2007 picture of Ray SparreInsightful 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  |
___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

10 Nov 10
           
Good morning, Special ones.
            There’s enough daylight now to see the river (creek) roaring by…with coffee-brown water.  Lots of rain.  And more to come.  And I have to go out and work in it.  I need to get to fold up my mill and tow it to a new job to saw up a big bunch of fir and cedar logs for a guy.  If he wasn’t applying pressure that he only has this week free for this project, I’d say, “Let’s hold off for drier weather.”  Oh, well…here goes another adventure.
            Have fun…in doors…or out.  He is still LORD of all…in or out.
                        Love, Dad/Ray
            
 
10 November 2010
Passage: John 8:48-59
Focus: “Before Abraham was, I AM.”  John 8:58.
           
The cat is now clearly out of the bag.  There is no more room for guessing or wondering about what exactly this Jesus is claiming.  Without stammering, stuttering, flinching, or abstractions, Jesus lays it clearly on the table—stating in no uncertain terms that He is not only FROM GOD but ONE WITH GOD—HE IS GOD.  “Before Abraham was, I AM.”  Wow!
            You have to admit that if you were there with your heart and mind set on a great sensational conquering Messiah, you too would have expected to see a good deal more class—you too would most likely be picking up stones—big ones!  Here Jesus was, a normal-looking man with no high profile credentials. The group thought they knew all they needed to know about his family and origins.  Some even put forth the slam that He was a “Samaritan”—not a very respectable classification by full-blooded Jews.
            Try viewing this “little” situation from the window of the “big picture” and you will recognize that there is nothing very unusual about this case, insofar as God’s dealings with men are concerned. It’s apparent to me that God has always chosen to work in ways outside the box of man’s expectations and bias.  The truths of God are not normally broadcast with intense noise and flashing lights.  They are not usually dramatic, and definitely NOT dependent upon religious tradition. Nor are they grasped through the medium of careful catechism and intellectual skill. They are, however, imparted by the Spirit of God to A HEART AFTER GOD. (Have I ever used that phrase before?)  “The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned” (1 Corinthians 2:14).  “But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise; God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong.  He chose the lowly things of this world and the despised things—and things that are not—to nullify the things that are, so that no one may boast before him” (1 Corinthians 1:27-29).
            The guy who is always boasting and spouting off with his dogma, yelling his bias, shouting his oppositions, arguing, complaining, criticizing, and defending, is most likely going to distance himself so far from the truth that he will never hear the “still small voice” of the Spirit of God. Imparting that important lesson to Elijah when he was so bummed and discouraged, God chose to use some dramatics.  “The Lord said, ‘Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the LORD, for the LORD is about to pass by.’  Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind.  After the wind there was an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake.  After the earthquake came a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire.  And after the fire came a gentle whisper” (“still small voice”—1 Kings 19:11-12).  Selah.
          
 Please sing with me…

“Shut in with God in a secret place;

There in the Spirit beholding His face;
Gaining new power to run in the race.
I long to be shut in with God.”
ญญญญญญญญญญญญญญญญญญญญญญญญญญ______________________________________________________________

“No one is so empty as when he is filled with thoughts of himself.”