Saint Louis, Missouri, United States - Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries by Pastor Ken Klaus, Speaker Emeritus of The Lutheran Hour "Known Versus Unknown" for Saturday, 27 December 2014

Saint Louis, Missouri, United States - Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries by Pastor Ken Klaus, Speaker Emeritus of The Lutheran Hour "Known Versus Unknown"  for Saturday, 27 December 2014

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and do not lean on your own understanding. In all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make straight your paths. Be not wise in your own eyes; fear the LORD, and turn away from evil.[Proverbs 3:5-7]

When was the last time you looked under your bed for the scary creature that lives there? When was the last time you slept with the lights on because you were afraid of the dark?
When I've asked those questions at a Bible study, most of the time the reply sounds something like, "I'm an adult. I once had such fears, but no longer. I'm not afraid of the dark."
When I hear that, I smile. Now it may be true we have outgrown our fear of unknown things in a dark closet, but that hardly means we have outgrown fear of the unknown.
* When sailors first made their way across any unknown body of water, they were afraid.
* When the first pilgrims hacked out a small piece of property in the New World, they were afraid of the unknowns, which were hiding in the dark and seemingly limitless forest.
* When people go to the physician with an unexplained lump, a fever from an unknown cause, a bit of unexplained forgetfulness, they are often afraid of the unknown.
* Political parties are swept into and out of office because of the electorate's fear of the unknown, which stretches out before them.
At any age, the unknown can be frightening. It's frightening when you don't know if your job is secure; it's frightening when you don't know if you have enough set aside for retirement.
Are you worried about the unknown direction your child is taking? Are his friends less than friendly? Is her mouth less than respectful? Is his health on shaky ground? Are you uncertain how to deal with family problems? These are frightening unknowns.
Truly, I don't know what unknown has popped into your mind, but I'm pretty sure you have one, and the fear that comes with it. If that is so, then we need to take another look at the passage above. In the book of Proverbs the Lord takes all of our unknowns and puts them on a scale to be weighed. On the other side of the scale, He puts the one known thing of which you can be absolutely sure.
That one known thing is Himself.
That's right. All of our unknown fears and frights are more than balanced out by the Lord's concern, His care, His compassion, His Son's sacrifice.
Because Jesus has come to live, suffer, die and rise for us, we can be sure the Lord's love is solid and will help us successfully conquer or carry all of life's unknowns.
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord, we sinners are very near-sighted when it comes to seeing what tomorrow will bring. As a result, the fear of the unknown can be very real for us. Grant that we may see You and Your love most clearly. Then, having seen, may our unknowns be put to rest as we are guided by You into our tomorrows. This I ask in the Savior's 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:
Nehemiah 7: The Wall Rebuilt: Names and Numbers
1-2 After the wall was rebuilt and I had installed the doors, and the security guards, the singers, and the Levites were appointed, I put my brother Hanani, along with Hananiah the captain of the citadel, in charge of Jerusalem because he was an honest man and feared God more than most men.
3 I gave them this order: “Don’t open the gates of Jerusalem until the sun is up. And shut and bar the gates while the guards are still on duty. Appoint the guards from the citizens of Jerusalem and assign them to posts in front of their own homes.”
4 The city was large and spacious with only a few people in it and the houses not yet rebuilt.
5 God put it in my heart to gather the nobles, the officials, and the people in general to be registered. I found the genealogical record of those who were in the first return from exile. This is the record I found:
6-60 These are the people of the province who returned from the captivity of the Exile, the ones Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon had carried off captive; they came back to Jerusalem and Judah, each going to his own town. They came back in the company of Zerubbabel, Jeshua, Nehemiah, Azariah, Raamiah, Nahamani, Mordecai, Bilshan, Mispereth, Bigvai, Nehum, and Baanah.
