Monday, July 16, 2018
Despising youth
1 Timothy 4:12
Let no one despise your youth, but be an example to the believers in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity.
At the outset, we have the challenge of defining youth. The apostle Paul is writing here to young Timothy but apparently, Timothy was somewhere between 35 and 40 years old at the time. The term youth, then, was applied to persons up to 40 years of age.
Today, the UN uses the age range 15 to 24 as it’s broad definition of youth, while other international organisations and individual countries have their own definition of youth. There are some places where the defection of youth goes up to 35. That might have covered young Timothy at the time he got this letter from Paul.
For many, youth is defined more as a stage rather than an age. With these definitions you get something like this from UNESCO, “Youth is best understood as a period of transition from the dependence of childhood to adulthood’s independence and awareness of our interdependence as members of a community.” I guess that Timothy was past this stage at the time that he was collaborating with Paul in the mission field.
Paul, understanding that Timothy was considered by many to be young, needed to be aware of older folk who despise young people. We tend to read this passage as advice to the young, but maybe today we should start by seeing it as criticism of older people.
Older people despise the young for a variety of reasons, here are five. Some older people just cannot handle the energy that young people have. They see youth boundlessly on the move and it disturbs them that they cannot keep up. They are quick to criticize and often say that if they had the body of the youth to combine with the knowledge and wisdom they have now what they wouldn’t have achieved. After all, youth is wasted on the young.
Other old folks despise youth because they are daring. They push the envelope and test all boundaries and limits. As we age we tend to have a sense of our limits and try to operate well within those limits, the young however are less constrained by limits, real or imagined.
Still other older folk despise the youths because of the opportunities available to them. Older folk are quick to grumble and complain about the fact that they didn’t have those opportunities in their time. They almost try to make it appear that it is the fault of the young people that all of these opportunities are available to them. Often, rather than support them they try to dissuade or deny them the chance.
There are older persons who are really bothered by the rate at which the young are able to make progress, especially when this is in the same field of endeavour in which the older person is occupied. Older people struggle when the young return more qualified, more exposed, and overall better prepared than they ever would be.
Our final example is new frontiers. Young people tackle new frontiers and take on new challenges that older people often didn’t know existed. Human progress is often a function of tackling new frontiers and this is what young people do.
These are general issues between the old and the young and the church is not exempt from this behaviour. Many a young preacher couldn’t get an opportunity at the pulpit because the older preacher wouldn’t risk it. Many an older minister is like Saul who couldn’t handle the adulation for David and the comparison with himself. “So the women sang as they danced, and said: “Saul has slain his thousands, And David his ten thousands.” Then Saul was very angry, and the saying displeased him; and he said, “They have ascribed to David ten thousands, and to me they have ascribed only thousands. Now what more can he have but the kingdom?” So Saul eyed David from that day forward.”” 1 Samuel 18:7-9
The apostle, recognising the shortcomings of age, especially when faced with the heat of youth, gave the young a formula for responding to older folks who tend to despise them. According to Paul, when despised, or in order to avoid being despised, make sure that you are a good example to all in six critical areas – word, conduct, love, spirit, faith and purity.
Nothing undermines the youth more, especially in church, if they fail in any of these areas. In church, youth are particularly watched in areas of conduct and purity. Mistakes in these areas usually cripple the young person’s career for a long time if not altogether.
But let’s keep the focus, like we said, on older people. We should embrace and support the young people. Support their ideas, their dreams, and their endeavours.
As France celebrated their win in the 2018 FIFA World Cup and the exploits of their teenage star Kylian Mbappé, I was reflecting that he stated his dream at 6 and received the support to see it fulfilled on the world’s biggest sporting stage. Then my mind went back to Kevin Durant of the Golden State Warriors in the NBA who told his mother of his dream at 8.
Don’t despise the youth. But you young people live exemplary lives.
Think on these things:
- If you are an older person, have you ever despised the young?
- If you are a young person, do you feel that the older people around you are rooting for you or are they not supporting you?
- What things are done in your church that would bridge the generation gap and ensure that young people get the support that they need?
Prayer focus:
Let us pray today that in our churches, the older people would embrace the younger and that the younger will live above reproach.
In His Grace
Pastor Alex
