Copyright 1941 by CONCORDIA PUBLISHING HOUSE St. Louis, Mo. P R I N T E D I N TJ. S . A. GREAT QUESTIONS DAILY DEVOTIONS June 2 to July 26, 1941 No. 32 By LAWRENCE ACKER Pastor of First Lutheran Church Omaha, Nebraska ST. Louis, MO. CONCORDIA PUBLISHING HOUSE 1941 PRAYER FOR SATURDAY O God, Thou loving Father, who never slumberest nor steepest, I thank Thee that Thou hast kept me safe in Thine everlasting arms. Especially do I thank Thy great goodness in bringing me to another holy day. This day is a day which Thy mercy has made. Help me to spend it in a manner worthy of my Chris- tian calling. Let me devote the day to meditation about Thee and about Thy Son Jesus Christ, whom Thou didst send to be my Savior from sins. Let me delight in searching Thy Holy Scrip- tures, neither disbelieving nor doubting any part thereof. Let nothing keep me from wor- shiping today in Thy house. Keep my foot when I go to Thy temple. Put away every self-righteous thought Enable me to go to Thy temple, as did the publican, to seek Thy mercy. Let me believingly accept Thy Word. Forgive me all sins and cleanse me'through the blood of Jesus, my Savior. Help me to flee from sin. Help me to fight against every sin that so easily besets me. Grant that I may always strive to do Thy will, to keep Thee in my heart and thoughts. O Lord, teach me to pray more diligently. Help me to lead a God- pleasing life, to be more joyful in my faith. Give me grace to walk with Thee day by day. Do Thou so direct and govern my heart that I may here live close with Thee and hereafter be received into Thine verlasting glory for the sake of Jesus, Thy Son, my Savior. Amen. [2] D e a d d i f i e d PRAYER FOR WEDNESDAY Almighty God, who has promised that the gates of hell shall never prevail against Thy Church, stretch forth Thy mighty hand in her defense. Bring to naught all attempts of those who seek her overthrow. Grant her grace that she may keep up her warfare against sin and Satan. Keep her faithful to her God-given mission of preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Let Thy Church serve as a beacon-light to all the weary and all the troubled. Fill her members with enthusiasm and zeal to send forth faithful workers everywhere, to the far corners of the earth, and do Thou strengthen those who are sent, that they may proclaim Thy Word without fear or favor. Give success to the Word of the crucified Savior. Let Thy Word not return void but let it bring many to a knowl- edge of their sins and of their Savior from sin. Keep us faithful to Thy holy Christian Church that we may share with all of God's saints the glories of that eternal kingdom where all the faithful will worship Thy Son as the Lamb that was slain for our eternal redemption. Bless our congregation. Bless our minister. Give him courage to preach Thy Word, and strength to do Thy work. Bless the members of our congregation. Increase our faith through Thy Word and let us all be doers of Thy Word and not hearers only. Bless the work which Thou hast given us to do, that many will be brought to Jesus their Lord and Savior. This I ask for the sake of Him who died that I might live, Jesus, Thy Son, my Redeemer. Amen. f3] PRAYER FOR WEDNESDAY Heavenly Father, help me always to believe that all thoughts Thou thinkest towards me are thoughts of peace and not of evil. Let me never think that my troubles are unknown to Thee. Let me confidently believe that Thy love and goodness is seeking only my welfare. I confess that I have not been as faithful to Thee as Thou hast been to me. Yet Thou hast not forsaken me but fulfilled day after day Thy promises upon me and our household. Strengthen my faith and teach me to believe that Thy thoughts and ways are wiser and better than my ways. Heavenly Father, let me never think that Thou hast forgotten me. Drive from me every thought that Thou dost not care for me. As sorrows and sadness come, awaken in me the desire to flee to Thee for help. If help does not come as quickly as I desire, teach me to say with my Savior, "Father, not my will, but Thine, be done." And when in Thy good plea- sure and appointed time Thou dost send help different than expected, keep me from mur- muring and complaining. Above all, help me to hold fast to Jesus as my Savior. Hear me for His sake. Amen. PRAYER FOR WEDNESDAY Dear heavenly Father, we give Thee thanks and praise for all the mercies which Thou hast shown our country these many years. Thou didst bless us with peace. That is a goodness we have not deserved. We have sinned against Thee, O God, and done evil in Thy sight. But deal with us not after our sins. For the sake of Jesus, our Savior, blot out our sins and give us strength to walk closer with Thee. We pray Thee, O heavenly Father, remain the Protector and Defender of our nation. Let us not trust in our natural defenses nor in our well-trained Army and well-equipped Navy. By Thy Holy Spirit direct the hearts and minds of all who rule over us that they will seek always the peace and welfare of the people. Pour out Thy heavenly blessings upon all the good counsels of our rulers that also in the days to come we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honesty. Bless all honest labor. Ward off labor troubles. Give us all our daily bread. Send us seasonable weather. Deliver us from epi- demics. Bless our educational institutions. Keep us from every evil all our days. To Thy fatherly care we commend all upon whom the miseries of war have fallen. Re- lieve the sufferings of the wounded and the dying, comfort the broken-hearted. Be Thou the God and Father of the widows and the fatherless, the Helper of the sick and the needy, and the Comforter of the forsaken and the distressed. Hear us for Jesus' sake. Amen. [5] PRAYER FOR THURSDAY O heavenly Father, I am mindful of the many blessings Thou hast given me the past years. Thou bast richly provided me 'with all I needed to support my body and life. Thou hast de- fended me against all danger. Thou hast pro- tected me from all evil. Thou hast forgiven me all my sins. Thou hast given me Thy Holy Word, which has made me wise unto salvation. Thou hast chosen me to be Thine own and called me into Thy holy Christian Church. For this I thank Thee, O Lord. O heavenly Father, I am not worthy of the least of all the mercies Thou hast showered upon me. I have done nothing to deserve Thy goodness. If Thou wouldst reward me according to mine iniquities, I could expect nothing from Thee but Thy wrath and displeasure. But for the sake of Jesus Christ, my blessed Redeemer, forgive me all my sins. Be merciful to me and bless me in body and soul. O give me a truly thankful heart. Open Thou my lips that I may praise Thee for Thy many benefits. Take my body and let it be Thy holy temple. Give me strength and courage to follow after Thee. Grant that I let my light shine before all men and thus glorify Thee. Help me praise Thee with all I have. Take my silver and my gold and all I have, use it to glorify Thy name. Gracious Lord, all that I am and all I have, accept it unto Thy praise and glory now and forever. Amen. T6] PRAYER FOR SATURDAY Heavenly Father, to whom the souls of men are precious and who hast bidden us to seek the lost and the straying, fill our hearts with willingness to bring the Gospel of forgiveness and peace to mankind. Open our eyes to behold the many who do not know Jesus and His for- giving love. In mercy forgive us for neglecting them by failing to tell them how they can obtain forgiveness of their sins. Awaken in us greater eagerness to confess Thee. Make us bold and give us courage to tell others how sins are washed away with the blood of Jesus. And forgive us all our sins. Kindle ardent love and zeal in all our hearts. Let us not grow weary in making known the message of the crucified Savior. Mercifully hear our prayers as we plead with Thee to send many workers into the vineyard. Bless abun- dantly the work they do. Move our hearts and open our hands to give richly of our earthly possessions that many more workers may be sent forth to tell of God's love in Jesus Christ. Add Thy blessing to their message and prosper Thou the work of their hands to the salvation of many souls. Bless our missionaries at home and abroad. Protect and defend especially those missionaries who are working in war-torn countries. Give to them and to all messengers of the Gospel wisdom and strength and courage to preach Thy Word unto the ends of the earth. Hear our humble prayers for Jesus' sake. Amen. [7] PRAYER FOR SATURDAY Heavenly Father, Thou promisest Thy chil- dren that Thou wilt be with them and keep them wheresoever they go. Thou art a God of truth. Throughout this week Thou hast made true Thy promises. Thou hast been won- derfully good to me. As the mighty Keeper of my body, Thou hast every night granted me refreshing sleep. Day by day Thou hast given me the strength I needed to do my daily tasks. Thou didst never permit any evil disease to rob me of the health I now enjoy. As the gracious Caretaker of my soul, Thou hast given me strength to fight the old evil Foe. With Thy Word Thou hast strengthened me to believe more firmly that the blood of Jesus Christ, Thy Son, cleanseth me from all sin. As the trust- worthy Guide of my life, Thou didst guide my feet into the paths of righteousness, and didst fill me with Thy peace, which passeth all under- standing. All this and much more Thou hast done for me, unworthy though I be. I have sinned, O Lord, I have sinned in Thy sight and have deserved to be cast from Thy presence forevermore; yet Thou hast daily showered upon me blessings without number. Forgive me all my transgressions. And what shall I render Thee for all this loving-kindness and tender mercy? Heavenly Father accept my thanks and make me willing to dedicate all I am and all I have to Thee. Do that for Jesus' sake. Amen. [8] MONDAY, June 2, 1941. — Read Matt. 18:23-35 "How oft shall . . . I forgive him? Till seven times?" Matt. 18:21. Our heavenly Father never tires of forgiv- ing penitent sinners. As often as we come to Him, acknowledging our sins, asking Him to forgive us for Jesus' sake, and promising with God's help to amend our sinful life, so often is He ready to blot out all our transgressions and make us again as white as snow. Even if we come seven times a day or seventy times seven, He will not refuse us. Peter the Apostle once asked Jesus how often he should forgive his brother who sinned against him. Peter as many others believed that one need not forgive more than three times. Peter doubles that limit and asks Jesus whether it would be enough for him to forgive seven times? Jesus answers that he is to forgive his sinning brother not only seven times but seventy times seven. There should be no limit to his willing- ness to forgive, even as the heavenly Father is ever ready to forgive penitent sinners regard- less how often they come to Him. God has forgiven us many sins, and He has done so more than seven times, yea, more than seventy times seven. Not once has He re- fused us. Whenever we came to Him asking for pardon and peace, He received us for Jesus' sake, thus proving to us most convincingly that He never tires of forgiving sins to penitent sinners. And as God for Christ's sake is always ready to forgive us, so let us be always ready to forgive one another, even though we must do it more than seventy times seven. [91 TUESDAY, June 3, 1941.