The numbers of the men of the People of Israel by families of origin:
Parosh, 2,172
Shephatiah, 372
Arah, 652
Pahath-Moab (sons of Jeshua and Joab), 2,818
Elam, 1,254
Zattu, 845
Zaccai, 760
Binnui, 648
Bebai, 628
Azgad, 2,322
Adonikam, 667
Bigvai, 2,067
Adin, 655
Ater (sons of Hezekiah), 98
Hashum, 328
Bezai, 324
Hariph, 112
Gibeon, 95.
Israelites identified by place of origin:
Bethlehem and Netophah, 188
Anathoth, 128
Beth Azmaveth, 42
Kiriath Jearim, Kephirah, and Beeroth, 743
Ramah and Geba, 621
Micmash, 122
Bethel and Ai, 123
Nebo (the other one), 52
Elam (the other one), 1,254
Harim, 320
Jericho, 345
Lod, Hadid, and Ono, 721
Senaah, 3,930.
Priestly families:
Jedaiah (sons of Jeshua), 973
Immer, 1,052
Pashhur, 1,247
Harim, 1,017.
Levitical families:
Jeshua (sons of Kadmiel and of Hodaviah), 74.
Singers:
Asaph’s family line, 148.
Security guard families:
Shallum, Ater, Talmon, Akkub, Hatita, and Shobai, 138.
Families of support staff:
Ziha, Hasupha, Tabbaoth,
Keros, Sia, Padon,
Lebana, Hagaba, Shalmai,
Hanan, Giddel, Gahar,
Reaiah, Rezin, Nekoda,
Gazzam, Uzza, Paseah,
Besai, Meunim, Nephussim,
Bakbuk, Hakupha, Harhur,
Bazluth, Mehida, Harsha,
Barkos, Sisera, Temah,
Neziah, and Hatipha.
Families of Solomon’s servants:
Sotai, Sophereth, Perida,
Jaala, Darkon, Giddel,
Shephatiah, Hattil, Pokereth-Hazzebaim, and Amon.
The Temple support staff and Solomon’s servants added up to 392.
61-63 These are those who came from Tel Melah, Tel Harsha, Kerub, Addon, and Immer. They weren’t able to prove their ancestry, whether they were true Israelites or not:
    The sons of Delaiah, Tobiah, and Nekoda, 642.
Likewise with these priestly families:
    The sons of Hobaiah, Hakkoz, and Barzillai, who had married a daughter of Barzillai the Gileadite and took that name.
64-65 They looked high and low for their family records but couldn’t find them. And so they were barred from priestly work as ritually unclean. The governor ruled that they could not eat from the holy food until a priest could determine their status by using the Urim and Thummim.
66-69 The total count for the congregation was 42,360. That did not include the male and female slaves who numbered 7,337. There were also 245 male and female singers. And there were 736 horses, 245 mules, 435 camels, and 6,720 donkeys.
70-72 Some of the heads of families made voluntary offerings for the work. The governor made a gift to the treasury of 1,000 drachmas of gold (about nineteen pounds), 50 bowls, and 530 garments for the priests. Some of the heads of the families made gifts to the treasury for the work; it came to 20,000 drachmas of gold and 2,200 minas of silver (about one and a third tons). Gifts from the rest of the people totaled 20,000 drachmas of gold (about 375 pounds), 2,000 minas of silver, and 67 garments for the priests.
73 The priests, Levites, security guards, singers, and Temple support staff, along with some others, and the rest of the People of Israel, all found a place to live in their own towns.
Ezra and The Revelation
8:1 By the time the seventh month arrived, the People of Israel were settled in their towns. Then all the people gathered as one person in the town square in front of the Water Gate and asked the scholar Ezra to bring the Book of The Revelation of Moses that God had commanded for Israel.
2-3 So Ezra the priest brought The Revelation to the congregation, which was made up of both men and women—everyone capable of understanding. It was the first day of the seventh month. He read it facing the town square at the Water Gate from early dawn until noon in the hearing of the men and women, all who could understand it. And all the people listened—they were all ears—to the Book of The Revelation.
