Don’t Despise the Youth (1 Timothy 4:12)

Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in love, in faith, in purity.
— 1 Timothy 4:12

What an encouragement from Paul to Timothy. He was leading this church and was young and likely very intimidated. I mean, you read in 2 Timothy 1 where Paul encourages him by saying, “God has not given us a Spirit of timidity and fear, but a Spirit of power and love and self-control.” And so he looks Timothy in the eye here in 1 Timothy 4:12 and says, “Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example.”

1 Timothy 4:12 challenges the next generation to set an example.

And as I read this, I just want to speak to the next generation. So anyone who would say, “Okay, I’m classified as youth,” or you feel like youth in your life, in the church, in any role of leadership you’re in, and hear God saying to you to set an example for other believers, including obviously those who are older than you, in the way you speak, in your conduct, the way you act, in your love, in the way you love others, in your faith and in purity.

Oh God, for the next generation to be an example in all these ways. And then for those who may not consider themselves youth, and you’re thinking of others when you think of those who are younger than you, work, give your life to raise up younger people who are setting an example for you, and then follow their example. I would encourage you to even intentionally think through how are any younger believers around you setting an example for you in their speech, in their conduct, in their love, in their faith, in their purity.

I think as a parent of young children, when we’re having our family worship times, and I see in my kids sometimes, like young kids, childlike faith. Yes, I trust God for this. I’m asking God for this. I believe God’s going to do this in a way that challenges me and my faith. This is part of the picture of multi-generational beauty in the body of Christ.

Older brothers and sisters in Christ should set an example for younger brothers and sisters in Christ. But the picture here in 1 Timothy 4 is for younger brothers and sisters in Christ to be setting the example for older brothers and sisters in Christ. So I want to lead us to pray, then specifically for younger brothers and sisters in Christ to set this example, and for older brothers and sisters in Christ to follow that example.

1 Timothy 4:12 encourages a multigenerational godliness.

So God, we pray for this in your church. We pray for all that comes to our mind when we think about younger brothers and sisters in Christ, younger believers, younger men, women, students, and children. We pray for their thriving in you. We pray for that so that they might set an example. God, we pray right now that they would be examples for older brothers and sisters in Christ in their speech, in their conduct, in their love, in their faith, and in their purity.

God, we pray that it would be so. And God, we pray that older brothers and sisters in Christ would follow their example, that you would help older brothers and sisters in Christ to exalt you in their speech and their conduct and their love and their faith and their purity because they’re watching the younger generation.

We pray, God, for this multi-generational dynamic to be evident in our lives and our churches.

A Prayer for the Adyghe People

And God, as we pray for unreached people, the Adyghe people of Turkey today, for 400,000 of them. I think about young adult college student conferences, where so many students are saying with zeal, “Yes, I want to spend my life for the spread of the gospel among the nations.” May it be so, God. Raise up multitudes, more students who are zealous for the spread of your glory among the nations. Young adults who are throwing aside the pleasures and pursuits of this world, who are running after your glory among the nations. No matter what that means, no matter what that costs, God, may it be so in the next generation.

And God, we pray that you would help those in former generations and older generations to follow their lead. We pray that for the spread of the gospel to the Adyghe of Turkey and to multitudes of other people groups like them. All according to your Word in 1 Timothy 4:12. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen. Amen.