—Bead Luke 8:41-56 "If a man die, shall he live again?" Job 14:14. To Job's question "If a man die, shall he live again?" we Christians have only one an- swer. It is the same Martha gave when she said of her dead brother Lazarus: "I know that he shall rise again in the resurrection at the last day." We Christians know that the dead shall live again. Why are we so sure? God's Word tells us so. "The hour is coming in the which all that are in the grave shall hear his voice and shall come forth." Jesus says: "Because I live, ye shall live also." In His Word God says several times: "I will raise him up at the Last Day." These are not meaningless words. When Jesus lived on earth, He proved by restoring the dead to life that death had no power over Him. He raised the young man of Nain. At His word Lazarus, dead already four days, comes forth from the grave. Yea, by His own power Jesus raised Himself from the dead and proved that He has in His possession the keys of death. And should not He who by His death destroyed death and now lives forevermore be able to do on the Last Day what He did when He lived on earth? Most assuredly! And so we believe that the dead will live again. And where shall the dead live? The Bible says that he who believes in Jesus Christ shall not perish but have everlasting life, but that he who does not believe shall be damned. Let us then today beseech Jesus to keep us faithful to Himself unto death, for then we shall live with Him forevermore in His heavenly home. [10] WEDNESDAY, Jane 4, 1941.—Bead Matt 26:36-46 "Shall I not drink it?" John 18:11. It is not easy to drink the cup of suffering; yet Jesus would not allow anything to keep Him from doing His Father's will. He called Peter a Satan when Peter tried to keep Him from making the journey to Jerusalem which would end in the drinking of the bitter cup of His Passion. When Peter, in the Garden of Gethsemane, drew his sword to keep Jesus from being captured by the Judas-led mob, Jesus told him that he should do nothing to keep Him from going to the Father by the way of the cross. Even the knowledge that the cup of sorrows He must drink to the dregs was very bitter, made Jesus only the more willing to say: "Father, . . . not My will, but Thine, be done." Jesus tells us that we shall also drink of the cup of suffering and pain. As long as we live in this present world, sorrows will surround us and trials wound us. We should not expect it otherwise. To reach heaven, we shall have to pass through a valley of tears. We shall have to carry the cross on our way to heaven. When the cross which the heavenly Father asks us to carry is unusuallyy heavy, let us not murmur nor complain. In such an hour God does not forsake us. Never must we permit any one to persuade us that we should not willingly carry our cross. If it is our Father's will that we must through much tribu- lation enter God's heaven, may we go the way the Father wills us to go. That will in the end be for us a blessed experience. God will help us carry our cross; yea, He will carry it with us and for us. [11] THURSDAY, June 5, 1941.—Bead Ps. 115:1-11 "Where are thy gods?" Jer.2:28 Once again, the Jews had forsaken God. This time they were far away from Him. The leaders and the common people were saying that the gods they had made with their own hands had created them and were keeping them day after day. Were these self-made gods really keeping them? God dares them to prove it. He knows that, if they will accept His challenge and say to their gods, "Arise and save us," no help would be forthcoming. While they are plead- ing for help, God will say to them again and again: "Where are thy gods that thou hast made thee?" Away with all man-made gods. Let no man think that he has everything he needs when he has plenty of money. And any person who says that he is sure of heaven because he spent yesterday doing good has made himself a god that will keep him out of heaven. Neither earthly treasures nor our own righteousness nor any other object that man makes his god can help him when trouble comes, much less open for him the gates of heaven. Our God is not man-made. Our God has made man and all things visible and invisible. He is the Almighty and the Eternal. He can help. He helps us when no person can help us. He was able to bring us to life who were dead in sin. We could not save ourselves; others could not save us. But God saved us through His Son. Through His Word He now creates in us the true faith in Jesus Christ as our personal Savior. For the sake of Jesus He washes away all our sins. There is now no condemnation in us. In Jesus we are now IDs children. Only the true God could do that. [12] FRIDAY, J a n e 6, 1941.—Read M a t t 28:1-8 "O Death, where is thy sting?" 1 Cor. 15:55 Paul was not afraid to die. He wrote to the Christians in Philippi that he had a strong desire to depart and be with Christ, which would be far better for him. Saints and be- lievers before and after Paul have approached death cheerfully and without fear. They be- lieved death to be a gate through which they would pass from this earthly valley of sorrows to the heavenly heights of glory. This faith of the saints of God is built upon a sound foundation. Jesus Christ has removed the sting of death. He has taken away from death all power to hurt us. That He did by dying as our substitute on Calvary's cross. His death slew our death. Now death can never destroy us who believe. The second death can never force God's faithful children into hell. Even though we Christians die and our body returns to dust, death cannot harm us. Our natural death comes as a friend, ushering us safely to the home God has through Christ prepared for us in heaven. Surely death has no sting when it leads us to heaven, where we shall see God face to face and live with Him forevermore. Death has no bitterness when it ushers us into Paradise, where God wipes away all tears from our eyes and gives us unspeakable joy and happiness. Mind- ful of this eternal glory we joyfully sing: "O Death, where is thy sting? . . . Thanks be to God who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!" [13] SATURDAY, Jane 7, 1941.—Bead 1 John 5:14,15 "What profit should we have if we pray unto Him?" Job 21:15. Jacob prayed, prayed all night, and would not let God go until God had blessed him. Jacob's prayer was not without profit. God blessed him. The woman of Canaan prayed, prayed even when it seemed Jesus was snubbing her, prayed until Jesus had assured her that her daughter was well. Have we tried prayer? Certainly we have, and so we know that it pays to pray. Looking back upon our life, we can easily recall days without number when the heavenly Father proved that prayer is not without profit. When all of a sudden we had to face a knotty problem and heavy duties taxed our strength beyond limit, we prayed for guidance, and God gave us wisdom to do the right thing at the right time in the right way. When death laid its icy-cold hand upon a beloved member of our family, we prayed, and God eased our sorrow- ing hearts and proved that earth has no sorrow that Heaven cannot heal. When our hearts were heavy because we had sinned grievously in God's sight, and when we were wondering whether God would forgive us, we prayed even as did the publican in the Temple, and God removed all our sins, saying to us: "Thy sins are forgiven thee." Yes, it did pay us to pray. And we shall have much profit if we con- tinue to pray. For Jesus says to us, "What- soever ye shall ask in My name, that will I do." Help us, O heavenly Father, to believe these words with all our heart. [141 SUNDAY, June 8, 1941.—Read Luke 18:1-7 "How long shall I cry?" Hab.l:2 God knows how ready we are to stop with our prayers when they are not answered as quickly as we desire. To encourage us to keep on praying, He has filled the Bible with very many stories showing how His people down through the ages continued to pray until He maite good His promise to hear all faithful prayers. One of the best known of these Bible-stories is. that of the woman of Canaan. She perse- vered in her pleading with Jesus for her sick daughter until He assured her that her child was healed. She persisted in praying even when Jesus acted as though He did not hear her pleas. She continued to pray although she heard the disciples urging Jesus to send her away. She persevered in her pleas when Jesus seemingly snubbed her, saying that it was not right to take bread away from the children and give it to the dogs. But Jesus finally yielded to her persevering pleas. All this must encourage us to keep on praying until God will say also to us, as He said to this praying mother: "Great is thy faith; be it unto thee even as thou wilt." Some one once said: "If at first you do not succeed, try, try again." Let us remember that proverb when we pray. If our prayer is not answered the first time, let us pray a second time, a fourth time, a hundredth time, but let us keep on praying. When His hour comes, He will answer in His way, to our welfare; for He says: "Call upon Me, and I will answer thee, and show thee great and mighty things, which thou knowest not." U51 MONDAY, June 9, 1941.—Read Acts 18:24-28 "Why stand ye here all the day idle?" Matt. 20:6 Some one once said that there are three kinds of members in Christ's Chinch on earth. There are the shirkers. They are the members who do not lift even their small finger to help with the work Christ has assigned to His Church on earth. And then there are the jerkers, the members who work by fits and jumps and starts, who work two minutes and then rest two days. And there are the workers, who use the gifts God has given them to do as best they can the work God asks them to do and keep on doing it until the work is done or they can work no longer. To which class do we belong? One thing is certain, and that is that God does not want us to stand idle all day long. He has work, much work, for us to do. Not only in distant lands, but especially in our own neighborhood, there are people who do not know what they must do to be saved. God wants us to tell them of Jesus and His atoning sacrifice, that by the power of the Holy Spirit they may come to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. Among our friends, perhaps even among our relatives, there are those who do not believe or have drifted away from Jesus. God wants us to plead with them to come to Jesus before it is too late, to warn them that, unless they return, they can never hope to enter the heavenly home. And God wants us to visit the sick, to give food to the hungry, to comfort the sorrowing, to help people in all their sorrows and sufferings. Oh, then let none hear us idly saying there is nothing we can do. We can do much for God. And when He calls for us, let us answer, gladly saying, "Here am I; send me, send me." [161 TUESDAY, June 10, 1941. — Bead Mark 12:41-44 "What is that in thine hand?" Ex. 4:2 God came to Moses one day and told him to lead the children of Israel out of Egypt. Moses shrank from the undertaking. We do not wonder that he did. He had no training in warfare. He had no army, no money, nothing, just a shepherd's rod. Moses used that small stick and was able, with God's help, to save Israel. David had a sling in his hands. He had made it to keep the wolves away from his sheep. It was a small weapon. David used that small sling and, with God's help, was able to slay Goliath, whom the entire army of Israel feared to fight. The little lad in the Gospel had only two small fish and five loaves of bread. That was a small supply of food for five thousand men. Would not much more be needed? With God's help the small amount of food satisfied the hunger of the thousands, and twelve baskets were filled with broken pieces. And what do we see in the hand of Dorcas? Just a needle. It is small, so very small. She used it and made coats and garments for the needy and naked, because she loved God. "What can I do? I have no gifts. The Lord will never be able to use me for anything." Perhaps we have no outstanding gifts. That should not keep us from going ahead. What- ever we have in our hand, be it ever so little, let us use it as best we can to serve Him who first loved us and gave His Son to die for us. Willi His blessing resting upon our efforts, even the little we do may accomplish great things for God. [17] WEDNESDAY, June 11, 1941.