The Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries by Rev. Dr. Gregory Seltz, Speaker of The Lutheran Hour in Saint Louis, Missouri, United States [Use these devotions in your newsletter and bulletin! Used by permission; all rights reserved by the Int'l LLL (LHM).] "More Than a Matter of Trust!" for Monday, August 22, 2016
Woe to those who go down to Egypt for help and rely on horses, who trust in chariots because they are many and in horsemen because they are very strong, but do not look to the Holy One of Israel or consult the Lord![Isaiah 31:1]
I recently read a quote about trust in this world. It went something like this:
* "Never trust anyone who says, 'Trust me!'" Or maybe in this political season, perhaps it's more like, "Never trust a politician who says, 'Trust me. I'll do what's best for you!'"
* Or, how about this, "Never trust someone who says, 'I will never tell anyone else.'"
* Here's some wisdom: Never trust a company or a person who says, "The check is in the mail."
* Or, never trust the owner of a growling dog who says, "Don't worry. He's never bitten anyone before."
* Or, never trust someone who says, "Don't worry. We'll never get caught."
* This one is often true. Ready? Never trust someone who says, "If you get this tab, I'll pay next time."
* And surely don't trust someone who says, "I can stop any time I want."
* Finally, never trust someone who says, "You can eat pizza for breakfast, Oreos for lunch, and Chinese food for dinner and maintain your girlish or boyish figure through it all."
The list can go on forever, can't it? In a world full of distrust, it seems like the biggest issue of all is "Who can you trust?" Now, that's a pretty pointed and timely question today, isn't it? If you can't trust in anyone or anything, this world can be a pretty dismal, even dangerous, place. But, as important as that question is in our sermon yesterday, there was an even bigger, more important, question. You see, the big point is not just about trust; it was, "In Whom can you and I put our hope?" That's right, in this life, for this life, and for life forever, it's not just about trust, namely, "Can I trust that this person will do what they say, etc.?" No, the question that God puts before us is "In Whom are you going to place your hope, even your dreams?" You see, hope implies trust. But, even more, hope implies that the person can really do what he or she says they can do. For that, God says, "Trust Me, trust in My Word, hope in Me!"
In our political season, the greatest temptation, I believe, is to place our hope in the things of this world, as if we or our leaders politically can solve the big problems in life: sin, death, evil, temptation, hatred, malice, vindictiveness, pride, arrogance. This list goes on and on too. And for these issues to be solved, overcome, or even endured, they must be brought not to the floor of the House, but to the foot of the cross of the Holy One of Israel, Jesus, who lived our life, yet died our death, to give us His eternal life as a gift. That's not just a "Can you trust Him?" question; that's a "You can put your hope in Him" proclamation -- one that changes your life forever.
If you are troubled by all the proposals and solutions that politicians are making to supposedly solve whatever is going on in the world, Isaiah reminds us that the temptation is as old as time. Then, and now, the only hope we have in this world is in the God who created us, who redeemed us, and who promises to give to us and all who believe, abundant life and salvation, now and forever! Trust that. Even more, put your hope in that as you go about your day today.
It's one thing you can always count on.
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord Jesus, there's going to be a lot of people telling us what to believe and what to trust in. You're the One who tells us to believe in You, trust in You, and hope in You. To that end, Lord, give us that kind of faith. Amen.
In Christ,Rev. Dr. Gregory Seltz
Speaker of The Lutheran Hour
Lutheran Hour Ministries
Today's Bible in a Year Readings: 1 Chronicles 20-22; 1 Corinthians 14:1-20
1 Chronicles 20:1 In the spring, at the time when kings go out to war, Yo’av led the army out in force and laid waste to the country of the people of ‘Amon; then he came and laid siege to Rabbah. But David stayed in Yerushalayim, while Yo’av attacked Rabbah and destroyed it. 2 David took the crown off Malkam’s head and found it to weigh sixty-six pounds, with its gold and precious stones; and it was placed on David’s head. He carried off great quantities of spoil from the city. 3 In addition, he brought out the people who were in it and set them to work with saws, iron harrows and axes. This is what he did to all the cities of the people of ‘Amon. Then David and all the people returned to Yerushalayim.
4 A while after this there was war at Gezer with the P’lishtim. Sibkhai the Hushati killed Sipai, one of the giants, and they were defeated. 5 There was more war with the P’lishtim; and Elchanan the son of Ya’ir killed Lachmi the brother of Golyat the Gitti, who had a spear with a shaft like a weaver’s beam. 6 There was again war at Gat, where there was a very tall man whose fingers and toes numbered twenty-four, six [fingers on each hand] and six [toes on each foot]; and he too was a son of the giant. 7 When he mocked Isra’el, Y’honatan the son of Shim‘a David’s brother killed him. 8 These were sons of the giant in Gat; they fell at the hands of David and his servants.
