Timothy chapter two, and we'll read together from verse 20 to verse 22. Again, it's a joy for me to be with you this evening, and I count it a privilege to be able to come and join with you tonight. Trust the Lord will help us as we come to his word. Second Timothy chapter two, reading from verse 20. But in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of earth, and some to honor and some to dishonor. If a man therefore purge himself from these, he shall be a vessel unto honor, sanctified and meet for the master's use, and prepared unto every good work. flee also youthful lusts, but follow righteousness, faith, charity, peace, with them that call on the Lord out of a pure heart. Amen. Now I want to consider with you the phrase that we find there at the end of verse 21, and prepared unto every good work. Now as you know we are considering together preparing for the future and I want to take up with you tonight the subject of preparing for life in the church. And this is very important for us to look at together. We read here of preparing unto every good work. And work in the church is a good work, a godly work, a work that is for the glory of God. Now, at this stage in your life, every one of you do things and act according to the guidance of your parents. Many things that you do in your life right now are under the control and under the influence of your parents and they have certain convictions, certain principles that impact your life directly. so that what they believe transpires into how they teach you to behave and to act. What that means is that your mum and dad have certain principles that they believe in and that they act upon. And the way that they raise you, the way that they teach you and influence you and guide you are according to those principles. And so you then, under their guidance, are living according to those principles and truths. You are acting out what your mum and dad believe. But that does not mean that you believe them. It does not mean that those principles, those convictions that your mom and dad have are your own. Even though you might be living according to them, even though you might be under the control of your mom and dad and their influence yet, those principles are not yet yours. Until you are convinced yourself of the truths which undergird the way you've been raised, you will not continue in what you've been brought up with. And I emphasize that to you tonight because just because you've been raised in a godly home, just because you've been raised in the church, it doesn't mean that you're going to continue on with it. And sadly this is evident mostly in children who've been brought up in the church. And it's something that we see a lot today. People your age and older, many of them are leaving the church in their teens, in their early 20s. And it simply boils down to this, that they don't have personal conviction in the things that they were taught. They reach a stage in their life where they're able to act and think on their own, And given that they're no longer under the influence and the convictions of their parents, they then begin to form their own convictions. And if they're different to their parents, then they start to begin to behave differently. That may well be happening in your heart right now. Even though outwardly you are living according to a certain life based upon the principles of your mom and dad, yet inwardly, in your own heart, you don't believe what they believe. And given the chance, as you get older, to live your own way and to express yourself in your own way, you will start to go in a different direction. You see, whenever you conform to a form or to a system without understanding the truth which motivates it, It just simply becomes legalism. And legalism gets very old, doesn't it? If you're just being told you need to do this, this, and this, and you don't understand why, you don't understand the reason behind it, there isn't a motive that would stimulate you in your path of duty. If it's just laws and rules, You get sick and tired of it very quickly, don't you? And if there's no restraint in your life, you'll soon abandon those laws. And that's why I'm bringing this up with you tonight, is because that may very well be your experience. That you don't understand the truth which motivates your mum and dad's actions, and once you then leave home, once you're able to make your own decisions, you'll quickly throw it all off. But this wasn't the case for young Timothy, because he not only understood what he was taught, but he was also convinced of its truthfulness and reality. If you look with me in 2 Timothy 3 and the verse 14, 2 Timothy 3 and the verse 14, And Paul says to him, Now notice what's said there. Paul speaks of learning and then being assured. So you can receive information, but that's just learning a subject, a matter. Being assured of it goes a step further. It means it becomes your own. It becomes something that you believe in personally, you're convicted of, that you yourself believe. And so Timothy then was a young man who had been taught the scriptures, he had received the scriptures, but he himself had come to be assured that it was the word of God and that he was living by. And that's what I put to you tonight. Is it true of you that you've learned the scriptures, you've learned the gospel, and now you're assured of it, you're convinced of it? That if you were to leave your home right now and go out into the world and the influence of your parents ceased, you would still continue on in the way of godliness and of Christ because you are assured of the gospel. I wonder, is that true of you tonight? Are you convinced of the transforming power of the gospel because you've experienced it in your own life? Often when we're young, we can hear other people talking about the change in their life because of the gospel. We hear people's testimonies. And yet, you might say to yourself, I don't really know anything about that because I haven't experienced it myself. I wonder, are you certain of the unchangeable truth of God's word such that you will build your life upon its truth? That you will seek to understand life and to live life in the light of