—Bead 2 Tim. 3:14-17 "What saith the Scripture?" Rom. 4:3 The Bible, called also Holy Scripture, is God's Book. Holy men of God wrote it. How- ever, they did not write their own thoughts. They wrote the very words that God told them to write. They were moved by God's Holy Spirit. What they wrote, then, is God's Word. The Bible was written for man. On its pages God tells man what otherwise he would never know. If there were no Bible, man would never know that the heavens and ihe earth were created by God in six days. If there were no Bible, man would never know that God so loved the world that He gave His only-begotten Son to die for us. If there were no Bible, man would never know that Jesus Christ suffered and died to save all men from all their sins. If there were no Bible, man would not know that he is saved by grace through faith in Christ Jesus. Thousands and ten thousands of Bibles are printed every year. Millions may be found in the homes. And yet millions of people do not know that only the blood of Jesus Christ can cleanse them from their sins. Why not? Because they do not read the Bible. They have never read God's love-letter to man, not even a part of it. They do not know what the Scriptures say about sin and grace, about death and heaven. Therefore we are to search the Scriptures. Our Bible—does it show wear and tear? Are its pages soiled with thumb-marks? Are notes jotted among the underscored passages? Oh, blessed are we if we own a well-read and well-studied Bible. We shall in that case S v l t i o J e S U S 111616 18 f o r g i v e n e s s and f l 8 ] THURSDAY, June 12, 1941.—Bead Ps. 116:12-19 "Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine?" Luke 17:17. Yes, there were ten persons cleansed. And Jesus cleansed them. His merciful heart melted with pity for them as He heard their pleading cry. He freed their bodies from that dreaded disease of leprosy. Only one returned to thank Jesus. The other nine forgot. God is very good to us. He is constantly showering blessings upon us. He supplies us with what we need to support our body and life. In the day of sickness He gives us suffi- cient strength. He surrounds us with good things even when we are afflicted. He assures us every day that for Jesus' sake He has for- given us all our sins. Daily He fills our hearts with peace and joy and hope. Do we appreciate these blessings? How often do we thank Him at the close of day for the gracious protection we have enjoyed? Do we not often forget to thank Him for refreshing sleep, for food and drink, for a healthy body, for daily work, for many, many other blessings that are ours every day? Seldom do we think of thanking God that His grace has made us wise unto salvation, that He has promised heaven to us as our eternal home. That is not as it ought be. God wants us to be thankful people. He is to be thanked for the commonplace blessings of every-day life. Especially are we to thank Him for His great gift Jesus Christ, who saved us from our sins. As we count our blessings one by one, let us remember to be thankful always to that Lord whose mercies are new to us every morning. [191 FRIDAY, Jane 13, 1941. — Bead Fs. 77 "Lord, is it I?" Matt. 26:22 When Jesus said to His disciples in the upper room that one of them would bertay Him, their hearts were exceeding sorrowful and every one of them began to say to Him: "Lord, is it I?" Peter does not point an accusing finger at James, John does not look at Thomas as if to say, "You are the betrayer." It is most remarkable that each one of them thought he might be the guilty person. Every one of them began to say unto Him: "Lord, is it I?" Our Lord Jesus through St. Peter says: "There shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them." As we hear these words may every one of us ask: "Lord, is it I?" instead of thinking of some other person who might be guilty- God says: "Ye have not because ye ask not." Am I neglecting to pray? God says: "Ye have robbed Me." Am I giving God honestly His proportionate share? To think we cannot fall because we stand is sheer foolishness. "One of you shall betray Me," says Jesus. At once we ought ask: "Lord, is it I? Am I guilty?" A thorough self-examination is good for us. It convinces us that we sin very much every day. It proves to us that we need forgiveness of God every day. It drives us into the arms of the merciful God, who is ready and willing to forgive us all our sins for the sake of Jesus Christ. [20] SATURDAY, June 14, 1941. — Read 1 Tim. 6:6-11 "What will ye give me if I deliver Him unto you?" Matt. 26:15. The bargain is made. The chief priests agree to pay Judas thirty pieces of silver for deliver- ing Jesus into their hands. Judas accepts the oiler. His greedy desire for more money brings him to the low level where he is willing to sell the Lord of heaven and earth for an amount which according to the Law of Moses was to be paid to the owner of a slave that had been killed. The sin that defeated Judas is that of the Ninth Commandment: "Thou shalt not covet." Many like to think and speak of covetousness as a little sin. They do not believe that great harm can come from just wishing to have something not intended for them or forbidden to them. Oh, if we only knew how the evil thought of the heart, lustful wishing, often leads to greater sins! We would never say that coveting is a small sin. We also have to fight this sin. Every day Satan tempts us to desire wrongfully what we do not possess. Every day he suggests that we greedily retain what we possess. We must resist. But we are lost if we fight alone. Only with God's help can we win. God is ready and willing to help. When we ask Him, He will help us overcome every wicked desire. When we ask Him, He will remove from our hearts all covetousness. And when we have sinned and come back, penitently pleading that our sins of covetousness be forgiven, God will wash them away with the blood of Jesus, even as He daily cleanses us from all our sins for the sake of Jesus. [21] SUNDAY, June 15, 1941 Read John 14:1-6 "What is truth?" John 18:38 We shall never know all that was in the mind of Pilate when he asked this question, nor why he left before an answer was given And we shall never know exactly what answer Jesus would have given had Pilate remained. We know what Jesus might have said. This is not the first time He spoke about truth He told Thomas: "I am the Truth." On another occasion He said: "The words which I speak unto you, they are truth, and they are life." And well known are His words "If ye continue in My Word, then are ye My disciples indeed; and ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." Had Jesus answered Pilate's question, He might have said: "Pilate, I am the Truth. The heavenly Father sent Me to tell the world the great truth that whoso- ever believeth Me to be his personal Savior shall not perish but have everlasting life." Pilate was not seeking to . learn about the truth. In fact, he was not interested in any religious truth. Indifferent worldling that he was, he thought that any and every religious truth is just another useless guess, a theory about which people may argue but which admits of no definite certainty. Whatever Jesus might have said about truth would perhaps never have impressed him. We rejoice that we know the truth. We thank and praise the heavenly Father that He has made known to us the great truth that to know the only true God and Jesus Christ, whom He has sent, is life eternal. [22] MONDAY, June 16, 1941.—Bead 1 Chron. 29:11-13 'Is anything too hard for the Lord?" Gen. 18:14 In their old age Abraham and Sarah were very sad. God had given them no children. They were now too old to have children. One day God pays them a visit. He tells them that a child will be born to Sarah in her old. age. Sarah laughs; she believes that God is promis- ing more than He can do. But "is anything too hard for the Lord"? God did make good His promise to Sarah. In the twenty-first chapter of Genesis we read in the second verse: "Sarah . . . bare Abraham a son in his old age." It was not too hard for the Lord to give manna and quails to two million Israelites in the wilderness. It will not be too hard for Him to give us our daily food as He promises. It was not too hard for the Lord to save His disciples when their little ship on the Sea of Galilee was pounded by angry waves. Jesus spoke just a few words and all was quiet. It will not be too hard for God's Son to save lis from any danger. With one word He can fell our enemies and save us from all harm and danger. It was not too hard for the Lord to forgive Peter. Our God can forgive any and every sin. He can save even the greatest sinner. Some- times Satan wants us to believe that our sins are too many and too great to be forgiven. But God says that, though our sins be as scarlet, He will make them as white as snow with the blood of Jesus. Truly, there is nothing too hard for our God. He has all power in heaven and on earth: [23] TUESDAY, June 17, 1941. — Read Ps. 139:1-6 "Who seeth us?" Is. 29:15 A farmer who often stole from his neighbor's cornfield, one day took his son along, a lad eight years old. Telling his boy to hold the sack, the father went to look whether any one was seeing him. First he stood on the fence; then he looked down {he rows of corn. Seeing no one, he came back to the boy, took the sack, and began his guilty work. Then it was that the boy said: "Father, there is one direction you forgot to look." In fright the father dropped the sack as he asked, "Which way?" The son answered: "You forgot to look up to heaven to see whether God is seeing you." It is not possible to hide anything from God. Judas thought he could. He deceived his fellow-disciples, but he could not keep God's Son from knowing that he had agreed to sell his Lord for thirty pieces of silver. Persons may hide their sins from others, but the all- seeing eyes of God look right through them. Not even a word is on our tongue that God does not know. Thou, God, seest us. That fact should keep us from doing anything that would grieve Him whose mercies are new to us every morning. Thou, God, seest us. He sees the evil that has befallen us, the hardships with which we are struggling, the sins we are fighting. He sees also that these burdens are too heavy for us to bear alone. How utterly helpless we are in trying to rid ourselves of our worries and sins! So God offers to cany our burdens for us and to take away all our sins for the sake of Jesus Christ, who died for us. Let us not spurn this gracious offer. [24] WEDNESDAY, June 18, 1941.—Bead Lev. 26:3-13 "Hath God said, and shall % not do it?" Num. 23:19 In his farewell message the aged Joshua said to the children of Israel: "You know in all your hearts and in all your souls that not one thing hath failed of all the good things which the Lord, your God, spake concerning you; all are come to pass unto you, and not one thing hath failed thereof." God has made many promises to us. He has promised to have His angels watch over us, so that no evil shall befall us. He has promised that He will carry our burdens if we will cast them upon His shoulders; that His kindness will never depart from us, even if the hills and the mountains crumble into nothing- ness. He has promised that whatsoever we s h a l l ask Him in Jesus' name, believing, it shall be given unto us. He will deliver us also from every evil and preserve us unto His heavenly kingdom, for above all, God promises every penitent sinner abundant pardon of all his sins in Christ Jesus. Many, many other precious promises has God given us. And God keeps His promises, each and every one of them. And let us not forget that He has gloriously fulfilled His promise to send in the fulness of time the Savior who would re - deem us from sin. Therefore God's angel an- nounced to the shepherds near Bethlehem that unto all people was born that day a Savior, which is Christ the Lord. On Calvary's cross Jesus was wounded and bruised for our sins. On Easter morn God raised His Son from the dead. All the world can know now, today, that in Jesus Christ, God is reconciled and at peace with all men. Verily, our God does what He says He will do. " [251 THURSDAY, June 19, 1941.