Hannah's prayer and dedication of her son Samuel to the Lord illustrates the profound responsibility parents have to entrust their children's lives to God's service. In contrast to the worthless sons of Eli, who lived for self-gratification and dishonored God, Samuel was dedicated from birth, grew in favor with God and man, and ministered faithfully. The sermon emphasizes that true value lies not in worldly success or ease, but in a life unreservedly given to Christ, urging parents to influence their children toward this sacrificial service and to support those who go to the mission field. The ultimate call is to present our lives as living sacrifices, transformed by God's will, to make Christ known.
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What a joy it is to gather together with those who know that someday they'll see him face to face. How good to be included in that number. I trust it is the portion of each one of us that we have this assurance. We have put before us, brought before us by circumstances, by those who are faithful to God's word. That the coming of the Lord is possibly very nice. That possibly, even during this conference, we'll hear this shout and be taken to be with him. What a joy that will be. We don't know the time. We don't know the day, nor the hour, nor the year, nor the decade. And while the Lord has left us here, He has given us a real responsibility.
And I think that we need to be mindful of our responsibility and not shirk our task that He has left for us to do. And this morning in the time that we have, by the way, they didn't put any limit on me. I better find out how long I am permitted before we go. Well, the two of you have about an hour and a half. I see. Now that's... About forty minutes. Now you're calling upon me to be generous to the other. Now, very well. Okay, that... Keep it in mind. However, before we are called to be with the Lord, we have a definite responsibility here. And because of our first-hand knowledge that there is such tremendous needs to the far corners of the world, I feel that this morning we want to consider a little...
of our responsibility in regards to the foreign mission field. As far as the Lord's work is concerned in foreign countries, but not only there, but in this land as well. I think that we can recognize readily that there is a great dearth of those young men and women who are giving themselves full time to the service of the Lord. Those who are dedicated to the Lord, that they might be used of Him, and there is great need. The number of missionaries that I understand is declining, those from the assemblies and from evangelical circles as well. Political developments in far corners of the world has done much to discourage and to turn people's minds away from the field, and they think that, well, there's not the same opportunity that there was.
It is true that the days of colonialism is past and that the gospel was spread during the times of colonialism, possibly more in a paternalistic manner than would be good for the work of the Lord. Because they were not able then to establish true independent, autonomous New Testament churches, as would be the desire and the purpose of the New Testament to see these young churches established. Too much responsibility had been left in the hands of the missionaries at the time. But now with these independent countries, And I'm sure you recognize that independence is the word throughout the world, just in the continent of Africa where we work.
Within the last fifteen years, something like forty-five newly independent countries. And each of these countries seeking to assert themselves, and some of them doing it in the most astounding ways, shocking ways, in the country where we worked for some seven years. In Burundi, before moving to Gwanda, you've doubtlessly heard just recently in the news about the genocide that has taken place there. We've had firsthand reports of thousands and thousands just being liquidated because they belong to the wrong racial group. I say racial group, but it's really more of the different ethnic group. There are these two groups of people. You've probably all heard of the Wat Tutsi people or the, in their language, the Abbatutsi.
These are tall, they've been a aristocratic group, and they've held feudal control of the country there in Burundi and in Gwanda for some centuries. And the Hutu people, the commoners, about eighty-five percent of the population, have gradually been getting some education and have threatened the dominance or the feudal control of these Tutsi overlords. one branch of the Tutsi family got control there and they have just by massacre wiped out those potential Hutu leaders that would have come in to take a place in their country we talk here much about racialism discrimination and so forth there's no place that it is practiced more frighteningly than it is in some of those African countries between the blacks themselves this is because they have not known God, because in the past they did not wish to retain God in their knowledge.
There is evidence that they did know God, but they departed from that knowledge. They refused to follow God, and so God gave them up. But He, in His grace, has given a renewed opportunity to them of hearing and responding to the gospel and how gracious God is. If we, not this morning, but possibly another time, we'll see how the Lord, both with the Gentile nations who first rejected Him, and because of their rejection, He chose out of people that would respond in faith, Abraham and His descendants. But then because of the descendants of Abraham, again turning from God, God turned again back to the Gentile nations, seeking to call them back to Himself. And because the Gentile nations very largely are refusing in that, Again, the opportunity or the call will be given to Israel in the yet distant in the future.
