Example!

Example!

Let no one look down on [you because of] your youth, but be an example and set a pattern for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, and in [moral] purity. 1 Timothy 4:12 AMP

The Context and Focus:

Paul met this young man Timothy, on one of his missionary journeys. The young man's father was a Greek Gentile at the time, but the boy held so much promise that Paul had to find a way to make him acceptable to the Jews at the time, so they would listen to Him. This was the first step to making Timothy have impact in the communities he would be prepared to lead. I note that physical circumcision was the token of the covenant God made with Abraham and his descendants, and until the understanding of the place of the heart and salvation were full understood by the audience, Paul was ready to take all legal steps to ensure that the gospel of Jesus was preached, and the audience would also listen. As a young person, and in fact, no matter what your present age is, what steps are you taking to make the gospel of Jesus available and accessible to all who come in contact with you? Am I willing to swallow pride and rights, in order to give other people the opportunity to hear and know about the love of God expressed in his gift of Jesus for the salvation of all men? 

The Message:

Timothy was a young man, but Paul saw a lot of promise in him, and he would encourage him to be the best he could be. For all of us, God would have placed the lives of children or young people in our hands, so we could guide and mold them after His pattern. How are we going about this peculiar assignment? How are we ensuring that we provide the support, encouragement and leadership that this generation needs to know and love God? In a world with a false definition of success, or one that celebrates mediocrity and hypocrisy, it is quite important to show, by way of personal example, what is the right attitude to the world and all its presents. There are lives to guide, and a personal encounter with God is the best example anyone can have. Do you have it? Remember, you cannot give what you don't have, and any attempt at eye-service or hypocrisy may succeed for a while, but truth will always catch up with falsehood. As I also read the verse above, I also see that the examples I am to show cut across the internal as well as the external. I must have a witness in my heart from God that I am His child, and the world must also know that I am different. 

The Conclusion:

Check out all the classes: in speech, conduct, love, faith and purity. When I speak, what do my words portray? When men see how I behave or what I do, what impressions or images stay with them? In the way I show love for other people, or the way I demonstrate my faith, and the way I relate with other people, is my life the right template showing off the glory of God? Can men say that, of a truth, I am a child of God? Is the glory of God made manifest in me, or do I have to shout and scream that I am a Christian before I can be believed? The above shows that I must have a consistent life, where the outflow is a reflection of my inflow. At different times in my life, that which I have spent time storing up must be revealed. The world is looking for men and women who will dare to stand out; who will show forth God's  praise to the ends of the earth. The world awaits the manifestation of the sons of God. Am I one? Can God count on me for such times like these? God's time of favour is here.