“Let no man despise thy
youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in
charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity.” -1 Timothy 4:12
You cannot put a price on a good, Godly example. It can
educate, endorse, inspire, encourage, and if nothing else; it will last to the
next generation. If you were so fortunate to be a son or daughter to good
parents, then you know what a solid Godly example can do in your life. So
in the church, an example of the believer though often met without praise, is
essential.
When we are called out of the world and into the body of Christ,
or perhaps more plainly, when you are called to be a Christian; you are
simultaneously called to be an example. Now consider, God is a just God,
so he will not charge you with a task and then leave you out in the cold.
He will equip you with the Holy Ghost to live this example if you obey the Holy
Ghost. As adults, some of us like to believe that there is an adult world
and a children world. We like to think that the two are separate.
This is an “adult beverage” or “adult entertainment”. Do we really believe
that the places we go, the people we hang around, and the things we consume
will be total divorced from those around us? Do you really think the same
vices you have your children will not?
Your example with educate, endorse and encourage them to do the same.
They will follow your example. What we teach and preach matters very
little if we do not live it! Paul did not exhort Timothy to just be an
example in word, he said to be one in conversation, charity, spirit, faith, and
purity. He exhorted him to be the complete example, and was not Christ
the complete example? When we say we are Christians we claim that we are
Christ like. Men and women can fume and fuss, stew and squabble over this
and that, but it is hard to argue with a complete Christian example. A
man or women who lives it out each and every day. Those who have “their life hid with Christ in God.”
If you have been blessed to meet someone like this then you know what I am
talking about, and you are glad for them when it comes time to share the gospel
with someone they know. You may be the only example of Christ your:
co-worker, grocer, neighbor, children, cousin will ever see. Are you
giving them a good first impression?
Timothy was a young man receiving exhortation from a man who was a
complete example of a Christian. Paul had lived the life in front of him
and preached the gospel to him. Paul understood, Timothy understood, and
we can understand that it is not within our power and might to live a complete
example, but through Jesus’s power we can. When you give it all over to
God, he will take control and you can be a complete Christian example.
You can be a better father to your son, a better wife to your husband, a better
friend to your neighbor, and a helping hand to a stranger. The complete
example within (Jesus Christ) produces a complete example without.