However, we now have a responsibility to our generation. And we must consider what our effect is going to be upon this world if the Lord doesn't come for some twenty years, some thirty years. And we need to make plans. We need to be willing to dedicate ourselves to dedicate our children in order that they may be used of the Lord to make the Lord Jesus Christ known. Turn with me, if you will, to First Samuel, chapter one, please. All listeners are kindly requested to fasten their seat belts because we're about to enter an area of turbulence.
In our Christian life, I hear that we're coming into some strong headwinds. And as we consider some of the problems that the Church would face and our responsibility to meet these, in just a very small approach to it, I do not at all mean to speak in a way to offend anyone or to find fault. but rather that we might encourage ourselves together. I have felt that we've been back from the mission field now two years, and I have felt the effect of the lethargy, the apathy of the Church of God in this country, having its influence upon our lives, the pressures of the world around us coming to bear and causing us to lose sight of those eternal values.
and of our responsibility of being a witness to the Lord Jesus Christ. May the Lord help us together to shake off this apathy, to shake off the laziness that comes in because of the affluence of our society, because of the ease of our life. We have a definite responsibility, a task to be performed, and this can only be performed by men and women dedicated to the Lord Jesus Christ, those willing to sacrifice for Him, those willing to leave behind, to put aside the pleasures, the luxuries, the satisfactions that this present life can give in order that they might make their lives count for the Lord Jesus Christ. We know that God's command was, go ye into all the world and preach the gospel.
That command has never been rescinded. It stands today. We, His people, have been told, given this command, that we should go. There's been broken down, I'm sure, in all of your hearings, and you all know that there is, first of all, the go to an individual, an individual responsibility to each of us, who have been redeemed by the blood of Christ, that we might take this message to those who know Him not. How difficult this is. How easy it is to let it slip by. in our associations day by day, and I confess this from my own experience at work and so forth, that we feel like, oh, now is not the time. Now it wouldn't be accepted so well.
We await a little while, and we fail to buy up the opportunities that Christ would give to be of witness to Him. There's a responsibility to individual to go, and there's a responsibility to the Church of Christ as a whole. And we also, as the Lord would give us means, and We are not lacking in the means that we'd be willing to give them to the Lord to help others go. Yes, to go and to help go. And if the Christians that those who truly knew the Lord were willing to give even one tenth. of their income and that there would be no lack of finances in order to further the work of the Lord. We need to help go and then we need to let go. And possibly the let go is the detracting factor, the hindrance that prevents a great many of those young people who with a challenge before them and a desire to make their lives count for Christ would be willing to go if given the encouragement of parents, the encouragement of elders and of fellow believers in the churches of the Lord Jesus Christ.
And so it's a real joy to see here among us today so many younger folks, so many children. But now what of their lives? What would the Lord have them to be? How would He have their lives spent that they might count most for eternity? Life at best is very brief, like the falling of a leaf. and we are to buy up the opportunities. We sing that song to those who are unsaved, yes, but also for those of us who know Christ. What is our life? It is but a vapor. It's soon to pass away. And what are we going to make our time count for? On the way here from Waterloo yesterday, we were some thirty miles outside of Waterloo, coming along the road there, and just a couple of minutes before I arrived there, there had been a head-on collision, a truck and a car.
Here there were five people very seriously. One had been killed instantly. Another, two more were trapped in. We had to try to cut them out of the cars. A woman laying beside the robe there apparently thrown out, still conscious briefly, eight months pregnant, covered completely with oil and possibly probably with her neck broken. And yes, life is so brief. Just an instant before they'd been in good health and fine, but life is so brief. What is our life? And what are we going to make of it? May we recognize that life is earnest and that we need to make our lives count for the Lord Jesus Christ if they're going to count us all. One instant of eternity and our life to live for self will be recognized as not.
