We Will Never be Ashamed.

We Will Never be Ashamed.
August 24th, 2014, Gospel Meeting, Miyota
Gotthold Beck

Romans
10:8 But what does it say? “The message is near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart.” This is the message about faith that we are proclaiming:
10:9 If you declare with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.
10:10 For one believes with his heart and is justified, and declares with his mouth and is saved.
10:11 The Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will never be ashamed.”
10:12 There is no difference between Jew and Greek, because they all have the same Lord, who gives richly to all who call on him.
10:13 “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

Among these verses we just read, I believe that you all have read the verse 11 repeatedly and are convinced of it; “The Scripture says....” The only thing that matters is what the scripture says. It is not important at all what people say, or what churches and assemblies tell you.


What does the Scripture say? This is exactly where people should come back when they face various problems in their lives. What does the Scripture say? Everyone who believes in him will never be ashamed.

This is an undisputable fact. Regardless of whether you believe it or not, the Lord is loyal to us. He is the one who will never fail to answer. This is another confession by Paul, who wrote the epistle to Romans. It is his testimony as well; Everyone who believes in him will never be ashamed.

I would like to divide this discussion into three points. Firstly, what is the foundation of the blessed life? Secondly, what will make us convinced of the blessing in our life? And thirdly, what are the necessary conditions to have blessings in our life?

Let us begin with the first point. What is the foundation of the blessed life? Needless to say, it is the words from the Bible. Nothing else. The Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will never be ashamed.”

Then, what is the Bible after all? Martin Luther, who led the protestant revolution in Germany, said “The Bible is not antique or modern. It is eternal.” Let us look at the words of Isaac Newton, English physicist and mathematician, “The Bible contains more authentic truth than any other books in world history.” He said these words with conviction.

German poet and politician, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, once said, “If I will be imprisoned and allowed to take only one book with me, I would choose the Bible without hesitation.” French politician, Napoléon Bonaparte stated, “The Bible is no mere book, but a Living Creature, with a power that conquers all that oppose it.”

Even Mohandas Gandhi, the political leader of India, said, “The book that left the deepest impact in my life was the Bible.” Abraham Lincoln, American politician left these words, “I believe the Bible is the best gift God has ever given to man. All the good from The Savior of the world is communicated to us through this Book.”

David said as the King of Israel; “The Bible is a lamp for my feet, a light for my pathway.” This was his confession. Paul also left these words, "The Holy Scriptures are able to give you the wisdom you need for salvation through faith in the Messiah Jesus.” We all need to have something to rely on, peace of mind, joy, meaningful life, purpose and lively hopes.

However, these can be provided only through the Bible. Why is it? Because the Bible, which consists of the words of the Lord, gives us the chance for regeneration. James explained it in this single sentence in his epistle, chapter 1, verse 18;

James
1:18 accordance with his will he made us his children by the word of truth.

It is a wonderful confession. Peter wrote the same thing.

1 Peter
1:23 For you have been born again, not by a seed that perishes but by one that cannot perish―by the living and everlasting word of God.

This is also a very impressive confession. Now, what did Jesus himself say about the Bible? It can be found in John, chapter 5, verse 39 as;

John
5:39 You examine the Scriptures carefully because you suppose that in them you have eternal life. Yet they testify about me.
5:40 But you are not willing to come to me to have life.

Those who have obtained the true salvation were led to it through the Bible, which consists of the words of the Lord. Then, they came to have peace with God, unceasing joy and eternal life. This proves that the Bible is the foundation of the blessed life. The Bible says that those who believe in him will never be ashamed. What does the Bible say? That is all that matters. What humans think or how they feel is not important at all.

What the Bible says—that should be the only factor affecting our life. The only thing that is definitely important is truth. The Bible is the book which proclaims nothing but the truth. In other words, it is not that we examine the Bible, but rather, we should be examined by the Bible. The Bible simply transmits the words of the Lord to us as they were exactly told. Thus, all things written in the Bible are true. Regardless of whether we admit it or not, truth is nothing but truth.

So far, we have discussed the foundation of the blessed life. Now let us think about the second point—what makes us convinced of the blessings in our life.

