Quotation: Acts, 26:1-20
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? Acts, 26:13-15
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". 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
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, 3:8-9
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, 26:17-18
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
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, 1:2-3
When the Lord commands, everything obeys, as the writer of the Psalms mentioned in verse 9 of Psalm 33. Psalm, 33:9
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, gLet 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
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. 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, gLet 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
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, 7:50-51
Finally, he could stand firmly on the side of Jesus. Gospel According to John, 19:39-40
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
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
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
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
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, 16
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
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, 10
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. 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
Epistle to the Romans, 3:24
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, 7:13-14
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
Gospel According to Matthew, 11:28-30
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
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. |