Oh, that we might for ourselves and for our children desire that which will count for eternity. Let me ask, would you say that there are enough assembly missionaries to meet the need that the Lord would have met in foreign fields today? Would there anyone be willing to say that, yes, there are all the missionaries around the field that the Lord would have there that hold to truth that we know to be scriptural and dear to God's heart? Because there is a distinctive ministry on the part of those sent out seeking to establish New Testament assemblies. We won't go into particular...
thoughts as far as to what our distinctive ministry is. We know that the Lord is using those of other groups as well. But because we would gather simply to the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, we would seek to recognize the headship of Christ and the priesthood of all believers that we have a distinctive part and a ministry to play in all the countries of the world. I am personally satisfied that the simple pattern laid down in the New Testament is what God desires for all of His children. And this is not what we see. Are there sufficient missionaries from the assembly? I'm sure that we'd all have to recognize that there are not. In fact, the numbers are decreasing, and our influence possibly worldwide is decreasing.
And yet at the same time, the population of the world is multiplying. And we hear on every side how that the population explosion and the witness of the Lord Jesus Christ is not keeping up with that. Yes, percentage-wise, we would need to pray that the Lord would come and immediately because it would seem that as the population grows the outreach of the gospel is decreases in proportion and our effectiveness is less and so we need to be earnest in this approach now I wonder how many of you folks here have children good many of you some of your children are grown and what we have to say would not be to reproach those who have grown children who are in other activities or in businesses and the professions and employment of other kinds.
But for those of you who have younger children, those of you who anticipate families, I wonder what are their lives going to come for? Many of us have children, but now I wonder how many of you have children who are missionaries. How many of you have so influenced your children to make them realize the value of giving their lives for Christ? of making them realize that there are tremendous needs can be reached elsewhere. Oh, we hear very frequently, yes, well, the needs in this country are so great. We need people here. Friend, there has never been a nation to my knowledge that has been so blessed with the proclamation of God's Word, with the availability of the gospel on every hand, by means of literature, by means of radio, by means of it being preached in the pulpit.
there has possibly been no people that there have been so blessed with a proclamation of God's word as those in our own United States of America and in Canada. And yet you go to the far corners of the world and what do you see? An entirely different picture. In the country of Guanda where we worked from nineteen sixty one until two years ago when we had to return from the field, in that land there of over four million people, In Iowa here you have two million eight hundred and fifteen thousand, something like that. But in that country of Gwanda, which is only about one-tenth the size of the state of Iowa, but there are four million people there. And of those four million people, among those four million people, as far as we know there was only one work there, and how small that work was, the little work that we had that would teach salvation by the grace of God.
Others would say, yes, they would teach that Christ died for their sins, but they would make baptism essential for salvation and in otherwise nullify this message of grace that we have been singing about so that the poor Africans there would think that it was through something they did or something that was done for them by some other individual that they could be saved and become a child of God. They were born again by baptism. That's what they're thinking. But to those that would teach simply that one is saved by grace through faith, We knew of no other work except at the latter part of our time there, one little group moved across the border from Zaire of the conservative Baptist and one retired man and began a little witness in that area as well.
But apart from that, among these four million people, no one to proclaim the message of salvation by grace through faith. Now these are needy people. These are souls for whom Christ dies. And we have a responsibility to get out to them with the gospel of Christ. Well, now we must hurry on. I want to read here in First Samuel, chapter one, verse twenty. And it came about in due time after Hannah had conceived that she gave birth to a son, and she named him Samuel, saying, Because I have asked him of the Lord. Then the man, Elkanah, went up with all his household to offer to the Lord the yearly sacrifice and pay his vows. But Hannah did not go up, for she had said to her husband, I will not go up until the child is weaned.
Then I will bring him that he may appear before the Lord and stay there forever. And Elkanah her husband said to her, Do what seems best to you, remain until you have weaned him. Only may the Lord confirm his word. So the woman remained and nursed her son until she weaned him. Now when she had weaned him, she took him up with her with a three-year-old bowl, and one eepa, a jug of wine, and brought him to the house of the Lord in Shiloh, although the child was young. Then they slaughtered the bowl and brought the boy to Eli. And she said, Oh, my Lord, as your soul lives, my Lord, I am the woman who stood here beside you, praying to the Lord. For this boy I prayed, and the Lord has given me my petition, which I asked of him. So I have also dedicated him to the Lord.
