (Ephesians 4.15)
Jesus. Others. You. What a wonderful way to spell “Joy!” At what point in time did I come to the realization there are “others” in this world besides my “self?” I am not the only one, neither am I alone. A little cog in a great big wheel? Or one cog among many cogs in order to make the big machine run smoothly? Nevertheless, friends, it is true.. “it’s not about me!” But it is about “us,” for “we” are the body of Christ!
Ahh, but “growing up” is hard to do! Growth is a process. I don’t know how to communicate this gently, but a man (or woman) wrapped up in themselves makes a mighty small package! To be “self-centered” (the world, btw and all it contains revolves around “me.”) is to be “eccentric” or “off-centered!” A wobbly wheel indeed! EGO? Edge God Out.
Of our three clearly identified enemies, the world, the flesh and the devil.. public enemy #1 has got to be..in this age of ‘meism’ is me! “Self” – the final frontier. Self-control, we may recall, is one of the fruits of the Spirit. And the answer is? Less of “me” and more of “Him!”
How is this possible? Crucifixion. Not “a” crucifixion, the very crucifixion of Christ! For when He died, “I” died! ~ I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless “I” live, yet NOT I – but Christ!!. Long story short? These four, and no more, — “not I, but Christ!” (Galatians 2.20)
Very small, almost “hidden,” – but exceedingly powerful: “ONLY (triple underline!!!) by pride comes contention!” (Proverbs 13.10) I totally agree with John.. ~ He must increase, but “I” must decrease..~ He must become greater, I must become less.. ~ (John 3.30). Remember this prayer? Father, “NOT my will, but Thine be done..?” “let tHis mind be in you..,” – He humbled Himself and prayed.
I am not Thy
The prayer “not my will but Thy will be done” forces me to accept my life is not about me!
Enriching TW, if we can grasp what Skip is trying to expound on a beautiful verse.
Selfishness is all about MY needs, not yours, what you ought to do FOR me, you are obligated to ME, who cares about what YOU are going through, if YOU are in a difficult/new situation/environment, MY needs are more urgent than YOURS! So ridiculous!
Yetzer ha’ra reveals WHO we truly are, the true colours deep within.
It is assumed negative as it brings forth the REAL us in situations, IF we are sensitive to its ‘voice’ as Skip tries to stress the vital part it plays in our spiritual walk, that truly it is a great blessing from YHWH, and it is just we need. It is the beastly, selfish nature being revealed in us,
Without yetzer ha’ra (shocking what negative emotions it stirs in us- envy, covetousness/greed, lust, pride etc…) we would think we are indeed perfect, and matured.
We so need to recognize that ‘voice’ to bring it to the higher level of yetzer haTOV, by not obeying it but turning it around for good.