The Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries by Pastor Ken Klaus, Speaker Emeritus 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).] "A Belated Thank You" for Wednesday, September 7, 2016
(Jesus said) "And the King will answer them, 'Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these My brothers, you did it to Me.'"[Matthew 25:40]The funeral director had told Rabbi Weinbach that "This is the easiest funeral you're ever going to do."
The director was referring to the service for 83-year-old Francine Stein. It was his opinion that he and the rabbi would be the only ones at the funeral. That idea bothered the rabbi. He was concerned that someone could live their entire life and have no one to mourn their passing.
That was when he had his daughter, Ora, go on Facebook and ask for volunteers.
That's right. She asked for people to come forward and attend a service for someone they had never heard of, someone they had never met. Can I tell you that 30 people set aside their busy schedules and showed up at the cemetery?
Not only did those folks come, they also served. They did everything that was necessary to give Stein a nice farewell.
Some of them carried her casket, and some of them helped with the service. Some of them let the casket down into the gravesite, and some of them shoveled dirt into the hole. These volunteers came to work, and no job that needed to be done was left undone.
The director, the rabbi, and his daughter were amazed at this display of human compassion.
I would be too if, over the years, I hadn't regularly seen people doing the same kind of thing. Thinking back upon my parishes, it was not an unusual thing for a man or woman to outlive both friends and immediate family. The few who attended such a service were shirt-tail relatives who never really had known the soul, which had gone home.
And what did the church do for such an individual?
* Volunteers (or the custodian) came in and did an extra cleaning of the facility.
* The elders of the congregation showed up to prepare the church and make sure the service was properly managed. If needed, they served as casket-bearers for the deceased.
* Soloists and organists were called on to beautify the worship.
* The LWML-ers (Lutheran Women's Missionary League) faithfully served a meal for any and all who made an appearance.
Now some of these folks may have been paid, but they never expected it, demanded it, or complained if a gift was not forthcoming.
No, they did what they did because they were saying an earthly farewell to one of our own. They did what they did to show our congregation's thanks to the Savior whose life, suffering, death and glorious resurrection had changed a day of mourning to a day of gladness.
I was proud of all those folks back then and I'm proud of them now. And this devotion is a long-delayedthank you for the many, many folks in many, many congregations who honor the Savior by showing love to the "least of these."
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, we give thanks You have saved us. May all the members of our Christian families do what we can to show our gratitude to You by the way we treat each other. In Jesus' Name I pray it. Amen.
In Christ I remain His servant and yours, 
Pastor Ken Klaus
Speaker emeritus of The Lutheran Hour®
Lutheran Hour Ministries
Today's Bible Readings: Isaiah 1-2 2 Corinthians 11:16-33
Isaiah 1:1 This is the vision of Yesha‘yahu the son of Amotz, which he saw concerning Y’hudah and Yerushalayim during the days of ‘Uziyahu, Yotam, Achaz and Y’chizkiyahu, kings of Y’hudah:
2 “Hear, heaven! Listen, earth!
For Adonai is speaking.
“I raised and brought up children,
but they rebelled against me.
3 An ox knows its owner
and a donkey its master’s stall,
but Isra’el does not know,
my people do not reflect.
4 “Oh, sinful nation,
a people weighed down by iniquity,
descendants of evildoers,
immoral children!
They have abandoned Adonai,
spurned the Holy One of Isra’el,
turned their backs on him!
5 “Where should I strike you next,
as you persist in rebelling?
The whole head is sick,
the whole heart diseased.
6 From the sole of the foot to the head
there is nothing healthy,
only wounds, bruises and festering sores
that haven’t been dressed or bandaged
or softened up with oil.
7 “Your land is desolate,
your cities are burned to the ground;
foreigners devour your land in your presence;
it’s as desolate as if overwhelmed by floods.
8 The daughter of Tziyon is left
like a shack in a vineyard,
like a shed in a cucumber field,
like a city under siege.”
9 If Adonai-Tzva’ot had not left us
a tiny, tiny remnant,
we would have become like S’dom,
we would have resembled ‘Amora.
10 Hear what Adonai says,
you rulers of S’dom!
Listen to God’s Torah,
you people of ‘Amora!
11 “Why are all those sacrifices
offered to me?” asks Adonai.
“I’m fed up with burnt offerings of rams
and the fat of fattened animals!
I get no pleasure from the blood
of bulls, lambs and goats!
12 Yes, you come to appear in my presence;
but who asked you to do this,
to trample through my courtyards?
13 Stop bringing worthless grain offerings!
They are like disgusting incense to me!
Rosh-Hodesh, Shabbat, calling convocations —
I can’t stand evil together with your assemblies!
14 Everything in me hates your Rosh-Hodesh
and your festivals;
they are a burden to me —
I’m tired of putting up with them!
15 “When you spread out your hands,
I will hide my eyes from you;
no matter how much you pray,
I won’t be listening;
because your hands are covered with blood.
16 “Wash yourselves clean!
Get your evil deeds out of my sight!
Stop doing evil, 17 learn to do good!
Seek justice, relieve the oppressed,
defend orphans, plead for the widow.
18 “Come now,” says Adonai,
“let’s talk this over together.
Even if your sins are like scarlet,
they will be white as snow;
even if they are red as crimson,
they will be like wool.
19 If you are willing and obedient,
you will eat the good of the land;
20 but if you refuse and rebel,
you will be eaten by the sword”;
for the mouth of Adonai has spoken.
21 How the faithful city has become a whore!
Once she was filled with justice,
righteousness lodged in her;
but now murderers!
