以下は2012年1月17日、吉祥寺学び会で語られたベック兄のメッセージ、『光に照らされる大切さ』を英訳したものです。

The importance of being illuminated by the light.

Jan 17th, 2012, Kichijouji Bible Study Meeting

Gotthold Beck

[1]

Acts of the Apostles

26:1 Agrippa said to Paul, You are permitted to speak for thyself. Then Paul stretched forth the hand, and answered for himself:

26:2 I think myself happy, king Agrippa, because I shall answer for myself this day before you touching all the things whereof I am accused of the Jews:

26:3 Especially because I know you to be expert in all customs and questions which are among the Jews. wherefore I beseech you to hear me patiently.

26:4 My manner of life from my youth, which was at the first among mine own nation at Jerusalem, know all the Jews;

26:5 Which knew me from the beginning, if they would testify, that after the most straitest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee.

26:6 And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made of God to our fathers:

26:7 to which promise our twelve tribes, instantly serving God day and night, hope to come. For which hope's sake, king Agrippa. I am accused of the Jews.

26:8 Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you, that God should raise the dead?

26:9 I verily thought with myself, that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth.

26:10 Which thing I also did in Jerusalem. and many of the saints did I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests. and when they were put to death. I gave my voice against them.

26:11 And I punished them oft in every synagogue, and compelled them to blaspheme. and being exceedingly mad against them. I persecuted them even to strange cities.

26:12 Whereupon as I went to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests,

26:13 At midday, Oh king. I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them which journeyed with me.

26:14 And when we were all fallen to the earth. I heard a voice speaking to me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecute you me? it is hard for you to kick against the pricks.

26:15 And I said. Who are you, Lord? And he said. I am Jesus whom you persecute.

26:16 But rise, and stand upon your feet. for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to make you a minister and a witness both of these things which you has seen, and of those things in the which I will appear to you;

26:17 Delivering you from the people, and from the Gentiles, to whom now I send you,

26:18 To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.

26:19 Whereupon, Oh king Agrippa. I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision:

26:20 But showed first to them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.

This morning, we would like to think together about “how important it is to be illuminated by the light”.

We see, in the Epistle to the Hebrews, Chapter 10, verse 32, an expression “you were illuminated by the light”. Why is it so important to be illuminated by the light? It is because those who are illuminated by the light are saved and are born again to the new life. It is stated in the verses just quoted. Shall we look at these verses again?

26:13 At midday, Oh king. I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them which journeyed with me.

26:14 And when we were all fallen to the earth. I heard a voice speaking to me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecute you me? it is hard for you to kick against the pricks.

26:15 And I said. Who are you, Lord? And he said. I am Jesus whom you persecute.

These words, not only crushed his beliefs, but also shocked Paul, as he never could have imagined. As you know, Paul was the worst persecutor of Jesus' believers. But he was so astonished when he was illuminated by the light and heard the voice from heaven. When he heard the voice, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?” he asked, “Who are you?” And the answer was “I am Jesus”.

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[2]The importance of being illuminated by the light.

Jan 17th, 2012, Kichijouji Bible Study Meeting

Gotthold Beck

Paul could never have imagined this. “What is this? Is Jesus still alive? Hasn't He died on the cross? I persecuted these believers of Jesus to destroy all memories of Him. Is He still alive?” It was an unimaginable shock to Paul.

But he, at the moment he was illuminated by the light, was caught by Jesus. He was confined by Jesus and was held captive. By being illuminated, Paul saw where his heart was standing, the state of his mind. In addition, he came to understand the value of Jesus, and the greatness of Jesus. Later, he wrote a letter to his brothers and sisters in Galatia to describe this experience in this very famous verse.

Epistle to the Galatians

1:12 For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.

He was never taught nor persuaded by men. He was illuminated by the light from above. By inspiration from Jesus Christ, he was miraculously led and saved. Later, he wrote about this unthinkable alteration of himself to his brothers and sisters in Philippians.

Epistle to the Philippians

3:8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord. for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,

3:9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

What a wonderful testimony it is. What was the mission of Paul, captured by Jesus? I repeat two verses that were read at the beginning of this meeting from the Acts of the Apostles. These are verses 17 and 18 of Chapter 2.

Acts of the Apostles

26:17 Delivering you from the people, and from the Gentiles, to whom now I send you,

26:18 To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.

A man called Saul was converted to Paul by being illuminated. John, the disciple of Jesus also mentioned this.

First Epistle of John

1:5 This then is the message which we have heard of him, and declare to you, that God is light, and in him is no darkness at all.

The Lord God refers to Himself as “a father of light”. This means that the Lord God dwells in an inaccessible light. The Devil's sin has only brought devastation and darkness. This is how the earth was covered with darkness. But the light was there by the words of God.

Genesis

1:2 And the earth was without form, and void. and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.

1:3 And God said. Let there be light. and there was light.

When the Lord commands, everything obeys, as the writer of the Psalms mentioned in verse 9 of Psalm 33.

Psalm

33:9 For he spoke, and it was done. he commanded, and it stood fast.