21:1 The Adversary [1 Chronicles 21:1 Hebrew: Satan] now rose up against Isra’el and incited David to take a census of Isra’el. 2 David said to Yo’av and the leaders of the people, “Go, take a census of Isra’el from Be’er-Sheva to Dan; then report to me, so that I can know how many of them there are.” 3 Yo’av said, “May Adonai make his people a hundred times as many as they are now! But, my lord the king, aren’t they all my lord’s servants in any case? Why does my lord the king require this? Why should he bring guilt upon Isra’el?” 4 Nevertheless, the king’s word prevailed against Yo’av. So Yo’av left and went through all Isra’el, after which he came to Yerushalayim.
5 Yo’av reported the results of the census to David: in Isra’el were 1,100,000 men who could handle a sword, while Y’hudah had 470,000 men who could handle a sword. 6 But he didn’t count Levi and Binyamin among them, because the king’s order was hateful to Yo’av.
7 God was displeased with this and therefore punished Isra’el. 8 David said to God, “I have greatly sinned by doing this. But now, please! Put aside your servant’s sin, for I have done a very foolish thing.” 9 Adonai spoke to Gad, David’s seer: 10 “Go and tell David that Adonai says, ‘I am offering you a choice of three punishments: choose one of them, and I will execute it against you.’” 11 Gad came to David and said to him, “Take your choice: 12 three years of famine; or three months of being swept away by your enemies, while your enemies’ sword overwhelms you; or three days of Adonai’s sword — plague in the land, with the angel of Adonai destroying everywhere in Isra’el’s territory. Now think about what answer I should give to the one who sent me.”
13 David said to Gad, “This is very hard for me. Let me fall into the hand of Adonai, because his mercies are very great, rather than have me fall into the hand of man.” 14 So Adonai sent a plague on Isra’el; 70,000 of the people of Isra’el died.
15 God also sent an angel to destroy Yerushalayim, but when he was about to carry out the destruction, Adonai saw it and changed his mind about causing such distress; so he said to the destroying angel, “Enough! Now withdraw your hand.” The angel of Adonai was standing at the threshing-floor of Ornan the Y’vusi. 16 David raised his eyes and saw the angel of Adonai standing between the earth and the sky, and in his hand was a drawn sword stretched out over Yerushalayim. Then David and the leaders, wearing sackcloth, fell on their faces. 17 David said to God, “Wasn’t it I who ordered the census of the people? Yes, I am the one who has sinned and done something very wicked. But these sheep, what have they done? Please! Let your hand be against me and my father’s family, but not against your people, striking them with this plague!”
18 Then the angel of Adonai ordered Gad to tell David to go and set up an altar to Adonai on the threshing-floor of Ornan the Y’vusi. 19 David went up at Gad’s word, spoken in Adonai’s name. 20 Ornan turned back and saw the angel, and his four sons who were with him hid themselves. As Ornan was threshing wheat, 21 David approached Ornan. When Ornan looked and saw David, he went out from the threshing-floor and prostrated himself before David with his face to the ground. 22 Then David said to Ornan, “Let me have the parcel with this threshing-floor, so that I can build on it an altar to Adonai — I will pay you its full value — so that the plague will be lifted from the people.” 23 Ornan said to David, “Take it for yourself, and let my lord the king do what seems good to him. I’m giving you the oxen for the burnt offerings, the threshing-sledges for firewood and the wheat for the grain offering — I’m giving it all.” 24 But King David said to Ornan, “No; I insist on buying it from you at the full price. I refuse to take what is yours for Adonai or offer a burnt offering that costs me nothing.” 25 So David bought the place from Ornan for 600 shekels of gold by weight [fifteen pounds]. 26 Then David built an altar to Adonai there and offered burnt offerings and peace offerings. He called on Adonai, who answered him from heaven by fire on the altar for burnt offerings. 27 Adonai gave an order to the angel, and he put his sword back in its sheath. 28 When David saw that Adonai had answered him at the threshing-floor of Ornan the Y’vusi, he sacrificed there. 29 For at that time the tabernacle of Adonai, which Moshe had made in the desert, together with the altar for burnt offerings, were in the high place at Giv‘on. 30 But David could not go into its presence to consult God, because the sword of the angel of Adonai had struck him with terror.
22:1 Then David said, “This is the house of Adonai, God; and this is the altar Isra’el is to use for burnt offerings.” 2 David ordered that the foreigners in the land of Isra’el should be assembled, and he appointed stone-workers to shape stones for building the house of God. 3 David prepared a large store of iron from which to make nails and clamps for the gateway doors and, a quantity of bronze too great to weigh, 4 and cedar logs beyond numbering — because the Tzidonim and the people from Tzor brought cedar logs in abundance to David.
