“No Age Limit- Christ for All” Eccles. 12; I John 2:12-14 9/20/09
Age is very important in our society. The fastest growing segment of our
society are those over 65- some say we have grown by 10% in 15 years. We on
average are living almost twice as long as a generation ago- and that brings
opportunities and problems. One of the problems is ageism. In a recent
survey 43% of children and young people said they experienced prejudice against
them in the last year (that is way more than racial or gender prejudice). Many
discriminate in work because of their age- a young woman tends to get paid less
than an older woman even if they have the same amount of experience; some
refuse to hire older workers. The good news is that God is not prejudice. God
cares for us at any age. Each age has its benefits and its temptations- and the
Church and us need to recognize this. Life is a journey. We are in different
stages of that journey and we tend to look at life and God differently as we go
along the way. So John, as probably the last remaining apostle now, and an old
man, writes to three groups- fathers, young people, and little children what
they will be. thers are veterans of the faith. Young people are those who are
experienced but not yet the leaders of the church, and little children are new
to the faith- the inexperienced and unhardened.
ALL OF US- “Little children”- sins are forgiven on account of his name.
(Message- my dear children)- Yet there is a sense in which we also go through
spiritual stages- of being veterans, people with experience, and the earliest is
little children. Each one has advantages and gifts, and each one has
temptations and problems. But Christ works with all people- not just young, not
just young people and not just the elderly. Every age is God’s age- He
cares for you every step of the way. Remember your Creator when you are young,
but also the Psalmist says even to your gray hairs I am God. Let us look at
these three spiritual ages, and think of how we may learn from them. The Bible
many times says that when you are in your prime of life- that is working
adulthood- you need to remember who got you where you are.
I. CHILDREN- While we all are children- and John’s favorite way of
addressing those who will read his letter is “little children”- there also is a
sense in which he is talking of those who are new or young in faith. The two
things he says is that the children are forgiven and know the father.
A. SINS ARE FORGIVEN (12) Steady Fellowship- This was the message the
Apostles 1st preached (Lk. 24:47; Acts 13:38). It is to be at peace
with God. A child can do terrible things and the mother will still find a place
to forgive her. The father welcomes the prodigal home. We are forgiven
in his name- and for his name’s sake. We down play the name of Jesus.
We are not forgiven in our own merit. On our own we do not deserve
forgiveness. But we are forgiven because we are linked to him- and he is the
righteous one, the holy one- the lamb sacrificed for us. Years ago in a
different corner of our state I was invited to a meeting with two people
running for governor. I was not invited because I was such an important person-
I had no money, no real influence, but I happened to be really good friends with
the guy who was throwing the party for these two candidates. I was invited not
because of my name but his. We are invited into heaven not because we deserve
to be there, but because of our relationship with the one who owns the house-
who owns heaven itself. Our sins, our shortcomings will not keep us out.
B. KNOWN THE FATHER (14) – Personal experience. Again, this is about a
relationship- we are his adopted children. Someone who is knew to the
faith stands out from someone who has no faith in this relationship. Even a
newborn Christian knows the Father. It is not what you know, it is WHO YOU
KNOW. I have read a hundred articles talking about how people get jobs in a
tough economy- and they say it is all about networking, having friends who can
help you get your foot in the door. Well it is the same principle of faith. It
is not how much knowledge you have about the Bible, or prayer, or how much
experience you have with religious things. It is about having a relationship
with the Lord Jesus Christ- the Son of God.
A child has child-like trust- but a child is often short-sighted.
There is a great u-tube video going around that NBC news spoke of last Friday
about giving a child a marshmallow and delayed gratification. A child
was given a marshmallow and told that when the person comes back in a few
minutes- they will give the child another marshmallow if they don’t eat the
first one. One child picked it up- looked at it from every angle- but didn’t
eat it; Another rubbed his head and eyes in torture over and over and took a
small piece out. But one little girl just couldn’t wait. People who are new in
the faith want God to bless them and bless them now- they haven’t learned how to
wait on God.
II. YOUNG PEOPLE-
A. STRONG AND THE WORD OF GOD ABIDES IN YOU (14) We must reach the end of
our resources our strength to appreciate, see, discover, and grasp God’s
strength. Pascal : “It is good to be weary and worn out…so that we may
open our arms to the Redeemer.” The strength that we need – is not physical
strength, but spiritual strength. Samson was strong physically, but weak
spiritually. His whole story is of one was a potentially great leader, but his
lack of values, discernment, and a willingness to depend on his strength kept
him in trouble, sorrow, and eventually a blind death.
Most of the great revivals that have happened have occurred with college-
age students. The YMCA began as a missions movement with college students. In
the late 1950s and 60s there was a huge missionary movement- often downplayed by
the media and historians- but it literally took the last cannibals off the
globe. The second Great Awakening really began with college students at Yale
and Princeton. When young adults and college students get serious about the
faith the world sits up and listens. When young adults and students are only
interested in careers, money, and the wine-women-song distractions of life- the
world gets quite comfortable. If you are a young adult can you say that you are
strong and the word of God abides in you- abiding means dwelling- soaking deep
into your very bones.
B. CONQUERED THE EVIL ONE (13)- (Actually says this twice about
those who are in this middle category). Much of life is a struggle against
evil- those who slander us, back stab us, speak evil of us, make our lives
hard. How much our economy would improve if we had no prisons, no
shop-lifting, no burglars to make us want burglar alarms? How our taxes
might go down if there was no fraud? How our bank fees would be smaller
if people didn’t steal our identities. How much easier life would be if we
could send people out at night and not worry about human evil? We worry more
about it now than other generations- because so many have forsaken God.
There are some people we are around in whose presence it is easy to be bad.
There are others we are around that are easy to be good. But here he speaks of
a personal, single evil- “The evil one.” I think we do ourselves a
disservice to think there are only good spirits out there. There are many
different spiritual influences upon us- and not all of them good, and not all of
them human. Those of you reading the Screwtape Letters of Lewis will note that
one of the devil’s best temptation is for us to rationalize him away- and not
recognize our own spiritual peril or even that we have an enemy at all.
Young people and those who are not veterans but are older than children in
faith- have energy, passion, and can get things done. But passion can
also control them. A young adult may have nothing and not worry about it- as
much as an older person. Yet their need for passion and to see things happen –
and impatience may sweep them away.
III. FATHERS (MESSAGE- VETERANS- you were on the ground floor)- KNOW THE
FATHER (Know him who is from the beginning).
Fathers know who is the true model of fatherhood. To Know God- and to increase
in knowledge of God is so important. Not that we become great theologians, as
great lovers of God.
Those who are veterans of the faith- the patriarchs and matriarchs of the
church, have a great gift of maturity and experience. But what they lack
is child-like trust, and the passion of a young person add worry. Every
age has different gifts and graces, but also different temptations.
I remember when I was a kid- hearing a representative from the then Soviet Union speak to our high school. He was asked about the role of religion in that officially atheist country. He said that most people had given up on religion. He said religion was powerless, and was limited to two groups- old women and young children. No one else, he said went to church. Ironically, the USSR fell partly because of its emptiness- and today there is more freedom for the Russian Orthodox than the Christians in America- they can pray in school. They can pray at public gatherings. They want God to be a part of their lives and society. Ironically, this speaker underestimated that God is God of all ages, and may work in anyone’s heart.