To the Graduates
“Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress” (1 Timothy 4:15).
We are here today to worship God with thanksgiving in our hearts. And this worship is special because we want to give thanks to God for those who graduated from Elementary, Jr. High, High School, College and graduate School. These are the names of those graduated: Jonathan Hernandez (Elementary), Joon Ahn, Benjamin Smith, Samantha Lee (Jr. High), Joycelyn Can (High), Helen Kim (College) and Amie Yoon JDSN (Graduate School). We thank God for all of you. And we thank God for what He has done in you life. But not only that, we thank God for what He will do in and through all of you for His Kingdom. As we worship God together with thanksgiving in our hearts, I want to meditate on 1 Timothy 4:15. This is what 1 Timothy 4:15 says: “Be diligent in these matters; give yourself wholly to them, so that everyone may see your progress.” Based on 1 Timothy 4:15, I want to speak about “your progress.” I want to challenge you to devote yourselves for your progress. I want to focus on 3 things:
First, you must devote yourselves for your progress in character.
Look at 1 Timothy 4:12 - “Don't let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers in speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity.” During my children’s school semester, I receive progress reports from their schools. In my days, we never had one. We just had final report card. I guess its’ purpose is for us and our children to know how they are doing in their classes(their performances in between report cards) so that the parents and the children can work together to improve in their school works. Likewise, can you imagine getting progress report from you church? Your JDSN, your teacher, your pastor? What do you think your grade will be? Excellent(E)? Satisfactory(S)? Or Need improvement(N)? How about progress report from God? What would your grade be?
When you look at 1 Timothy 4:12, the Bible says “Don’t let anyone look down on you because you are young, but set an example for the believers ….” This was what Paul said to his spiritual son Timothy. And I want to say the same thing to all of you who have graduated from your schools. ‘Set an example!’ Set an example in 5 things: In speech, in life, in love, in faith and in purity. I am sure all these 5 things are very important. But I want to encourage you to set an example especially in purity and in speech. These days, a lot of young people speak bad words even Christians. They just use the ‘F’ word in their conversation so frequently that it has become their normal vocabulary. Do you think that is setting an example in speech as Christians? How about purity? Do you think your Christian friends are setting an good example in purity? How about yourself? God wants you to set an example in life. It means you must follow the example of Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 11:1). You must imitate Him and become like Him more and more as you live your Christian life. Focus on your character development more than any other things. And show your progress in character not only to the believers but also to the non-believers around you. Show them how much you have been changed in speech, in deeds, in behavior, in attitude, in action and so forth so that you may shine the light of Jesus Christ wherever you go.
Second, you must devote yourselves for your progress in the faith.
Look at Philippians 1:25 - “Convinced of this, I know that I will remain, and I will continue with all of you for your progress and joy in the faith.” First of all, I thank God for the gracious gift of faith that He has given to you so that you may believe in Jesus and accept Him as your personal Savior and Lord. Your faith in Christ is more precious than any other things. And I want to encourage you not only to keep that precious gift of faith but also to devote yourselves for the growth of your faith. How can you do that? This is what Romans 10:17 says: “Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.” The Bible says that faith comes from hearing the word of Christ. So in order your faith to grow, you must hear the word of Christ. Hear the Christ’s message! By doing so, your faith will grow. And as your faith grow, you will be able to stand firm (2 Cor. 1:24) and walk by faith and not by sight (5:7). And as you walk by faith I hope and pray that all of you may be able to confess like Paul did in 2 Timothy 4:7 – “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith.” Remember the goal of your faith is the salvation of your souls (1 Pet.1:9).
Third, you must devote yourselves for the progress of the gospel.
Look at Philippians 1:12 - “Now I want you to know, brothers, that what has happened to me has really served to advance the gospel.” Jesus said in Mark 13:10 that “the gospel must first be preached to all nations” before the end is to come. And God has called you to preach the gospel to all the nations (Acts 16:10). Thus, you must be eager to preach the gospel to your family members, your friends, and so on (Cf. Rom.1:15). And you must be compelled to preach it (1 Cor. 9:16). That’s your purpose of your life. And that’s how you may glorify God.
Let me conclude this message. Let us all be diligent in these 3 matters. Let us all give ourselves wholly to them, so that everyone may see our progress. Let us devote ourselves for our progress in character. Let us devote ourselves for our progress in faith. And let us devote ourselves for the progress of the gospel of Jesus Christ. May God bless you all the graduates and all of you who are here to worship God today!
For the progress of character, of faith and of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ,
James Kim