As long as he lives, he is dedicated to the Lord, and he worshiped the Lord there. Chapter two, verse twelve. Now the sons of Eli were worthless men. They did not know the Lord. And the custom of the priest with the people, when any man was offering a sacrifice, the priest servant would come while the meat was boiling with a three-pronged fork in his hand. Then he would thrust it into the pan or kettle or cauldron or pot. All that the fork brought up the priest would take for himself. Thus they did in Shiloh to all the Israelites who came there. Also before they burned the fat, the priest servant would come and say to the man who was sacrificing, Give the priest meat for roasting. as he will not take boiled meat from you, only raw.
And the man said to him, They must surely burn the fat first, and then take as much as you desire. Then he would say, No, but you shall give it to me now. And if not, I will take it by force. Thus the sin of the young men was very great before the Lord, for the men despised the offering of the Lord. Now Samuel was ministering before the Lord, as a boy wearing a linen effigy. And his mother would make him a little robe, and bring it to him from year to year when she would come up with her husband to offer the yearly sacrifice. And Elah would bless Al-Qa'na and his wife and say, May the Lord give you children from this woman in place of the one she dedicated to the Lord. And they went to their own home. And the Lord visited Hanan, she conceived and gave birth to three sons and two daughters.
And the boy Samuel grew before the Lord. Now Elah was very old and he heard all that his sons were doing to all Israel. And how they lay with the women. who served at the doorway of the tent of meeting. And he said to them, Why do you do such things? The evil things that I hear from all these people. Know my sons, for the report is not good, which I hear the Lord's people circulating. If one man sins against another, God will mediate for him. But if a man sins against the Lord, who can intercede for him? But they would not listen to the voice of their fathers, for the Lord desired to put them to death. Now the boy Samuel was growing in stature and in favor both with the Lord and with men. Verse twenty nine.
Why do you kick in my sacrifice and at my offering which I have commanded in my dwelling and honor your sons be above me by making yourselves fast with the choices of every offering of my people Israel? Therefore the Lord God of Israel declares, I did indeed say that your house and the house of your fathers should walk before me forever. But now the Lord declares, far be it from me. For those who honor me, I will honor. And those who despise me will be lightly esteemed. Verse thirty-five, but I will raise up for myself a faithful priest who will do according to what is in my heart and in my soul, and I will build him an enduring house, and he will walk before my anointed always.
Often in God's word, when God would seek to teach us principles, he would lay a contrast before us of that which is pleasing to him and that which is displeasing to him. And I think that in our present situation, In our permissive society, we see contrasted before us the lives of different ones of our young people that we need to take to heart. And those who are parents, those who still have influence upon their children, how seriously this must weigh upon us. And how important it is that we give that direction, the influence in their lives that would bring them honor to the Lord and give them lives of fruitfulness.
Samuel was one desired of the Lord, and how precious is the life that God entrusts to any parent, may not be human philosophy of self-seeking, of selfishness to the greatest extent in thinking of our own personal good and our own personal ease. that would mean that we would be willing to go to abortion and so forth in order to prevent other lives from being born, in order that we might have more for ourselves when God has taken upon himself the giving of life, and that each life that he gives is a precious gift of God. And for may there be no one of those who know the Lord as Savior that would not recognize that each life that he would entrust to them is a wonderful gift.
But may each one be such, be prayed over, such as Samuel was. Hannah there whose heart yearned for a son, and she prayed to the Lord for him. How she cared for this one. The Lord answered her prayer, but she recognized. This life was not reversed, obviously, as it was to be given to the Lord. And so each one of those who has it child, to whom, very possibly, they have dedicated to the Lord may they recognize that this dedication should be for a lifelong dedication as long as he lives he shall be dedicated to the Lord I think that we as parents have a definite responsibility of dedicating the lives of our children to the Lord not trying selfishly to hold them to ourselves but rather giving them to the Lord to take and use as he would be fit our time is very limited But we see that in Samuel's life how that Hannah's concern and desire for her son worked out for blessing in her own life and for a great blessing in Samuel's life and how that he was greatly used of the Lord.
