Insightful Musings on the Scriptures

by

Raymond P. Sparre
Northwest University class of '67

Greetings, dear people.

We’re slow getting things done today. So I’m late getting this message sent. Within this message, I admit to some choking…but I hope it doesn’t make you choke. I hope that encouragement can be extracted. I realize we all need it…not just someone to beat us on the head with dogma and dumb questions.

Now that the big table and benches are done and delivered, I need to rebuild my priority list, make determinations on order, and do my best to stay on course. Even already today, I guy rolled in with a load of alder logs that he would like milled up…another contribution to the juggling act of time management.

Blessings on you, your time, and stuff.

Love, Dad/Ray.

There is no doubt about David being a warrior—a very good one, I might add. If I had a nickel for every life he snuffed out from among those who were trying to snuff out his, I think I would need a substantial truck to haul all those nickels. It’s easy to understand how his background of military combat would flavor his views and the content of his writing. Even the familiar old song, “Lead Me to That Rock That is Higher Than I,” is an example of ideas flowing out of warfare (61:2-3) where David is seeking “refuge” and protection from enemies that are tracking him down to end his life. About the only way we who are not incredible warriors can draw value from the inspiration of David’s songwriting is to run them through the filter of New Testament revelation and draw the parallel to spiritual warfare. In that sense, we who seek Christian victory, are indeed warriors.

Please be patient with me while I spin my honesty. (At least, I think it’s honesty.) It sure would be nice if it were straight-forward and easy to get everything just exactly right and keep it that way. I’m afraid that seeking and hoping for attaining such a position and posture is something like seeking and hoping for political unity, or a flawless church—and less likely than winning the lottery. Even within this reading I find myself engaged in a bit of conflict at getting some details worked out. It causes me to raise some critical questions. Here’s one: If I claim to be a Bible believer, does that obligate me to personally embrace every attitude and bias presented within its pages? To be sure, I encounter some serious moral and logical difficulties if I am required to believe that every one of David’s prayers that request violent punishment upon his enemies is, in fact, inspired entirely by the Holy Spirit—that every word within these IMPRECATORY (Definition: To call down evil upon: curse.) expressions is divinely ordered, perfect, and to be received with a wholehearted “AMEN” endorsement.

A good example of an expression that gives rise to such struggle is 58:10—“The righteous will be glad when they are avenged, when they bathe their feet in the blood of the wicked.” Gasp—choke—gulp! Excuse me, David—that’s a tough one to swallow! I certainly want to support the fact of God’s truth and justice, but I recoil at the attitude of being “glad” about divine revenge, as though I have never deserved it myself. I know too much about hell from Biblical revelation. It’s so bad, I don’t really wish it upon anyone—not even Hitler, or Stalin, or Mao Tse-tung. And the notion of joyfully gloating over the punishment of the wicked and gleefully washing my feet in their blood is a repugnant one. Besides, if I’m connecting other dots correctly, some of that blood would be my own if the whole deal were based only upon justice.

David is a worthy role model, not because he was squeaky-clean and flawless in all his attitudes, expressions, and actions, but because he personally held to and demonstrated an overarching HEART AFTER GOD.