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The Darkness Disappears and the TRUE LIGHT is Now Shining
An Important Booklet for You

3. The Divine Light Has Shone


The message of the coming of the Divine Light is not a mystical religious concept. It is, rather, the promise of God which He gave to the fathers of faith. Read the following passages from the Gospel to judge for yourself that God has indeed pierced the darkness of our world, sending to us His light.

In the sixth month, God sent the angel Gabriel to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant of David. The virgin’s name was Mary. The angel went to her and said: “Greetings, you who are highly favored! The Lord is with you.” Mary was greatly troubled at his words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. But the angel said to her: “Do not be afraid, Mary, you have found favor with God. You will be with child and give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High ... his kingdom will never end.” --- “How will this be”, Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” The angel answered: “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So, the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God. For nothing is impossible with God.” --- “I am the Lord’s servant”, Mary answered. “May it be to me as you have said.” Then the angel left her. (LUKE 1:26-38)
This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. His mother Mary was pledged to be married to Joseph, but before they came together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit. Because Joseph, her husband, was a righteous man and did not want to expose her to public disgrace, he had in mind to divorce her quietly. --- But after he had considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said: “Joseph son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary home as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” --- All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet: “The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means, God with us.” (Isaiah 7:14) --- When Joseph woke up, he did what the angel of the Lord had commanded and took Mary home as his wife. But he had no union with her until she gave birth to a son. And he gave him the name Jesus. (MATTHEW 1:18-25).
In those days Caesar Augustus issued a decree that a census should be taken of the entire Roman world. (This was the first census that took place while Quirinius was governor of Syria). And everyone went to his own town to register. So, Joseph also went up from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to Bethlehem the town of David, because he belonged to the house and line of David. He went there to register with Mary, who was pledged to be married to him and was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for the baby to be born, and she gave birth to her first-born, a son. She wrapped him in strips of cloth and placed him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. --- And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them: “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is Christ the Lord. This will be a sign to you: You will find a baby wrapped in strips of cloth and lying in a manger.” --- Suddenly a great company of the heavenly host appeared with the angel, praising God and saying: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests.” --- When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about. --- So, they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. (LUKE 2:1-20)

Dear Reader, have you realized that the Divine Light has shone in the deep darkness of our world? Night had fallen on Bethlehem and its outskirts. Every living creature had gone to sleep except a group of shepherds keeping their night-watch in the fields.

Suddenly, the heavens were opened and a penetrating light flashed around them lighting up the night and scaring the shepherds. What increased their dread was the appearance of the Angel of the Lord before them in splendid brightness. And the glory of the Lord shone around them. They fell down, dumbfounded and with eyes blinded. It is the Day of Resurrection, and Judgment Day, they thought! Their sins awoke, accusing them before their sleeping consciences. All their life lay open in its nakedness before them. They were greatly afraid and were trembling with terror. But the Angel of the Lord told them not to be afraid, announcing to them gently: “Fear not! I have come with the message to you that today is born a Savior who is the promised Christ, promised by God through His prophets. He is the mercy to mankind from the merciful God, the One who saves from the Day of Judgment all who trust in Him.” You too will find in this message the secret of enlightenment: Whoever repents from his sins before God, will be filled with the joy of heaven. And whoever receives the word of the Lord in his conscience will realize the joy of his freely given salvation.

Thus, the loving God has prepared for you a great mercy. He is addressing you personally; He will not reject you nor destroy you but will reveal to you His saving purpose.

Have you grasped the secret of the eternal light? Christ was born in a stable in a lowly manger. He took on human form in a humble place so that man will not say: “I am rejected because I am too bad and too small for God to love me.” No! For Christ himself was born like a refugee, rejected by society in order to give each despairing soul hope and a realization that God comes to him, and is close to him and loves him personally.

In one of the Ottoman Sultan’s palaces in Istanbul you can see a glittering cradle for the infants of the ruler made of pure gold. It is decorated with glittering jewels. The names of the princes who occupied this cradle are not known to the world, and this empty golden cradle rests in a corner of one of the museums.

But the lowly Christ born in a poor manger is known through the centuries because He is God’s true sign, the miracle-maker to this day. He is ready to lift you out of your lostness; set you free from the bonds of sin and redeem you from the evils of this world. He will give you eternal life.

The angels of God rejoiced when Christ was born. Their brightness lit up the place where those frightened shepherds sat. The divine light engraved in the depths of their beings the unique knowledge that the promised Christ had come, and that the prophet who was to be greater than Moses had arrived, that the eternal king greater than David had been born. He did not come with weapons of destruction, but with love to conquer death, sin and Satan. He bears all the authority of God, because He is born of His Spirit and He is God’s Word incarnate.

The multitude of believers today confess with great joy that Jesus Christ is their personal Savior, the only effective one. Their songs of grateful praise rise daily from our globe and reverberate in the vast space so that even the stars and planets speak of the glory of God and proclaim His presence and saving power, praising and saying:

GLORY TO GOD
in the highest,
and on earth
PEACE
to men on whom his favor rests.
Luke 2:14

When the angels had left the shepherds, darkness once more descended. But they arose at once and went to Bethlehem to see this thing, which had happened. They hurried, stumbling in the dark as they went, but inside them there glowed this new wonderful light. The shepherds found the place, where Jesus had been born and their hearts overflowed with joy. They saw the baby lying in a manger and knelt down and worshipped Him. They departed afterwards into the dark night singing and when they reached the village, they told of the appearance of the angel to the people, and that they had seen the infant in the stable in Bethlehem. The people shook their heads and thought about what they heard. It sounded like a fable invented by the shepherds. None of them believed what they heard about the incarnation of the Word of God. They did not hurry to the child in the manger to bow before Him. It was then that those shepherds realized that salvation was prepared for all men. However, not all accept the message of God. Only those who obey the call are illuminated by it. No doubt, the shepherds were amazed at not seeing any wealth or glory or greatness surrounding the baby. But they believed in God’s Word which had become incarnate, the promised one, lying in a humble manger.

The whole world has not been the same since the birth of Christ. All those who followed Him started observing a new calendar based on this outstanding historic event, which has changed human history.

I AM THE LIGHT
of the World.
Whoever follows me
WILL NEVER WALK IN DARKNESS
but will have
THE LIGHT OF LIFE.
John 8:12

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