—Bead Ps. 139:7-12 D o not I fill heaven and earth?" Jer. 23:24 Radio engineers inform us that a broadcast may be heard anywhere in the territory covered by the station if one tunes in when the mes- sage is on the air. At the moment of broad- casting the sound fills the air for many miles beyond the station; then it is gone. If you tune in too early or too late, you do not hear the broadcast. Ages ago God already said that He fills heaven and earth, and that at all times. Herein God differs from the man-made radio. God is everywhere at the same time all the time. When He is in America, He is also to be found in Europe. When He assures His followers that He will be with them alway, even unto the end of the earth, God tells them that He is everywhere at the same time all the time. Do not I fill heaven and earth? The thought that God is always near us and a present help in trouble is a source of abiding comfort for us Christians. We know that, since Jesus died for us and made peace with God for us, God is our loving Father, always seeking the welfare of His children. He wants to be near us; we want Him to be near us; we want to be near Him. And could we have a better helper around us in the days of sorrows? Could any other be able to blot out our sins? God helps when every other helper fails. We have the assurance that in God we have a Father who is always near us, who always wants to help us. With grateful and joyful hearts we can say: "Lord, I am thankful that Thou art with me alway." FRIDAY, J u n e 20, 1941.—Bead M a t t 6:26-33 "From whence shall we buy bread that these may eat?" John 6:5. The disciples of Jesus are certain that nothing can be done. The little food the lad has may not satisfy even his own hunger, much less that of five thousand men. The forty dollars the disciples have in their treasury will not buy enough food to give each person "a little some- thing" to eat. To go to the neighboring villages to buy food cannot be done even if they had the money, for night would overtake them before they would get there. And so they are convinced that nothing can be done. These disciples made a very serious mistake. They neglected to seek out Jesus. Jesus wanted them to ask Him. Does He inquire: "From whence will you buy bread?" He says: "From whence shall we buy bread?" The disciples overlooked that we. They consulted with them- selves only. When they could find no way out, they decided that nothing could be done. Blessed are we who seek God in our daily troubles and trials. He knows what to do. Blessed are we who pray to God in our daily temptations. He is the only way of escape. Blessed are we who go to the cross when tor- mented by sin. Then we shall find cleansing and healing. We know that the blood of Jesus Christ cleanses us from all sin. Blessed are we who entrust ourselves to God when death draws near. We know that we can depart in peace and enter into the glory which Jesus has pre- pared for us. There we shall live with God forevermore. [27] SATURDAY, June 21, 1941 Bead Bom. 8:31-39 "Who shall separate us from the love of God?" Rom. 8:35. Did God love His Son? The people of the world say no. They reason that a loving God would not allow His Son to be crucified. Since God did not save Jesus from the cross, Jesus could not be the beloved Son of God. Does God love us? The world says no. When they see us suffering "tribulation or dis- tress or persecution or famine or nakedness or peril or sword," they point to these afflictions as proof that God does not love us any more or that we only think that He loves us. How often must we not hear people say: "A loving God would not allow His beloved children to suffer. Since you and others who consider themselves children of God have so many tears and sorrows, they must be regarded as God's judgment upon disobedient children." There are days when we do not feel the tender caresses of God. We think that God has forgotten us. We feel that He has withdrawn His love from us. Satan tries his best to make us believe that because of the evils that have befallen us we cannot be the beloved children of God. But in such trials we should go to Calvary to see what God's love has done. He gave His Son into death that we might live. If so, then no earthly suffering can separate us from God's love. Afflictions are really a proof of Christ's love to us. Christ uses them to draw us closer to Him. Through them we are chastened. With St. Paul we should say: "I am persuaded that nothing can separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus, our Lord." [28] SUNDAY, June 22, 1941. — Read John 1:29-36 "Art Thou He that should come?" Luke 7:19 One day John the Baptist sent his disciples to Jesus. He desired that they learn for them- selves that Jesus is the promised Savior. He told them to ask Jesus: "Art Thou He that should come, or look we for another?" And what did Jesus answer? He told them that He must be the One who should come because He was fulfilling all prophecies concerning the Savior. . Yes, Jesus of Nazareth is the Savior God promised to the world. He was born in Bethle- hem, as the prophet Micah had foretold. He preached, as Isaiah had said He would. He entered Jerusalem riding a colt, was betrayed by a faithless friend, according to prophecy. Even the foretelling of such a small detail as the division of His garments proves that Jesus is the One who is to come to save His people from their sins.. It is the fulfilment of a proph- ecy in the Twenty-second Psalm. Are we quite sure that Jesus is the Savior promised us? Is the Evil One tormenting us with doubts? Is some "learned" man weakening our faith? We can remove all doubts and make ourselves doubly sure that there is salvation in none other than in Jesus by going to Jesus and asking Him who He is. That we can do by searching the Holy Scriptures. Comparing the work and the life of Jesus with all that God said in the Old Testament the Savior would be and do and say, we shall soon be convinced that Jesus is the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world, that He is the One who did save us from all sin by suffering and dying in our stead. [291 MONDAY, June 23, 1941.—Bead Heb. 12:4-13 "What son is he whom the father chasteneth not?" Heb. 12:7. A father corrects his son. A mother disci- plines her daughter. It is not dislike or hatred that prompts the parents to make these cor- rections. Parents train their children because they want them to be good children. Children may think the training and disciplining too severe. The son may say that father is too hard on him, while the daughter may wonder why she cannot have as much freedom as some other girls have. Later in life, however, the children will thank the parents for the corrections given them, realizing then that the strict discipline was for their own good. All people have trouble. It comes into the home of the ungodly; nor is the Christian home exempt from it. Now the Bible states that our troubles may be crosses, something we are suf- fering for Christ's sake. However, it speaks of our sorrows also as corrections, telling us that "whom the Lord loveth, He chasteneth." As we go through life, God, our heavenly Father, disciplines us. He sends us through the school of sorrows and tears. And that He does not because He hates us but because He wants to strengthen our Christian faith, improve our Christian life and save our soul. It is not easy always to believe this. When troubles come upon us one after another, we are tempted to believe that God is punishing us. But God does not punish us Christians. He punished us when He punished our Savior Jesus Christ. He sends troubles to correct us. Let us, then, not despise the chastening of our Lord. [30] TUESDAY, Jane 24, 1941.—Bead John 9:28-38 "Who art Thou, Lord?" Acts 9:5 A man is on his way to Damascus. In this oldest city of the world he is going to hunt down the Christians, bind them, take them to Je ru - salem, and there have them put to death. A short distance from Damascus a light brighter than the noonday desert sun suddenly envelops this man. Instantly he falls to the ground. Then he hears a voice saying: "Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me?" Knowing not who was speaking to him, Saul asks: "Who art thou, Lord?" and immediately he hears the voice say: "I am Jesus." Jesus! And who is Jesus? Above the head of the one dying on the central cross of Calvary we read "Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews." However, these words were written by a Roman governor. Was he wrong? No. In his great confession at Caesarea Philippi, Simon Peter declares Jesus to be "the Christ, the Son of the living God." Was Peter wrong? No. God's angel tells us who Jesus is. Inform- ing Joseph that the child to be born of Mary, his wife, is God's own Son, the angel instructs Joseph to "call His name Jesus, for He shall save His people from their sins." Surely, we are right when we confess: "I believe that Jesus Christ, true God, begotten of the Father from eternity, and also true man, born of the Virgin Mary, is my Lord, who has redeemed me, a lost and condemned creature." [311 WEDNESDAY, Jone 25, 1941.—Bead Luke 12:16-21 "What shall a man give in exchange for his soul?" Matt. 16:26. The body of man is God's masterpiece. We are God's workmanship, fearfully and wonder- fully made. Our body is to be a temple of God. He wants to live in it, and He will live there as long as we use it to glorify its Maker. The soul of man was also made by God. When the Creator had formed man out of the dust of the ground, He breathed into man's nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul. The soul of man is the most valuable thing in the world. God has redeemed it with the blood of His own Son. He impresses this truth upon us when He says that, if a man ever succeeded in obtaining so much wealth that he could buy the whole world, he would not have enough to exchange for his soul. Recall also the price Jesus paid to save our soul from sin. Because He took upon Himself our sins, He was wounded and bruised; He was forsaken by God and suffered the pangs of hell; He shed His holy precious blood and gave His life. And if the soul of man could be purchased only with the blood of Jesus Christ, God's own Son, must it not be the most valuable thing in the world? We cannot overestimate the worth of our soul. It is . worth more than all the riches of this earth. It is worth more than our body and life. It is worth so much that God died to save it from sin. O God, cleanse Thou me from sin and make me a temple wherein Thou dost abide with Thine everlasting peace. [32] THURSDAY, June 26, 1941.—Bead John 10:9-16 "Lord, . . . how can we know the way?" John 14:5 Many people take a vacation. Some go to the lakes; others relax in the mountains, still others go sightseeing. Just now these vacationists are busy. They are studying road maps and time-tables. Tour- ists who have made the trip as well as sponsors of tours are asked for advice. Nothing is left undone to make sure that the best road is taken. We are travelers on this earth. We have here no continuing city. There is a road that leads to the home God has made for us. It is the Jesus Road: "I am the Way." When He suffered and died on Calvary for our sins and the sins of the whole world, He made it possible for all sinners to come to God. And sinners come to God by faith in Jesus as their own personal Savior and in Him and through Him receive forgiveness of all their sins. Jesus made only one road to heaven. There can be no doubt about that. Jesus says: "I am the Way," and then adds: "No man cometh unto the Father but by Me." By nature, mail does not know Jesus as the only Way to heaven. Man thinks he can save himself. We should be thinking the same if it were not that God in His mercy has led us to believe that there is salvation only in Jesus Christ. Thanks be to Thee, heavenly Father, for making known to us that Jesus is the only Way to heaven. Keep us on this Way until we are with Thee in Paradise. [33) FRIDAY, June 27, 1941.