Youthful Passions

2 Timothy 2:18-22
Now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work. So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord with a pure heart.

All too often, we run toward youthful passions. We go along with the things of this generation because we are told that it is acceptable and normal. For example, the mass of immature and selfish dating relationships in the teenage population has been embedded in our minds. It is encouraged and considered normal to have a boyfriend or girlfriend. Immature dating is absolutely a youthful passion. We are expected to be thoroughly educated in aspects of the opposite gender, yet we are not expected to carry righteousness, faith, love, and peace as mentioned in the passage above.
It may sound very tempting to give in to the ungodly passions that engulf our world; but, here, we see in 2 Timothy that we are to flee from such things and pursue what really matters- the aspects of the heart. By fleeing from these passions, we are cleansing ourselves from what is dishonorable (as seen in the passage above) and we are useful to the master. So, by running away from all the immature passions of this world, we are instruments of righteousness, faith, love, and peace. This is the mission that God has called us to carry out. So we should flee youthful passions, and run toward God with all we have.

Witnessing

When many people hear the word "evangelism" they shudder. The thought of sharing our faith with others seems to put fear into the minds of young adults. But the Bible does command this for the Christian.

Mark 16:15

And he said to them, "Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation."

So what's stopping us? Fear. Maybe we are afraid of rejection or loss of friendship and the Bible does make it clear that you will experience loss because of your faith. No matter how practiced you are at witnessing, ever single unsaved person will place fear into your mind. But I don't think you should back away from proclaiming the Good News just because you have some fear. Witnessing is the ability to ignore or step past your fear and tell a person the Good News of Jesus Christ because you care about their soul. Open their eyes to the truth of the Gospel! Don't wait until you are older because there are so many more people that you can reach in your schools! People need to hear the Good News and you need to spread it.

"To Live is Christ"

Philipians 1:21-24
For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain. If I am to go on living in the body, this will mean fruitful labor for me. Yet what shall I choose? I do not know! I am torn between the two: I desire to depart and be with Christ, which is better by far; but it is more necessary for you that I remain in the body.

This passage has to be one of my favorites! Here, Paul sums up the mission of the Christian. To live is Christ. This means to live your life with Jesus at the center, making Him Lord of your life. Praising Him in everything you do and giving Him the glory. Young adults should be looking like this in their walk with Christ. We should put Jesus first in everything we do; therefore, little problems will look like folly to us! Nothing else matters aside from your mission in Christ! When you die, it is not to be a morbid occasion, because right here in Philipians, Paul tells us that to die would be gain! And what do we gain? An eternity with Christ forever!

Run the Race

I have recently finished studying the book of Hebrews. Last night I read something that really caught my eye in the 12th chapter that could be applied to the young Christian's life:

Hebrews 12:1-2
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God."

This passage tells us that we are to "lay aside every weight, and sin," so that we may run the race that God has set before us with endurance! The author compares this to Jesus when he knew he was going to be crucified. As Jesus endured the hardships and pain of the cross, he completed this task because he knew the joy that would come through it. In the same way, we should endure the hardships of this life and pursue Christ with our everything for there will be joy that comes when you endure!I know that in being a Christian, it is very difficult to grow spiritually when you have a sin that is holding you down. Perhaps it is someone of the opposite gender, friends, family, or music that may be holding you back from running toward Christ and giving Him your all. God tells us to lay these things aside so that you may run this race with endurance and without anything holding you back. So don't let the things of this world hold you back from completing the task given to you!

What Are You Waiting For? Pt. 2

“Christian” Label
Every one of us has been asked our religion. Someone in your school may have darted the question at you in an attempt to get to know you or relate to you in some way. But when they asked you the question, did you answer them with, “I’m a Christian”? Of course you did, you wouldn’t lie about that! Have you ever noticed that the word “Christian” has “Christ” in it? I am sure that you have come across people in your high school who claimed to be a Christian, but you knew they weren’t born again; they didn’t act like it. So this means that we really need to stick out if we are going to be placed in the same category as those people. We need to be obeying God’s word and speaking out for Him! No one will notice anything different between you and those who claim to be Christians. We especially need to watch our actions when someone knows that we really follow Christ because they will be right behind us every time we stumble to make a mockery of Christ. I mean, already Christ has been given a bad name because of wolves in sheep’s clothing!
My heart breaks every time I see someone at school who looks like everyone else yet claims to be a Christian. It is equally if not more disappointing when I see someone who claims to be born again yet still looks like any other person. What is the difference between these two types of people? Nothing at all. We, as Christians, are chosen to be set apart! Not soaking up the sin of this world! My pastor once told me an analogy from a book he read that says, “The difference between sheep and pigs is that sheep will fall into mud and immediately get up and keep walking while pigs will fall into the mud and roll around in it.” Are Young Christians acting like pigs? Are we rolling around in the sin of this world? We should be fervently walking toward Christ and if we happen to stumble, we should get right back up and keep walking. We are called to be sheep.

What Are You Waiting For?

Teenagers have the best reputation for being lazy. Face it, the average teen life is filled with selfishness, stupidity, immaturity, uncontrolled behavior, and ungodliness. Not all teens look like that. Not all teens have to look like that, certainly not the young Christian. But what does the Christian Young Adult life look like? How should a Christian appear at this age? Should they appear the same as everyone else? Is a Christian Teen supposed to care about compassion, purity, salvation of others, or worshipping God? Is age holding back this generation from going all-out for Christ and His Glory? What are you waiting for?

“Thus you will recognize them by their fruits.”
In Matthew chapter seven verses 15-20, Jesus tells us that anyone who is in Him will bear fruit. “Thus you will recognize them by their fruits,” He says. Notice He does NOT say, “Thus you will recognize them by their fruits, but only if they are 25 years or older because someone young can not be expected to do anything with their life.” He doesn’t say that! So knowing that, young people should still look like Christ. We are not children; thus we should be able to do great things to glorify God! So, what are we waiting for? We can’t wait until we get older to glorify God, we must start now. God can do great things through us in our teen years!
I have had many tug-of-war situations in my heart when I see a Christian my age act just like any other person you see at school. I sometimes wonder if they are really saved. The Bible refers to these people as “wolves in sheep’s clothing.” Undercover Christians can fool you in church, but when they leave that building, they seem to leave Christianity as well. Jesus calls us to be Christians all the time, not just in a church setting where others can see us; therefore, we must be true to our claim of Christianity and obey God’s word. The Bible also says that we are not to be conformed to this world, but to be transformed. We, as Christians, are set apart and what we say must follow through with the actions that we possess. That may look like being different in the way we dress, talk, eat, and treat others. Everything must be done to the Glory of God. If we are Christians, regardless of age, we need to obey what God tells us in order for Him to be glorified. The Bible never sets limitations on glorifying himself, so we also must not.