LHM Daily Devotion - October 29, 2017 "The Word of God Penetrates the Hearts"

I am participating as a volunteer in the activities organized by the...

Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries

By Pastor Ken Klaus, Speaker Emeritus of The Lutheran Hour

"The Word of God Penetrates the Hearts"

October 29, 2017

For the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

~ Hebrews 4:12 (ESV)

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

The salvation story of Jesus Christ reaches around the world. So that the readers of our Daily Devotion may see the power of the Savior on a global scale, we have asked the volunteers of our international ministry centers to write our Sunday devotions. We pray that the Spirit may touch your day through their words.

In Christ, I remain, His servant and yours,
Kenneth R. Klaus
Speaker Emeritus of The Lutheran Hour

I am participating as a volunteer in the activities organized by the ministry center of Christ for All Nations in Nicaragua.

I can recall one of the talks we offered to a prison in Leon City. While I was making a presentation to a group of women, I saw one lady who was paying special attention, but she was alone, that is, she sat separate from the group. At the end of my presentation, she came to me, asking several questions.

One of those questions is the inspiration of her story and this devotion.

She asked me, "How can I overcome sin in my Christian life?" She was in a very difficult situation. Her crime had been bad, and her treatment in jail had been hard. The most difficult thing of all was she had become resentful of God. As she said, "The Lord has abandoned me."

I shared many Bible stories with her. The most important of those verses were those which came from the Savior's time on the cross. As He carried our sins so we might be saved, He called out, "My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?"

I told her: "Jesus was forsaken so we would never be alone."

I believe the lady understood. During our conversation, the young woman wept and said she knew God was with her and was confident the Holy Spirit would bring great relief in her life. She said she now properly understood her crime and the nature of repentance.

What I have just shared with you took place some time ago.

Now, when we go back to her prison, she is one of the most active participants. She says she is reading the Bible because it is the Word of God that penetrates the hearts. In addition, she has found a great refuge in Jesus Christ.

You know, my friends, sometimes changes come quickly to an individual; sometimes they come more slowly. But the Lord who sent His Son to forgive and save us has promised He will produce changes in the hearts and lives of those who are brought to faith in Jesus Christ, their Redeemer.

THE PRAYER: Dear God, thank You for sending us the Holy Spirit to comfort us in the most difficult moments of our lives. Most of all, I rejoice that You offered Your Son, Jesus Christ, as our Savior and refuge from sin, death, and devil. In His Name I pray. Amen.

Biography of Author: Today's international devotion was written by Laura Miranda. She has been a volunteer with Lutheran Hour Ministries in Nicaragua since 2014. She is involved in different ministry activities, amongst which would be listed Christian and prevention talks in the different places we visit. She is also part of the FM radio team, which broadcasts in the remote countryside as well as the metropolitan areas of Nicaragua.

Lutheran Hour Ministries-Nicaragua is known in-country as "Christ for All Nations" or Cristo Para Todas Las Naciones in Spanish. Launching its Gospel efforts in Chinandega in 1999, LHM-Nicaragua offers Project JOEL, an educational program helping children and young people make healthy lifestyle choices. High school and university students benefit from this program as well. Offering Equipping the Saints (ETS) evangelism workshops to facilitate Gospel conversations and Bible Correspondence Courses (BCC) to build up and edify students of Scripture, inroads are being made into people's lives with the Good News of salvation in Jesus Christ. Based today in León, this ministry center produces a weekly radio broadcast and 30-second on-air spots. These are augmented with "Radio Cristo Nica," an internet and radio program dedicated to sharing the Gospel and helping others in this Central American country of more than six million people.

Use these devotions in your newsletter and bulletin!  Used by permission; all rights reserved by the Int'l LLL (LHM).

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The actual classes are free for those who have completed the scholarship class. Students take free training that gives them “unofficial” certificates, diplomas and degrees. Official awards have administrative donation fees appropriate for the amount of effort needed by the CLI staff to verify and certify the official awards. This official award is required by our partnering accredited seminaries.