—Read Matt 16:13-17 "Art Thou . . . the son of the Blessed?" Mark 14:61 Many persons deny that Jesus is the true Son of God. Some are like the Jewish religious leaders: they regard Him as a deceiver. Others are like Nicodemus: they believe Him to be a great teacher come from God. Still others main- tain that He is a son of God only in the sense that we Christians are called sons of God in the Holy Scriptures. We believe Jesus to be the only-begotten Son of the living God. Our faith rests not upon the confession of devils who admit that Jesus is the Son of God; nor upon the decla- ration of the Roman centurion who, as he watches Jesus die, states that Jesus must be the Son of God; nor merely upon the con- fession of Peter, who said of Jesus: "We be- lieve and are sure that Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God." We believe that Jesus is God's true Son (because at the baptism of Jesus, God the Father says: "This is My beloved Son." We believe »that Jesus is God's Son because of the answer •Jesus gave when the high priest asked Him tthis question: "Art Thou . . . the Son of the Blessed?" Jesus answered: "l am." Above all, w e believe Jesus to be God because He rose f rom the dead. Our certainty that Jesus is God's true Son means much to us. We cannot save ourselves. No man can redeem his brother nor give God a ransom for him. Only God can destroy toe powers of darkness. Now, Jesus is Gods Son. He is God. As God, He could overcome sin, death, and the devil. He died in our stead on the cross that we might become the children of God. r 3 4 ] SATURDAY, June 28, 1941.—Read 1 John 3:4-10 "What lack I yet?" Matt. 19:20 One day a young man, wealthy and an officer of the synagog, asked Jesus: "What good thing shall I do to inherit eternal life?" Christ's answer disappointed him. He thought it un - necessary to have Jesus tell him to keep God's commandments. He was sure that he had done so from his earliest youth and so lacked little or nothing of being worthy of heaven and eternal life. Some people think they always do what is right. They are certain that they are entitled to eternal life. Some claim that they have never done any great wrong. Others say that they do more good than evil. There is no doubt in their mind that the righteousness they think they have, coupled with the righteousness they think they have acquired by doing good, is good enough to give them Paradise. They are positive that they are better than many Christians that they know. But what does God say? "There is not a just man upon earth that doeth good and sinneth not." Not one of us can fulfil the Law of God. Our best efforts still fall short. There- fore God says that all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags. Nothing we have, nothing we do, is sufficient to save. Only one can save us— Christ, whom God sent into the world to take the sinners place under the Law. By His holy living and His innocent suffering and dying He won for us the righteousness that is acceptable to God. By faith we accept Jesus as our per- sonal Savior, and He gives us His righteousness, which hides all our sin. Whosoever has this righteousness of Jesus lacks nothing to make him worthy of heaven. [35] SUNDAY, June 29, 1941.—Bead 1 John 4:1-6 «Why . . . lie to the Holy Ghost?" Acte 5:3 In the first Christian church in Jerusalem there were several hypocrites. They deceived the con^egation, but they could not deceive God A s o n e of them walked f o r w a r d m a church service to lay Ms s h a m g i f t o n Gods altar, the pastor said to him: "Why hath Satan M e d thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost? There will always be hypocrites in the Chris- tian Church on earth. We do not know who thev are. They whitewash their evil hves and make us believe that the Holy Ghost is living in their hearts. Secretly they play the races, but publicly they let it be known that gambling is to be condemned. They give grudgingly to church, but in Christian gatherings they tell how happy they are that they can give much for the preaching of Jesus Christ, and Him crucified. When alone with a few intimate friends, they curse, but in the company ol church-members they condemn persons who take God's name in vain. If we had tile all- seeing eyes of God, we would know them to be persons who are lying to the Holy Ghost, who are trying to convince others that the Holy Ghost has made them righteous, when in reality their life is an abomination to God. God hates skin-deep Christianity. He wants us to be Christians to the core. We are to have not only the form but also the power of godliness. Every temptation to lie to the Holy Ghost is to be stubbornly resisted. When we do fall in an hour of weakness, may we come back to God, confessing our sins and accepting the pardon He offers us through Jesus Christ, His Son, our Redeemer. [36] MONDAY, June 3», 1941.—Read Ps.40 "Are not two sparrows sold for a farthing?" Matt. 10:29 Sparrows have no value in our country. They always have been cheap. In Jesus* days you could buy two for a farthing; and if you bought two farthing's worth, an extra sparrow was given, for according to St. Luke five spar- rows could be had for two farthings (a farthing = cent). God takes care of; these cheap little birds. He watches over each one. Not one of them can lose its life except the heavenly Fattier knows about it and permits it. We are worth more than many sparrows. God Himself made us in His own likeness and gave us a soul. No sparrow was made like that. But we are sinful, and the sparrows are not. That is true, but God gave His only Son to die for us and thus save us from our sins. God's own Son gave His life for us so that we might have the forgiveness of all our sins. If God now watches every little sparrow, He will not for one moment neglect us, whom He made in His own image and bought with the blood of His own Son Jesus Christ. To Him each one of us is worth more than many sparrows, yea, more than all sparrows. And He who cared so much for us that He saved us from our sins is not going to permit any troubles and trials to come to us unless they be for our good. At times it seems to us that God does not care. Father has no work. Mother loses her health. A child is stricken with the dreaded infantile paralysis. But God is still caring for us when these troubles come. He is using the troubles to wean us away from the world and bring us closer to Him. [37] TUESDAY, July 1, 1941.—Bead Dent 11:26-28 "Barabbas or Jesus?" Matt 27:17 There they stand before the people. The one is Jesus of Nazareth, who had spent His life doing good to people, of whom Pilate had declared that He could find no fault in Him. The other is Barabbas, a noted criminal, guilty of murder and robbery. The Roman governor asks the assembled Jews to tell him which of these two they wish to have set free. To his great surprise these people, some of whom a few days before had shouted hosannahs as Jesus entered Jerusalem, now become a hooting, howl- ing mob, demanding that Barabbas be set free and Jesus be crucified. What a fatal choice! Adam and Eve made a fatal choice when they listened to the devil and disobeyed God's commands. Judas made a fatal choice when the desire for more money became so over- powering that he sold his Savior for about eighteen dollars. The devil is still busy. Every day he tries to have us choose contrary to God's wishes. He wants us to choose money instead of Jesus, who gives us treasures which the moths do not eat nor the rust destroys. He urges us to listen to the world, inviting us to eat, drink, and be merry and advising us not to listen to the voice of Jesus, inviting us to deny ourselves, to take our cross, and to follow Him wheresoever He leads us. Even today we are asked again and again to choose between Barabbas and Jesus. Who shall it be? God help us to make the correct choice by saying that, as far as we are con- cerned, we will choose Jesus, for He alone can save us from sin. [38] WEDNESDAY, July 2, 1941.—Bead Luke 15:1-7 "Why talkest Thou with her?" John 4:27 One day Jesus met a Samaritan woman at Jacob's Well. He started to talk with her. Soon she was talking to Him. His disciples are very much surprised to see Him speaking to this woman. It was very improper for a Jewish teacher to talk publicly with a woman, especially with a heathen woman. Displeasure and wonder is written on their faces, but they had not the courage to ask Jesus the question "Why talkest Thou with her?" Jesus once said: "Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out." Jesus meant those words. He received not only a Nicodemus, who was a Pharisee and a ruler of the Jews, but also the thief on the cross, who admitted that he was an evil-doer. When Levi, the publican, whose work would not permit him to take part in the public prayers in the Temple, invited Jesus to dinner, Jesus accepted though He knew His enemies would call Him a friend of sinners and publicans and assert that all He did was to eat and drink with outcasts. Jesus did not ask how many sins a man had nor how great they were; all sinners, even the worst, were welcomed by Him. How comforting for us! So often we feel that our sins separate us forever from God. The devil puts these thoughts in our mind. They are not God's thoughts. God assures us that our sins can never be so great that He cannot forgive them. He can help to the uttermost. And, best of all, He wants to save us, for the Bible says that God does not want any to be lost but desires that all be with Him in heaven. [39] THURSDAY, July 3, 1941.—Read Matt 18:23-27 "b not thy wickedness great?" Job 22:5 A person once said to a minister: "Surely the few wrongs I do daily will not keep me out of heaven? Why, I am positive that God pays no attention to them." Was that person right? Do we sin only once or twice a day? Our sins, are they few in number? David did not think so. He said that his sins were more than the hairs of his head. In the 38th Psalm he says: "Mine iniquities are gone over my head; as an heavy burden they are too heavy for me." And praying for the Jews, Ezra the priest says: "O my God, I am ashamed and blush to lift my face to thee, O God; for our iniquities are increased over our head, and our trespass is grown up into the heavens." And when we recall how often we do what God forbids, and how often we fail to do what God commands, none of us will dare deny that our sins are more in number than the particles of dust in a Nebraska dust-storm. Some persons think that their wickedness is too great to be forgiven. Cain said that his sins were greater than that they could be for- given him. Judas thought that God could not forgive him his sins against Jesus. However, our sins can never be so many or so great that God cannot forgive them. God forgave Peter. God forgave David. Again and again God for- gave the backsliding Jews. And He will for Jesus' sake forgive us all our sins, even if we agree with Paul that we are the greatest of sinners. God says that He will make us as white as wool even though our sins be as scarlet. Let us come to Him just as we are; He will make us as white as wool. [401 FRIDAY, July 4, 1941. — R e a d Rom. 13:1-8 and Ps. 33:12-22 'Is it lawful to give tribute to Caesar or not?" Matt. 22:17 Today is the Fourth of July. One hundred and sixty-five years ago today the American nation was born. The American forefathers publicly declared themselves a free and in- dependent people and mutually pledged one another their Jives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor to keep themselves free. We believe that mankind should have the right to live as free peoples. Our prayers therefore should rise daily to the throne of God for all mankind. Already the psalmist admonished us to pray for the peace of Jerusalem. So we Christians of all nations should unite our hearts and voices in prayer for the peace of the world. We Christians appreciate the blessings which we enjoy in our country. We give evidence of our loyalty by what we do. We obey the laws of the land. We urge others to obey them. We pay taxes, all of them. Jesus has taught us that it is not only lawful but even our duty to pay tribute to Caesar, or the government. We love our country. We want it to be preserved from foes within and without. So deep is our love that we are willing, if need be, to die for our country. We pray for our country. Remembering that we are "to make prayers . . . for all men, for kings and all who are in authority," we carry our country's welfare to God in prayer. And we know our prayers will be answered, for we say them in the name of Jesus Christ, who suffered and died that our sins as disobedient children of the heavenly kingdom might be forgiven. r4l] SATURDAY, July 5, 1941.