We cannot even imagine the world without light, but no doubt, it is a world without any joy. Light is a power of life coming from the Lord God. Light is life and the darkness is death. God said, “Let there be light”. Then there was a light. How simple it is. What a great work of God. Those who believe are, after all, those who have experienced this. This is how Paul wrote to his brothers and sisters in Corinth.

Second Epistle to the Corinthians

4:6 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, has shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

Have we already had the same experience? Has the Lord God already talked to you, to your life, or to the darkness within you? Let there be light. To the life of anyone, the miracle of recovery will occur.

It is the way to the cross. When angels illuminate the bottom of our hearts, then our eyes will be open, we will understand that we are sinners, and know that without Jesus, we will just have to perish eternally. No matter how much your face is covered with dirt, you cannot see it in the night. When the light shines on you, you will be so surprised to see how dirty your face is.

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[3]The importance of being illuminated by the light.

Jan 17th, 2012, Kichijouji Bible Study Meeting

Gotthold Beck

Without the heavenly vision from God, without being illuminated by the light, nobody can recognize the filthiness of his or her own heart. When we hear the voice of the Lord, “Let there be light”, inside our own miserable and darkened hearts, we are re-created.

If the Lord talks to our darkened hearts and says, “Let there be light”, light is thrown to our hearts. Jesus has promised, “I am the light of the world: he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness, but shall have the light of life". Do we already have the the light of life?

Unless we obey the word of Jesus, we will never have that light. We are asked to make a choice. Do we have the light of Jesus? Or, do we only have a darkness of ourselves? Are we going to accept Jesus as light or refuse Him? Those who have experienced the light created by His words, “Let there be light” are blessed. What does it mean to be illuminated by the light? As I just mentioned, it means to be born as a new person.

In Chapter 3, verse 5 of the Gospel According to John, Jesus spoke to Nicodemus, who was a religious person, a Bible scholar.

Gospel According to John

3:5 Jesus answered, Verily, verily. I say to you, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.

Believing in religion is not important. What is most important is to be illuminated by the light of God. Nicodemus was a religious leader, a Pharisee, and a leader of Jews of the time. He was, no doubt, a very respectable man and a man of fine character.

Even Jesus called him “a teacher of Israel”. He, just like other Pharisees of the time, prayed every day and climbed up to the house of the Lord to pray. He also fasted twice every week and devoted one tenth of his income. But still, he could not see the kingdom of God. It was because he was not yet illuminated by the light of God. He accepted Jesus as his teacher from the beginning. However, it was not until he was illuminated by the light that he really believed in the Lord. This can be seen from the following two verses.

Gospel According to John

7:50 Nicodemus says to them, ( he that came to Jesus by night, being one of them, )

7:51 does our law judge any man, before it hear him, and know what he does?

Finally, he could stand firmly on the side of Jesus.

Gospel According to John

19:39 And there came also Nicodemus, which at the first came to Jesus by night, and brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about an hundred pound weight.

19:40 Then took they the body of Jesus, and wound it in linen clothes with the spices, as the manner of the Jews is to bury.

Nicodemus was changed this way and it was of course, because he was illuminated by the light. Being illuminated by the light is to experience the salvation. It is why Paul wrote to his brothers and sisters in Ephesus.

Epistle to the Ephesians

2:8 For by grace are you saved through faith. and that not of yourselves. it is the gift of God:

This is a gift offered for free. Many people still believe that they are only saved by their own efforts, by their deeds. These people want to receive salvation in their hands by working hard, while those who have been illuminated by the light of God don't think that way. They are the people who are convinced that salvation is given in exchange for nothing.

The salvation of Jesus can be received without paying money, any price. If we go to Jesus and entrust our lives into Him, and totally rely on the work Jesus had finished on the cross, and if we turn to Jesus at this very moment, we get salvation. To be illuminated by the light is to accept Jesus. John wrote:

Gospel According to John

1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:

It is important to accept just one character, Jesus. This is because the Bible clearly asks you to believe in the Gospel, to open the door of your heart to Jesus and to invite Jesus into your heart. Jesus is waiting to enter. He is wishing to enter.

Revelation

3:20 Look. I stand at the door, and knock. if any man hear my voice, and open the door. I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.

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[4]The importance of being illuminated by the light.

Jan 17th, 2012, Kichijouji Bible Study Meeting

Gotthold Beck

This is such a wonderful promise. These words explained what the Lord had in His mind. Will we keep the door closed even after we have heard Jesus knocking on it? Needless to say, Jesus will not force you. We always have to keep it in mind that the door is locked from the inside, where we are. We have to unlock that door. At the moment we open the door Jesus will come inside. The Lord says, “I want to enter”. What do we do?

Do we accept Jesus? If we do not receive this offering of the blessing, we will regret eventually. Someday, the time will come when it is too late to ask for it. As I repeated today, what is most important is to be illuminated by the light. It is because, by being illuminated by the light, you will be born again. Being illuminated also means to take the salvation in your own hands.

Thirdly, to be illuminated is to return to the Lord. Paul has written to the people in Thessaloniki.

