by Mike Vincent
Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.
1 Timothy 4:12 (NIV)
In this verse, Paul is encouraging his ‘son in the faith’ to go after all that God has for him. Paul is an incredible father in this, he takes Timothy to the side and says:
“My boy, people are going to think what they are going to think, they are going to have opinions of your life, they are going to even question your motives. Despite this, you need to hold on to all that Jesus is calling you to, and run hard after that! Be obsessed with Him and His call. When your focus is Him and not them, your whole life will glorify Him AND you will be an example to other believers, showing them what a passionate Jesus-follower looks like.”
How often do we need to hear something like this?
I know I do. I often need to hear that I’m doing a good job or encouragement to keep on keeping on!
The key part of Paul’s advice to Timothy here is to not let anyone look down on him. Don’t let. That’s the key. How often do we let others take our focus off Jesus? How often do we let others’ opinions of our lives dictate how we live our lives?
It is possible that Paul could write this to us: ____________ (insert name) don’t let anyone look down on you because you are ___________ (insert insecurity) BUT be an example.
Here’s another way to say this:
Don’t let others’ expectations of you or how they perceive you, to set the agenda for your life.
As Tyrone Daniel says, “Jesus loves you, the devil hates you, and everyone has a plan for your life.”
When we do, we allow them to intercept what God wants us to do and the decisions we need to make, we get side-tracked and this can lead to a much longer, slower journey to the same place.
Our responsibility is, therefore, to lead our lives as though they are examples for others to follow.
As I write this, I am sitting in a coffee shop with headphones on, those big, bulky, noise-cancelling headphones. I’m sure the pleasant patrons would be shocked if they could hear what I’m listening to. One of the goals of spiritual leadership is to make Jesus the loudest voice in others’ lives. When Jesus is the loudest, then all other voices grow strangely dim. We have to be ones who constantly seek to cancel the noise of others’ expectations and opinions and turn up the voice of Jesus. Our lives count the most when we please Him.
As Jesus says in John 14:15 “If you love me, keep my commands.”
We judge ourselves by our intentions but judge others by their actions. As Christians, we have a bad record of judging others and being ‘judgey’. Paul is encouraging Timothy and us to not let that be the mark of our lives but to let the fruit of our relationship with the Father be how we are judged. Christianity was never supposed to be a purely theoretical or social exercise, Christianity is a life lived following after Jesus.
This verse is not only about how others view us but also about what our lives should look like. The ‘but’ is important. Half reading this verse will cause us to have an ageist view of others’ perspective of us and possibility lead to us having excuses for not living well. Paul tells us that as Christians, we should have fruit-orientated lives.
Paul encourages Timothy to lead an exemplary life, one that is worth following. Just like the disciples before the Sanhedrin, they took note that they had been with Jesus. In the same way, our lives should look different because we have been with Jesus. Could the same be said of us? How is our speech? Is it faith-filled, hopeful, and full of grace and truth? Are we conducting ourselves the way Jesus wants in every area? What about our faith? What Are we trusting the Lord for? How is our purity before our Holy God?
So how do we do this?
Spending time with our Father and in His word is key.
I have heard it said that the Bible is first a mirror before it is a lens. We should be reading the Bible daily and allowing it to read us, often. This is why when we do spend time with the Father, we should see it just as that, time with a person. Having a conversation and allowing God to speak to us and not just bringing our list of demands or what we think we want or need. Letting him tell us who we are and living out of that, is one of the best things we can do for him.
Holding our lives open to Him for adjustment, making sure that our lives line up with what the Bible actually says. Making sure that our speech, conduct, faith, and purity match up with the Lord’s definitions for our lives.
Having good council is important as believers.
Not allowing assumptions about others to direct us but we still need the wisdom and guidance of others. A good rule of thumb is to invite others in for decisions and to pray with you, especially about big decisions. This is a wise thing to do.
Ultimately this verse speaks to following hard after Jesus with everything! Let us be those who are found to be all about Jesus!