4 The scholar Ezra stood on a wooden platform constructed for the occasion. He was flanked on the right by Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Maaseiah, and on the left by Pedaiah, Mishael, Malkijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam.
5-6 Ezra opened the book. Every eye was on him (he was standing on the raised platform) and as he opened the book everyone stood. Then Ezra praised God, the great God, and all the people responded, “Oh Yes! Yes!” with hands raised high. And then they fell to their knees in worship of God, their faces to the ground.
7-8 Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, and Pelaiah, all Levites, explained The Revelation while people stood, listening respectfully. They translated the Book of The Revelation of God so the people could understand it and then explained the reading.
9 Nehemiah the governor, along with Ezra the priest and scholar and the Levites who were teaching the people, said to all the people, “This day is holy to God, your God. Don’t weep and carry on.” They said this because all the people were weeping as they heard the words of The Revelation.
10 He continued, “Go home and prepare a feast, holiday food and drink; and share it with those who don’t have anything: This day is holy to God. Don’t feel bad. The joy of God is your strength!”
11 The Levites calmed the people, “Quiet now. This is a holy day. Don’t be upset.”
12 So the people went off to feast, eating and drinking and including the poor in a great celebration. Now they got it; they understood the reading that had been given to them.
13-15 On the second day of the month the family heads of all the people, the priests, and the Levites gathered around Ezra the scholar to get a deeper understanding of the words of The Revelation. They found written in The Revelation that God commanded through Moses that the People of Israel are to live in booths during the festival of the seventh month. So they published this decree and had it posted in all their cities and in Jerusalem: “Go into the hills and collect olive branches, pine branches, myrtle branches, palm branches, and any other leafy branches to make booths, as it is written.”
16-17 So the people went out, brought in branches, and made themselves booths on their roofs, courtyards, the courtyards of The Temple of God, the Water Gate plaza, and the Ephraim Gate plaza. The entire congregation that had come back from exile made booths and lived in them. The People of Israel hadn’t done this from the time of Joshua son of Nun until that very day—a terrific day! Great joy!
18 Ezra read from the Book of The Revelation of God each day, from the first to the last day—they celebrated the feast for seven days. On the eighth day they held a solemn assembly in accordance with the decree.
9:1-3 Then on the twenty-fourth day of this month, the People of Israel gathered for a fast, wearing burlap and faces smudged with dirt as signs of repentance. The Israelites broke off all relations with foreigners, stood up, and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their parents. While they stood there in their places, they read from the Book of The Revelation of God, their God, for a quarter of the day. For another quarter of the day they confessed and worshiped their God.
4-5 A group of Levites—Jeshua, Bani, Kadmiel, Shebaniah, Bunni, Sherebiah, Bani, and Kenani—stood on the platform and cried out to God, their God, in a loud voice. The Levites Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah said, “On your feet! Bless God, your God, for ever and ever!”
5-6 Blessed be your glorious name,
    exalted above all blessing and praise!
You’re the one,
    God, you alone;
You made the heavens,
    the heavens of heavens, and all angels;
The earth and everything on it,
    the seas and everything in them;
You keep them all alive;
    heaven’s angels worship you!
7-8 You’re the one, God, the God
    who chose Abram
And brought him from Ur of the Chaldees
    and changed his name to Abraham.
You found his heart to be steady and true to you
    and signed a covenant with him,
A covenant to give him the land of the Canaanites,
    the Hittites, and the Amorites,
The Perizzites, Jebusites, and Girgashites,
    —to give it to his descendants.
And you kept your word
    because you are righteous.
9-15 You saw the anguish of our parents in Egypt.
    You heard their cries at the Red Sea;
You amazed Pharaoh, his servants, and the people of his land
    with wonders and miracle-signs.
You knew their bullying arrogance against your people;
    you made a name for yourself that lasts to this day.
You split the sea before them;
    they crossed through and never got their feet wet;
You pitched their pursuers into the deep;
    they sank like a rock in the storm-tossed sea.
