For generations to generations the phrase “you are young” been thrown out for the defence--pressure or jealousy characterized the motive when that phrased is used in order to say he just does not have experience. People say, “you are not capable of doing things what others can.” Or “you don’t have enough experienced where others do.” From the side it might look like as a correct statement, but when we look at the person who is older, question arises if it the experience is need to speak the truth, to influence others; nether does the bible supports that kind of thinking.
History is rich of young men sharing the gospel, and having a huge impact on generations. Most of these influential men are characterized by someone who started the ministering when they were young. Look at Spurgeon for example, a person who is called the king of preachers. W. Y. Fullerton writing in his biography about him: “C. H. Spurgeon was to nineteenth-century England what D. L Moody was to America. Although Spurgeon never attended theological school, by the age of twenty-one he was the most popular preacher in London.” Spurgeon in his yearly twenties was influential and he didn't needed an experience as some would say it's needed.
Look at David, when he was sixteen, he was anointed to be a king. The God did not look at his age or his experience, but his heart. God even had to remind his prophet Samuel about this: “But the LORD said to Samuel, ‘Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart’” (I Samuel 16:7).
When I see a young men stand up for what he believes, it says something about him. A person who is alive; who could think; who reads his bible and is able to see the truth, a person who could reason from his perspective. This young man might go home to read the passage over and over and over again not to prove others that they are wrong and he was right, but to challenge his own thinking, his own conclusions. And when go’s back to have another conversation, he could stand one more time to say: “thus says the LORD.” Ohh, I pray so we could have young man, who would challenge their own thinking as they challenge others. As a young man reads the scripture it is God who reads his mind.
Some time’s you see a person in his older age, but when you look at him, you could see that he never was able to grow out from his childhood. I seen older people who speak things and it would be better for both him and those who listen if he would not say anything. Also, we could notice people that are older pressuring others do to their authority of position and experience; but not reasoning from the scripture. Not to say that there are no good elders, usually good elders never use their positing as something dominating, but a gentle touch to a persons heart with the truth all is needed.
We see Timothy who struggled in being accepted as a teacher among because of his age, he was young. And that is why Paul tells him: "Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity" (1 Timothy 4:12). When the truth is spoken, it does not matter if it's some one young, or old, it could even be our younger bother or sister reminding us about how should we behave and live according to the scripture. Authority comes not in the position but in what is being communicated. Not long time ago, there was an article at BBC news website on "John Paul II" being beatified. If we look at how the leaders in the Catholic church teach, it would be in their authority and experience, but not in the scripture and what it teaches. And this kind of leadership brought them to a place where they replace the scripture with their own teaching. Like praying to mother marry or baptizing little children.
God uses young men as he uses and older man. Jeremiah used this kind of reasoning in making an excuse to not be who God wanted him to be. People say that Jeremiah was in his twenties at that time: “Now the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.’ Then I said, ‘Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth’” (Jeremiah 1:4-6). Jeremiah when out and proclaimed the word of God as he was told. But look how people could respond to this: "He is young, what does he know?" or "I've been a christian more then him why should I listen you him?" or “what kind of experience those he has?” But notice, God is not using Jeremiah's knowledge, experience or position--that is not needed for God when he communicates to others. By rejecting what Jeremiah said, people would be rejecting not Jeremiah but God and His word–it is only an excuse that people make, saying the person is young and not experienced.
When Peter communicate that the truth about Jesus Christ, he put his experience aside. It was something less important for him, but brought the scripture above his experience to say this is more reliable, has more power:
Human experience and age has nothing to do in presenting the gospel. And that is why a young man could stand up to what he believes, and respond positively when God calls him to ministry. Let what he says and goes through be a challenge to him; he would make mistakes in not being humble when speaking and much more. But that is till he reads Gods word again (being crushed and humbled following his confession before the truth). So many teenagers, young men are in the world fully drinking sin, swimming in it, satisfied. But when we see a young man says “thus says the Lord,” that should bring the praise of our lips to God who we worship.
