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30th April 2025
WednesdayReflection
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'John Piper'
'founder and teacher of Desiring God'
Let No One Despise You
for Your Youth
'A Vision for the Next Generation'
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The Lord Jesus has pressed on me again and again as I have aged into my seventh decade, that there is, for a short time, a calling on my life defined by Psalm 71 v 18
Now that I am old and my hair is grey, do not abandon me, O God! Be with me while I proclaim your power and might to all generations to come.
I take that very personally.
I am called to proclaim the might of God - the power of God, the majesty of God, the sovereignty of God - to another generation.
It happens today. There are astonishing statistics of how many children of evangelical churches simply disappear into the world when they leave home.
We would like to be the kind of parents and church where that is not the norm.
The point is this: the usual adult expectations for youth are too low.
So please turn with me to 1 Timothy 4 v 12.
This is one of Paul's words to the younger Timothy who needed to be reminded that his expectation for what he could be were too low.
Paul says,
"Do not let anyone look down on you because you are young, but be an example for the believers in your speech, your conduct, your love, faith, and purity".
Youth are often looked down on because of attitudes and behaviours that are annoying or immature.
Some of the things people often associate with youth are disrespect, rebellion, self-absorption, cliquishness, conformity to peer pressure, indifference to serious issues, and a fixation on fun as the only thing that satisfies.
Paul is telling Timothy to do what he can as a young man to keep that despising from happening.
Don't be indifferent to what older people think. Care about it.
Paul says, The way I want youth to pursue not being despised is look to God's standards of love and faith and purity.
In that way, even young people can become examples to older people.
The point is: find out what kind of words and conduct God wants and do that.
He gives love and faith and purity as examples of what we should do in our words and conduct.
Let all your words and actions come from faith in Christ.
Let them be loving. And keep yourselves sexually pure.
Now that may make some adults despise you.
If you stand up at school for the way of sexual abstinence before marriage, there will be adults that despise you.
But you will be right, as well as the adults who really matter, and God himself will not despise you.
So Paul's main point is that Timothy should not have low expectations of the impact of his life toward those who are older.
He should look to God, believe in the gospel, do what God calls him to do, and in that way become an example to the rest.
Of course, adults are supposed to set an example for young people.
But here it's the other way around.
That calls for a dramatic shift in mindset for most adults and youth today:
Don't adapt to the low cultural expectations for youth.
Set high ones.
Youth can become examples for adults.
Think that way. Dream that way.
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This is an edited version.
The full article and Bible references are avaiable on request
'John Piper'
is founder and teacher of Desiring God and chancellor of Bethlehem College and Seminary.
For 33 years, he served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota.
He is author of more than 50 books, including Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist and most recently Foundations for Lifelong Learning: Education in Serious Joy.
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