Young People’s Blog

Monthly Scripture Reading

Leviticus 14

1 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

2 This shall be the law of the leper in the day of his cleansing: He shall be brought unto the priest:

3 And the priest shall go forth out of the camp; and the priest shall look, and, behold, if the plague of leprosy be healed in the leper;

4 Then shall the priest command to take for him that is to be cleansed two birds alive and clean, and cedar wood, and scarlet, and hyssop:

5 And the priest shall command that one of the birds be killed in an earthen vessel over running water:

6 As for the living bird, he shall take it, and the cedar wood, and the scarlet, and the hyssop, and shall dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water:

7 And he shall sprinkle upon him that is to be cleansed from the leprosy seven times, and shall pronounce him clean, and shall let the living bird loose into the open field.

Hidden Service

“Not with eyeservice, as menpleasers; but in singleness of heart, fearing God: And whatsoever ye do, do it heartily, as to the Lord, and not unto men; Knowing that of the Lord ye shall receive the reward of the inheritance: for ye serve the Lord Christ” (Colossians 3:22-24).

God honors tireless service! An unwearied continuance in well-doing! A great many young people like to be engaged for a time in the Lord’s work from love of activity or other reasons. But quiet, patient, ongoing, faithful obedience, notwithstanding human praise or blame, is what the Master values. An older brother in Christ related the following story to some of us when I was a young person.

“After a gospel meeting I went back to pick up my Bible which I had forgotten. An old man was busy picking up the hymn books. He looked up as I came in and said, ‘I always have lots of help giving out the hymn books, but I always find myself picking them up alone.’  ”

Yes, we are more anxious to do a service that is readily seen, but don’t forget, the Lord sees and will greatly reward the less-noticed work. “Thy Father which seeth in secret Himself shall reward thee openly” (Matthew 6:4).

Dear Young Christian:

I spend a lot of time in the Caribbean. Here we try to make Bibles accessible and affordable to the average person. Sometimes this means selling them for literally pennies on the dollar, or in other words, far below cost. I guess that’s why the following article caught my eye:

In the reign of Edward I of England (1272-1307), the price of a Bible, copied by hand in writing, was 37 pounds and a day-laborer’s wage was 3 and a halfpence. Accordingly, the purchase of a Bible would have been the wages of over 15 years. Today a Bible can be bought for a couple of dollars or less. We found one book store which would not sell Bibles, they only gave them away. Millions of copies are distributed free every year.

This means that the responsibility of having and reading the Bible was never so great as today. We often find those who are able to buy a Bible for the first time. They often have tears in their eyes as they make their purchase. And yet I wonder how much you and I really value the Word of God?

Your Christian Friend,

Jim Hyland

We would love to hear from you. Send your comments or questions to [email protected]

Worship

“O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the Lord our maker” (Psalm 95:6).

When we think about the awesomeness of God our Maker, our reaction should be to worship and bow down in His presence. He made us and He sustains our life. Paul said, when preaching on Mars’ Hill, “God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that He is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; Neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though He needed any thing, seeing He giveth to all life, and breath, and all things” (Acts 17:24, 25).

Yet, more than this He has provided salvation for us through the work of the cross. He has saved us by His grace and a work of His Spirit. He has a home prepared for us in heaven, and has promised to come Himself and take us to that home. His love is great and He is the God of the universe. He became a man so that He could redeem us to Himself and enjoy our company now and forever. Remember that as you worship Him today. He is worthy of all worship! “Worship thou HIM” (Psalm 45:11).

Dissatisfied

I heard a term today that I’d never heard before: “chronic dissatisfaction.” This is certainly one way to sum up the spirit of the twenty-first century. If there was every a time in history when people were dissatisfied, restless, and unthankful for what they have or their lot in life, it is now.

The good news is, there is permanent and lasting satisfaction found in the Lord Jesus Christ. You can be “satisfied with favour, and full with the blessing of the Lord” (Deuteronomy 33:23). “For He satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness” (Psalm 107:9). People are wasting time and spending money looking for inward happiness and gratification, when the Bible says: “Ho, every one that thirsteth, come ye to the waters, and he that hath no money; come ye, buy, and eat; yea, come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? and your labour for that which satisfieth not” (Isaiah 55:1-2)? Only the One who made us can satisfy our souls. Turning to Him for His free salvation will bring satisfaction now, in this life, and untold satisfaction and joy when with Him for eternity in the Father’s house.

The guide to this calendar is found on the last page.

