Young People’s Blog

“See what love the Father has given to us, that we should be called the children of God” (1 John 3:1 JND).

Yesterday we saw how important it was for us to have a new life in Christ, so that we could do what it right. But today, right in the very next verse, we have something quite different, and very encouraging. If we are truly saved, we have the ability to do what is right before God. However, we are also now part of the family of God, because He loves us so much. A ruler of a country might tell his subjects that because they are citizens of that country, they should act in a way to bring honor to the country. But it would be quite different if that ruler could bring them into his own home, make them his children, and give them his nature. Of course, in natural things we know that would be impossible, but God has now given us the very nature of His beloved Son, and made us part of His family. It is His love that has done this for us! Now all true believers have a desire to please God, not only because they have His nature, but because He loves them.

“If ye know that He is righteous, ye know that every one that doeth righteousness is born of Him” (1 John 2:29).

The word “righteous” simply means to do the right thing, and it means not merely to do the right thing in the sight of other people, but rather to do the right thing before God. There are many things done in the world today that people think are all right, but in the sight of God they may be very wrong. For example, in many countries today it is quite legal for two people of the same sex to get married, but this is totally against the Word of God.

Those who really want to do what is right before God are those who are “born of Him.” That means that we have accepted the Lord Jesus Christ as our Savior, and thus have a new life in Christ. Then we have a nature that wants to do what is right, for we have the same nature as the Lord Jesus. Just think of it; if you are truly saved, you have the same life as the Lord Jesus! It is a new life that wants to please God.

“There is a generation, O how lofty are their eyes! And their eyelids are lifted up” (Proverbs 30:13).

“But to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at My word” (Isaiah 66:2).

In our first verse for today, Solomon talks about a generation whose eyes are lofty. That means that they are proud, and that they think very highly of themselves. We all know that we are living today with that kind of generation. Almost everyone in this world is very proud, and the result is often bad manners, uncontrolled anger, and other examples of incivility. Have you noticed that very few people ever apologize anymore, even if they have done something very wrong? We are warned in 2nd Timothy 3 that the world will be like that in the last days.

However, we cannot approach God in that way, for pride is one of the worst sins in the sight of God. As created beings, we are to be humble, and also contrite. To be contrite means to be repentant, and to realize that we are all naturally guilty before a holy God. If we realize that we are sinners, and come to God in that attitude, He is ready to receive us, and to forgive our sins through the blood of Christ. But God will not receive those who come in pride. We have no right to be proud, for every form of pride is wrong.

“In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise” (Proverbs 10:19).

When I was a boy, I liked to talk, but often I spoke too much, and sometimes it got me into trouble. What we say can often do that, for people that talk a lot sometimes say things that they should not say. It is much better to think carefully before we speak, and to say less rather than too much. Also, as Christians, if we think carefully about what we are going to say, and ask the Lord to help us, we will likely say things that please the Lord too. When we talk too much, we not only irritate other people, but as our verse says, we may also say sinful things.

As I got older, I learned to be more careful when I spoke up, and to consider carefully before the Lord what I was going to say. That is what it means when it says, “He that refraineth his lips is wise.” We do not use the word “refrain” much today in everyday speech, but it means to “hold back,” or to stop doing something. It is a good thing for all of us to remember when we want to speak.

“But God, who is rich in mercy…even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ” (Ephesians 2:4-5).

Mercy is not receiving the punishment that we deserve, and as we see in our verse today, God is rich in mercy. He reached down to us even when we were dead in sins, and gave us new life in Christ. This is a wonderful privilege, but how much it cost God to do this! In natural things, we can show mercy to others without incurring much cost, but in order to show mercy to you and me, God had to give His only Son to die on Calvary’s cross.

On this the Lord’s Day, it is now our privilege to remember our Lord Jesus in His death, and to be reminded of the price that was paid, in order that we might be saved.

“For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ” (Galatians 3:27).

Although baptism does not have anything to do with our eternal salvation, yet it is very important for us as Christians. In our verse for today, we see that those who have been baptized have “put on Christ.” What does this mean?

