Insightful Musings on the Scripturesby
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 has followed, and an archive of all his daily devotional writings for 2010 and 2011.
| Sparre Home Page | Daily Reading Guide | 2011 Devotion Archives | 2010 Devotion Archives |
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5 Nov 11
Good afternoon, dear people.
Becki has been gone for a good deal of the day…only recently returning to critique my composition. I don’t like to send these things out without her checking and analyzing. So if you don’t like it, you can blame her. Right? Also, she normally catches a typo or six.
My day has already had unforeseen turns. So my TO DO LIST is about as long now as it was at the beginning of the day. That seems to be far too normal. It sure keeps life interesting. After sending this, I’ll try to get a few things done.
Be blessed through the rest of your list. Hey, I wonder—could it be a kind of blessing to not have a list? Then you wouldn’t have anything to feel guilty about when nothing gets crossed off? I guess we would need to call that air-head blessing.
Love, Dad/Ray
5 November 2011
Job 15
Focus: “Let him not deceive himself by trusting what is worthless, for he will get nothing in return.” Job 15:31.
The TERMITE speaks again—Eliphaz the Temanite, that is. He’s pretty hot. Of course he has just endured the blast of Job’s heat. Could we call this a heated argument? Eliphaz is so fired up that perhaps he removes a shoe, and beats it on the table like I recall “commy” Khrushchev doing years ago, and throws a verbose tantrum. He firstly complains about the heat he’s feeling. “Would a wise man answer with empty notions or fill his belly with the hot east wind? (v. 2).” Burn! Ouch!
No one likes to have someone else come along and butcher their “sacred cow.” And if Job’s claims are true—that he is innocent of secret sin, that he has NOT given God good reason to be angry as Eliphaz thinks is so clearly indicated by his extreme losses—we have a worldview and theological revolution going on here—a “sacred cow” has been killed. And some of the most sacred of all cows are ideological ones.
Like a self-flattering fool who addresses his superior as though he were his inferior, Eliphaz says, “Listen to me and I will explain to you; let me tell you what I have seen…” (v.17). Oh brother!—that kind of condescending arrogance is enough to make Wyatt erp! That very attitude can help to raise the temperature of one’s blood.
Eliphaz proceeds to describe in creative eloquent terms the consequences of opposing God and disrespecting the cow that God has so clearly made sacred. It’s certainly not a pretty description. “Let him not deceive himself by trusting what is worthless, for he will get nothing in return. Before his time he will be paid in full, and his branches will not flourish. He will be like a vine stripped of its unripe grapes, like an olive tree shedding its blossoms. For the company of the godless will be barren, and fire (…more heat) will consume the tents of those who love bribes. They conceive trouble and give birth to evil; their womb fashions deceit” (vv. 31-35). While his words may be technically true as applied to an obstinate and rebellious sinner, his faulty strong implication is, “Job—can’t you see that this shoe fits you?! Now put it on and wear it, for crying out loud!”
What in the world kind of devotional value can we pull out of all this? I am inspired to answer that question by dipping into my New Testament reading for the day—the end of John 6. Jesus is engaged in debate with very religious people too—people who judge that Jesus is absolutely whacked because He is tampering with some of their “sacred cows” of traditional thought—judging that He could not be authentically representing God—although, in fact, He WAS God. Talk about irony! The lines were so clearly drawn, and the claims of Jesus so difficult to grasp by fair-weather-followers (for example John 6:53-58), we have recorded there one of the saddest verses in the Bible—“From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him” (John 6:66).
I’ve made this point before—but I think I’ll do it again. Did you happen to notice the address for that verse in John?—6:66—666. Hmmm—any goose bumps yet? We won’t get too carried away with this, but it does deserve some reflection. To be sure, this attitude is at the heart of the ANTI-CHRIST movement—which is predicted to culminate in THE ANTI-CHRIST. Be aware that being ANTI-CHRIST does not require being ANTI-RELIGION, or even ANTI-CHRISTIAN.
Bottom line: Be very careful how you select, feed, and nurture a “sacred cow.” It may be of no more value than a golden calf!
“The pure and simple truth is rarely pure and never simple.” - Oscar Wilde