2016 picture of Ray Sparre

Insightful Musings on the Scriptures

by

Raymond P. Sparre
Northwest University class of '67


Sunday, Aug 8, 2021

Good morning, Zane…and others.

I’m sure you noticed that I failed to get one of these messages off yesterday. Too much congestion surrounding our morning pressure to get on the road. It’s close to the same this morning. Whew! But here we go!

I just checked the log and learned we traveled 687 miles yesterday. We’re about to depart the motel here at Perrysburg, Ohio…near Toledo. We should be pulling into our destination at Spencerport, New York late afternoon. We’ve seen a lot of country. Magnificent country.

The more we glean from real news from the chaos of our world, the more I recognize Romans 1 as a profound and illuminating capsule of Biblical literature. Under the influence of the Holy Spirit, Paul nailed it! Make sure you monitor all of today’s news through the filter of Romans 1.

May the Lord guide you into all TRUTH—essential TRUTH.

Love and prayers. Tua/Ray..

8 August
Romans 1:18-32
Focus: “For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened.” (Romans 1:21)

I’ve read this passage many times in the past, but it has never jumped off the page and flashed with current-day relevant lighting as it did this morning—more so than last time. Please read it carefully. I think it offers profound clarity on how and why we behold so much bizarre stuff going on in our confused chaotic world, and clarifies the reasonableness of man’s unavoidable and inescapable accountability to his Maker. It confirms that seeking God has profound benefits. Rejecting God has profound consequences. If He is indeed the Sovereign Creator/Designer/Savior, how could things possibly be otherwise?!?!

Let’s review some fundamental facts (In this regard, I choose to not be ashamed of being a “fundamentalist.”) from an overview of the illuminating Word of God:

  1. There are 2 kinds of people: WISE and FOOLISH, made so by the choices they make with their God-given intelligence and free will—ultimately equated with SAVED and LOST.
  2. There are 2 kingdoms: The KINGDOM OF GOD, which is the Kingdom of LIGHT, and there is the KINGDOM OF SATAN, which is the kingdom of DARKNESS.
  3. There are 2 basic goals represented by the 2 kingdoms: God wants you to be WISE, live in LIGHT, promote LIGHT, and dwell in His presence forever, while Satan wants you to be FOOLISH, live in DARKNESS, promote DARKNESS, and join him in his eternal torment.
If we can get our heads and hearts wrapped around these fundamental concepts so as to embrace them as TRUTH, I believe we can spare ourselves a lot of unnecessary struggle, confusion, and damage—as well as assist others around us in the same way.

Without spending much time with commentary, I’m going to insert three other scriptures that are very meaningful to me, but emphasize some key words with parenthetical comments.

“The path of the righteous (WISE—it’s wise to value righteousness) is like the first gleam of dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day (eternal HEAVEN). But the way of the wicked (FOOLISH) is like deep darkness, they do not know (because by their own choices they are UNENLIGHTENED and FOOLISH) what makes them stumble” (Proverbs 4:18-19).!

“Those who are wise (WISE in choices) will shine like the brightness of the heavens (lots of LIGHT), and those who lead many to righteousness (WISDOM in choices), like the stars for ever and ever" (that’s a very long time!—like eternal!) (Daniel 12:3).

“But if (meaning that we don’t have to—it’s a choice) we walk in the light (LIGHT of God’s TRUTH), as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another (RELATIONSHIP—not just religious form), and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin (God’s salvation plan achieved)” (1 John 1:7). Praise Him!.


“A wise man always prepares for the inevitable.”