A Second Pair of Eyes
Monday, December 23, 2024
“Let the oldest saint examine the basics of his piety, for gray heads may cover evil hearts: And the young professor should not despise the word of warning, for the greenness of youth may accompany the rottenness of hypocrisy.” – C.H. Spurgeon
If I could translate Spurgeon’s Elizabethan English into modern-day vernacular, it would sound something like this…
“Just because you are old, doesn’t mean you are wise. And just because you are young, doesn’t mean that your idealism isn’t really pride, arrogance, or hypocrisy in disguise.”
In other words, men (and women) my age should examine themselves regularly – just like they do for skin cancer – to make sure that they are aging well. Like a fine wine, we should possess and exhibit a deeper and richer spiritual flavor as we tack on the years… and if we don’t, then we need to make some course corrections ASAP.
To me, the key to this self-examination is to invite someone else to help you take spiritual inventory of yourself. Just like a dermatologist can detect a suspicious mole or age spot that our untrained eyes might overlook, so the input of a trusted Christian friend is invaluable.
Likewise, young men and women who are full of vim and vigor should look in the mirror and determine if they see Jesus staring back at them. Once again, a second pair of eyes can prove extremely helpful in this often grueling and uncomfortable process.
Our primary goal as Christians (young and old) is to become more like Jesus in every way possible. And like the old saying goes, “It takes a village (or a body of believers)” to accomplish this all-important task.
“Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith and in purity.” I Timothy 4:12 (NIV)
“Do not rebuke an older man but encourage him as you would a father, younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, younger women as sisters, in all purity.” I Timothy 5:1-2 (ESV)
“Young men, in the same way, submit yourselves to your elders. And all of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because, ‘God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.’” I Peter 5:5 (BSB)
- Rev. Dale M. Glading, President