its teaching? And one of the ways of determining if you are is to consider your attitude towards the church. And this is really important because your attitude to these things will be displayed in the kind of relationship that you have to the church as you reach adulthood. Because that's what happens whenever people drift away from God's word, is they then remove themselves from the fellowship and the life of the church. And so this is what will happen then if you're not convinced. of God's truth in the gospel. You don't believe it yourself. And that's exactly what happens when people don't. They leave the church. They grow up, they get married, they start to drift, they don't attend as much as they did, and then they're not attending at all. And this is a very real threat to every one of you. There are young people all across this country tonight doing this very thing. And so I address you with it because this is a real thing, isn't it? Do you really believe these things? And are you then going to live your life in the church? As you leave the home and you leave the authority of your mom and your dad, are you building a relationship with the church now that will continue on? So I want to consider with you then the theme of preparing for life in the church, because this is something that you need to be doing now. First of all, be prepared to worship. Be prepared to worship. If you look with me in John 4 and the verse 23. John 4 and the verse 23, and this really is one of the most important verses in the Bible on worship. John 4 and the verse 23, Jesus says, "'But the hour cometh, and now is, "'when the true worshippers shall worship the Father "'in spirit and in truth. "'For the Father seeketh such to worship him. "'God is a spirit, and they that worship him "'must worship him in spirit and in truth.'" Now, it goes without saying, really, that we should prepare to worship. God has commanded his worship, and God has commanded the manner in which he is to be worshipped. So every one of you here tonight, God calls on you to worship him. But you will notice here in verse 23 that Christ speaks of the Father seeking personal, spiritual, truth-guided worship from us. You notice that, for the Father seeketh such to worship him So worship essentially is something between your heart and God's. It's a personal matter, a spiritual matter. And Christ is saying, my father's looking for people who will give him worship, in the Spirit, in the Spirit of God, that is, under the influence of the Spirit of God, through the Spirit of God, and according to the Word of God. So the point is this, are you giving personal worship to God? As an individual, are you such a worshipper? When you come to church each Sunday with your mum and dad, are you personally worshipping God? Is your heart engaged? Are you there? And you're not just sitting there because your mum and dad have brought you and you're just going through the motions, but you as an individual are entering into worship of God. It can be so easy to sit in church week by week and not engage in true worship. And I can remember that as a child. I used to sit church week after week and I was thinking about sport and I wasn't really there. I wasn't a true worshipper. And we're seeing here that the Father is seeking true worshippers, spirit worshippers. If you look with me in Matthew 15, verse 8, Matthew 15. Matthew chapter 15 and the verse 8. And Christ says, This people draweth nigh unto me with their mouth and honoureth me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. But in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men. And if you look into your own heart tonight and you understand that this is what you're offering up to God every Sabbath, you're just offering up to Him your mouth and your lips, but your heart, because that's what needs to be offered in worship, your heart. If you're not offering up your heart in worship, then you're not really worshipping God. So this is something that you need to do, and it's something you need to prepare to do. And you prepare for worship by praying before the Sabbath that the Lord would help you to worship him and to listen to his word. I wonder, do you do that on Saturday night? You ask the Lord, Lord, help me to offer my heart to you tomorrow in worship. Help me to engage spiritually and word-based worship. Help me to listen to your word, Lord. I'm easily distracted. I'm thinking about school or work or whatever it is. Lord, help me to focus my mind on your word. Help me to receive it as my life-giving bread. And then whenever you come to church on Sunday, expect God to speak to you. So you think of that, if you are at home and your dad says, I want to speak to you alone in a room, you're probably going to be going there thinking, what's dad going to say to me? And yet when you come to church on Sunday, think of it in this way, you're coming to church and you're wondering, what's God gonna say to me today? That's how you should think about it. And you should come expecting to offer yourself up to God. Remember that in the Old Testament, when the people of Israel came to the temple, to the tabernacle, they had to bring a sacrifice. Couldn't enter in without a sacrifice. And whenever you come to worship God, you're there to offer up something to God. You're there to offer up your singing. Singing is an offering to God. You're there to offer up your ear to listen. You're there to offer up prayers. You're there to offer up yourself as a sacrifice to God. Offer yourself to serve him. And in these ways you can develop a love for worship. And you can do that by engaging in worship. And when you do, you'll really come to love it. And you'll love to be with God's people, those who are engaging in true worship. And in this way then, as you grow up, you will then become more and more engaged in worship. So you need to prepare to worship. But then secondly, be prepared to serve. Be prepared to serve. If you look with me in Galatians 5 and the verse 13. Galatians 5 and the verse 13. Paul says, for brethren you have been called unto liberty only use not liberty for an occasion to the flesh but by love serve one another. He says in verse 14, for all