First Epistle to the Thessalonians

1:9 For they themselves show of us what manner of entering in we had to you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God;

People who were illuminated by the light are the people who knew that the real worship was to worship only the living and true God and all others were iconolatry. How did we come to believe in Jesus? It was because neither were we taught, nor did we understand, nor did we study. Paul explained in plain words how he was changed that way.

He always used this word 'revelation' which means 'by the light from above'. For example,

Epistle to the Galatians

1:12 For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.

1:16 To reveal his Son in me, that I might preach him among the heathen. immediately I conferred not with flesh and blood:

It was the 'revelation' that altered Paul. The only thing important is to reveal Jesus, the son of Lord God inside ourselves. This has to be the basis of our lives. The same thing is stated in the Acts of the Apostles.

Acts of the Apostles

14:15 And saying. Sirs, why do you these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and preach to you that you should turn from these vanities to the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all things that are therein:

To be illuminated by the light is to be born, again as I just said. Secondly, it is to receive the salvation for yourself. Thirdly, it is to return to the Lord. Fourthly, it is to repent.

Gospel According to Luke

15:7 I say to you, that likewise joy shall be in heaven over one sinner that repents, more than over ninety and nine just persons, which need no repentance.

15:10 Likewise. I say to you, there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repents.

Repentance is to admit your sins and to confess your sins; to throw them away, to hate your sins, and to become a good person. Admiting your own sins is a great gift from the Lord God. Making a sincere confession is an even greater gift to yourself.

If a sinner hates his own sins, throws them away, and returns to good persons, he has accomplished the purpose of God. To repent is to make a 180-degree turn. People illuminated by the light do not want to commit sins anymore. Of course, they are confronted by temptation and power of sins every day.

They also are aware of their own weakness. But they do not want to commit sins. Those who are illuminated by the light understand that people can never save themselves by their own efforts. They are taught that any efforts to save themselves will all prove vain.

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[5]The importance of being illuminated by the light.

Jan 17th, 2012, Kichijouji Bible Study Meeting

Gotthold Beck

It is so important to be illuminated by the light. To be illuminated by the light is to be born again, as I repeatedly said. It is to take salvation in your hands. It is to return to the Lord. It also is to repent. In addition, it also means that forgiveness of sins is offered to you.

Epistle to the Ephesians

1:7 In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace;

Epistle to the Romans

3:24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:

We are justified by the deeds of Jesus, the blood of Jesus. We can only be justified because of what the Lord has done, neither because of our own deeds, nor through our own efforts. There is only one reason we can be justified. What is it? The spotless justice of Jesus, his unstained righteousness, and the fact that Jesus has taken the punishment that we should have received; these are only reasons that we can be justified.

There is a choice we are all facing and it is inevitable. Do we want to continue committing our own sins? Or do we ask for Jesus who died on the cross? Have we taken the punishment for our sins? David could have testified three thousands years ago that “blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered”. Some people may know that they are not saved yet.

They may try to postpone it for some other time. The Lord does not care about when the appropriate time should be. Lord just says, “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation”. As I repeated a number of times today, the most important thing is to be illuminated by the light. Because it means to be born again. Because it means to receive salvation in your own hands. And because it means to return to the Lord to repent.

It also means that the forgiveness is offered to you. We have to make our decision as we are directed in Chapter 7 of the Gospel according to Matthew, which is the last part of the famous Sermon on the Mount.

Gospel According to Matthew

7:13 Enter you in at the strait gate. for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leads to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat:

7:14 Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leads to life, and few there be that find it.

Jesus always used allegories to show us the way to salvation. There are two gates in this world. One gate is wide and the other one is narrow. There also are two roads in this world. And there are two kinds of people in this world. One group is huge and the other one in small. There are two goals in this life. One leads to the eternal demolition and the other leads to an eternal life.

This way, Jesus classified the people all over the world into two groups. Jesus sees through deep into the bottom of our hearts. We are blessed if we could see ourselves with the same eyes as the Lord sees us. If you open the eyes of your hearts and look into your own souls, you will understand that you were terrible sinners in the eyes of the Lord. Once you are told that you are sinners, you cannot help but confess your sins.

Those who are illuminated by the light are people who have entered the narrow gate. In addition, they are the people who have once reached Jesus. Only way to know Jesus is simply to come to Him and talk to Him. Jesus will promise, “Son, be of good cheer; thy sins be forgiven thee”. His wonderful promises are written in the gospels.

Gospel According to John

6:37 All that the Father gives me shall come to me. and him that comes to me I will in no wise cast out.

Gospel According to Matthew

11:28 Come to me, all you that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

11:29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me. for I am meek and lowly in heart. and you shall find rest to your souls.

11:30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.

The most important thing is to be illuminated by the light. This is because, I repeat, it means to born again. It means to receive the salvation in your hands, to return to the Lord and to repent. Forgiveness is offered to them, and people have to make their own decisions with respect to two alternatives: will they receive it or not? They are the people who have seen the Lord Jesus. After all, when people are illuminated by the light, they come to believe and are saved. The most famous part of the Bible is Chapter 3, verse 16 of the Gospel According to John.

Gospel According to John

3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

Faith is to trust in God of all grace with an unshakable hope. Faith is to grab the hands of Jesus, which are offered to you.