We see, we've read just briefly, how that he ministered before the Lord. From his early years he... his mother brought him to the temple there as soon as he was weaned as in africa we see quite frequently that a child is not wean possibly till three years of age two and a half three years of age but samuel possibly at that early age had had that influence of his mother but then brought to the temple and left with his old man elai to serve in the temple and he grew grew in stature and in favor with god and man he noticed that Nearly the same words are used of the Lord Jesus Christ, that he grew in favor with God and men.
And he pleased the Lord, or he was prayed for, and he was cared for by his mother, and each one of you who have children, I'm sure you give thanks for your children, surely trust that you do, and that you love them, and that you continue to care for them as Hannah's mother did. But Samuel was one who, in contrast to Eli's son, was one who brought honor to the Lord, and one whom God greatly heals. We parent, I'm sure, desire that our children would be such as Samuel. But this would require influence and training on the part of the parents as well in the lives of that individual. Our children are very largely what we make them to be.
And we do know that there are Times when, in spite of the best of training, and the prayers, the concern of parents, that children go their own willful ways, how unhappy this is. But I do believe that we have a responsibility. And Hannah cared for a responsibility, or carefully prayed for Samuel, and then dedicated him to the Lord, and the Lord took his life and used it greatly for himself. But how different are Eli's sons than Elkanah's sons? Elkanah, of course, was in complete agreement in fellowship with Hannah in this.
I think that he is to be given a good deal of credit. And as he said there at the end of the chapter, that he worshipped the Lord, as they brought Samuel there, I believe that this must be Elkanah, that he there in complete agreement with Hannah, gave this young life to the Lord. And if we are desirous to see those given to the Lord's work, those who would be willing to go to foreign fields, if we as parents would say, yes, we're happy for it to have you go. We're glad we stayed last night with the Peterson, and during this summer their daughter Diane was over in Ireland there. Here among you, I know not only that family but others, are those parents who would encourage their children to give themselves to the Lord's work.
and of how important, great importance this is. But there are other influences in our society which would take them from this. Because of the values placed upon material possession, upon prestige and acceptance in the eyes of people, we see that fewer and fewer are recognizing that it is worthwhile to give their lives to Christ. Eli's sons, however, And God holds Eli responsible. In the twenty-ninth verse of this second chapter, we read that, Why do you kick in my sacrifice and at my offering which I have commanded in my dwelling, and honor your sons above me by making yourselves fast with the choices of every offering of my people?
The Lord reproaches Eli here. He says that he was honoring his sons before the Lord. And this is where the trouble comes in. Eli's sons here, we see how they had grown. Because Eli had failed to discipline them when they were small. Because when they were grown, they despised his rebuke. He did rebuke them, but it was of no effect. Parents who still have younger children recognize that the early, early years of that child's life is where you can teach discipline, where you can teach them respect for authority, and that is the easiest time to do it. Yes, for every time a child is spanked, even before he's a year old, it's going to save some multiply many times that many afterwards when they're taught to place a response of discipline and authority.
But Eli had allowed his sons to go their own way. And what is the sad outcome? We see men who are living for themselves. We see men called worthless, worthless in the sight of God and those hated by the people because of the evil in their lives. Coming there into the very offerings that God people brought to the temple there, they wanted their own portion first. They didn't want to have boiled meat to eat. No, they wanted roast meat. And though the fat on these offerings was supposed to be given entirely to the Lord, they wanted that sweet fat for themselves. And so they would take this three-pronged fork and dig into the meat to get their own portion. And they'd even go to the extent of taking the meat while it was still raw from the people and wanting it for themselves, gluttonous people living for their own pleasure and satisfaction.
And we see, just as mentioned later down here, that they lay with the women who came to give service at the temple, following the practice of the heathen nations around them in prostitution. When they would, if they had, if they haden God, they would come up there and have... This cult prostitution in pretense of worshiping, honoring God that way. The sons of Eli took advantage of this and took advantage of the women. And so we see that their lives were lives lived for self, for their own self-gratification, for their own sensual pleasures, for their own bellies, for their own lust. And we see the influence in the lives of so many young people today that because possibly of a wrong standard set by their own parents, because of a materialism that young people are going out for what they can find to please themselves.