the law is fulfilled in one word even in this thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. So this is what we're called to be then, to love one another, to love fellow Christians, and we show that love by serving one another. So love always is accompanied by actions, isn't it? And we see that in God. We know that God loves us, not because he just says so, but because of what he does. Think of the cross. And so it's the same for us then, that we show love to God, we show love to fellow believers by serving. And this is exactly how Christians are described in the Bible, aren't they? They're called the servants of Christ. you're called to be a servant you're to follow your master even as we saw tonight jesus is the servant of god and we are to follow him by serving serving him serving the saints you see if you're truly born again then you are a member of christ's body And there's a role for you to serve in according to your gifts. You have a role then to serve the other members of the body. And you think the Apostle Paul, he described the church like the body. You think of your body, the hand, the arms, the legs, the chair, all these body parts have a function, a role. It's a complete whole. And you're a member. If you're a Christian, you're a member in the body. You have a certain function. There's a role for you. There's a role for you to serve in. I would encourage you to approach your minister and ask him in what way you can serve in the church because I'll tell you this, there's always a need for people to serve and your minister will be thrilled to have you approach him and ask him if there's some way you can help. Make yourself available to God. and to others, and the Lord will use you to bless others. And that's something that we as Christians need to develop, is an eye for need. Think of the Good Samaritan. What was the difference between him and the Pharisee and the lawyer? They saw the need and they walked past. The Good Samaritan couldn't do it. He couldn't walk past without seeing the need and doing something about it. And that's what we're to be like as Christians. And we see especially the saints in need. We need to act and to serve. Serving is a most Christ-like activity. If there's one thing that you and I do that makes us most like our Savior, it's serving. And that's wonderful, isn't it? You think of that in your life, that you have an opportunity in a certain way to be like Christ in a very vivid way. It's this way. Think of what he did. He wasn't above taking a towel and water. and washing the disciples' feet. Even the most menial of tasks done in the name of Christ are honored by Him and are seen by Him. You might be little and think that you can't do much, but the smallest little thing you can do is known by the Lord. And we can serve by being hospitable. and by taking opportunities to be kind to others. If you look in Galatians 6 in the verse 10, and Paul says, as we have therefore opportunity, let us do good unto all men, especially unto them who are of the household of faith. And in light of this then, I would encourage every one of you to think about the ministry of hospitality. of serving others, especially God's people, by opening up your home to them. Now I know that you don't have your own home yet, but let me ask you, God willing one day when the Lord gives you a spouse, a new form, a new home, do you want to be hospitable? Are you looking forward to the day whenever you can invite people to your home and serve them and be kind to them and be hospitable to them? This is something that's disappearing sadly in our day and I call upon you to take this very seriously because this is something that God's word calls us to do. You think of in both Christ's ministry and in Paul's ministry, there were pious women who cared for them both, weren't there? Martha, Mary. You think of Paul, Aquila, and Priscilla, and many other people who opened their homes to these men and served them. I wonder, those of you here, ladies who are here, is that something that you are preparing yourself to be in the future? To be someone who can prepare a meal and ready the home so that people can come and can be treated in a hospitable way? And young men, whenever you're looking for a wife, you should be looking for a young lady who has the gifts and abilities to be hospitable so that you can open your home. and you can be hospital, you can serve in this way. So we need to prepare then to serve. But thirdly, we need to be prepared to witness. If you look in 1 Peter 3 verse 15, 1 Peter 3 verse 15, Peter says, but sanctify the Lord God in your hearts and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh your reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear. So we're called then to be ready, to be expecting, to give an answer, to speak of the Lord in our lives. This is a very important thing and It's something that can help you discern whether or not you're really a Christian. As if you are able to speak, even in a small way, in some way, of Christ and his work in your life. And if you can't do that, then you really need to seriously think about whether or not you're even converted. That's something that was true in my life, because I remember when I was young, probably in my early teenage years, and in the church we were going to, there were people who would have come up to me and asked me, was I saved? I always used to say yes, because I knew that was what I was meant to say. because I'd made a profession. But I remember feeling really uncomfortable every time I was asked that. And I can remember whenever we would have gone out and outreach, how uncomfortable I felt because I was always frightened of somebody asking me to get up and share my testimony or to speak a little word of the gospel because I just felt I couldn't do it. And I knew myself that I can't express my faith because I don't have it. And so witnessing is really essential to being a Christian. We're called to be witnesses. You think of what the Apostles said in Acts 4 and the verse 20, we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard. There was a compulsion and an irresistible urge The Apostle James said that faith without works