Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries by Pastor Ken Klaus, Speaker Emeritus of The Lutheran HourSaint Louis, Missouri, United States "Smart Devils" Thursday, 15 January 2015a

Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries by Pastor Ken Klaus, Speaker Emeritus of The Lutheran HourSaint Louis, Missouri, United States "Smart Devils" Thursday, 15 January 2015anuary 2015 

The demons also came out of many, crying, "You are the Son of God!" But He rebuked them and would not allow them to speak, because they knew that He was the Christ.[Luke 4:41]

It has always amazed me that the forces of darkness often understand the purpose and mission of the Lord better than do Christians.
As evidence, I present the passage above, which shows the exorcised demons identifying Jesus and His work. But that passage is hardly unique.
After Jesus' crucifixion the high priests went to Pilate and asked for a guard to be placed upon the Savior's grave. Why? Because they knew Jesus had said, "After three days I will rise" (see Matthew 27:63). Those high priests remembered Jesus' words and made their request when the disciples were still in hiding, and the women were still gathering spices to anoint Jesus' dead body.
It's not entirely different today.
This past December 13th, Pastor Nayak and 14 members of his Baptist congregation had their vehicle surrounded by some 30 Hindus in India. The Hindus smashed the windows of the vehicle and yanked the Christians into the street where they beat them with sticks and clubs. Indeed, the believers were beaten so badly they ended up being hospitalized.
And if you're wondering what Christians might be doing which could provoke such violence, I can tell you: Pastor Nayak and his congregation were signing Christmas carols. Yes, that's right, they were caroling, and the Hindus said those carols were the kind of thing that might convert someone to Christianity.
Maybe you are like me and have never thought hymn singing could touch the soul of a lost person. If so, I think we may well have been wrong.
Consider the impact of the words from this Christmas hymn:
"Once He came in blessing, all our ills redressing;
Came in likeness lowly, Son of God most holy;
Bore the cross to save us, hope and freedom gave us.
Still He comes within us; still His voice would win us
From the sins that hurt us; would to Truth convert us
From our foolish errors, ere He comes in terrors."
Those words, which speak of the forgiveness and salvation that Jesus came to win, are profound, even eternity-changing, to someone who has lived his entire life in darkness.
So, learning from the hatred of those Hindus, let me say I'm going to make a witness with my hymns by singing them just a little more boldly and with a lot more feeling.
Won't you join me in doing so this Sunday?
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, may I never undervalue the precious salvation Jesus has won for me. Further, may my thankful witness reflect the joy You have given. In Jesus' Name. Amen.

In Christ I remain His servant and yours,

Pastor Ken Klaus
Speaker Emeritus of The Lutheran Hour^®
Lutheran Hour Ministries