And they want that gratification right now, whether it's to sensual satisfaction one way or another. But how displeasing to the Lord, how distasteful, how worthless their lives are. But we see contrast into that, the life of Samuel, dedicated to the Lord, growing, serving in the temple. And there are those whose lives, whose young people who have recognized that to live for Christ is worthwhile, and that they have foregone the pleasures of sin for a season in order that they might seek to honor the Lord Christ in their lives. Yes, we see one little phrase that is telltale.
They knew not the Lord. They knew not the Lord. These are Eli's sons. and how important it is that we would bring our children to a knowledge of the Lord, to a saving knowledge of the Lord, and more than that, to acknowledge from an experience gained by exposure to God's Word, and because they have seen Christ lived out in our own lives. As children would see the lives of parents dedicated to the Lord, they will recognize that this religious business is not just a fad, something we put on, but that it is of value, and that it's real. and that they will desire to live their lives for Christ as well. Yes, who do we put before our children as ideals?
Whom do we respect? Is it businessmen, professional people, politicians, authors, or artists? I wonder who do we respect? Whom do we call to? Our children are going to sense this very, very closely. On the other hand, whom do we criticize? Could it be that possibly in our homes in that, that those who have given themselves and those who seek to serve the Lord are criticized? Yes, it is true that many of us are not the most gifted or capable people. Many of us have failings and shortcomings. We recognize them. But there is that desire to seek to make Christ known.
There is the desire to live for Him. But how often we hear Those who have been on the foreign field at times and come back and find it very difficult to express themselves, we find them possibly criticized or laughed at. All this registers so quickly in the lives of our children and they would say, well, I don't want to put myself in a position like that. I don't want to give myself to be of service to the Lord because people will feel that way about me. They'll say things like that about me. They'll be unkind and critical as well. Oh, may the Lord guard our tongues and guard our attitudes toward those who do serve the Lord, and that we might show to the children that this is something worthwhile.
I wonder, Father and Mother, what is your ambition for your child? Well, we think very highly of our children. We thank the Lord for abilities that He's given them. And if we have one of outstanding ability, oh, we want him to amount to something. We want him to be well accepted. We want him to have a name possibly that is known. Or I wonder, do we want them to be successful in business? What are the ideals that we set before them? What are our own ambitions for them? If we desire that they might be known, that they might be popular, that they might have a life of ease, We might try to provide for them far, far more than would actually be for their good.
Rather than teaching them the value of work and so forth, we make life too easy for them. We put before them an ambition of getting good grades in school, and how easy this can come in the early grades of school, even in kindergarten. I believe that there we talk competition, competing against another, do better and so forth, make the head of the list. And if someone is on the top of the list, how we value that, well, are these true values? If this is what we should put before them, I say that it is not. If our ambition for them was that they might be a bond servant of Jesus Christ, that their lives might really as far as man's concern possibly amounts to nothing, but that they might give their lives unreservedly to Jesus Christ as Lord and King.
If this is your desire for your children, I have the confidence in our young folks that they will respond. Young people respond to a challenge. When the Peace Corps was offered an opportunity to sacrifice in order to go out and in a worldly way, try to be of help to people, people respond. And in our nation, we know that there are many young people that would accept the challenge, that they want to make their lives come for something and not just for themselves. And we who know Christ, how much higher is our calling, how much greater the opportunity of making our lives count for Him. And our young people will respond if we hold up before them the example of one whom we would value.
If our ambition for them is that they might be used of the Lord, what do you pray for your children? Do you pray that the Lord might take their lives and use them in possibly dangerous situations? to go to fields where possibly their lives would be in danger, where they will be exposed to malaria and parasites and all kinds of diseases and the lack of medical facilities and hardships and difficulties and lack of funds. The Lord is faithful and He does provide, but those who would give themselves to Him will recognize that it's not an easy road. All those that live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution, and that is for the twentieth century as well.
We here so insulate ourselves from the realities of life because of our wealth in this country, we fail to realize what the needs are in the world. But God is going to hold us responsible for our generation. Are we teaching our children to value lives of luxury and ease, or are we teaching them that there are values in hardship and in real work? and in sacrifice and giving them. If we want to see our young people go out to be a witness for Christ, we need to put before them goals. And not just goals that we pay lip service to, but that we back up with the reality of our own lives. What is our own set of values?