is dead. If you don't have works to accompany your faith, then you need to question your faith. We're called to be light. We're called to be salt in this world, to be a witness of Jesus Christ. This is what we're called to be. You see, someone who's a witnesser is someone who loves the message that he's witnessing of, who's convinced of it. Paul, the great evangelist, he said, I'm not ashamed of the gospel of Christ. And sometimes, and this is true of me, we don't want to witness because we're actually ashamed of the message, because we're not really converted. So I ask you, are you ashamed of the gospel of Christ? Are you ashamed of its message? Are you ashamed to be identified with it? These are important questions that will help you to determine whether or not you're truly born again. And seek to know the gospel. If you do love it and you relish in it, seek to know it. read the word of God, build yourself up in the knowledge of the gospel so that you can witness confidently. And the best way you can do this is to read your Bible regularly, but I would also encourage you to read good books. And the best place for you to start in that regard is to read the Puritan paperbacks. that were published by Banner of Truth. They're short little books, they're abridgment of the Puritan's works. They're easy to read, and I would encourage you to buy some, the Puritan paperbacks. Buy them and start to read them. And as you read good books, you will then grow in your knowledge of the word, and you will come to understand the gospel better, and you'll be able to witness better. And then there's another thing that will help you to prepare to witness, and that's this, and we don't often think of this, but you need to observe the ungodly people around you and the way they live. That's something that I would suggest that you do. And when you're out and about in your life, observe the way that the ungodly live. and observe the tragedy of life without God. Because the state of the world tonight and all the confusion and the chaos and the conflict, the tension, it's all speaking to you. It's telling you, this is what life is like without God. You look at, there's so many young people like yourselves at your age who are living in homes tonight that are broken. Their mom and dad are split up. Their parents are taking drugs. People even your age are taking drugs. And look at their lives. See. way that they're living and see the way it goes and and this will help you to see this is how life without God is and it will help you to to have compassion on these people it will help you then to be spurred on to share the only answer for them to see how precious the gospel is and what a difference the gospel makes in people's lives. And so I urge you then to do that. And one of the wonderful things about the Christian life is whenever you look at the world and through the light of the word of God, you're able to understand it. You're able to see why the world is as it is, why people's lives are like they are. People are in confusion today. And there's all these ideas of how the world can be made a better place. Young people are all concerned about that now. And yet, here's this book, and it unfolds the world for you, tells you how it is in the state it's in, tells you why, tells you how it can be changed, tells you the end of it all. Isn't this incredible? And these are things that you need to get a hold of so that you will be able to witness to others. Then fourthly, be prepared to lead. Be prepared to lead. Look at 1 Timothy 4 in the verse 12. 1 Timothy. 4 and the verse 12. Paul says, let no man despise thy youth, but be thou an example to the believers in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity. And so essentially he's calling on him to be a leader, to be an example. Here is this young man and he's to be somebody that other Christians can look upon and can learn from, can aspire to. And so by living in exemplary piety, Timothy would be a leader by behavior and influence others for good. Do you realize that even though you're young, you are influencing the people around you? You're influencing the other young people here in the Youth Fellowship. Are you setting before your other contemporaries here an example of piety, of love for Christ, of devotion to the Lord? This is where you must start. if you're going to be a leader. Because you must rule yourself first. And then you'll be able to lead your family. And then, if you're ruling your family well and you're leading your family well, that is a qualification of an elder. Let me address then particularly the young men here because it's the young men who are called to be leaders in the church. If you look in 1 Timothy 3 in the verse 5, 1 Timothy 3 in the verse 5, this is a qualification for an elder, for if a man know not how to rule his own house, how shall he take care of the church of God? So if you are not someone who's under control, who's principled, who is living a life of piety in your home, as an individual, then you can't be a leader in public. So I wonder, young men here tonight, are you aspiring to be a leader? And if you are, are you then seeking to be someone who is ruling yourself and in control of yourself? Someone who'll be able to not only lead yourself, but to lead the future family that God will give you. And perhaps if God is gracious to you, you'll be able to lead in the church of God. It's a good thing to aspire to be a godly leader. And young men, you should aspire to be a leader, a godly man. And you need to learn to lead by observing your elders. and do that. Observe how other, the older men in the church, how they lead. Listen to their wisdom. Look at the way that they conduct themselves, the example they're setting. And that's how you learn then to be a leader yourself. And if your father is a godly man, you need to observe him. Look at how he conducts himself in the home, how he leads the family, how he leads the family in worship, how he sets an example before you and aspire to be like that. Now, I don't want to, in this point, ignore the young ladies under this point, because yes, it is the men who are to lead, but, and I do urge this upon you, young ladies, you