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The Daily Readings for SATURDAY, October 28, 2017 - Feast Day of Saint Simon and Saint Jude

The World’s Hatred - John 15:17-27

Daily Readings

Deuteronomy 32:1-4

Give ear, O heavens, and I will speak; let the earth hear the words of my mouth. May my teaching drop like the rain, my speech condense like the dew; like gentle rain on grass, like showers on new growth. For I will proclaim the name of the LORD; ascribe greatness to our God! The Rock, his work is perfect, and all his ways are just. A faithful God, without deceit, just and upright is he;

Psalm 119:89-96 Lamedh In æternum, Domine

89   O LORD, your word is everlasting; it stands firm in the heavens.
90   Your faithfulness remains from one generation to another; you established the earth, and it abides.
91   By your decree these continue to this day, for all things are your servants.
92   If my delight had not been in your law, I should have perished in my affliction.
93   I will never forget your commandments, because by them you give me life.
94   I am yours; oh, that you would save me! for I study your commandments.
95   Though the wicked lie in wait for me to destroy me, I will apply my mind to your decrees.
96   I see that all things come to an end, but your commandment has no bounds.

Ephesians 2:13-22

But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For he is our peace; in his flesh he has made both groups into one and has broken down the dividing wall, that is, the hostility between us. He has abolished the law with its commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new humanity in place of the two, thus making peace, and might reconcile both groups to God in one body through the cross, thus putting to death that hostility through it. So he came and proclaimed peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; for through him both of us have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God.

John 15:17-27

I am giving you these commands so that you may love one another. "If the world hates you, be aware that it hated me before it hated you. If you belonged to the world, the world would love you as its own. Because you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world-- therefore the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, 'Servants are not greater than their master.' If they persecuted me, they will persecute you; if they kept my word, they will keep yours also. But they will do all these things to you on account of my name, because they do not know him who sent me. If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have sin; but now they have no excuse for their sin. Whoever hates me hates my Father also. If I had not done among them the works that no one else did, they would not have sin. But now they have seen and hated both me and my Father. It was to fulfill the word that is written in their law, 'They hated me without a cause.' "When the Advocate comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who comes from the Father, he will testify on my behalf. You also are to testify because you have been with me from the beginning.

New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. The New Revised Standard Version Bible may be quoted and/or reprinted up to and inclusive of five hundred (500) verses without express written permission of the publisher, provided the verses quoted do not amount to a complete book of the Bible or account for fifty percent (50%) of the total work in which they are quoted.

The Liturgical Calendar: Saint Simon and Saint Jude

St. Simon

St. Jude

Today the church remembers Saint Simon and Saint Jude, Apostles.

Christian tradition has long associated these two apostles with one another. They may have traveled and worked together. Historically speaking, we know very little about Jude and less about Simon. Jude, in modern times, has enjoyed a marvelous reputation as a patron of lost or desperate causes. He was, presumably, the author of the New Testament Epistle that bears his name. In that case he was a man with some skill in verbal expression. His happy phrase, "contend for the faith, once for all delivered to the saints," is one which has certainly endured and been much quoted. The last two verses of that Epistle are an unforgettable doxology.

Simon is called a "Zealot" in Holy Scripture, but it is difficult to determine just what that meant. There were many Zealot groups in Jewish history, most of them obscure, and they were not all alike by any means. A strong and old Eastern tradition holds that Simon and Jude were apostles to Persia. If this is true it explains, to some extent, our lack of historical information on them and also why they are usually put together.

Read the Wikipedia article here about Saint Simon.
Read the Wikipedia article here about Saint Jude.

O God, we thank you for the glorious company of the apostles, and especially on this day for Simon and Jude; and we pray that, as they were faithful and zealous in their mission, so we may with ardent devotion make known the love and mercy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

Prayer of the Day for SATURDAY, October 28, 2017 - Feast Day of Saint Simon and Saint Jude

O God, we thank you for the glorious company of the apostles, and especially on this day for Simon and Jude; and we pray that, as they were faithful and zealous in their mission, so we may with ardent devotion make known the love and mercy of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Amen

Verse of the Day for SATURDAY, October 28, 2017

1 Peter 1:24-25 (NIV) For, “All people are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever.” And this is the word that was preached to you.