By day you led them with a Pillar of Cloud,
    and by night with a Pillar of Fire
To show them the way
    they were to travel.
You came down onto Mount Sinai,
    you spoke to them out of heaven;
You gave them instructions on how to live well,
    true teaching, sound rules and commands;
You introduced them
    to your Holy Sabbath;
Through your servant Moses you decreed
    commands, rules, and instruction.
You gave bread from heaven for their hunger,
    you sent water from the rock for their thirst.
You told them to enter and take the land,
    which you promised to give them.
16-19 But they, our ancestors, were arrogant;
    bullheaded, they wouldn’t obey your commands.
They turned a deaf ear, they refused
    to remember the miracles you had done for them;
They turned stubborn, got it into their heads
    to return to their Egyptian slavery.
And you, a forgiving God,
    gracious and compassionate,
Incredibly patient, with tons of love—
    you didn’t dump them.
Yes, even when they cast a sculpted calf
    and said, “This is your god
Who brought you out of Egypt,”
    and continued from bad to worse,
You in your amazing compassion
    didn’t walk off and leave them in the desert.
The Pillar of Cloud didn’t leave them;
    daily it continued to show them their route;
The Pillar of Fire did the same by night,
    showed them the right way to go.
20-23 You gave them your good Spirit
    to teach them to live wisely.
You never stinted with your manna,
    gave them plenty of water to drink.
You supported them forty years in that desert;
    they had everything they needed;
Their clothes didn’t wear out
    and their feet never blistered.
You gave them kingdoms and peoples,
    establishing generous boundaries.
They took over the country of Sihon king of Heshbon
    and the country of Og king of Bashan.
You multiplied children for them,
    rivaling the stars in the night skies,
And you brought them into the land
    that you promised their ancestors
    they would get and own.
24-25 Well, they entered all right,
    they took it and settled in.
The Canaanites who lived there
    you brought to their knees before them.
You turned over their land, kings, and peoples
    to do with as they pleased.
They took strong cities and fertile fields,
    they took over well-furnished houses,
Cisterns, vineyards, olive groves,
    and lush, extensive orchards.
And they ate, grew fat on the fat of the land;
    they reveled in your bountiful goodness.
26-31 But then they mutinied, rebelled against you,
    threw out your laws and killed your prophets,
The very prophets who tried to get them back on your side—
    and then things went from bad to worse.
You turned them over to their enemies,
    who made life rough for them.
But when they called out for help in their troubles
    you listened from heaven;
And in keeping with your bottomless compassion
    you gave them saviors:
Saviors who saved them
    from the cruel abuse of their enemies.
But as soon as they had it easy again
    they were right back at it—more evil.
So you turned away and left them again to their fate,
    to the enemies who came right back.
They cried out to you again; in your great compassion
    you heard and helped them again.
    This went on over and over and over.
You warned them to return to your Revelation,
    they responded with haughty arrogance:
They flouted your commands, spurned your rules
    —the very words by which men and women live!
They set their jaws in defiance,
    they turned their backs on you and didn’t listen.
You put up with them year after year
    and warned them by your spirit through your prophets;
But when they refused to listen
    you abandoned them to foreigners.
Still, because of your great compassion,
    you didn’t make a total end to them.
You didn’t walk out and leave them for good;
    yes, you are a God of grace and compassion.
32-37 And now, our God, the great God,
    God majestic and terrible, loyal in covenant and love,
Don’t treat lightly the trouble that has come to us,
    to our kings and princes, our priests and prophets,
Our ancestors, and all your people from the time
    of the Assyrian kings right down to today.
You are not to blame
    for all that has come down on us;
You did everything right,
    we did everything wrong.
None of our kings, princes, priests, or ancestors
    followed your Revelation;
They ignored your commands,
    dismissed the warnings you gave them.
Even when they had their own kingdom
    and were enjoying your generous goodness,
Living in that spacious and fertile land
    that you spread out before them,
They didn’t serve you
    or turn their backs on the practice of evil.
