Insightful Musings on the New Testament
by
Ray Sparre, NU class of '67

Ray has a wealth of experience as a Husband, Father, Pastor, Missionary, and student of the Word. He believes and practices his faith where the rubber meets the road. You'll find his writings to be practical, insightful, and grounded in a truly Christ-centered world view.

Below are links to a printable daily Bible reading guide which Ray is following, and an archive of all his daily devotional writings for 2010.

|  Daily Reading Guide  |  2010 Devotion Archives  |
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26 May 10
    Good morning, dear ones.
    I've missed my jog routine so much lately that I'm going to go out and do it in a few minutes even though it's raining.  Maybe I'll do so under an umbrella.  I can't believe all the rain of late.  Maybe we need to modify the quip this way..."May showers bring June flowers."  It's only a month off.
    I hope you thrive today.
        Love, Dad/Ray
   
 
26 May 2010
Passage: Luke 7:36-50
Focus: “…and as she stood behind him at his feet weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears.”  Luke 7:38.
            The Bible constantly reveals the tension and contrast between two basic kinds of people.  They are the enlightened and the unenlightened.  We could also call them the spiritual and the natural.  That contrast is shown here as well.  The woman is spiritually enlightened in ways we are not clearly told and follows her urge to express her love, gratitude, and surrender by tears and sacrifice.  The Pharisee, on the other hand, although he is a supposed “spiritual leader,” is really a natural man and “does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness unto him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1Cor. 2:14).  (See also Rom. 8:5-8.)  He is, therefore, quite irritated with this whole display of this woman coming and carrying on the way she was.  It seemed to him to be not only foolish but also wrong.  Nor do unregenerate people today understand or appreciate sincere believers getting so carried away with their faith and worship that they WEEP.  They are very inclined to judge it all as so much emotional nonsense.  A profound lesson is revealed in the fact that Jesus approves of the repentant woman and reprimands the self-righteous Pharisee.
            I observe that this woman is giving a kind of practical demonstration of Jesus’ teaching in the previous chapter—6:20-23.  Check it out.  There is indication there that WEEPING is a very proper and legitimate expression of worship, repentance, and love on the part of the spiritually enlightened.  (See also Ps. 126:5-6; Jer. 9:1;14:17; 31:15-16; Acts 20:19,31; 2 Cor. 2:4.)
            If this angle is valid, perhaps we would do well to ask ourselves a question like this: “When is the last time I found myself WEEPING in the presence of Jesus?”  Think about it.
 
            “Tears flow freely from the fountain of a love-filled heart.”