Young People’s Blog

His Desire

“And let them make Me a sanctuary; that I may dwell among them” (Exodus 25:8).

In the 25^th chapter of Exodus, we have the Lord looking down from heaven on a redeemed people and desiring their company as they journeyed through the wilderness. This is not so much the Israelites looking up and requesting the Lord’s presence amongst them, but He looking down and wanting their company. Thus He gave very specific instructions as to how this could be, and, as a result, the tabernacle was built and set up so that this could be brought about. As a result, the Lord was able to dwell in the midst of His people all throughout their forty year sojourn in the wilderness.

So it is today. The Lord Jesus desires our company around Himself, according to the instructions of His Word. He has said, “For where two or three are gathered together in My name, there am I in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:20). He desires to have us there — can we say, “The desire of our soul is to Thy name, and to the remembrance of Thee” (Isaiah 26:8)?

On the Go

Where is everyone going? I sit at a busy airport and wonder at the coming and going. I wait at a train station in Paris or London, and marvel at the number of people rushing on their way. I stand on a busy street corner and shake my head at the scores of vehicles hurrying past in all directions. Buses filled with people are everywhere. It seems as if everyone is on their way to somewhere today. Work, home, the store, school, holiday, and, I believe some are going, just to be on the move.

However, one thing is for sure and certain, in the end, we are all headed to one of two destinations — HEAVEN OR HELL! The Lord Jesus, when on earth, told His listeners to make sure they were on the right road headed to the right destination. He said, “Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it” (Matthew 7:13-14).

So while we all rush to-and-fro in our daily haste to get where we think we should be or where we need to be, let’s make sure we are saved and on the way that leads to heaven.

Jonah — Part 2

The men of Nineveh shall rise in judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: because they repented at the preaching of Jonas; and, behold, a greater than Jonas is here” (Matthew 12:41).

Jonah so despised the Gentile city of Nineveh that he tried to run away from the Lord rather than preach there. The storm and great fish were used by the Lord to make Jonah obey. But, in his heart, he was angry with the Lord for not destroying the city. He was more concerned with his reputation as a prophet than the blessing of souls. “And he prayed unto the Lord, and said, I pray Thee, O Lord, was not this my saying, when I was yet in my country? Therefore I fled before unto Tarshish: for I knew that Thou art a gracious God, and merciful, slow to anger, and of great kindness, and repentest Thee of the evil” (Jonah 4:2).

God used a gourd and a worm to speak to Jonah’s heart, and He appealed to Jonah for the many simple people and children who would have been destroyed if there were no mercy. History records that Jonah’s tomb is in Nineveh. It would seem perhaps that, not only was Jonah’s heart won to the people, but he also lived out his life ministering to them.

Jonah — Part 1

“Jonah rose up to flee unto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord” (Jonah 1:3).

When our children were very small they created a novel way to hide from people when they wanted to be left alone or wanted their own way. They would close their eyes and assume that anyone they couldn’t see couldn’t see them as well.

Jonah had a more gown-up approach to hiding, but it wasn’t any more effective than our daughters’ approach. When God asked him to go to Nineveh and deliver a message, he decided to run in the opposite direction. But he soon found out that there is no place where God couldn’t find him.

Maybe one of my readers is trying to hide from God. You are a true believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, but you don’t want to go in the direction that He is leading, or do the things you know He wants you to do. But there is nothing to fear. He is always with you, and eventually Jonah, in the belly of the great fish, came to this realization, and could say, “I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the Lord, and He heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and Thou heardest my voice” (Jonah 2:2).

Teaching

“All that Jesus began both to do and teach” (Acts 1:1).

• The Greek philosopher, Socrates, taught for forty years.

• Aristotle, the classical philosopher and scientist, instructed and schooled the elite of the day for about the same length of time.

• Plato, founder of the Academy in Athens, the first institution of higher learning in the western world, taught for some fifty years.

• Jesus, the Lord of life and glory, taught and ministered for only three years.

Yet, those three years have had a far wider and longer-lasting influence than that of the three greatest philosophers of the ancient world. That is because they only produced and taught human wisdom and reasoning. Long forgotten or unheeded are the teachings of great men of past eras and generations. But the teaching of Christ are divinely inspired, and good for all time. Familiarize yourself with those teachings, value them, and allow them to influence and direct your life. Pray, like David, “Teach me Thy way, O Lord; I will walk in Thy truth” (Psalm 86:11).