And here we are, slaves again today;
    and here’s the land you gave our ancestors
So they could eat well and enjoy a good life,
    and now look at us—no better than slaves on this land.
Its wonderful crops go to the kings
    you put over us because of our sins;
They act like they own our bodies
    and do whatever they like with our cattle.
    We’re in deep trouble.
38 “Because of all this we are drawing up a binding pledge, a sealed document signed by our princes, our Levites, and our priests.”
Revelation 18: Doom to the City of Darkness
1-8 Following this I saw another Angel descend from Heaven. His authority was immense, his glory flooded earth with brightness, his voice thunderous:
Ruined, ruined, Great Babylon, ruined!
    A ghost town for demons is all that’s left!
A garrison of carrion spirits,
    garrison of loathsome, carrion birds.
All nations drank the wild wine of her whoring;
    kings of the earth went whoring with her;
    entrepreneurs made millions exploiting her.
Just then I heard another shout out of Heaven:
Get out, my people, as fast as you can,
    so you don’t get mixed up in her sins,
    so you don’t get caught in her doom.
Her sins stink to high Heaven;
    God has remembered every evil she’s done.
Give her back what she’s given,
    double what she’s doubled in her works,
    double the recipe in the cup she mixed;
Bring her flaunting and wild ways
    to torment and tears.
Because she gloated, “I’m queen over all,
    and no widow, never a tear on my face,”
In one day, disasters will crush her—
    death, heartbreak, and famine—
Then she’ll be burned by fire, because God,
    the Strong God who judges her,
    has had enough.
9-10 “The kings of the earth will see the smoke of her burning, and they’ll cry and carry on, the kings who went night after night to her brothel. They’ll keep their distance for fear they’ll get burned, and they’ll cry their lament:
Doom, doom, the great city doomed!
    City of Babylon, strong city!
In one hour it’s over, your judgment come!
11-17 “The traders will cry and carry on because the bottom dropped out of business, no more market for their goods: gold, silver, precious gems, pearls; fabrics of fine linen, purple, silk, scarlet; perfumed wood and vessels of ivory, precious woods, bronze, iron, and marble; cinnamon and spice, incense, myrrh, and frankincense; wine and oil, flour and wheat; cattle, sheep, horses, and chariots. And slaves—their terrible traffic in human lives.
Everything you’ve lived for, gone!
    All delicate and delectable luxury, lost!
    Not a scrap, not a thread to be found!
“The traders who made millions off her kept their distance for fear of getting burned, and cried and carried on all the more:
Doom, doom, the great city doomed!
    Dressed in the latest fashions,
    adorned with the finest jewels,
    in one hour such wealth wiped out!
17-19 “All the ship captains and travelers by sea, sailors and toilers of the sea, stood off at a distance and cried their lament when they saw the smoke from her burning: ‘Oh, what a city! There was never a city like her!’ They threw dust on their heads and cried as if the world had come to an end:
Doom, doom, the great city doomed!
    All who owned ships or did business by sea
Got rich on her getting and spending.
    And now it’s over—wiped out in one hour!
20 “O Heaven, celebrate! And join in, saints, apostles, and prophets! God has judged her; every wrong you suffered from her has been judged.”
21-24 A strong Angel reached for a boulder—huge, like a millstone—and heaved it into the sea, saying,
Heaved and sunk, the great city Babylon,
    sunk in the sea, not a sign of her ever again.
Silent the music of harpists and singers—
    you’ll never hear flutes and trumpets again.
Artisans of every kind—gone;
    you’ll never see their likes again.
The voice of a millstone grinding falls dumb;
    you’ll never hear that sound again.
The light from lamps, never again;
    never again laughter of bride and groom.
Her traders robbed the whole earth blind,
    and by black-magic arts deceived the nations.
The only thing left of Babylon is blood—
    the blood of saints and prophets,
    the murdered and the martyred.
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