22 Your silver is no longer pure,
your wine is watered down.
23 Your leaders are rebels, friends of thieves.
They all love bribes and run after gifts.
They give no justice to orphans,
the widow’s complaint doesn’t catch their attention.
24 “Therefore,” says the Lord, Adonai-Tzva’ot,
the Mighty One of Isra’el,
“I will free myself of my adversaries,
I will take vengeance on my enemies.
25 But I will also turn my hand against you!
I will cleanse your impurities as with lye
and remove all your alloyed base metal.
26 I will restore your judges as at first
and your advisers as at the beginning.
After that, you will be called
the City of Righteousness, Faithful City.
27 Tziyon will be redeemed by justice;
and those in her who repent, by righteousness.
28 “Rebels and sinners together will be broken
and those who abandon Adonai be consumed.
29 You will be ashamed of the sacred oaks you desired,
you will blush at the gardens you chose;
30 for you will be like an oak whose leaf fades,
like a garden without any water.
31 The strong will be like tinder
and [the idol’s] maker like a spark;
both will burn together,
and no one will put them out.”
2:1 This is the word that Yesha‘yahu the son of Amotz saw concerning Y’hudah and Yerushalayim:
2 In the acharit-hayamim
the mountain of Adonai’s house
will be established as the most important mountain.
It will be regarded more highly than the other hills,
and all the Goyim will stream there.
3 Many peoples will go and say,
“Come, let’s go up to the mountain of Adonai,
to the house of the God of Ya‘akov!
He will teach us about his ways,
and we will walk in his paths.”
For out of Tziyon will go forth Torah,
the word of Adonai from Yerushalayim.
4 He will judge between the nations
and arbitrate for many peoples.
Then they will hammer their swords into plow-blades
and their spears into pruning-knives;
nations will not raise swords at each other,
and they will no longer learn war.
5 Descendants of Ya‘akov, come!
Let’s live in the light of Adonai!
6 For you have abandoned your people
the house of Ya‘akov.
Now they are filled from the east,
full of sorcerers, like the P’lishtim;
even the children of foreigners
are enough for them!
7 Their land is full of silver and gold;
They have no end of treasures.
Their land is full of horses;
They have no end of chariots.
8 Their land is full of idols;
everyone worships the work of his hands,
what his own fingers have made.
9 A person bows down, a man lowers himself —
don’t forgive them!
10 Come into the rock, hide in the dust
to escape the terror of Adonai
and the glory of his majesty.
11 The proud looks of man will be humiliated;
the arrogance of men will be bowed down;
and when that day comes,
Adonai alone will be exalted.
12 Yes, Adonai-Tzva’ot has a day in store
for all who are proud and lofty,
for all who are lifted high to be humiliated;
13 for all cedars of the L’vanon that are high and lifted up,
for all the oaks of the Bashan;
14 for all the high mountains,
for all the hills that are lifted up;
15 for every high tower,
for every fortified wall;
16 for every “Tarshish” ship,
for every luxurious vessel.
17 The pride of man will be bowed down,
the arrogance of men will be humiliated,
and when that day comes,
Adonai alone will be exalted.
18 The idols will be completely abolished.
19 People will enter cracks in the rocks
and holes in the ground
to escape the terror of Adonai
and his glorious majesty,
when he sets out to convulse the earth.
20 On that day a man will take hold
of his idols of silver and idols of gold,
which they made for themselves to worship,
and fling them away to the moles and bats!
21 Then they will enter the cracks in the rocks
and the crevices in the cliffs
to escape the terror of Adonai
and his glorious majesty,
when he sets out to convulse the earth.
22 Stop relying on man,
in whose nostrils is a mere breath —
after all, he doesn’t count for much,
does he?
2 Corinthians 11:16 I repeat: don’t let anyone think I am a fool. But even if you do, at least receive me as a fool; so that I too may do a little boasting! 17 What I am saying is not in accordance with the Lord; rather, this conceited boasting is spoken as a fool would speak. 18 Since many people boast in a worldly way, I too will boast this way. 19 For since you yourselves are so wise, you gladly put up with fools! 20 You put up with it if someone makes slaves of you, exploits you, takes you in, puffs himself up, slaps you in the face. 21 To my shame, I must admit that we have been too “weak” to do such things!
But if anyone dares to boast about something — I’m talking like a fool! — I am just as daring. 22 Are they Hebrew-speakers? So am I. Are they of the people of Isra’el? So am I. Are they descendants of Avraham? So am I. 23 Are they servants of the Messiah? (I’m talking like a madman!) I’m a better one! I’ve worked much harder, been imprisoned more often, suffered more beatings, been near death over and over. 24 Five times I received “forty lashes less one” from the Jews. 25 Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. I spent a night and a day in the open sea. 26 In my many travels I have been exposed to danger from rivers, danger from robbers, danger from my own people, danger from Gentiles, danger in the city, danger in the desert, danger at sea, danger from false brothers. 27 I have toiled and endured hardship, often not had enough sleep, been hungry and thirsty, frequently gone without food, been cold and naked. 28 And besides these external matters, there is the daily pressure of my anxious concern for all the congregations. 29 Who is weak without my sharing his weakness? Who falls into sin without my burning inside?
30 If I must boast, I will boast about things that show how weak I am. 31 God the Father of the Lord Yeshua — blessed be he forever — knows that I am not lying! 32 When I was in Dalmanuta, the governor under King Aretas had the city of Dalmanuta guarded in order to arrest me; 33 but I was lowered in a basket through an opening in the wall and escaped his clutches.
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