Insightful Musings on the Scriptures

by

Raymond P. Sparre
Northwest University class of '67

Greetings on this beautiful Friday afternoon, dear people.

The last time I sent (Wednesday), maybe you will remember my mentioning my wishes to ski as the conditions looked good. As it turned out, Charlie Hill agreed to join me for a round of night skiing that very evening. Conditions were indeed good. The main problem was my own condition. My legs didn’t last as long as I wanted.

I hear Thano running the chainsaw outside—processing some firewood. It’s a very nice afternoon to do that. I just hauled a wheelbarrow load of nice maple to the house for our wood stove. We use no other heat source.

I would welcome any feedback on the spin I’ve taken below.

Have a great rest of your day.

Love, Dad/Ray.

Uh-oh—did you catch what’s emerging in the first verse of this chapter? Already, within this Holy Spirit-inspired revival, with conversions popping up all over the place like flowers in Spring, with miraculous healings, signs and wonders, dynamic preaching, and general excitement—“the Grecian Jews complained against the Hebraic Jews…” We’ve already had to grapple with the contaminating element of deceit in the case of Ananias and Sapphira—now it’s the element of griping—complaining about some bias-based inequalities—which render something less than perfect peace and unity. Even in this super-charged setting, perfect utopia remains just out of reach. Why? My first answer: Because it is still composed of people. And not only do all people come from flawed heart-level backgrounds, they all possess individual personalities, opinions, and culture. There is nothing absolutely cookie-cutter universal about a HEART AFTER GOD.

It is not my intention to find fault, but I have to wonder if I’m finding some noteworthy fault with the attitudes of “the twelve.” At that point where they said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables,” just this morning I wrote these notes in the margin of my Bible: “Says who? Why not?” Am I catching a slight smell of some superiority? Besides griping, is it possible that we are witnessing the addition of still another form of contamination? Is there a trace of arrogant elitism creeping in here? Have these disciples yielded to some memory loss? Have they forgotten the profound unmistakable lesson Jesus presented shortly before His death? Do you remember? To offer support for my discomfort, let’s turn to John’s account where Jesus had just washed his disciples’ feet and read again what Jesus said: “’Do you understand what I have done for you?’ he asked them. ‘You call me 'Teacher' and 'Lord,' and rightly so, for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another's feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. I tell you the truth, no servant is greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know these things, you will be blessed if you do them’” (John 13:12-17). Question: Is waiting on tables lower or more demeaning than washing each other’s feet? Consider also our recent reading in Matthew 23:11-12: “The greatest among you will be your servant. For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”

This is not likely the last time you and I will be called upon to make determinations concerning which example is most worthy of our following—that of Jesus or that of those who claim to be followers of Jesus. And however we make those determinations, it is good to bear in mind that spiritual anointing in one area does not necessarily guarantee infallibility in all other areas.