“Don’t be ridiculous!” Saul replied. “There’s no way you can fight this Philistine and possibly win! You’re only a boy, and he’s been a man of war since his youth.”… Goliath walked out toward David with his shield bearer ahead of him, sneering in contempt at this ruddy-faced boy. “Am I a dog,” he roared at David, “that you come at me with a stick?” [1 Samuel 17:33,41-43 (NLT)]
While reading about David and Goliath, I realized that it’s not just our seniors who can be undervalued or overlooked. It’s as wrong to disregard the youth in our midst as it is to discount the old. Likewise, just as some seniors may underestimate their gifts, the same could be said for those who still count the years rather than the decades! Age is just a number to God—He’s more interested in willing hearts than number of years!
As the youngest of his eight sons, Jesse took little notice of David and didn’t even include him in the feast when Samuel visited! God, however, doesn’t judge by appearances (or age) and it was the 10 to 15-year-old David who Samuel anointed king! When he faced Goliath, David was in his teens and Saul ridiculed him for thinking he could slay the giant. Like Saul, Goliath underestimated the young unarmed shepherd boy and the Philistine paid for it with his life!
Samuel was no more than 5 when he started serving Eli, the high priest and judge of Israel. He was about 12 when God tasked the boy with telling Eli that God’s judgment was coming upon him and his family. Most grown men wouldn’t have done that, but Samuel did and he continued serving God for the rest of his life.
Miriam was a young girl when she saved Moses’ life. It was her quick thinking that convinced Pharaoh’s daughter to hire their mother as his wet nurse. Saul’s son Jonathon was 20 when he and his armor bearer bravely attacked the Philistine camp and Jeremiah was less than 20 when God called him to be His prophet. While we picture Solomon as a wise old king, he was about 20 or less when he ascended the throne and sensibly asked God for that wisdom. Although Josiah was only 8 when crowned Judah’s king, Scripture tells us that he sought the Lord in all he did and showed more wisdom than far older kings.
Daniel, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego were between 13 and 20 when they courageously refused Nebuchadnezzar’s food so they could observe the dietary laws of the Torah and it was young Daniel who found the creative way of doing it. Having wisdom and understanding beyond their years, all four entered the king’s service in their teens and Daniel became chief of the king’s wise men. God began speaking to Joseph in prophetic dreams when he was 17, it was a young slave girl who directed Naaman to Elisha for healing, and Esther probably was 14 to 16 when she became queen of Persia.
Mary was no more than 16 when she accepted her role as the mother of God and Jesus was about 30 when he began his ministry. While we don’t know the disciples’ ages, we tend to picture them as mature men. Yet, a rabbi’s disciples usually were younger than their teacher so they probably ranged from no more than 30 to as young as 13—the age a boy usually became a rabbi’s disciple. When Christ was crucified three years later, they probably were between 16 and 33! Yet, those young men brought 3,000 to Jesus on Pentecost, formed a Christian community, preached in the Temple, spoke before the High Council, and defiantly continued to teach and preach that Jesus was the Messiah. Tradition holds that Timothy was about 16 when he became a Christ follower, under 20 when he joined Paul and Silas through Asia Minor, and probably in his mid-30s when he led the church in Ephesus. Youth didn’t deter the heroes found in Scripture!
Let us never make the mistake of writing off the young people in our midst just because of their age. Along with their amazing technical skills, they offer enthusiasm, energy, innovative methods, fresh insight, a “can do” attitude, and the ability to quickly learn new things. On the other hand, the younger generation shouldn’t discount their value because of their lack of years. God doesn’t care about age and neither should we! Let us all remember that it was a young boy’s offer of his meager lunch that saved the day and fed over 5,000!
English philosopher Francis Bacon defined “old age” as “always 15 years older than I am.” He would have liked it here in southwest Florida because there always seems to be someone fifteen years older. Nevertheless, having recently celebrated my 77th birthday, it’s getting increasingly hard to find them! While I enjoy being told I look good, I don’t like hearing the “for your age!” ending that sentence! Hearing that qualified compliment, being called “Hon” or “Sweetie” by a waitperson or nurse less than half my age, or people assuming my grey hair means I’m computer inept and/or hard of hearing remind me of the subtle ageism in today’s society.
When I learned about people like Abraham, David, Moses, and Samson as a girl, they were the Bible’s version of super-heroes like Batman or Superman. The Bible’s heroes were larger than life, obedient, invincible, and seemed to overcome their obstacles effortlessly. Appearing perfect in their faith and actions, they weren’t people to whom I could relate. In reality, they were as flawed as the rest of us but, for the most part, their imperfections and failures were redacted from the stories we learned in Sunday school.
I suspect we would prefer a eulogy that shines a light on our victories and accomplishments but the man known as “the father of modern missions” chose otherwise. When William Carey [1762-1834] was asked what text he wanted for his funeral sermon, he chose today’s verse. The humble man wanted to shine a light on God’s lovingkindness and great compassion rather than his personal accomplishments.
In the first Advent, Jesus came as a suffering servant in a manger. In His second Advent, Jesus will return in righteousness as the conquering King who makes all things right. His return means the final destruction of sin, injustice, hate, disease, death, decay and evil. Our God, however, is one of both mercy and judgement and Malachi’s promise of the Messiah included a warning about the coming day of judgment.
