Daily Devotions from Lutheran Hour Ministries

In arrogance the wicked hotly pursue the poor; let them be caught in the schemes that they have devised. For the wicked boasts of the desires of his soul, and the one greedy for gain curses and renounces the Lord. Psalms 10:2-3

Darrell Kenneth Timothy Snyder is a robber.

No, make that Darrell Kenneth Timothy Snyder is a would-be robber. To be a robber, you actually have to steal something. So far, Darrell Kenneth Timothy Snyder is zero for three.

Let me explain. On August 19th Snyder walked into a convenience store in a small town east of Toronto. He waved around a gun, but he didn't say anything and he made no demands. Perhaps he had been tongue-tied, but he ended up leaving the store without any money.

Eight minutes later, Snyder, with his gun still being waved all around, walked into a fast-food place. The employees of the eatery saw the gun and hid themselves. Snyder left the diner without any ill-gotten goods to show for his trouble. That was strike two.

Five minutes after the diner failure Snyder accosted a man on the street. Trying to hold him up, he once again showed his gun, and this time he actually demanded some money. Probably Snyder did so in a voice that was unsure and tentative. Whatever the reason, the man being held up refused to cooperate.

To his credit, Snyder didn't shoot the fellow; he just walked away empty-handed.

Like I said, Snyder can only be considered a would-be robber. When he heard the police were looking for him, he ended his walk on the wrong side of the law and turned himself in.

As the Psalmist says, Snyder was caught in the schemes he had devised.

Most of humanity is better, more accomplished, more successful at sinning than is Snyder. By that I mean we usually manage to hide our sins from those around us. Of course, we can't hide our wrongful thoughts, words and actions from the Lord.

He sees what we do wrong as well as what we purpose to do wrong.

Seeing the condition of our hearts and lives, our Creator saw that we were helpless, hopeless.

This is why He sent His Son to save us. Jesus gathered together our sins, those which we've actually committed, those which we've attempted and those which we only imagined. He gathered those sins and carried them to the cross. There, in an incredibly selfless act, the innocent Son of God paid the price which our wrongdoing had earned.

Three days later, in the Person of the living, risen Lord Jesus, all the world saw that His work of redemption had been successful, and all who believe on Him as Savior would be able to live their lives as forgiven children of God.

This is why today we give thanks the Savior was more successful at His work than Darrell Kenneth Timothy Snyder was in his.

THE PRAYER: Dear Lord Jesus, for giving Your life as a ransom for mine, I praise You. No matter what successes and failures I have in life, I pray You will always be successful in keeping me as one of Your forgiven children. This I pray in Your holy Name. Amen.

In Christ I remain His servant and yours,

Today's Bible Readings: Lamentations 3-5    Hebrews 13

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