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The Youth Looking For God
by Rev. Moses K. Ndereva,
Pastor – Lifeline Community Fellowship
Key Text Scripture
1 Timothy 4:12
12 Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.
Introduction
Like in the days of old, God in our days still wants to work with a broken and a contrite heart. David was but a shepherd boy, but whose faith was in his God as he confronted near death challenges. He was a man after God’s heart. The result was God raised him to become king although there were older, supposedly wiser men in his day. Well, the secret for David was, the fear of God is the beginning of wisdom. Without disrespect to any of us in this hall, it is said of men that sometimes age comes alone devoid of wisdom. Timothy was a young man obviously prone to contempt from those around him, but he studied to show himself approved, a workman that needed not be ashamed. He was a young man who learnt humility and faith from his mother, grandmother and his mentor Apostle Paul. Clearly, Timothy was a man who even today, one would want to emulate.
The question for us tonight is; who in your circles desires to be like you? Where have you given a speech and people were left asking for more? How has the life you live influenced those you live with? Has your love become cold sticky wax that cannot flow anywhere? What about faith? Where is your faith anchored and does it work for you or is it the dead faith as James refers? What about your motives in association, volunteerism or helping out? Are they pure? All of the qualities mentioned in the foregoing scripture are pretty much the responsibility of an individual. You decide whether or not people are going to look down on you. We cannot blame people when we fail to live right. Fingers will naturally point at us if our example to other believers is wanting.
Bottom line:
Lamentations 3:27
It is good for a man to bear the yoke while he is young.
Young men are known for being strong, daring, curious and adventurous. If you have ceased from being inquisitive, vibrant, pursuing dreams and goals in life, you are no longer young. Young men must WANT to bear their yoke in youth. It is unfortunate to waste our energy and brains on worthless causes and then try to run when it is dark, seeking God’s help when all our capacities are gone. People who want a good pension, start working early and remain consistent in service until their time of compensation. You cannot be in and out of a job and expect your insurance and pension to turn out great! It is the same for the Kingdom of God. It cannot be an “IN and OUT” affair. We must be consistently on course. Learn to bear the yoke while you are young.
But How?
Psalm 119:9
How can a young man keep his way pure? By living according to your word.
1. Conversation
Our speech must be seasoned at all times. Careless speech has drawn many away from God. It looks fashionable and in fact glamorous to use obscene language even when expressing affection or disaffection. Cursing and not blessing characterize the manner in which most people converse. God has packed the power of life and death in our tongues and when not used correctly, we inflict ourselves and our hearers. We must purify our conversation if we are looking for God.
2. Living practical Christianity
The difference between the way we live and the way we talk is for the most part so vast that they become unassociated. We talk heaven and walk worldly, fleshly and worse. We must learn to walk the talk if our lives will serve any meaningful purpose. Some may say we need to be “down to earth” Jesus said; John 17:14-16 (New International Version) 14 I have given them your word and the world has hated them, for they are not of the world any more than I am of the world. 15 My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. 16 They are not of the world, even as I am not of it.
We cannot run away from the world. We must live in it under God’s protection. The problem is we often wander away from His presence and roaming roaring devil devours us unsuspectingly. He uses the coward’s principle; “hide and seek”. The name of the Lord is our place of safety if we will live victoriously.
3. Charity/Love
The bible says in the last days the love of many shall wax cold. Cold wax does not flow. O wonder people around us do not experience any love from us, and when they do, it is with strings attached. When people fail to experience love, they cannot know God for God is love
(1 John 4:7-8). We have deteriorated further; some even hate work! There are too few volunteers, and the ones who do it are discouraged by idlers. If we are to find God, we've got to get to work helping out, spreading the gospel and improving our own lives. If we love one another, the world will know we are His (God) disciples/children.
4. Faith
Faith without works is dead! Faith inspires discovery and sustains invention. Faith gives us hope for tomorrow. It is by believing that we are saved; putting our faith in Christ Jesus. Without faith, it is impossible to please God. It follows that without faith in the Savior, no one shall see God. We cannot follow and seek God if we are faithless. Faith inspires us to seek the better that we hope to become. It is our faith that keeps us from yielding to sin. Faith conquers the fear of failure and defeat. Faith gives us the courage to master the fears that keep us away from looking and following God.
5. Purity
Motives are central to our actions. That is why we are judged for both the motive and actions. Every time we want to do something in life around others, we should ask ourselves the question of purity touching on the motivation. Sometimes we are motivated by wrong intentions even though what we are doing is right. Do we love people for who they are or for what we want from them? Do we serve the Lord and bear the burden of service because we love Him or because we need approval from men? Do we help sincerely or are we expecting unjust rewards? These questions border on purity of our motives. It is important to remember that while men look on the outward; (and we should not ignore this fact) God looks on the inside.
Conclusion
No one has ever put his hand in God’s hand and lost his way! God’s strength is manifested in our weaknesses. Any time we confess our sin, God always forgives and justifies us. We have no excuse young as we may be. God has given us His word to live by if we will find Him. We can fix our conversation. We can live victoriously as a living example. Yes we can love because we are loved. We know love and how to love and show it. Our faith does not have to be the greatest but it must be put in Christ Jesus, the cornerstone of our faith. We can live pure lives in this corrupt world. Yes we can follow God and find him in the midst of chaos and despair. Young people; we are the hope for this world if we can put our hands in each other and together live the WORD empowered from above. May God enable, encourage and engage us to live for Him before men. We must be Word compliant, Word competent and Word contented if we hope to influence the world for God. With God, all things are possible, and that includes your desire to look for God. He is always with us; perhaps the question is; are we listening to Him?
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