Daily Devotions
(Jesus said) “… But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” Matthew 10:22b
On January 7, 1989, Emperor Showa, the man who had been the imperial ruler of Japan, the man who headed up the oldest hereditary monarchy in the world, passed away.
He had seen many changes. Not the least of those changes was the fact that according to the Shinto religion he had been a god. After Japan’s World War II surrender, he demoted himself and renounced his divinity.
And there was another change: for the first time in Japan’s history, the emperor spoke directly to his people.
What he said in that speech was not pleasant. Although the Japanese people had been told they were winning the war, the emperor announced the country’s defeat. In that historic 1945 broadcast he encouraged his people by saying, “We have resolved to endure the unendurable and suffer what is insufferable.”
This past week, following in the footsteps of his father, Emperor Akihito went on television to speak to a nation that was once again enduring trouble and tribulation. He spoke words of hope, offered words of encouragement and said a prayer for the people.
And he asked them to endure.
The ability to endure is a personal quality the Japanese hold in highest regard.
It is also a quality that our Savior encouraged of His people. In the 10th chapter of Matthew the Savior warned the disciples what their future lives would be like.
He spoke of how His disciples would be betrayed by family members, how they would be driven from town to town, and how all these difficulties would come upon them because they were Jesus’ followers, because they continued to cling to the Savior who offered up His life as a ransom for theirs.
Yes, in many ways the speech of Japan’s emperor and our Savior resemble each other. Both call for their followers to endure until the end.
But there is one notable difference: Jesus could promise His followers that they ultimately would be saved. The emperor prayed that his people might live. That is all a mortal man can do. But Jesus was not just a mortal man. He was also the Son of God.
As the Son of God He gave Himself as our Ransom. He offered Himself in our place. And now, for those who believe, who endure in their confidence, there is God’s gracious guarantee of forgiveness and eternal life.
Because of Jesus, those who endure to the end will be saved.
THE PRAYER: Dear Lord and Savior, we pray for the people of Japan. We ask they be given a spirit to help then conquer these pains and problems that seem to encircle them. But we also ask that they be given the faith to trust You. May they believe the Son of God has given Himself as their ransom, given Himself so they might be saved. In Your Name I ask it. Amen.