Through the Bible in a Year
Today Read:
Job 17: Job Complains to God
My Hopes Have Died
17:1 My hopes have died,
my time is up,
    and the grave is ready.
2 All I can see are angry crowds,
    making fun of me.
3 If you, Lord, don’t help,
who will pay the price
    for my release?
4 My friends won’t really listen,
    all because of you,
and so you must be the one
    to prove them wrong.
5 They have condemned me,
just to benefit themselves;
    now blind their children.
6 You, God, are the reason
    I am insulted and spit on.
7 I am almost blind with grief;
    my body is a mere shadow.
8 People who are truly good
    would feel so alarmed,
that they would become angry
    at my worthless friends.
9 They would do the right thing
and because they did,
    they would grow stronger.[a]
10 But none of my friends
    show any sense.
11 My life is drawing to an end;
    hope has disappeared.
12 But all my friends can do
    is offer empty hopes.[b]
13 I could tell the world below
    to prepare me a bed.
14 Then I could greet the grave
    as my father
and say to the worms,
    “Hello, mother and sisters!”
15 But what kind of hope is that?
16 Will it keep me company
    in the world of the dead?
Bildad’s Second Speech
How Long Will You Talk?
18:1 Bildad from Shuah[c] said:
2 How long will you talk?
    Be sensible! Let us speak.
3 Or do you think that we
    are dumb animals?
4 You cut yourself in anger.
Will that shake the earth
    or even move the rocks?
5 The lamps of sinful people
soon are snuffed out,
6     leaving their tents dark.
7 Their powerful legs become weak,
and they stumble on schemes
    of their own doing.
8 Before they know it,
9 they are trapped
in a net,
10     hidden along the path.
11 Terror strikes and pursues
    from every side.
12 Starving, they run,
    only to meet disaster,
13 then afterwards to be eaten alive
    by death itself.
14 Those sinners are dragged
from the safety of their tents
    to die a gruesome death.
15 Then their tents and possessions
    are burned to ashes,
16 and they are left like trees,
    dried up from the roots.
17 They are gone and forgotten,
18 thrown far from the light
    into a world of darkness,
19 without any children
    to carry on their name.
20 Everyone, from east to west,
    is overwhelmed with horror.
21 Such is the fate of sinners
and their families
    who don’t know God.
Job’s Reply to Bildad
How Long Will You Torture Me?
19:1 Job said:
2 How long will you torture me
    with your words?
3 Isn’t ten times enough
for you to accuse me?
    Aren’t you ashamed?
4 Even if I have sinned,
    you haven’t been harmed.
5 You boast of your goodness,
claiming I am suffering
    because I am guilty.
6 But God is the one at fault
    for finding fault with me.
7 Though I pray to be rescued
    from this torment,
no whisper of justice
    answers me.
8 God has me trapped
with a wall of darkness
9     and stripped of respect.
10 God rips me apart,
    uproots my hopes,
11 and attacks with fierce anger,
    as though I were his enemy.
12 His entire army advances,
    then surrounds my tent.
I Am Forgotten
13 God has turned relatives
and friends against me,
14     and I am forgotten.
15 My guests and my servants
    consider me a stranger,
16 and when I call my servants,
    they pay no attention.
17 My breath disgusts my wife;
everyone in my family
    turns away.
18 Young children can’t stand me,
and when I come near,
    they make fun.
19 My best friends and loved ones
    have turned from me.
20 I am skin and bones—
    just barely alive.
21 My friends, I beg you for pity!
    God has made me his target.
22 Hasn’t he already done enough?
    Why do you join the attack?
23 I wish that my words
could be written down
24     or chiseled into rock.
25 I know that my Savior[d] lives,
and at the end
    he will stand on this earth.
26 My flesh may be destroyed,
yet from this body
    I will see God.[e]
27 Yes, I will see him for myself,
    and I long for that moment.
28 My friends, you think up ways
to blame and torment me,
saying
    I brought it on myself.
29 But watch out for the judgment,
    when God will punish you![Footnotes:
17.9 stronger: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verses 8,9.
17.12 hopes: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verse 12.
18.1 Shuah: See the note at 2.11.
19.25 Savior: Or “Defender.”
19.26 God: One possible meaning for the difficult Hebrew text of verses 25,26.]
Matthew 10:21 Brothers and sisters will betray one another and have each other put to death. Parents will betray their own children, and children will turn against their parents and have them killed. 22 Everyone will hate you because of me. But if you remain faithful until the end, you will be saved. 23 When people mistreat you in one town, hurry to another one. I promise you that before you have gone to all the towns of Israel, the Son of Man will come.
24 Disciples are not better than their teacher, and slaves are not better than their master. 25 It is enough for disciples to be like their teacher and for slaves to be like their master. If people call the head of the family Satan, what will they say about the rest of the family?
The One To Fear
26 Don’t be afraid of anyone! Everything that is hidden will be found out, and every secret will be known. 27 Whatever I say to you in the dark, you must tell in the light. And you must announce from the housetops whatever I have whispered to you. 28 Don’t be afraid of people. They can kill you, but they cannot harm your soul. Instead, you should fear God who can destroy both your body and your soul in hell. 29 Aren’t two sparrows sold for only a penny? But your Father knows when any one of them falls to the ground. 30 Even the hairs on your head are counted. 31 So don’t be afraid! You are worth much more than many sparrows.
Telling Others about Christ
32 If you tell others that you belong to me, I will tell my Father in heaven that you are my followers. 33 But if you reject me, I will tell my Father in heaven that you don’t belong to me.
Not Peace, but Trouble
34 Don’t think that I came to bring peace to the earth! I came to bring trouble, not peace. 35 I came to turn sons against their fathers, daughters against their mothers, and daughters-in-law against their mothers-in-law. 36 Your worst enemies will be in your own family.
37 If you love your father or mother or even your sons and daughters more than me, you are not fit to be my disciples. 38 And unless you are willing to take up your cross and come with me, you are not fit to be my disciples. 39 If you try to save your life, you will lose it. But if you give it up for me, you will surely find it.
Rewards
40 Anyone who welcomes you welcomes me. And anyone who welcomes me also welcomes the one who sent me. 41 Anyone who welcomes a prophet, just because that person is a prophet, will be given the same reward as a prophet. Anyone who welcomes a good person, just because that person is good, will be given the same reward as a good person. 42 And anyone who gives one of my most humble followers a cup of cool water, just because that person is my follower, will surely be rewarded.
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Lutheran Hour Ministries
660 Mason Ridge Center Dr.
St. Louis, Missouri 63141 United States
1(800)876-9880

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