Let no one despise you for your youth, but set an example for the
believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.
1st Timothy 4:12
This verse confuses me sometimes. Paul is writing to Timothy, who is a pastor at a church with a congregation that is, for the most part, significantly older than him. He was struggling with preaching to an older audience because he did not think it his place to do so, and Paul wrote that verse to give him encouragement. What I find confusing about this verse is that Paul tells Timothy to not only live in purity and faith, but also to set an example to the other(older) believers. Aren’t the older church members supposed to be the ones setting an example to the younger generation, and not the other way around? However, I think I have finally come to somewhat of an understanding with this verse, and what I have gained from it has greatly impacted my life.
Too often us young, energetic Christians get so caught up with the learning that we lose focus on the practicing. We take in the intellectual knowledge of what to do and how to do it, but we never let it completely permeate us and change us from the inside out. Folks, what the old bald guy at church talks about for 45 minutes once a week isn’t just useful to know, it is life-altering! It can change the way you think, the way you act, and the way you interact with others, if you will just make sure to let it out of your brain and go hang out with your heart every once in a while. It can change you from an essentially useless fountain of religious knowledge into a passionate, worshipful, loving child of God.
We aren’t to just learn from our elders, we are to take that knowledge and set an example for the believers in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity. We are to go out into the world and be the salt and light for Jesus Christ, Lord Almighty! We are to stand on the hills, on the rooftops and shout his name to the world! We must talk, act, love, believe and stand firm for Christ. Every word we speak is heard by the Holy Creator and is given to us for the sole purpose of glorifying Him. Every step we take, every friend we make must be dedicated to Him and to Him alone (soli Deo gloria). 1st Corinthians 10:31 – For whatever we eat or drink, or whatever we do, do it all to the glory of God.
Let this change you. Let it impact everything you do. Go to your crappy job with a smile on your face and in your heart, singing praises to God. Treat everyone, sinner and believer, with the Love that God has bestowed upon you to give to others in His name. Let it change the way you form relationships with people, let it bring propriety, honesty, love, and self-control into your relationships with others. Young men and women, let the Word of God give you a heart that hunts down and destroys even the slightest hint of impurity or impropriety in your relationships with each other. It will cause you to treat one another with respect, admiration, courtesy and love.
The Love of God isn’t just informative. It is transformative. Let the Holy Spirit into your heart and give Him free reign over your emotions. Don’t just live the “right” way. Set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in purity.
My chains are gone
I’ve been set free
My God, my Savior has ransomed me
And like a flood His mercy rains
Unending love, Amazing grace!
The Human Fiction
July 12, 2011 at 12:41 PM
As a non-religious person reading this, but one that knows a lot about other ancient forms of morality, it’s interesting to see how much Christianity is like stoicism. Going to a crappy job but doing it smiling, and enjoying simply living…it’s also very much reflected in stoicism. The same ideas about your community leaders, too. If they are failing in their task, it’s simply up to you. In any case, interesting post on religion.
Robert Lee "Trey" Edwards, Jr.
July 12, 2011 at 2:36 PM
Romans 1:20 –
For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse.
God makes his divine attributes known throughout the earth in a variety of means, including unbelievers. The very existence of morality is irrefutable proof of an intelligent design and overarching deity. All men, believer and unbeliever alike, know God and can see His work in their own lives. We inherently integrate part of God’s plan into our lives every day, thus leading to ways of like like stoicism. God’s existence and attributes are so obvious that even unbelievers can act as if they acknowledge they exist, while still denying the truth because of the hardness in their own hearts, a result of the fall of man in the Garden of Eden. We must acknowledge God’s existence, believe in Him and the saving faith of His Son Jesus Christ, and repent, or nothing we do will be of any eternal importance.
John 3:16
For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.