Are you Young at Heart?

 

2 Timothy 2:22-26

Are you young at heart, old Blue eyes (Frank Sinatra) sang a great song that went like this:

Fairy tales can come true, it can happen to you
If you're young at heart
For it's hard, you will find, to be narrow of mind
If you're young at heart
 
Don't you know that it's worth every treasure on earth
To be young at heart
For as rich as you are it's much better by far
To be young at heart

The song states at the end “And if you should survive to 105
Look at all you'll derive out of being alive
Then here is the best part, you have a head start
If you are among the very young at heart.”  And isn’t it great to be young at heart and to accentuate the positive?  I believe it’s the way to live life, and our culture seems to promote youth, and we see many who have missed the message of being young at heart, in that they are still running after youthful passions; like how much stuff can I acquire or can I still conquer the opposite sex in order to feel young.  These people are not young at heart; they are very empty trying to fill up their days with self-gratification.

And that is what the apostle Paul is addressing, not being young at heart, but being a person who put self first and uses people.  Paul is not saying, put away your “Young at heart” mindset, but flee the passions of self.  In the book of 1 Corinthians 13, used often
in wedding ceremonies and is referred to as the love chapter, verse 11 states; “When I was a child, I spoke like a child, I reasoned like a child.  When I became a man, I gave up childish ways.”  That is what Paul is addressing, beginning in 1Timothy 2:22, “So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart.”  I come to understand it is impossible to put self on the throne of my life and seek faith, love, and peace, for to pursue righteousness I must seek the Righteous One, the Lord Jesus Christ.

My flesh likes to be first, to be seen as someone of value, it likes to give its opinion and if the flesh is not under control of the Spirit, it leads to foolish, ignorant controversies, and they always bring about quarrels.  Paul is telling Timothy, keep your opinions to yourself, because these only lead to quarrels, and the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness.

Often we believe that getting in the face of that person seeking what is described, as “Youthful Passions” is the right thing to do, but it often causes greater division.  The apostle Peter warns us about how the enemy of our soul is wanting to devour us in 1 Peter 5:8, “Be sober-minded; be watchful.  Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.”  We must not lose sight that these are Christians, who have been taken captive by the evil one.  Verses 25b - 26 are very clear on this: “God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.”

Please be young at heart an always accentuate the positive, we need that so much in a time when many of us are acquiring age, but please put away the foolish passions of independent living, and place yourself under the authority of Jesus Christ.

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice