Insightful Musings on the Scriptures

by

Raymond P. Sparre
Northwest University class of '67

Good morning, special people.

Becki will be arriving here soon with her walk duds on. Dandy is outside my studio with his regular excitement and anticipation, sensing that we are on the verge of another walk/jog excursion.

And speaking of that, I’m reminded again from our reading, and from the realities of life and death, that if this Biblical Gospel offers any benefits at all, it profoundly offers the removal of any fear of death. All that is replaced by anticipation and excitement over taking off on a journey of new adventure. That was also featured in a call I received yesterday from a friend dying from leukemia. He and his family are role models of those benefits. I’m paying attention. She’s here. Bye.

Blessings on your day.

Love, Dad/Ray.

As a kid, I found myself excited about a lot of things—particularly new action and adventure. It was almost hopeless for me to sleep well before a big day scheduled for those ingredients. For example, at the age of 14, I remember twisting my worried mother’s arm so hard that she finally granted permission for me to travel across Seattle on the transit system to a dive shop on the shore of Lake Union to rent a “skin diving” dry suit for the first time so I could go spearfishing with a friend in the cold waters of Puget Sound. Wow!—that was over 56 years ago! And I’ve engaged in that kind of thing ever since. (At what point in this timeline is a person supposed to grow up?) I remember the same kind of excitement before a big day of skiing, or climbing a mountain, or hunting with my grandfather, or a camping trip, or even more recently, navigating our mission boat across open ocean from Noro to Mono, or…

And since early childhood I’ve heard these words and themes of Jesus, even memorizing key passages from the Gospel of John. But I’ve never known them to inspire a greater sense of excitement and adventure than what I am sensing right now. (Is that a sign of growing up?) In some ways, it’s like being a kid all over again—on the verge of new adventure. And I’m reasoning that this sense of excitement can be equated with the JOY that Jesus talks about here and presents as VERY IMPORTANT. “I have told you this so that my JOY (excitement) may be in you and that your JOY may be complete.” Think about it.

However we cut it, there is wonderful evidence before us that this JOY (sense of excitement and adventure) affords some wonderful benefits to the believer. It will provide some strong motivation to REMAIN in Him. “REMAIN in me, and I will REMAIN in you” (v. 4). It will prevent the undesirable condition of UNFRUITFULNESS. “If a man remains in me and I in him HE WILL BEAR MUCH FRUIT; apart from me you can do nothing” (v. 5). It accompanies and allows the wonderful quality of PEACE. “PEACE I leave with you; my PEACE I give you” (14:27). Then, in the same verse, Jesus adds a clear command that defeats our greatest threat to PEACE—WORRY and FEAR. “Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” Think about it. At some wonderful point (via death or “rapture”) Jesus is going to take us with Him to some wonderful point. “I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am” (14:3). Wow! Are you excited yet? You haven’t seen anything yet! The adventure goes on.