Hans Sangtoki Bible Reading: 2 Timothy 2:20-26
“So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord fro a pure heart” (2 Timothy 2:22)
Young people like us often struggle with having two desires — one for the world and one for God. On the one hand, we are zealous and active to seek God. But, on the other hand, we enjoy worldly desires that lead to sin.
For me, I still struggle with this question: how can I follow God zealously and wholeheartedly while still being youthful and not becoming stiff that I cannot interact with other young people? But, on the other hand, how can I still have a youthful flair while living a life of holiness? Do these two even mix?
Timothy clearly tells us that we ought to set our youth apart for honourable use in God’s kingdom. We ought to pursue holiness so that we can be used for every good work. We cannot follow this world’s hedonist youth culture, which is only about having fun at the moment. We cannot indulge in the things our culture calls ‘fun’, i.e. partying our days away, purely only enjoying a hectic social life filled with drinks and stupid and irresponsible jokes and actions. We cannot become such people. We ought to cleanse ourselves so that our youth can be redeemed for a more honourable cause, to be used by God in His kingdom.
Fleeing from youthful passions, we are called to pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart. Therefore, we are called into a Christian community to pursue holiness together. That is what RE Gen-Z is about. We want to flee from youthful passions to pursue righteousness, faith, love and peace. The means for all this is through fellowship in God’s Word by the work of the Holy Spirit.
Does that mean we all have to become stiff, holy, and unattractable people who cannot socially interact with the world? We are called to be separate, but we still live in this world, and we are to be a light in this world. Yet, we must know that the world is evil and consistently trying to drag us into its lies. So how are we meant to respond and socially live our lives?
This matter takes great wisdom, and wisdom comes from the fear of the Lord. This is what we must seek if we are to find the answer to pressing questions such as these. Only as we grow in fear of the Lord will we know how to live holy lives yet at the same time connect and bring other teens to know Christ. May growing in fear of the Lord be the number one priority in each of our lives.
Lord, teach us to fear You. Teach us to flee from youthful passions and teach us to pursue holiness. Forgive us, for we love the world too much. Those who love the world cannot love You. So we pray, plant in our hearts a whole love for You alone. Strengthen us and help us as young people to fear You from now and be a witness to all those around us. In Jesus’ name, amen.