A Commission

“Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?

I sat down under a tree by the way,
And fell asleep in the heat of the day;
And I dreamed a dream where many were crying,
Because without Christ they knew they were dying.
They were pleading for someone to come and tell,
Of Jesus, the one who could save them from hell.
And as I awoke, their call having heard,
I prayed for courage to take the Word,
To those in need of salvation and light,
Forgiveness, and peace, and spiritual sight.

And this is a call we should all obey,
If we know Jesus — show others the way,
And proclaim the gospel far and near,
To the rich and poor, who to God are so dear;
This is a commission that can’t be ignored,
A command from our loving Savior and Lord!
Are you willing to go where He sends you next,
With the Word of God as your inspired text?
If you are willing to answer the call,
I am certain of blessing for one and for all!

“Then said I, Here am I; send me” (Isaiah 6:8).

Dear Young Christian:

In a grade six classroom on the island of Saint Maarten, I saw the following saying:

AS YOU GO ALONG YOUR WAY
YOUR EXAMPLE IS REMEMBERED
MORE THAN ANYTHING YOU SAY!

What will your life say today and this week? What impact will your actions have on others?

Will your life be a blessing to someone you meet?
Or your actions frustrate, and what you say defeat?
Will you be a good example to others as you pass?
Or will you lead some soul to cry, “Alas! Alas!”
What will you say to others, by actions and by deed?
Will it be a help and asset, as others your life read?

Our actions have more of an impact on others than we realize. They may not remember what we say, but they’ll remember what we did. What example will you leave as you move along through the week? “For none of us liveth to himself, and no man dieth to himself” (Romans 14:7).

Your Christian Friend,

Jim Hyland

We would love to hear from you.

Send your comments and questions to jhyland1959@gmail.com

The Cross

“And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel” (Genesis 3:15).

These words were addressed to Satan after Adam and Eve had sinned in eating of the forbidden fruit. Although I am sure that our first parents did not understand the import of this, it was on this basis that God could provide a sacrifice and coats of skin. This was because He was looking forward to the time when His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, would go to the cross and bruise the head of the serpent. Through this event, access back into the presence of God and entrance into heaven would be provided. “For it pleased the Father that in Him should all fulness dwell; And, having made peace through the blood of His cross, by Him to reconcile all things unto Himself; by Him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven. And you, that were sometime alienated and enemies in your mind by wicked works, yet now hath He reconciled in the body of His flesh through death, to present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in His sight” (Colossians 1:19-22). What a precious theme “His cross” is for our hearts today.

True Riches

“What shall a man give in exchange for his soul” (Mark 8:37)?

• Not the world, for it passes away.

“The world passeth away, and the lust thereof” (1 John 2:17).

• Not his wealth, for it is of no profit.

“Riches profit not in the day of wrath” (Proverbs 11:4).

• Not his honor for it perishes.

“Nevertheless man being in honor abideth not” (Psalm 49:12).

No, it is only in Christ that we can have a part in a world to come that will never cease. True riches and honor are found only in Him, and founded on the work of Calvary. “In whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (Ephesians 1:7). “That in the ages to come He might show the exceeding riches of His grace in His kindness toward us through Christ Jesus” (Ephesians 2:7).

These are the “true riches” (Luke 16:11). Are they yours?

Monthly Question Page — Part 2

(Continued from last month.)

Q. How can a Christian walk through this life in a path of separation from the world and still be a testimony to those around them … friends at school, neighbors etc.?

A. Last month we considered how Philippians 2:15, teaches us that God has left us here in this wicked world to shine as a light for Him. We cannot isolate ourselves.

However, in the next verse we are told, “Holding forth the Word of life” (verse 16).This has particularly to do with the words we speak. We need to be always ready to speak for the Lord, but we cannot speak for Him if we are isolationists. Speaking is direct communication. So, the life we live as well as what we say are both important.

We never want to compromise the truth of Scripture to reach out to souls. “Lay hands suddenly on no man, neither be partaker of other men’s sins: keep thyself pure” (1 Timothy 5:22). In taking advantage of opportunities to witness for Christ, we want to be sure it’s in a way that maintains personal holiness and purity. “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).

We would love to hear from you.

Send your comments and questions to jhyland1959@gmail.com