should want to be a helpmate to such a man. You should want to be somebody who would be a support to a godly leader. And you should look for that when you're looking for a husband. You should look for a man who can lead in wisdom and in discernment. And so, you then should be spiritually preparing yourself so that you can support and encourage a man of God. You should be preparing yourself so that you won't be like Job's wife. Remember what Job's wife did whenever he was in great suffering? She said to him, curse God and die. Now there is a bad example for you. In that situation, instead of his wife coming along and putting her arm around him and encouraging him in the word and praying for him and sharing in the suffering with him, she was just pulling him down and and speaking evil to him. And so, young ladies then, you should be preparing yourself to be a helpmate and a support and a spiritual encourager to a godly man, because godly men need godly wives. And if you're going to be blessed in that way, then you need to have a godly spouse. So, be prepared to lead. And then, fifthly and finally, Be prepared to pray. Be prepared to pray. If you look in Acts 1 verse 14, and we'll close on this point, Acts 1 and the verse 14, the early days of the church, the New Testament church, notice what they're doing as they wait for the Spirit to come. Acts 1 verse 14, these all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus and with his brethren. So what this is teaching us then is that the whole church was gathered for prayer, every one of them. The women were there, the brethren or the brothers, family relations of the Lord, they're all there, every one of them. So don't think then that prayer is only for mature believers. I hope that you don't think that, but sometimes I wonder because whenever you go to prayer meetings it's only the older folk generally who are there. But Again, if you are born again, if you're a Christian, didn't you cry to God for mercy? Haven't you asked the Lord for forgiveness? Didn't you confess your sin and your guilt to the Lord? And you made a profession of faith in Christ? Do you understand that when you did that, that was your first real prayer? That was prayer! When you called out to God for mercy, you were praying. And so you are someone then who has prayed and should be praying. When you become a Christian, you are beginning a life of prayer. And so I encourage you then, come to the midweek prayer meetings and hear others pray, because People often say, how can I pray? I don't know how to pray. But you see, you'll learn how to pray by listening to others praying. If you're never at the prayer meeting and you're not hearing godly men pray, you'll never know how to pray. And if you're there week after week and you're hearing people calling upon God, you'll learn. You'll hear. Your heart will be moved. It will give you confidence to join in. One day, again, Think of this, if you're married and you have a child and they come to you, Mommy, Daddy, I want to become a Christian. Are you going to be able to lead them to Christ? Are you going to be able to pray with them? Are you going to be able to pray with your spouse? Are you going to be able to pray with your children? This is something you need to develop. And prayer will build up your own faith, as well as encourage others. And there's nothing more encouraging than to be with the church in prayer. This is a vital part that you can play in the life of the church. And the older saints in the church will be so encouraged to see young people coming into the prayer meetings and joining in. You see, it's only whenever we're on our knees that we will know God's power. So I leave these things with you. You might have thought that life in the church was simply attending church on Sunday, and it really is not. Life in the church is a very broad, full life. a life of worship, a life of service, a life of witness, a life of leading or supporting in leadership, and a life of prayer. And I call upon you all to engage in this life and prepare yourself for it now so that whenever you grow up and have a family of your own and you become an adult, that you will be living this life. He will continue on in the fellowship of the church. Amen. Let's close in prayer. Gracious Lord we praise you for the gift of salvation in Christ. We thank you Lord that through it we have been brought into the fellowship of the church. We rejoice Lord that you have granted this great body, your own bride, And we praise you, Lord, that by grace and by the Spirit you draw us into the church. And we pray, Lord, that you will help us to value the bride of Christ, to love the church, and to function within it and to serve within it. Lord, I pray that you will help the young people here, Lord, to not only understand the gospel but to believe it themselves and to be convinced of it, Lord, that When they too get to the stage of life, Lord, when they become adults and are living their lives, that, Lord, they will continue on in the church and in the life of the church. Lord, we pray that you will protect us, that we might be found faithful in Christ and serving him. Lord, we pray that you will help us to live in the church and to love the church more and more. Help us to serve one another with love. Forgive us, Lord, for our many failures in this regard. Help us, Lord, to put others before ourselves. Lord, help us to crucify our selfishness and our pride. Grant us, O Lord, that we will be those who give ourselves to you, Lord. We pray for these young people, Lord. Guide them in the future. Grant to them, Lord, that you will lead them into your will. Help them, Lord, as they face life. We pray, Lord, that you will bless them and instruct them and that they will be used of you for your glory. And we ask all these things in Jesus' precious name. Amen. Amen. Can I just say before I go that I've thoroughly enjoyed the opportunity to come here over the three weeks and I really do count it a privilege and I want you to know that. I love coming to the Youth Fellowship here and I want to thank you for your attendance and for your attention. It's a real joy for me to minister to you, so thank you.