Read all of 1 Peter 1

Listen to 1 Peter 1

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Morning Devotions with Cap'n Kenny - Dangerous Assumptions

Dangerous Assumptions

"For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end."

~ Hebrews 3:14 (NKJV)

The great evangelist Billy Sunday said the problem with a lot of people is they treat sin like a cream puff instead of a rattlesnake.

Have you ever seen a baby rattlesnake? They are actually kind of cute. They have a little snake body, a little rattler, and little fangs. Someone might say, “Look at that little baby rattler. He’s so cute.”

Let me tell you something about that baby rattler. He might be smaller in size than an adult, but his venom is actually more potent, drop for drop, than the venom of an adult rattlesnake. And if that little rattlesnake were to give you a little bite, you would die if you couldn’t get to a doctor quickly.

Make no mistake about it. Sin is powerful. It is elusive. It is tricky. And it can appear so appealing on the outside. I have seen people who knew better, Christians who have walked with the Lord for years and know His Word well, fall into sin and be deceived by it.

We must be very careful, especially when it comes to seemingly small sins in our estimation. Sometimes we look at something and say, “That isn’t a big deal. It’s just a small sin. Surely it won’t do that much harm in my life.” Watch out. Dynamite comes in small packages.

We are told in Hebrews 3:12–14, “Beware, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing from the living God; but exhort one another daily, while it is called ‘Today,’ lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin. For we have become partakers of Christ if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast to the end.”

We must be careful and not let sin harden our hearts.

In Jesus,
Cap'n Kenny


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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®, NKJV® Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Devotion by Greg Laurie © 2017 Harvest Christian Fellowship; all rights reserved.
We may think a little sin, a little compromise, isn't a big deal. But it is.

Un Dia a la Vez - Jesús y los juramentos

Jesús y los juramentos

«Cuando ustedes digan “sí”, que sea realmente sí; y cuando digan “no”, que sea no. Cualquier cosa de más, proviene del maligno».

~ Mateo 5:37 (NVI)

Desde siempre hemos escuchado que no debemos jurar, mucho menos usando el nombre de Dios en vano. Esto se debe a que Dios espera que digamos la verdad en todo momento.

En el Manual de Instrucciones también encontramos que el Señor espera que nuestra palabra sea sincera y que tengamos una sola respuesta. Cuando somos personas de una sola palabra, tenemos credibilidad y confiabilidad ante otros, mucho más al decir que somos cristianos. Si quedamos mal, también se afectará el nombre de Dios.

Cada vez que les prometamos algo a nuestros hijos, debemos cumplirlo. Les hacemos mucho daño si los ilusionamos con algo y no lo llevamos a cabo. Así que distingámonos y aprendamos a ser hombres y mujeres de carácter.

Un Día a la Vez Copyright © by Claudia Pinzón

Standing Strong Through the Storm - GOD FIRST

GOD FIRST

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes: first to the Jew, then to the Gentile.

~ Romans 1:16 (NIV)

Eighteen-year-old Nina lives in an Asian country where Buddhism is the faith of the majority. Since her mother is a devout Christian, she is constantly exposed to stories and lessons from God’s Word. At school, her faith in Jesus Christ is often tested. Because Nina showed great aptitude at school, she was selected to be part of a team that would compete in a high school annual science competition. On the day of the competition, however, the Vice Principal, a very strict disciplinarian, decided to take the team to the Buddhist temple first. Nina fidgeted anxiously in her seat while aboard the school bus with her teammates.

As she tried to figure out what to do upon arriving at the monastery, the first of the Lord’s Ten Commandments resonated in her mind—no other gods, except Him. I can’t disobey my God, after knowing who He is, she thought. Nina felt trapped and confused. Obeying God meant disobeying the Vice Principal. Nina uttered a silent prayer. “God, you changed the hearts of many kings before, surely you can do it again! Please Lord, speak to his heart!”