Our children are likely to follow that. Is it money? Is it popularity? Is it social approval? Is it keeping up with the Joneses? Is it security? Is it making sure we have a bank account and we have enough insurance, that we have things set for the future? How easy the natural way of this world forces itself upon our lives. We find ourselves competing with the world for worldly values, for worldly standards, for worldly ambitions, when this is so contrary to the life that the Lord would desire for those who know Him. Oh, may the Lord draw our eyes away from the things of this world and again fix our eyes upon eternity.
And as we look to Him, of course, we'll see the Lord Jesus Christ Himself, the one who was willing to forego all that was His by right as God's Son, as God Himself, as the Creator of all things, and how He was willing to sacrifice and do our hardship in order that He might bring God's message to us. And so we, in this world, are called upon to sacrifice. We're called upon to bearing a cross daily for the Lord Jesus Christ. Oh, may He call us away from the things of this world, of time and sense, and cause us to think those things which will last for eternity. In our homes, do they see that our faith is real and vital?
Do they recognize that it is something worthwhile, sacrificing for its proclaim? If not, we can't expect them to give their lives to furthering something that they have found to be lacking in meaning and reality in their own homes. Oh, may the Lord help us to make Christ a living reality in our own homes. I wonder now, is it ever too difficult for us to attend the breaking of bread meeting? Is it ever too difficult for us to attend the prayer meeting? Is it too difficult for us to go out when they're seeking to witness for the Lord in open-air work or in track distribution or in times when we'll make Christ known to others?
If our young people see that these things are too difficult for us, they're going to recognize too that they don't have any value. Our time is gone. I've hardly gotten started to what we want. the young people today do want to challenge. And if we as parents and not just parents, elders in our assemblies and that, what do we put before our young people? Do we challenge them with the opportunity of being servants of the Lord Jesus Christ? Do we let them know that we will behind them in our prayers, in our faithfulness? I wonder, in our weekly prayer meeting, how often do we remember the Lord's work in the foreign field and his work is there in prayer?
If our young people recognize that this is just a matter of fact saying that we have no concern, if we have no interest in finding out about what's going on in the foreign field, about what's going on there, they'll say, I don't want to go out there and be forgotten by everybody at home. And how true it is that you don't have to be overseas very long before most of the people forget all about you. But may the Lord make us earnest and recognize that we have a responsibility even to the far corners of the earth. And may our prayer meeting show our concern in this. Do you desire to say goodbye to your young people? and to see them go. Oh, this individual, he's so valuable in our own assembly here.
We need him. We can't possibly see him go. Well, without him, what would the future of the assembly here impose? Well, what about those millions who know not Christ? What about those in utter darkness? We need the very choicest of our young folks to go there because the challenges are greater. We need those with intellectual ability. The learning of foreign languages and adapting to foreign cultures is not an easy thing. This requires people of ability, people of dedication, determination. Are we willing to give our young folks and to encourage them to direct them in this line? You who are young folks here today, may I challenge you through a life that is difficult. May I challenge you to recognize that there is a life that will count not so much in the eyes of man and for time, but for eternity.
Yes, the Lord would have you to give your life to Him, to dedicate that. And may we have those who are dedicated for Him to all times. Yes, Livingston said that God had only one Son, and He was a missionary. Will you give your Son? And you who are young people, will you give your lives for Him? How we would like to be able to grip your hearts with the fact that we have this responsibility of making Christ known. And that in the present time we must not allow political developments around the world to deter us from the responsibility that the Church of Christ has is to proclaim Christ to our present generation.
That we may by every means encourage our young folks, dedicate them, and even those who are possibly are grown and mature in the things of the Lord. Maybe the Lord would send out many of you. May the Lord cause each of us to search our own hearts and to make us realize where we stand as far as fulfilling our responsibility of making Christ known. In Romans chapter twelve, we're called upon there by the mercies of God to present our bodies a living sacrifice wholly acceptable under God, which is our reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world. As Phillips puts it, be not... Don't let the world around you squeeze you into its mold, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
God wants our lives to come for him. Oh, may we, because of his mercy to us, dedicate our own lives anew to him, dedicate the lives of our children, and say, I want my life to come for Christ. May he help us to do so for his namesake. Thank you.