There could be no other foundation, no other source for the conviction than the Bible, which consists of the words of God. The Bible has nothing to do with any man-made religion or philosophy. It is not made by humans. It is made up of the inspiration from the Lord God. All things that the Lord God said are a revelation for humans. They are given from above.

Paul had an immovable conviction and he explained the secret to this conviction in this very well-known and important verse.

Galatians
1:12 For I did not receive it from a man, nor was I taught it, but it was revealed to me by Jesus the Messiah.

1:15 But when God, who set me apart before I was born and who called me by his grace, was pleased
1:16 to reveal his Son to me so that I might proclaim him among the gentiles, I did not confer with another human being at any time,
1:17 nor did I go up to Jerusalem to see those who were apostles before me. Instead, I went away to Arabia and then came back to Damascus.

So, said Paul, what we should always keep in mind is that our thoughts are not important at all. What is the Lord telling us? That is what matters. The Lord God is eternal truth itself and so are his words.

It does not matter at all whether we trivial humans can understand the facts written in the Bible or not. Because fact is fact. It is regardless of whether we believe it or not, whether we accept it or not. Romans, 10:11; this is an absolutely wonderful verse.

Romans
10:11 The Scripture says, “Everyone who believes in him will never be ashamed.”

Needless to say, 'him' refers to nobody but the only true Living God himself. He is the Creator and governor of all things, who revealed himself to us through the Lord Jesus.

The Lord God revealed himself through Jesus Christ. This is why Jesus is called the Word of God. Let us look at some verses.

John
1:1 In the beginning, the Word existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was God.
1:2 He existed in the beginning with God.
1:3 Through him all things were made, and apart from him nothing was made that has been made.

In these three verses, it is not very clear what the 'word' is, and who 'he' refers to. However, it is explained in the verse 14.

1:14 The Word became flesh and lived among us. We gazed on his glory, the kind of glory that belongs to the Father’s unique Son, who is full of grace and truth.

Paul wrote so many things about this man. It must have been because he was illuminated by the light from above. Let me read a few more verses.

Colossians
1:15 The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.
1:16 For by him all things in heaven and on earth were created, things visible and invisible, whether they are kings, Lords, rulers, or powers. All things have been created through him and for him.

Each one of us was created by the Lord Jesus. Not only that, each one of us was created for Jesus. Not just in order to be redeemed by the death of the Lord, not just to become a friend of the Lord, but to become his bride, as clearly stated in the Bible.

This is an unimaginably wonderful fact. It is an unimaginable privilege and blessing. Before very long, we will be one with Jesus and will get together with the Lord forever as his bride. Paul also wrote;

Philippians
2:7 In human form he chose to be,
2:8 and lived in all humility, death on a cross obeying.

Hebrews
9:26 But now, at the end of the ages, he has appeared once for all to remove sin by his sacrifice.

The foundation of faith that provides us with the salvation is the fact that is recorded in the Romans, 4:25;

Romans
4:25 He was sentenced to death because of our sins and raised to life to justify us.

All believers will be glad to confess that;

Romans
5:1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus the Messiah.

We are given the words of God. The promise of the Lord God is the most wonderful treasure. The word of God, which leads us to repentance, is the truth itself, a lamp for our feet and a light for our pathway. What are the three most important facts that are proclaimed in the Bible?

The first fact is that Jesus was sentenced to death for our sins. The second fact is that Jesus was raised to life to justify us. Thirdly, it is a fact that Jesus will come back. “I will come back again and welcome you into my presence,” so promised Jesus.

Several decades ago, the Professor von Weizsäcker, who was a relative of the German prime minister, once asked a question to his students. ”What is it that is absolutely certain? Please tell me what you think.” The students spoke about many different ideas that came to their minds, but remained divided and could not reach a consensus. After a while, one student stood up and asked the professor. ”So, what do you think is absolutely certain, Sir?” Then Professor Weizsäcker answered, “That Jesus Christ will be coming back to pick up his believers.”