Apostle Paul over and over communicated to others, saying that is God and His Spirit who is at work, not his way of twist and bend word when he was communicating, and never put his experience as some wait to his words:
Even Apostle Paul never used his own authority or length of service in ministry, or being a Christianity for so long as his argument when he communicated the truth. Apostle Paul could off said, “hey guy, to whom did the Lord appeared? was it not I? who our of all people suffered for Christ, I, and you still don't want to listen to me? look how many churches have I opened, and you still don’t want to trust me?” But that’s not what Paul is saying, he puts everything aside and lift’s up God’s work and power. People should listen to others not because of what position they holds but because of what they says, the truth.
Look at this illustration for a minute. Assume Sally and Katie go shopping, they are sister. They walking in their favorite store, but once they walked in, Sally (an older sister) saw this beautiful red dress that she wanted to buy. She looked at the price, but it was too expansive so she slowly tucked it away and put it in her bag thinking to walk away without paying. Katie, a sister who is 5 years younger then her, said: “that is steeling, and Bible says we should never do that.” Now there is two way for Sally to respond. One way is to say, “Katie you are my little sister, you don’t know what you are talking about, you are not experienced in this. Let your older sister do what she is doing. When you be my age, then will see what you have to say bout this.” Or, Sally could say, “you are right, stealing is stealing, and God clearly communicated that in his word.” But this is exactly what happens when people say that he is young and not experience. Where no human experience is needed to understand and obey the word of God--truth is needed. And most of the time, do to our experience people don’t live by the scripture. “This is how we always did it and this is how we will always do it,” some might say.
Apostle Paul in First Corinthians speaks that it is not in human experience that gives grows, but it is God who is himself producing a change in the human heart: "So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth" (3:7). Let us trust the scripture fully without no human experience as an approval, because that could be a hindrance to some one. They could say, well, older people are not doing it, why should I do it?
What about you, do you need someones experience to believe the scripture?
http://www.spurgeon.org/misc/biopref.htm.
History is rich of young men sharing the gospel, and having a huge impact on generations. Most of these influential men are characterized by someone who started the ministering when they were young. Look at Spurgeon for example, a person who is called the king of preachers. W. Y. Fullerton writing in his biography about him: “C. H. Spurgeon was to nineteenth-century England what D. L Moody was to America. Although Spurgeon never attended theological school, by the age of twenty-one he was the most popular preacher in London.” Spurgeon in his yearly twenties was influential and he didn't needed an experience as some would say it's needed.
Look at David, when he was sixteen, he was anointed to be a king. The God did not look at his age or his experience, but his heart. God even had to remind his prophet Samuel about this: “But the LORD said to Samuel, ‘Do not look on his appearance or on the height of his stature, because I have rejected him. For the LORD sees not as man sees: man looks on the outward appearance, but the LORD looks on the heart’” (I Samuel 16:7).
When I see a young men stand up for what he believes, it says something about him. A person who is alive; who could think; who reads his bible and is able to see the truth, a person who could reason from his perspective. This young man might go home to read the passage over and over and over again not to prove others that they are wrong and he was right, but to challenge his own thinking, his own conclusions. And when go’s back to have another conversation, he could stand one more time to say: “thus says the LORD.” Ohh, I pray so we could have young man, who would challenge their own thinking as they challenge others. As a young man reads the scripture it is God who reads his mind.
Some time’s you see a person in his older age, but when you look at him, you could see that he never was able to grow out from his childhood. I seen older people who speak things and it would be better for both him and those who listen if he would not say anything. Also, we could notice people that are older pressuring others do to their authority of position and experience; but not reasoning from the scripture. Not to say that there are no good elders, usually good elders never use their positing as something dominating, but a gentle touch to a persons heart with the truth all is needed.