—Bead 1 John 1:5-10 "Which of you convinceth Me of sin?" John 8:46 Adam was created without sin. So was Eve. No other human beings have ever lived upon earth who were without sin. Some persons believe they are sinless. They have not read, or do not want to understand, God's Word, which says: "If we say that we have no sin we deceive ourselves. . . . If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar." What about Jesus? Does He make God a liar when He claims to be sinless? Never. Jesus is no sinner; He never committed sin; no sin was ever found in Him. He challenged His enemies to convict Him of sin, without any fear that they could prove Him a sinner. When His earthly life ended on Calvary's cross, many testified that He was holy. "I find no fault in Him," declared the blood-stained Pilate. "This man hath done nothing amiss," moaned the dying thief. "I have betrayed the innocent blood," shrieked the miserable Judas. And others agreed with the Roman centurion, who said: "Truly, this was the Son of God." God tells us that he who would save us from our sins must be "holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners—one who needeth not daily to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins and then for the people's." Jesus is such a person. He is sinless. Yet Jesus died. True, but He did not die for His own sins; He had none. He died because God laid on Him the iniquity of us all. Jesus took all the guilt and punishment of our sins upon Himself. In our stead He suffered. We are now free from sin and have peace with God through faith in Christ Jesus, our Re- deemer. [42] SUNDAY, July 6, 1941 Bead Luke 13:6-9 "How long shall I suffer you?" Matt. 17:17 An aged grandmother said one day to her pastor: "I am very happy that my heavenly Father never gets tired of forgiving me. If He did, I should never get to heaven." That grandmother was right. God is always ready to forgive. There is no limit to His for- giveness. He is not like so many people. They feel that one should not be expected to forgive his neighbor more than seven times. But they are wrong. Jesus tells them that they should be ready to forgive their brother not only seven times but seventy times seven. There should be no limit to our readiness to forgive others, because there is no limit to God's readiness' to forgive us. Down through the ages God has more than once shown that He waits a long time before He strikes. When in the days of Noah wicked- ness began to increase on earth, God did not immediately destroy the world. He gave that old world 120 years in which to return from its wicked ways. At the end of those 120 years, after God had left nothing undone to save those people, He sent the Flood upon the earth to destroy the world. Our God is still a long-suffering God. He waits a long time before He strikes, and while He is waiting, He is always urging the sinners to come to Him. As we come, He is ever ready and willing to forgive us for the sake of Jesus. Today God offers us forgiveness in Jesus Christ. Today let us accept it. Tomorrow may be too late. [43] MONDAY, July 7, 1941.—Bead Josh.24:15-22 "Will ye also go away?" John 6:67 Many followed Jesus who were not real followers. Some followed Him because they thought they saw in Him a king who could give them an easy living. When he refused to become their bread-king, they left Him. Others followed Him because they thought that He did not mean all He said. When it was shown to them that a true follower of Jesus had to crucify his own sinful lusts, they deserted Him. As Jesus saw that many went back and walked no more with Him, He asked the Twelve: "Will ye also go away?" What joy must have come to the Savior's heart as He heard Peter say for the group: "Lord, to whom shall we go? Thou hast the words of eternal life; and we believe and are sure that Thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God." Today there are many who have forsaken the Church and have gone back to the world. They walk no more with Jesus because they think the demands of Jesus are too severe. Among them may be some very near and dear to us. Will their example influence us? "Will ye also go away?" To whom shall we go if we decide to abandon Christ? Is there any one better than Jesus? He is the only One who can save us from our sins and bring us back to God. With Jesus, then, let us remain and believingly say: Thou, O Christ, art all I want; More than all I find in Thee. Amen. [44] TUESDAY, July 8, 1941.—Bead 1 John 4:16-21 "Lovest thou Me more than these?" John 21:15 Talk is cheap. It is very easy to say that we love with all our heart. But what we do sometimes speaks so loud that people cannot hear what we say. We are to love God above all things. Do we? Instead of proving our love by attending divine services, we stay away and find a dozen "excuses" for doing so. Or we go to church and sing: "Take my silver and my gold, Not a mite would I withhold." Instead of going forth and practicing what we sing, we use our money chiefly for selfish purposes. No wonder that many conclude that we love the present world and its pleasures. Let us do some real heart-searching. Are we perhaps loving our father or mother, our sister or brother, or a friend, more than God? If so, let us confess our sin, ask God to forgive us for Jesus' sake, and then plead with Him to give us strength to love Him above any one else. Are we perhaps showing greater love for gold and silver and other earthly treasures than for our God? If so, let us acknowledge our wrong, plead with God to be merciful with us, and then ask Him to supply us with strength to love God above all things. Today Jesus asks us: "Lovest thou Me?" With Peter let us answer: "Lord, . . . Thou knowest that I love Thee." And then let us ask God's help to love Him with all our heart and with all our soul and with all our mimj T45] WEDNESDAY, July 9, 1941._Bead Bam.8:35-39 "If God be for us, who can be against us?" Rom. 8:31 Abraham loved his son Isaac, for he was the son of promise and old age. But he did not love him more than God. When God told him to take his only son and offer him as a sacrifice he obeyed willingly. This was the greatest evi- dence of Abraham's love to God. Greater than Abraham's love is God's love to us. He spared not His own Son but de- livered Him up for us all. Surely, that proves beyond all doubt that God is for us. This Son of God also loves us and left His heavenly throne to save us. Jesus fulfilled God's Law for us, suffered in our stead, gave His life for us. By faith in Him who has redeemed us we become God's children. God loves us in Jesus Christ. No one dare say that God is not on the side of His own children, children who have been won for Him through the death of His Son. If God, now, is for us, who can be against us? The worries and troubles of every-day life are against us. But they cannot harm us. God is on our side and will sustain us. Satan is against us, always seeking to lead us into sin. But he cannot overpower us, for God is on our side. One little word of God is a sure defense against the devil. Our sins are against us. They are many in number. They are terrible and condemning. We can do nothing to free ourselves. But we need not despair. God has laid our iniquity on His Son. For Jesus' sake He forgives us all our sins and gives us strength to resist sin, death, and the world. [46] THURSDAY, July 10, 1941.— Bead Matt 16:13-17 "What shall I do, then, with Jesus?" Matt. 27:22 Pontius Pilate asked this question. He gave his own answer. Though convinced that Jesus was innocent, he ordered that He be crucified. Pontius Pilate asked this question of the Jews. They answered it. Though Jesus had proved by what He said and did that He must be the One whom God had promised to send into the world to save men from their sins, they rejected Jesus. They hated Him and did not rest until they had nailed Him to the cross. King Herod was faced with this question. He had heard much of Jesus. He was happy when Jesus was brought before him, for he was certain that Jesus would entertain him by per- forming miracles. But when Jesus refused to become an entertainer, Herod mocked Him. This question was put to Peter as he stood in the palace of the high priest warming him- self. He answered by denying Jesus. Judas answered by betraying Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. One thief on the cross answered when he mocked Jesus. The people around the cross answered when they taunted Jesus. The dis- ciples answered when they fled as Jesus was captured. We, too, must answer this question. What is our answer? We believe Jesus to be God's only-begotten Son. We believe Him to be the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world. We believe that He has redeemed us from all sin, from death, and from the power of the devil. In Him, in Him alone, we put our trust for time and eternity. [47] FRIDAY, July 11, 1941. —Read Ps. 84:1-10 «Who shall ascend into the hill of the^lflrd?" We ascend i n t o the hill of the Lord when we go to church. Our church is the house of God. It is a holy place. We may say of it: "Surely, the Lord is in this place This is none other but the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven. God invites us to come to His house to hear His Word. There He tells us what we are to hear, how we are to hear, why we are to hear. Let us, then, go to church to hear what God has to say to us. "Keep thy foot," says Gods Word, "When thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear than to give the sacrifice of fools." The publican went to church to pray. He came confessing his many sins. He knew he could never enter heaven unless his sins were removed. He knew the merciful God was the only One who could take away his sins. So he went to God's house and prayed: "God, be merciful to me, a sinner." God heard his prayer. God showed him mercy by forgiving him his sins. God will forgive us all our sins as we come to church and with repentant heart pray: "God, be merciful to me, a sinner." Anna the prophetess made the house of God in Jerusalem her second home. She did what David wanted to do. She lived in the house of the Lord all the days of her life. She never departed from it day or night. O heavenly Father, create in us love for Thy house. Let us go there to hear Thee and Thy Son, who gave His life to save us. May we dwell in Thy house all the days of our life! [48] SATURDAY, JULY 12, 1941.