Insightful Musings on the Scriptures

by

Raymond P. Sparre
Northwest University class of '67

Good morning, dear friends.

I hope it’s accurate to regard you that way. I must say that I am blessed with a huge network of friends. That is indeed a valuable treasure. But in this fallen world, friends come and go, don’t they—that is, they come into your life, then, at some point, they go—like die—like go to heaven. Another friend just did so last night—Hermie Englegau, retired missionary to Africa—almost 96. I just saw him on Friday when I used my boom truck to take out part of a tree in their front yard. The shell he leaves behind finally gets to make use of the casket I made for him. He was very proud of that box—even got in it once to try it out.

Will you object to my snatching a re-run from 4 years ago? In view of the time pressure we face this morning, I think that’s the best course. Besides, I don’t know if my 2018 inspiration is working any better than it did in 2014.

I hope you have a blessed day.

Love, Ray

Ponder that statement. All the murderers, bank robbers, and burglars of that community weren’t banding together to scheme on how to kill Jesus. The rapists, prostitutes, and pornographers weren’t trying to kill Him. It was the RELIGIOUS ELITE of that society that wanted Him dead. That speaks volumes.

There’s RELIGION for you! If you’ve ever been given a snapshot of its perverse ugliness, you have it here. Laced through this short reading is a demonstration of RELIGION in conflict with REALITY. By RELIGION I am meaning a man-made system of rules and regulations that are practiced to make one appear godly—as though those displaying it hold deep devotion to relationship with God—when it is, in fact, a hypocritical sham—a preoccupation with externals with little or nothing to do with true heart-level motivation. REALITY, on the other hand, is simply that—a true heart-level seeking and devotion to God that is demonstrated by a REAL love relationship—where one is preoccupied with pleasing God. It doesn’t require a lot of time for me to compare and evaluate which approach I wish to pursue. And that’s why I often find reason to say to people I meet, “You need RELIGION about like you need another hole in your head—but you do need relationship with your Manufacturer.”

Warning: If you ever find yourself in a debate over “the Sabbath”—when, where, why, what to do and not to do, chances are you’re engaging in a fruitless encounter with RELIGION—and you may as well save your breath, dismiss yourself, and maybe even run in the other direction. But even the common notion reflected in, “We are Spirit-led,” or “We are full-Gospel” also run the risk, in my opinion, of moving dangerously close to RELIGION, because supporting those claims often produce Pharisee-like attitudes of arrogance, exclusivity, and superiority, and promote undue attention to externals.

The practical lesson to glean here is not just being on your guard against RELIGION on the outside, but being alert to RELIGION on the inside. If you will allow me to be repetitious, I judge that the best rule-of-thumb standard to practice so as to minimize the negative risk of RELIGION is to simply maintain a HEART AFTER GOD—truly loving God and loving those He loves. It’s a heart-level passion demonstrated by David when He prayed, “May the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer” (Psalm 19:14).