Exemplary Examples

1 Timothy 4:9-14

Observation/Questions:
v. 10 - the living God is the Savior of all men, especially those who believe. I understand how God is the Savior of all those who believe but how is he then the Savior of all men? Is this what theologians mean when they talk about "common grace"?
v. 11 - what things exactly was Timothy supposed to command and teach on? Not to let people look down on him because he was young? I'm sure that would go over well: "I have a new command for you people: don't look down on me because I'm young!"
v. 12 - most young people (am I still young?) stop at this point: "don't look down on me because I am young". They miss the instructions to set an example in speech, life, love, faith and purity. This is such a tall order! But can you imagine what the Body of Christ would look like if its younger members took the principles of this command seriously! This is where I stand condemned: I am too worried about the joke to make sure that I am exemplary in my speech. I don't really take seriously the commmand to avoid coarse joking and foolish talk. I think there are too realities: 1) I don't want to be seen as holier than everyone else. This is sad because I am more concerned with people's perceptions than with Christ's. 2) (this is related to 1) It is a risk to start a serious conversation about spiritual matters. Most people, even Christians, get pretty uncomfortable. This is sad, too. Our spiritual journey is supposed to be the priority for our lives and we won't talk about it! My prayer is that Christ would give me the humility to be a proper example to other believers (both older and younger than me) in these areas.
v. 14 - I think the church needs to get back to this. Rather than individuals taking spiritual gift tests and surveys and going to a guidance counsellor for aptitude testing, the church (the community of saints, not the institution) needs to get back in the business of comissioning its young people for the work that the community has determined that God has gifted them for. I see this over and over in Scripture: the church prays and sets people apart for ministry, the community confirms the gifting and calling of the individual. Let's get back to this!