—Read Matt. 14:22-31 "Why are ye fearful?" Matt. 8:26 Traveling over a mountain pass noted for its haiipin curves and narrow roads, a fourteen- year-old girl sat calmly relaxed, chatting mer- rily and enjoying the beautiful scenery. The other travelers were unusually quiet, their nerves tense with fear that the driver might get too near the edge of the road. Finally one of the travelers said: "Gloria, how can you sit there so unconcerned when we are on this dan- gerous grade?" Smilingly she answered: "My daddy is at the wheel. Why should I be afraid?" Why should we be afraid? We have Jesus as our Provider. Thus let us say when "the hard times" make it impossible for us to find work and we know not where we are going to get the money to pay for the groceries and the clothing needed for tomorrow. Why should we become discouraged? We have Jesus as our Comforter. Thus let us say in the dark days when sorrows and sufferings engulf us and trials and troubles almost over- whelm us and when at such times many tell us that we tire fools to continue to trust in God. Why should we be in doubt? We have Jesus as our Teacher. Thus let us say when we are told by "learned" men of the world that there are many roads to heaven, that Jesus is not the only Savior of mankind. As we begin to think or others try to make us believe that for us there is no forgiveness of sins, may we resist the temptation by saying: "Why should we doubt? Why be filled with fear? We have Jesus as our Redeemer." [49] SATURDAY, July 5, 1941.—Bead 1 John 1:5-10 "Who is a God like unto Thee, that pardoneth Iniquity?" Micah 7:18. A mother sought the pardon of her son from the first Napoleon. The emperor said that it was his second offense and justice demanded that he die. "I don't ask for justice," said the mother; "I plead for mercy." "But," said the emperor, "he does not deserve mercy." "Sir," cried the woman, "it would not be mercy if he deserved it, and mercy is all I ask." "Well, then," said Napoleon, "I will be merciful." Her son was pardoned. We are sinners, great sinners. We are great sinners because of the sin we have inherited from our parents. We are great sinners because we have failed to do what God wants us to do. We are great sinners because we have sinned against God in desires, thoughts, words, and deeds. And each and every one of us is a great sinner; we have sinned much. Now, the soul that sinneth, it shall die. As sinners we have deserved to receive the wages of sin, which is death. But our God had mercy upon us. He sent His only Son to suffer and die for our sins. Christ suffered the punish- ment we have deserved with our sins. He made peace with God for us sinners. For Christ's sake God pardoned our iniquity, washed away all our sins, and made us as white as snow. Through Christ we have become God's children. Truly, the Lord, our God, is a God of great mercy. With Him there is plenteous mercy for all who call upon Him. To Him let us, then, flee just as we are. He will receive, will welcome, pardon, cleanse, relieve. [50] MONDAY, July 14, 1941.—Read Ps. 78:25-39 "Wilt Thou be angry with us forever?" Ps.85:5 God angry with people? Can that be true? Does not the Bible say that God "is merciful and gracious, long-suffering, and abundant in goodness and truth, keeping mercy for thou- sands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin?" Yes, the Bible does. But it also says that God "is angry with the wicked every day." He was angry with Sodom and Gomorrha. They were wicked cities. Their wickedness was great and became greater every day. God's anger finally struck them. He destroyed the cities with fire from heaven. God was angry with Aaron when he sinned. God was angry with Solomon when His heart turned away from God. God is angry with us when we sin. It cannot be otherwise. God says again and again that His anger is kindled against those who forsake His ways and fail to do His will. God is slow to anger. He did not punish the old world when the wickedness of man became great. He waited 120 years before He sent the Flood. God does not strike us the moment we sin. He waits a long time to give us time to come back to Him. While He is waiting, He pleads with us through His Word. If we will not listen to His pleas and come back to Him, His anger will finally strike us. But if we hearken to His Word and return, admitting that we have sinned and pleading that for the sake of our Savior Jesus Christ He be merciful and gracious to us, He will abundantly pardon. H TUESDAY, July 15, 1941 Bead Josh. 24:14-18 'Is there a God beside Me?" Is. 44:8 Capturing the ark of God, the Philistines placed it alongside of their god Dagon. The next day they found Dagon on his face before the ark of God. They put him in his place agarn. The next morning they found him again on his face before the ark of God, and this time his head and his hands were cut off. The Bible tells of an Egyptian ruler who tried to place himself beside the true God. When Moses and Aaron told him that the true God was commanding him to let Israel leave Egypt, Pharaoh haughtily replied: "Who is the Lord that I should obey His voice to let Israel go?" And what happened when he imagined himself just as mighty as the true God? God destroyed him in the Red Sea. We are God's children. We do not give to idols the honor and glory God alone deserves. Idols can do us no good. They have ears, but they hear not. They have eyes, but they see not. How can an idol help us when it cannot help itself? As _ God's children we are to fear, love, and trust in God above all things. Satan wants it otherwise. Every day we are tempted to fear man as much as, or more than, God; to love our children or our parents, or others, as much as, or more than, God; to put our trust in money or in ourselves as much as, or more than, we do in God. But let us not be so foolish as to place our loved ones or our friends or our possessions, or even ourselves, alongside of or above the true God. These cannot help us. Only One can help us. It is He who loved us so much that He spared not His only Son but gave Him up for us to be our Redeemer from all sins. [52] WEDNESDAY, July 16, 1941. — Bead Acts 9:10-18; LUKE 15:1-10 "Am I my brother's keeper?" Gen. 4:9 Two neighbors, Charley and George, had lived near each other for fifteen years. Almost daily the two had met and chatted with each other. One day George said to Charley: "Are you a Christian?" Charley answered: "Yes, I am. Have been for a long time." George said: "I don't think your Christianity is worth very much, or you do not consider me a real friend. You have never spoken to me about your faith. I should think you would want me to share it with you." We are Christians. We believe in Jesus Christ. We believe that He was wounded for our transgression. We believe that by His stripes we are healed. We believe that for the sake of Jesus, God cleanses us from all un - righteousness. Around us are many who do not know Jesus. Our neighbor—does he know about Jesus, and Him crucified? Our friend with whom we work — does he know what he must do to be saved? The postman, the delivery boy, the milkman, the banker, the sales-woman, the beggar—do they know the only highway to heaven? God commands His children to go forth and preach the Gospel to every creature. We are to be God's witnesses everywhere, especially in our neighborhood, among our relatives and friends. We are to be keepers of our brother, not only relieving him of his bodily needs but providing especially his soul with the saving Word of God. Today is the best time to start. Today let us give a New Testament to p i unchurched friend. Today let us invite him to worship with us at the house of God. Today let us speak to him about Jesus, whose blood cleanses us from all sin. Today let us start. [53] THURSDAY, July 17, 1941.—Read 1 John 4:11-16 "Know ye not . . . that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?" 1 Cor. 3:16. Man has a body and a soul. To many the body is more important. They can see this body; their soul they cannot see. The body can give them pleasure; the pleasures of the soul they know not. To such the care of the body calls for the greater part of their time and attention. When people become Christians, the care of their soul becomes more important. We Christians know that everything is lost if we gain the whole world but lose our soul. So we give first attention to our soul. We read and study God's Word that we may be able to resist the devil, the world, and our flesh, these unholy three, who daily seek to separate us from God by leading us into sin. Since the saving of our soul is the most important thing in our life, are we Christians to regard our body worth nothing? Such thoughts are far from our mind. With the psalmist we say that God has fearfully and wonderfully made our body. We confess with St. Paul that our body is God's temple since we have accepted Jesus as our Savior. God's Holy Spirit now dwells in us. This knowledge should cause lis to strive daily to keep our body in the service of the Holy Spirit. With the strength God gives us let us keep our lips from cursing, our ears from listening to gossip, our eyes from reading lustful stories, our hands from doing wicked deeds. Let us daily be on guard lest we grieve God's Holy Spirit. Then He will continue to dwell in us and daily cleanse us from all sin. [54] FRIDAY, July 18, 1941.—Read Jonah 2:1-8 "I* any among you afflicted? Let him pray." Jas. 5:13 Following Jesus does not exempt us from troubles. Afflictions come to all of us. We do not have the same sorrows. One may be sick; another may have no work; another may have a wayward child; another may have lost all his possessions by fire. Whatever the affliction may be, every one among us is afflicted. When afflictions come, we should pray. That is not the prescription the world offers. To cure our griefs, the world suggests a change of scenery or association with cheerful friends. It tells us that time will be our great healer. But the best advice is to pray. To pray when afflictions come forbids all complaining. We are tempted to find fault with God when sufferings are severe and lasting. We think we are deserving of better treatment by God. We are inclined to believe that God does not love us. Such thoughts make our griefs more grievous. The only safe thing to do is to pray. Prayer, earnest prayer, prayer in Jesus' name, ac- complishes great things. David prayed, and his affliction was removed. Paul prayed, and his affliction remained, but God gave him strength to bear it. We pray in the name of Jesus, and God removes our sorrows or helps us carry them. We are afflicted with sin. It will destroy us unless removed. Only God can remove it. Will He do so? Say to Him: "God, be merciful to me, a sinner." He will answer: "For the sake of Jesus I forgive you all your sins. Go in peace." [55] SATURDAY, July 19, 1941.