Jesus leads us to the target of our life. Jesus keeps his promises. Jesus is the one who never fails to keep his word. Thus, we can trust him 100 per cent. No matter what happens, the Lord remains true to us. The Scripture says that anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame. Those who are convinced that they absolutely would never be put to shame are blessed.

So far, we discussed two points. Firstly, what is the foundation of the blessed life? Secondly, how can we be convinced of the blessings in our life? Finally, as the third point of today, what are the necessary conditions to have blessings in our life?

The condition required not to be put to shame is total reliance. It is to not stop trusting him. That is to say, it is to be determined to rely on the Lord and our reliance has to be placed on nobody but Jesus. This condition of keeping total reliance on him must continue till the end of our life.

I would like to take a look at three real-life examples.

The first example is Abraham, who loved the Lord. Abraham trusted the Lord who gave Abraham his word. He believed in the Lord from the bottom of his heart. The Bible says that he believed in the Lord God, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence things that don’t yet exist. Abraham stood in the presence of the Lord Almighty. Thus, even when the situation looks absolutely hopeless from the human perspective, if we rely on the Lord, the impossible is turned into the possible.

Even when all hopes seemed to have vanished, Abraham still refused to give up hope and believed in him. He withdrew his mind from what his eyes could see and decided to fix his eyes on the invisible Lord alone. This is what we call belief. Reliance is to look away from yourself or others and have a conviction that the Lord will never fail to keep his promise.

The Bible says that Abraham believed in the power of the Lord to accomplish his promise. You too are truly blessed if you understand the power of the Lord God to accomplish what he has promised and believe that he will never fail to keep his word. Because if you do, you will never be ashamed.

The second real-life example is Moses. Moses was the prince who could get whatever he wanted. Although he could get everything he asked for, he abandoned this privileged status.

Moses might have been the most stupid man in the world. How did he do such a stupid thing? The answer is found in Hebrews, chapter 11. These are very well-known and famous verses. This part explains what the faith is after all and what occurs as a result of reliance.

Hebrews
11:24 By faith....

or, by reliance,

11:24 ….Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called a son of Pharaoh’s daughter,
11:25 because he preferred being mistreated with God’s people to enjoying the pleasures of sin for a short time.

He must have worried so much about what to do. And he chose to suffer. Why was that?

11:26 He thought that being insulted for the sake of the Messiah was of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward.
11:27 By faith he left Egypt, without being afraid of the king’s anger, and he persevered because he saw the one who is invisible.

Moses compared his worldly treasures and accomplishments with the eternal rewards and made this decision. Moses understood very well that all kinds of worldly pleasures lead people to nowhere but death. And after death, they have to face the judgment and suffer the punishment of eternal destruction.

What he experienced was that everyone who believed in the Lord would never be ashamed. Only because Moses believed in the Lord, the people of Israel were rescued. The Scripture says that everyone who believes in him will never be ashamed. Abraham, who was called the “Father of Faith”, experienced this truth. Moses, who was called the “Friend of God” understood the same truth from his experience as I just mentioned.

The third real-life example is Daniel's friend of ancient times. Three friends of Daniel also experienced that those who believed in the Lord will never be ashamed. What made his three friends special was their child-like trust and their faith without compromise, which eventually led them to cast themselves into a fire. Let us look at these verses;

Daniel
3:15 Now, if you are ready at this very moment to obey ‘the sound of the trumpet, the flute, the lyre, the four-stringed lyre, and the harp,’ and worship the image that I have made… If you do not so worship, you will immediately have cast yourselves into the middle of the blazing fire, and what god is there who can deliver you from my power?”
3:16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego answered King Nebuchadnezzar, “It’s not necessary for us to respond in this matter.
3:17 Your majesty, if it be his will, our God whom we serve can deliver us from the blazing fire furnace, and he will deliver us from you.
3:18 But if not, rest assured, your majesty, that we won’t serve your gods, and we won’t worship the golden statue that you have set up.”

The conviction these three had was that those who believe in the Lord will never be ashamed. No matter what happens, if we look away from visible reality and look up to the Lord alone, we will never fail to newly experience that the Lord is alive.

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2014年8月24日、御代田福音集会
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