We see Timothy who struggled in being accepted as a teacher among because of his age, he was young. And that is why Paul tells him: "Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity" (1 Timothy 4:12). When the truth is spoken, it does not matter if it's some one young, or old, it could even be our younger bother or sister reminding us about how should we behave and live according to the scripture. Authority comes not in the position but in what is being communicated. Not long time ago, there was an article at BBC news website on "John Paul II" being beatified. If we look at how the leaders in the Catholic church teach, it would be in their authority and experience, but not in the scripture and what it teaches. And this kind of leadership brought them to a place where they replace the scripture with their own teaching. Like praying to mother marry or baptizing little children.
God uses young men as he uses and older man. Jeremiah used this kind of reasoning in making an excuse to not be who God wanted him to be. People say that Jeremiah was in his twenties at that time: “Now the word of the LORD came to me, saying, ‘Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I appointed you a prophet to the nations.’ Then I said, ‘Ah, Lord GOD! Behold, I do not know how to speak, for I am only a youth’” (Jeremiah 1:4-6). Jeremiah when out and proclaimed the word of God as he was told. But look how people could respond to this: "He is young, what does he know?" or "I've been a christian more then him why should I listen you him?" or “what kind of experience those he has?” But notice, God is not using Jeremiah's knowledge, experience or position--that is not needed for God when he communicates to others. By rejecting what Jeremiah said, people would be rejecting not Jeremiah but God and His word–it is only an excuse that people make, saying the person is young and not experienced.
When Peter communicate that the truth about Jesus Christ, he put his experience aside. It was something less important for him, but brought the scripture above his experience to say this is more reliable, has more power:
“For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, ‘This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,’ we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. And we have something more sure, the prophetic word, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit. (2 Peter 1:26
Human experience and age has nothing to do in presenting the gospel. And that is why a young man could stand up to what he believes, and respond positively when God calls him to ministry. Let what he says and goes through be a challenge to him; he would make mistakes in not being humble when speaking and much more. But that is till he reads Gods word again (being crushed and humbled following his confession before the truth). So many teenagers, young men are in the world fully drinking sin, swimming in it, satisfied. But when we see a young man says “thus says the Lord,” that should bring the praise of our lips to God who we worship.
Apostle Paul over and over communicated to others, saying that is God and His Spirit who is at work, not his way of twist and bend word when he was communicating, and never put his experience as some wait to his words:
"And my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God." Later his says this, "And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. (1 Corinthians 2:4-13)
Even Apostle Paul never used his own authority or length of service in ministry, or being a Christianity for so long as his argument when he communicated the truth. Apostle Paul could off said, “hey guy, to whom did the Lord appeared? was it not I? who our of all people suffered for Christ, I, and you still don't want to listen to me? look how many churches have I opened, and you still don’t want to trust me?” But that’s not what Paul is saying, he puts everything aside and lift’s up God’s work and power. People should listen to others not because of what position they holds but because of what they says, the truth.
Look at this illustration for a minute. Assume Sally and Katie go shopping, they are sister. They walking in their favorite store, but once they walked in, Sally (an older sister) saw this beautiful red dress that she wanted to buy. She looked at the price, but it was too expansive so she slowly tucked it away and put it in her bag thinking to walk away without paying. Katie, a sister who is 5 years younger then her, said: “that is steeling, and Bible says we should never do that.” Now there is two way for Sally to respond. One way is to say, “Katie you are my little sister, you don’t know what you are talking about, you are not experienced in this. Let your older sister do what she is doing. When you be my age, then will see what you have to say bout this.” Or, Sally could say, “you are right, stealing is stealing, and God clearly communicated that in his word.” But this is exactly what happens when people say that he is young and not experience. Where no human experience is needed to understand and obey the word of God--truth is needed. And most of the time, do to our experience people don’t live by the scripture. “This is how we always did it and this is how we will always do it,” some might say.
Apostle Paul in First Corinthians speaks that it is not in human experience that gives grows, but it is God who is himself producing a change in the human heart: "So neither he who plants nor he who waters is anything, but only God who gives the growth" (3:7). Let us trust the scripture fully without no human experience as an approval, because that could be a hindrance to some one. They could say, well, older people are not doing it, why should I do it?
What about you, do you need someones experience to believe the scripture?
http://www.spurgeon.org/misc/biopref.htm.
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