When the team reached the temple, everyone entered except Nina, who stood at the gate. As Nina’s teammates came out of the temple, the Vice Principal approached Nina with a stern look on his face. “Why did you not come in the temple with us?”

“Sir, I was born a Christian. When my mother gave birth to me, I was weak and at the point of death. Christians prayed for me and God heard their prayers,” shared Nina.

“You could have just entered with us and not participate in the ceremonies,” explained the Vice Principal, whose face and tone softened. Nina knew then that God had just answered her prayers.
“I did not have peace in my heart. I felt that I would be disobeying God if I entered the temple, sir,” Nina responded. The Vice Principal did not pursue the matter any further; neither did he chide Nina for it. The team placed third during the science competition.

Nina testified during a youth training program that Open Doors organized. “I was surprised to see how God suddenly changed his heart; he rarely speaks that way to students. He is often firm and strong…His wife has had many miscarriages. I’m praying for his wife to have a baby soon. I’m also praying for him to know Jesus Christ. I’m sure it will happen someday!”

RESPONSE: Today I will put God first in every situation I face.

PRAYER: Pray for all young Christians who face the cultural challenges against putting God first.

NIV Devotionals for Couples - Giving With Grace

Giving With Grace

Deuteronomy 15:1–11

Give generously to them and do so without a grudging heart; then because of this the LORD your God will bless you in all your work and in everything you put your hand to.

~ Deuteronomy 15:10 (NIV)

Years ago I said something that still bothers me when I think about it. I had led a young couple to faith in Jesus. The husband earned a good living in his hairstyling salon. In the basement of their home he kept the barber’s chair that his deceased father had once used in a shop in another town.

His father’s chair was more than an item of nostalgia, however. My friend used the chair in his basement two evenings and part of Saturday each week to seat customers who couldn’t afford to see him in his shop. In this homey room my friend clipped and snipped the hair of the poor. Some, like me, he charged a nominal fee; others he waved out the door with a smile.

After one splendid haircut, I pulled out my wallet and handed him a note that was twice what he normally charged me. It was my smallest note, but he had no change. “Just keep it,” I said. “Next time I won’t have to pay anything.”

Indeed, as I stepped out of the chair after my next grooming session and reached for my wallet, my friend said, “Wait! You’ve already paid for this one!”

It was then that I said some horrible words: “If you had remembered that earlier,” I teased, “you wouldn’t have done such a good job, would you?”

A slight grimace furrowed my friend’s brow before he caught himself and laughed. He was a generous man, and I had treated his kindness flippantly by joking that mercenary demons drove his heart.

It seems like materialism is all around us, and it is not uncommon for people to be driven by need and greed. During the lean years that many of us experience , we can become selfish and cheap. Those attitudes can stick, even when resources grow and demands diminish.

God built safeguards into Israelite society so that debt wouldn’t dehumanize those who became trapped in it. But God also knew that some people would try to manipulate handouts and bailouts and other kinds of welfare for their own cunning ends. So he asked his people to be generous to the poor, even if the poor appeared to be abusing the gifts.

Generosity and graciousness are learned qualities. They must be caught from the example of bighearted souls. Like God. Like the widow who gave two very small copper coins—all she had to live on (see Mark 12:41–44). Like the disciples who shared their lunch with a crowd (see Matthew 15:32–39). Like my barber.

We must practice giving so that generosity becomes an essential part of who we are. And when we give, we’ll find that our generosity is rewarded by God, who will “throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that there will not be room enough to store it” (Malachi 3:10).

Wayne Brouwer

Let’s Talk

• In what ways has God blessed us? In what ways are we tightfisted about sharing what we have? How can we make our spending and giving reflect our values?
• Who are some generous people who have helped us along the way? What have we learned from them? How are we becoming like them?
• What did we learn about money and generosity from our parents? Were these good or bad lessons? What will our children learn from us?