OceanSide church of Christ

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ADVICE OF AN OLDER MAN TO YOUNG PEOPLE

Victor M. Eskew

 

INTRODUCTION

 

A.    In the book of Proverbs, we find an older, wiser man addressing his son. 

1.      Twenty-two times we read the words:  “My son” with words of instruction to follow.

2.      Two examples:

a.      Proverbs 1:8

 

My son, hear the instruction of thy father, and forsake not the law of thy mother.

 

b.      Proverbs 1:10

 

My son, if sinners entice thee, consent thou not.

 

B.      In Judaism, when a man turned 60, he was known as one of the elders, that is, an old man.  I reached that mark about a year and a half ago.

 

C.     Question:  If I had to address a group of young people only one time, what would I tell them? 

 

D.    The title to our lesson this morning is:  “Advice of An Older Man to Young People.”

 

I.                   CHOICES ARE IMPORTANT

 

A.    Two thoughts:

1.      Every morning begins with a choice:  “Will I get out of bed?  Or, will I just lay here?”

2.      Every choice has a consequence attached to it.

 

B.      God has made us creatures with free-moral agency, that is, the ability to choose (Deut. 30:19).

 

I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing:  therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.

 

C.     Young people will be confronted with a multitude of life altering choices between graduation and the age of 30:  education, job, marriage, children, a place to live, etc.

 

D.    When you make your choices:  “Chose wisely!” (Prov. 16:20a).

 

He that handleth a matter wisely shall find good…

 

II.                TEMPTATIONS ARE REAL

 

A.    Satan is a real being.

 

B.      Satan’s mission is singular in nature:  destroy (I Pet. 5:8).

 

Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.

 

 

C.     Satan’s method of destruction begins with our likes, wants, desires, and wishes.  His method is called temptation (James 1:14).

 

But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed.

 

D.    His enticement usually comes with one of two promises.

1.      It will not harm you.  “Ye shall not surely die” (Gen. 3:4).

2.      It is good for you.  “For God doth know that in the day ye eat thereof, then your eyes shall be opened, and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil” (Gen. 3:5).

 

E.      The key to overcoming temptation is to resist and never give in (James 4:7b).

 

…Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.

 

                        NOTE:  The best way to resist is with quotes from the Word of God (See the temptation                                   of Jesus, Matt. 4:1-11, “It is written”).

 

F.      If we yield, great harm can befall us.  Adam and Eve, David, and Judas should assure all of us of this truth.

 

III.             YOU DO NOT KNOW IT ALL

 

A.    When we are young, we get a smattering of knowledge and think we are very smart.

 

B.      As I was contemplating this point, three Bible characters came to mind.

1.      The young man Absalom who rebelled against his father and was killed while his body dangled from a tree branch.

2.      Rehoboam the son of Solomon who listened to the advice of the young men instead of the old men and caused the kingdom of Israel to be divided, never to be united again.

3.      The young prodigal son who spent his substance on riotous living and found himself in a pig pen eating the husks the swine did eat.

 

C.     Here is something that you will find as you grow older.  “The more you learn, the less you know.” 

 

D.    Two points of advice:

1.      Seek out a multitude of counsellors before making your decisions (Prov. 14:11).

 

Where no counsel is, the people fall:  but in the multitude of counselors, there is safety.

 

2.      When you are in need of wisdom, be like Solomon and pray to God for it (I Kings 3:9; James 1:5).

 

If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him.

 

IV.             NO ONE IS INVINCIBLE

 

A.    In our youth we are strong and unusually healthy.

 

B.      Sometimes, we begin to believe that we are invincible, that is, “incapable of being conquered, defeated, or subdued” (www.dictionary.com). 

 

C.     I can smoke and it will not harm me.

I can drink and it will not become my master.

I can do drugs and will never be addicted.

I can do dumb things and not get hurt.

I can associate with evil people and not be lured in.

 

D.    Whenever I start to think that I am invincible, I think of a man by the name of Goliath.  He, too, thought he could not be defeated, but one smooth stone from the pouch of a shepherd boy dropped him immediately on the field of battle (I Sam. 17:49).

 

And David put his hand in his bag, and took thence a stone, and slung it, and smote the Philistine in his forehead, that the stone sunk into his forehead; and he fell upon his face to the earth.

 

V.                HELP IS ALWAYS AVAILABLE

 

A.    Most of us love to be independent and self-sufficient.  In other words, we do not want to call upon others for assistance.

 

B.      There will be times, however, that we will find:

1.      We are not smart enough.

2.      We are not powerful enough.

3.      We are not rich enough.

4.      We are not tough enough.

5.      We are not disciplined enough.

 

C.     When these times come, we may find out as well that we are in trouble.

 

D.    Help can often be found in a multitude of places:  family, friends, employers, counselors, preachers, elders of the church, one’s church family, government programs, secular programs, etc.

 

E.      Two points of advice.

1.      Asking for help involves a lot of humility.  Develop this attribute (James 4:10).

 

Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and he shall lift you up.

 

2.      Do not wait too long for help.  It is easier to pull a man out of mud when he is ankle deep in it rather than when he is neck deep. 

 

VI.             MASTER SOME THINGS

 

A.    When I say to “master” some things, I mean “to learn and practice some things with great skill.”

 

B.      Here are some things I believe young people need to master.

1.      The tongue

2.      Time

3.      Cravings of all kinds

4.      Finances

5.      Organizational skills

6.      Urgency

 

C.     We might summarize these under one heading:  temperance or self-control (Prov. 25:28).

 

He that hath no rule over his own spirit is like a city that is broken down, and without walls.

 

VII.          MAKE YOU RELATIONSHIP WITH GOD YOUR MAIN FOCUS

 

A.    One day every human being will be in the presence of God with nothing else to cling to.  The world with all of its pleasures and things will be gone.  At that moment, it will be just me and God.

 

B.      We will stand before God as either a friend or a foe. 

We will stand before God as His child or as His enemy. 

We will stand before God as His servant or as His opponent.

 

C.     When we stand before Him, our relationship with Him will be the only thing that will matter.

1.      Our riches will not matter.

2.      Our position on earth will not matter.

3.      Our career path will not matter.

4.      Our educational level will not matter.

5.      Our recreational choices will not matter.

6.      Our relationships with others will not matter.

 

D.    In order to be ready to stand before God, we MUST develop our relationship with Him right now and never let anything stand in the way of that relationship.

 

E.      There is an interesting verse that gives us insight in how to have a relationship with God (John 4:23).

 

Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words:  and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.

 

1.      Jesus said that keeping His words was the way to create a relationship with God.

2.      II John 9a reveals the opposite of this teaching.

 

Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God…

 

CONCLUSION

 

A.    When John wrote his epistles, he was an older man.  In both II John and III John he refers to himself as “the elder.”

 

B.      In His first epistle, he refers to his readers as “my little children” (I John 2:1; 3:18).  He was giving them divine counsel as an older man to those who were younger. 

 

C.     This is what we have tried to do in this lesson.  We have advised you in seven areas:

1.      Choices are important.

2.      Temptations are real.

3.      You do not know it all.

4.      You are not invincible.

5.      Help is always available.

6.      There are some things you need to master.

7.      You must make your relationship with God your main focus.

 

D.    Today, you are young.  Soon you will be old.  You will wonder:  “Where did my life go?” 

 

E.      Do you need to focus on your relationship with God?  We can assist you today.