Good News

“How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things” (Romans 10:15).

William Elbert Robinson (Robby) was a missionary to Guatemala in the early 1900’s, and a very good friend and coworker of Cameron Townsend, the founder of Wycliffe Bible Translations. As a young man, and having been married less than three years, he drowned during a swim that the two men were enjoying in Lake Atitlan one afternoon. On his tombstone were engraved the following words.

W. E. Robinson

Bearer of Good News

Robby, as he was best known, had worked very closely with Cameron Townsend in bringing the gospel to the Cakchiquel Indians, giving them their written language, their first school, and a translation of Mark’s Gospel in their native tongue. His death was quite a blow to Cameron.

What would be put on your grave or mine in the event of a sudden or untimely death? Could it be said that were the bearers of good news? Paul in preaching at Antioch could say: “We declare unto you glad tidings” (Acts 13:32).

Gates of Nehemiah — The Sheep Gate

“Then Eliashib the high priest rose up with his brethren the priests, and they builded the sheep gate; they sanctified it” (Nehemiah 3:1).

The first gate mentioned is the sheep gate. This reminds us of salvation and the work of redemption accomplished at Calvary. The Lord said, “I am the Good Shepherd: the Good Shepherd giveth His life for the sheep” (John 10:11).It is significant that the building of this gate was overseen by the high priest, speaking to us again of the work of our High Priest, the Christ Jesus. It does not say that it had to be repaired like the other gates, as the work of Christ will never fail, never need to be repeated or added too.

Practically speaking, we learn that all other service in the Christian life begins at the Sheep Gate. That is, by becoming one of the Lord’s sheep through faith in Him, being able to say, “The Lord is my shepherd” (Psalm 23:1). Otherwise, “all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags” (Isaiah 64:6).

This gate would also remind us of the need of shepherding. Peter was instructed by the Lord, “Shepherd My sheep” (John 21:16). Each of us can in some way carry this out in caring for our fellow sheep in the flock of God.

Gates of Nehemiah — Introduction

In the book of Nehemiah we have the rebuilding of the wall of Jerusalem. A wall in Scripture would speak of separation from the world, reminding us of the words of the Lord Jesus, “They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. Sanctify them through Thy truth: Thy Word is truth” (John 17:16-17). In the days of Nehemiah, Jerusalem was in ruin and the wall broken down. The lesson we learn is simply that the people were neglecting to hold fast the principle of practical separation from the world, namely the heathen peoples around them, and that we need to be exercised to walk in practical sanctification and holiness.

Many names are mentioned in regard to the building of the wall, and each had a specific work to do. This is in keeping with the verse that reminds us, “to every man his work” (Mark 13:34). As believers we all have a part to do in the maintenance of personal and collective testimony.

In connection with this work of restoration there are twelve gates, ten in chapter three, and two in chapter twelve. We will consider the practical application of these gates starting tomorrow and continuing on each third Thursday of the month.

Our Words

“Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few” (Ecclesiastes 5:2).

“But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment” (Matthew 12:36).

Some of us tend to talk more than others, and some of us tend to speak before we think. Often I have to apologize because I spoke too quickly, or talked out of turn. Many times we talk just for the sake of talking, and it becomes just useless and senseless babble.

The Bible has a good deal to say about our words, and the consequence of what we say. The above two verses are just a small sample of instruction and warning, but we need to take them to heart (perhaps some more than others). It is a serious thing to consider the fact that we will have to give an account of every word we speak in this life. Will what we say today be for the good of others or for their hurt? Or will what we say be just idle chatter with no point to it at all? Remember it is all being tallied in the records of heaven.

Dear Young Christian:

It is an understatement to say that “patience” is not one of my virtues. I always want things to happen now … instantly … immediately … without delay … without a hitch … . So it takes lots of prayer and casting myself on the Lord to see me through the day, especially days like today when things are not moving as quickly as I would like, and my plans to get things done are frustrated through circumstances I didn’t count on.

I have to keep stopping and reminding myself that the Lord has a perfect timetable, and that there are really no surprises or delays with Him.

The Spirit of the age we live in is, hurry, hurry, hurry. But let’s not be so hurried this week that we don’t have time to stop and “Consider Him” (Hebrews 12:3).

Here are two verses that have been a help to me already today:

“For ye have need of patience” (Hebrews 10:36).

“Let patience have her perfect work” (James 1:4).

Your Christian Friend,

Jim Hyland

We would love to hear from you. Send your comments or questions to [email protected]