—Read Luke 14:15-24 "Simon, steepest thou?" Mark 14:37 The time is about midnight. The place is Gethsemane. Somewhere in that garden Jesus is praying in great agony. Three of His dis- ciples are near Him, only a stone's throw away. However, notwithstanding the soul agony of Jesus, they allow bodily weariness to lull them to sleep. They are too tired to watch and pray with Jesus. Jesus urges us to search the Holy Scrip- tures. He assures us that the Word of God will make us wise unto salvation. And we? Are we searching the Scriptures? Is it not true that often we are too tired to read what 'God has to say to us? Jesus wants us to pray. We have learned that we are to call upon God in the day of trouble. Jesus assures us that whatsoever we shall ask in His name, He will do it. He wants us to continue in prayer. And we? Are we praying? Praying always? Is it not true that often we are too tired to pray? Jesus has work for us to do. We are to be His witnesses. We are to tell others that God so loved the world that He gave His only- begotten Son to suffer and die for them. And we? Are we telling others what they must do to be saved? Is it not true that often we are just too tired to speak to some one about Jesus, the Crucified? We often are like the sleeping disciples in Gethsemane. We are not as interested in the words and instructions of Jesus as we ought and could be. God forgive us, for Jesus' sake, our lukewarmness and fill us with zeal always to be about our Father's business. [56] SUNDAY, July 20, 1941. — Read 1 John 4:6-11 Matt 18:23-33 "Who is my neighbor?" Luke 10:29 Jesus leaves us in no doubt as to whom God means when He tells us to love our neighbor as ourselves. In the parable of the Good Samar- itan He teaches very clearly that our neighbor is every one and any one in need of our love. Furthermore, Jesus practiced what He preached. His neighbor was any one in need of help. Outcasts and sinners were His friends. Down- and-outers never were snubbed by Him. He neglected His dinner to speak to a heathen woman at Jacob's Well. To a thief on the cross He promised Paradise. Truly, the neigh- bors of Jesus were not only respectable persons, as Mary and Martha find Lazarus of Bethany, but very often also such with whom respect- able people did not wish to be seen. Who is our neighbor? That relative who lost a beloved one by death. He needs our sympathy. That friend whose shoulders are burdened with sorrows. He is our neighbor; he needs our help to carry his burdens. That fellow-believer whose mind is tor- mented with grave doubts regarding God. He is our neighbor; he needs the assurances we can bring him from God's Word. That poor father all broken up because he has lost a daughter. He is our neighbor; he needs our comfort. That enemy who knows not Jesus. He is our neighbor, for he needs to hear that the blood of Jesus cleanseth him from all sins. Truly, our neighbor is every one and any one in need of our help. [57] MONDAY, July 21, 1941.—Read Luke 15:3-10 "Adam, where art thou?" Gen. 3:9 This is the first question in the Bible. God asks it of Adam, the first person He created. Adam was made in God's likeness. He was without sin, perfectly righteous and holy. Putting him in the Garden of Eden, God commanded him not to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. Adam disobeyed. At the suggestion of Satan he ate the forbidden fruit. Now he no longer possessed his perfect righteousness and holiness. Adam knew he had sinned. He knew God had a right to punish him. He knew God would punish him. He feared that punishment. He tried to escape it. He hid himself from God. God is all-knowing. He knew what Adam had done. No one could find fault with God if He had let Adam go his own way. However, God is merciful and gracious. In thé cool of the day He came to visit Adam. God sought him, Adam, the hiding sinner. God is still seeking sinners. In His Word He comes to all parts of the world pleading with sinners to return to Him from their wicked ways and have their sins washed away by believing Jesus Christ to be their personal Savior and Redeemer. In His mercy God sought us. In His Word He showed us that we were great sinners. He convinced us that we could not free ourselves from sin. He offered us salvation in Jesus Christ. By His grace and through the Holy Spirit we accepted Jesus as our Savior. Our sins were removed. We are now God's own children. [581 TUESDAY, July 22, 1941.—Bead Matt 4:1-11 "How, then, can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?" Gen. 39:9. Losing his battle with an overpowering temptation, a church-member went to his pastor for help. He was told that, if he would resist the temptation with God's Word, as Jesus did when tempted by Satan in the wilderness, vic- tory would be certain. "But, Pastor," said the church-member, "I am not Jesus. Jesus had no sins. It was an easy matter for Him to con- quer Satan. But I have sins, many sins, and my sins keep me from doing as Jesus did." Then the pastor opened his Bible and began to read the story of Joseph, who was able with God's Word to resist a severe temptation that came to him when he was a slave in Egypt. When he had finished the story, the church- member said: "What Joseph did I am going to do; what Jesus did I am going to do. I also am going to fight my temptation with God's Word." We are Christians. Just because we are Christians, we are tempted more than others. The devil tempts us to doubt God's Word, tempts us to doubt whether we are the sons of God, tempts us to doubt the love and care of God. The world tempts us with its amuse- ments, its riches, and its honors. Our flesh tempts us to enjoy the lusts of the world. When we are tempted to do evil, we dare not argue with the tempters. The only safe thing to do is to wield the sword of the spirit, which is the Word of God. With Jesus let us say: "It is written"; Satan is not able to with- stand the stroke of that sword when wielded by the believing child of God. "One little word can fell him." [59] WEDNESDAY, July 23. 1941.—Bead John 3:14-18 "What must I do to be saved?" Acts 16:30 There is nothing man can do to save himself. The heathen believes that he can win the favor of God by holding his arm up until it withers in its socket or by tossing his child to the hungry crocodiles. We may know such as believe they will enter heaven by doing what is right. Like the Pharisee, they proudly state that they do not curse nor gamble, that they go to church every Sunday and give richly for charity. How- ever, all the good works a man does cannot earn heaven for him. God says that "all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags." The right- eousness that man thinks he earns by doing good works is worthless in God's sight. It can- not save us. There is nothing man need do to save him- self from sin. Jesus Christ, God's Son, has done all that had to be done. God made Jesus, who knew no sin, to be sin for us. Jesus was wounded for our transgressions. He was bruised for our iniquities. With His suffering He paid our debt of sin. With His death He suffered the penalty of our sins. He gave His life and thus obtained forgiveness for us and for the whole world. The whole world is saved. No man need do anything to save himself. The forgiveness of sins that Jesus won for all God offers to the whole world through His Word. To receive this forgiveness, we must accept God's offer, and that we can do only by faith, only by believing in the Lord Jesus Christ. Oh, then, let us pray the heavenly Father to create and sustain in us faith in Jesus Christ; for then, and then only, shall we be saved. [60] THURSDAY, July 24, 1941.—Bead Luke 15:3-10 "Judas, betrayest thou the Son of Man with a kiss?" Luke 22:48. Jesus never leaves a stone unturned to save a man. He does not want any to perish. He says: "Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out." Jesus loved Judas and laid down His life for him. Jesus knew Judas, knew that he would betray Him; yet He chose him to be one of His disciples. Jesus did not want Judas to perish. Again and again Jesus warned him. And in that very hour in which the betrayer drew near, Jesus appealed to him. Matthew heard Jesus say: "Friend, wherefore art thou come?" It is early Maundy Thursday evening. Jesus and His disciples are in the upper room. Judas is also there, Judas who will in a few hours betray Jesus into the hands of His enemies. Jesus knows all about it. Is He sad? Yes, very sad, but not angry. He warns Judas, once more tries to save him. It is late Maundy Thursday evening. Jesus is leaving Gethsemane. At the entrance He meets Judas leading a mob sent to capture Him. With a kiss Judas betrays Him into their hands. And Jesus—once more He tries to save Judas as He says: "Judas, betrayest thou the Son of Man with a kiss?" There is reproof in His words, but there is also, and more so, the plea of the Savior coaxing the sinner back to the way of righteousness. What a wonderful Savior we have in Jesus! He wants all persons to be saved. He is always trying to save men. He never tires in His efforts to deliver us from this present evil world and bring us to the eternal salvation He won for us when He gave Himself to God as a Hansom for us. [61] FRIDAY, July 25, 1941.—Read Deut 8:3-10 "Lacked ye anything?" Luke 22:35 Jesus j>ut this question to the disciples, whom He had commissioned to make a missionary torn1 of Galilee. When He sent them out, He told them to go empty-handed, to take no money, to provide themselves with no food, not even to take along a pair of extra sandals to replace those they would soon wear out. Now Jesus asks them whether they had lacked anything on that missionary journey, and they tell Him that they had lacked nothing. God sent to us an hour of trouble. Perhaps we were unable to find work; perhaps we had to linger for months on a bed of suffering; perhaps a beloved one was suddenly taken away from us; perhaps it was some other trouble. But be it what it may have been, we went into the trouble trusting in God, who said to us: "Fear thou not, for I am with thee. . . . I will strengthen thee; yea, I will help thee; yea, I will uphold thee." Now the trouble is past, and as we review what hap- pened during those days, we readily admit that we lacked nothing. God did help us. God always provides. Above all He pro- vides food for our soul. Daily we hunger and thirst after righteousness. Daily we cry for forgiveness. Daily God satisfies us. He sup- plies us with the true bread from heaven. He gives us to drink of the water of life. He gave us His Son Jesus Christ. Jesus died in our stead, for our benefit. His blood cleanses us from all our sins. We lack nothing when we have the righteousness Jesus won for us. All our sins are washed away. God declares ns righteous for Jesus' sake. What more do we need? T62] SATURDAY, July 26, 1941. — Read Acts 12:1-10 "Are they not ministering spirits sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?" Heb„l:14. Only One made us heirs of salvation. That One is our Lord Jesus Christ. He perfectly performed for us God's holy will. He suffered and died in our stead. In Christ Jesus we are children of God and heirs of salvation. As heirs of God's salvation, we enjoy the ministry and service of His holy angels. God has given them charge to keep us in all our ways. Down through the ages God's angels are pictured as guardians of the saints. Angels hasten Lot and his wife and two daughters away before God in His anger destroys Sodom and Gomorrah. An angel frees Peter from the prison and sends him back to his fellow- believers, who were praying for him. An angel keeps Balaam from sinning. To know that God's angels have been sent forth to minister also unto us who are heirs of salvation is a source of much comfort. God's angels are mighty. One angel destroyed 185,000 soldiers in one night. One angel can keep from us a thousand devils. God's angels are fast. Before we are done with prayer, they are with us, helping us as God has commanded them. God's angels are holy.' They seek only our welfare. They keep watch over us, serve us, defend us, comfort us, bear us up lest we dash our foot against a stone. The unholy three are fighting us: sin, death, and the devil. They are Very strong, but their combined strength cannot harm us, when God's angels encamp round about us. [63] Daily Devotions No. 32 Published by the Ev. Lutheran Synod of Missouri, Ohio, and Other States The next issue, No. 33, will cover the period from July 27 to Sept. 16,1941 and can be ordered from CONCORDIA PUBLISHING HOUSE 3558 S.Jefferson Ave., St.Louis, Mo. at 5 cents per copy, postpaid; 48 cts. per dozen, postage extra; $3.00 per hundred, postage extra [64]