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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 10 June 10, 2010                              
            Greetings, dear people.
            I suppose that one of the best reasons for taking time daily to read a portion of God’s Word is that it’s like taking essential vitamins and nourishment.  It’s all too possible to be physically sound and spiritually anemic.  It’s also like tending to the garden of your heart.  Are you aware of how fast weeds grow there?  God’s Word helps us identify and pull them.
            Oops! I’ve gone to preaching again.  Why does that always happen?
            Be blessed and nourished today.
                                                          Love, Dad/Ray
 
10 June 2010
Passage: Luke 13:1-21
Focus: “But unless you repent, you too will all perish.”  Luke 13:3.
            We have all seen and heard the mocking that goes on by people antagonistic toward Biblical revelation.  They love to ridicule the “turn or burn” or “repent or perish” rhetoric of many Christian Bible believers.  Granted, some may not communicate these ideas with sufficient grace.  But as I carefully critique the main message of the Bible, as well as the specific words of Jesus as in the passage before us, I have no alternative but to conclude that this is exactly what our options are—“repent or perish”—like it or not, argue and get angry, defend and justify, excuse and reject, it doesn’t matter—those options remain.
            Be reminded that the “perish” word shows up in probably the most well-known verse of the Bible—John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish but have everlasting life.”
            Let’s read on in John…”For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.  Whoever believes in him is not condemned (to perish), but whoever does not believe stands condemned already because he has not believed in the name of God’s one and only Son” (Jn. 3:17-18).
            So, what part of “repent or perish” do we not understand?  It boils down to a simple matter of choosing to do life God’s way, and get “eternal life” included, or do life your way—and perish. Any ideology in conflict with this fundamental thesis is simply not Biblical.
 
            “Excuses only satisfy those who use them.”