It means that before this world, you take the place of belonging to Christ. When I was young, people sometimes wore what were called “sandwich boards.” They would have two large pieces of wood, or sometimes thick cardboard, hung over their shoulders by straps or pieces of rope. Then there was usually something written on the sandwich boards, which now hung down on the person’s chest and back. Often it was advertising, but sometimes Christians would put gospel verses on the sandwich board, and then walk down the street.

Being baptized is like that. You are telling the world that you belong to Christ. This puts a big responsibility on us, for then we need to act like Christ, and honor Him in our life.

“Keep by the Holy Spirit which dwells in us, the good deposit entrusted” (2 Timothy 1:14 JND).

Yesterday we spoke about a deposit that we can make with the Lord, but today we see that there is a deposit He gives us to keep. If the Lord has revealed precious truth from His Word to us, He expects us to keep it, to guard it carefully, and to live it out in our lives. He tells those in the assembly in Philadelphia in Revelation 3:11 to “hold that fast which thou hast, that no man take thy crown.”

The truth of God, given to us in the Word of God, is precious to God because it exalts Christ, and He expects that same truth to be precious to us too. Many are giving it up today, but that makes it all the more valuable. Are you one of those who wishes to honor the Lord by keeping that good deposit for Him?

“I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep for that day the deposit I have entrusted to Him” (2 Timothy 1:12 JND).

In this chapter of 2nd Timothy we have two deposits mentioned—one that we give the Lord to keep for us, and one that He gives us to keep. Today we are considering the deposit we give Him. What is it?

We are all familiar with depositing money in a bank, and normally we expect the bank to keep it safely for us. When we live for the Lord in this world, and serve Him, we are making a deposit in heaven, for which the Lord will reward us. “That day” is the day when the Lord will hand out rewards, and when He will recognize what we have done for Him. The Apostle Paul had faithfully preached the gospel and also the whole truth of God. Even though some had opposed him, he was confident in the deposit he had entrusted to the Lord.

In this world, banks sometimes fail, and the people who have deposited their money in them may lose that money. But this will never happen with the Lord; we can trust Him to keep what we have deposited with Him.

“My grace is sufficient for thee: for My strength is made perfect in weakness…for when I am weak, then am I strong” (2 Corinthians 12:9-10).

It happens at any age, but especially when we are young, that we like to think we can handle the situations in our own lives. Our bodies are strong, our minds are at their best, and we want to deal with our own lives in the way that we think best. However, there are times in our life when the Lord makes us feel our weakness. Maybe you have already experienced this sometimes in your life.

Have you ever felt as if the problem you were having was too big for you to solve? Have you ever felt that what you were being asked to do was just too much? If so, you are in good company, for the Apostle Paul sometimes felt the same way. But then he had to realize that when his strength was not enough, he could rely on the Lord’s strength. That is what he means when he says, “When I am weak, then am I strong.” When he trusted in his own strength, he found out that he was weak, but when he gave up on his own strength, and trusted in the Lord’s strength, he found out that the Lord’s strength made him strong. Also, then the Lord got the credit for it, and not Paul. You and I need to do this too. If the going gets too hard for us, He wants us to ask for His strength.

“I will very gladly spend and be spent for you” (2 Corinthians 12:15).

It is a great thing to be willing to spend our money for the Lord, and also our other resources—our time, our energy, our abilities, etc. It is a privilege to use whatever we have for Him and His interests in this world. But what does it mean to “be spent?”

To “be spent” means that sometimes others take advantage of us and expect us to do things for them that perhaps they should be able to do for themselves. It means that we are not only doing what we feel the Lord has called us to do, but in addition are being asked to do things by other people. Sometimes this is hard, as we may feel that we are doing more than our share.

Yet the Apostle Paul would gladly “spend and be spent” for those in Corinth, even though he did not get much real thanks for it. But if we serve the Lord, we can trust Him for the reward. We may not get it in this world, but will definitely be rewarded by the Lord in a coming day.