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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 12 July 10
                Good evening, dear ones.
                It’s late for me…at 10:18pm.  Hard to keep my eyes opened…and when they are open, hard to keep them focused.  The adventure goes on. Tomorrow will be another episode.  Not sure how the plot will play out.
                Sleep tight.  Good night.  Love—Dad/Ray.
 
12 July 2010
Passage: 1 Corinthians 5
Focus: “What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church?  Are you not to judge those inside?”  1 Corinthians 5:12.
                This matter of judging meets with a lot of misunderstanding and controversy. There are those who would like to make a blanket judgment call by quoting, “Judge not that ye be not judged.”  They are the ones who really don’t do enough of the right kind of judging, and overlook all manner of violations to Biblical ethics and morality within their own ranks.  Then there are those who seem so fanatical about their judging that they impose all kinds of rigid standards for behavior on everyone, particularly those of their own group.
                Let’s assume that Paul’s judgment is right judgment as he reprimands the Corinthian church fellowship for being too accommodating of “sloppy agape” (love without boundaries) over a case of incest within their own group.  That which sets us apart from the world, Paul affirms, is the moral compass that God provides in the form of His Word—the Bible. So while we are required to heed that compass in order to maintain a healthy relationship with our Lord and protect the integrity of our mission and message, we are not in a position to impose every form of Biblical morality upon the culture at large.
                If a group makes up a new game that utilizes the court and equipment of tennis, but modifies the established rules, it may be a game with some similarities to tennis—but it’s not really tennis.  Tennis has a set of universally accepted rules.  The only way to play REAL tennis is to play by those rules.
                Make a commitment to play by the essential rules of the Kingdom—and be ready to pass judgment on those who violate them—including you.
 
                “Wrong is wrong, even if everyone is doing it.  Right is right, even though no one else does it.”