5 David said, “Shlomo my son is young and inexperienced, while the house to be built for Adonai must be so magnificent and splendid that its fame and glory will be known in every country; so I will make preparations for him.” Therefore David made extensive preparations before his death. 6 Then he summoned Shlomo his son and charged him to build a house for Adonai, the God of Isra’el. 7 “My son,” said David to Shlomo, “my heart was set on building a house for the name of Adonai my God. 8 But a message from Adonai came to me, ‘You have shed much blood and fought great wars. You are not to build a house for my name, because you have shed so much blood on the earth in my sight. 9 But you will have a son who will be a man of rest. I will give him rest from all his enemies that surround him; for his name is to be Shlomo, and during his reign I will give peace [1 Chronicles 22:9 Hebrew: shalom] and quiet to Isra’el. 10 It is he who will build a house for my name. He will be my son and I will be his father, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom over Isra’el forever.’
11 “Now, my son, may Adonai be with you and give you success as you build the house of Adonai your God, in keeping with what he said about you. 12 May Adonai give you common sense and understanding, and may he give you his orders concerning Isra’el, so that you will observe the Torah of Adonai your God. 13 Then you will succeed, if you take care to obey the laws and rulings that Adonai ordered Moshe concerning Isra’el. Be strong, be bold; don’t be afraid or become discouraged!
14 “Now look: despite my difficulties, I have prepared for the house of Adonai 3,300 tons of gold, 33,000 tons of silver, and so much bronze and iron that it can’t be weighed. I’ve also prepared timber and stone, and you can add to it. 15 Moreover, you have plenty of workers — quarrymen, stone-workers, lumbermen, and all kinds of skilled craftsmen to do whatever has to be done with 16 the gold, silver, bronze and iron — they’re beyond number. So get up, and get to work! And may Adonai be with you.”
17 David also ordered all the leaders of Isra’el to help Shlomo his son: 18 “Isn’t Adonai your God with you? Hasn’t he given you rest on every side? For he has put the inhabitants of the land under my power — the land has been subdued before Adonai and his people. 19 Now set your heart and being on seeking Adonai your God. Get up, and build the sanctuary for Adonai, God. Then you can bring the ark for the covenant of Adonai and the holy articles of God into the house that will be built for the name of Adonai.”
1 Corinthians 14:1 Pursue love!
However, keep on eagerly seeking the things of the Spirit; and especially seek to be able to prophesy. 2 For someone speaking in a tongue is not speaking to people but to God, because no one can understand, since he is uttering mysteries in the power of the Spirit. 3 But someone prophesying is speaking to people, edifying, encouraging and comforting them. 4 A person speaking in a tongue does edify himself, but a person prophesying edifies the congregation. 5 I wish you would all speak in tongues, but even more I wish you would all prophesy. The person who prophesies is greater than the person who speaks in tongues, unless someone gives an interpretation, so that the congregation can be edified.
6 Brothers, suppose I come to you now speaking in tongues. How can I be of benefit to you unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or teaching? 7 Even with lifeless musical instruments, such as a flute or a harp, how will anyone recognize the melody if one note can’t be distinguished from another? 8 And if the bugle gives an unclear sound, who will get ready for battle? 9 It’s the same with you: how will anyone know what you are saying unless you use your tongue to produce intelligible speech? You will be talking to the air! 10 There are undoubtedly all kinds of sounds in the world, and none is altogether meaningless; 11 but if I don’t know what a person’s sounds mean, I will be a foreigner to the speaker and the speaker will be a foreigner to me. 12 Likewise with you: since you eagerly seek the things of the Spirit, seek especially what will help in edifying the congregation.
13 Therefore someone who speaks in a tongue should pray for the power to interpret. 14 For if I pray in a tongue, my spirit does pray, but my mind is unproductive. 15 So, what about it? I will pray with my spirit, but I will also pray with my mind; I will sing with my spirit, but I will also sing with my mind. 16 Otherwise, if you are giving thanks with your spirit, how will someone who has not yet received much instruction be able to say, “Amen,” when you have finished giving thanks, since he doesn’t know what you are saying? 17 For undoubtedly you are giving thanks very nicely, but the other person is not being edified. 18 I thank God that I speak in tongues more than all of you, 19 but in a congregation meeting I would rather say five words with my mind in order to instruct others than ten thousand words in a tongue!
20 Brothers, don’t be children in your thinking. In evil, be like infants; but in your thinking, be grown-up.
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