R.C. Sproul's Blog, page 531

R.C. Sproul on the Other Comforter [VIDEO]

In this excerpt from his teaching series, "What Did Jesus Do?", R.C. Sproul considers the meaning of the Greek word paraclete and the purpose of the Holy Spirit's coming at Pentecost.

Pray the Scriptures

Here's an excerpt from Pray the Scriptures, Scotty Smith's contribution to the May issue of Tabletalk.

I am a recovering self-centered pragmatic pray-er — a believer who spent many of my first years in Christ thinking of God more as a sugar daddy than the sovereign Father. Prayer, for me, had more in common with programming a heavenly computer than surrendering to a loving Master. I worked harder at claiming God's promises for my ease than being claimed by God's purposes for His kingdom. Instead of being still and knowing that God is God, my prayer life was that of an antsy man, trying to help God be God.

Alas, this was a manifestation of the man-centered gospel that distorted my view of God and, therefore, enfeebled my practice of prayer. Thankfully, continued growth in grace has led me to a better understanding of the gospel, which, in turn, has radically reoriented my prayer life. It's not cliché; it's wondrously true: the gospel changes everything.

Nothing has been of greater importance to my growth in grace than learning to pray the Scriptures while wearing the lens of the gospel, and nothing has proven to be more fruitful.

Continue reading Pray the Scriptures.

Some Standing Here Will Not Taste Death — The Unfolding of Biblical Eschatology

From the point of Peter's confession onward, Jesus begins to teach his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem, suffer, be killed, and on the third day, be raised (16:21). Peter rebukes Jesus for saying this, but Jesus shows him that this is the only way (vv. 22–23). Jesus tells his disciples that they must take up their cross and follow him because it is foolish to gain the world and lose one's soul (vv. 24–26). Then Jesus says, "For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done. Truly, I say to you, there are some standing here who will not taste death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom" (vv. 27–28).

Like Matthew 10:23, this text has also been the source of much debate. Davies and Allison survey some eight different interpretations that have been proposed.i Among the more prominent interpretations is the idea that "coming of the Son of Man" in view here is the transfiguration, which is narrated in the following chapter.ii Some suggest that Jesus is referring to his resurrection or to Pentecost. Others suggest that Jesus is referring to the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70.iii Then there are those who believe Jesus is speaking here of his Second Coming and of the end of history. Among those holding this view, there are those who believe Jesus was mistaken because he believed this would occur within the lifetime of his hearers, and there are those who believe that Jesus was correct because the "some standing here" refers to a later generation.iv

In order to come to an understanding of this saying, we must again be reminded that when Jesus speaks of the "coming of the Son of Man," he is purposefully alluding to Daniel 7:13–14. And again we must recall that the coming of the Son of Man in Daniel 7 is set within a judgment scene before the throne of God (cf. Dan. 7:9–10). Unlike the saying in Matthew 10:23, the saying in 16:28 is found in the immediate context of words regarding judgment (v. 27). The point that Jesus is making when he says that there are some standing here who will not die before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom is that there are some to whom he is speaking who will not die before the prophecy of Daniel 7 is fulfilled, in other words, before Jesus receives the kingdom from his Father.

A comparison of Matthew 16:28 with its parallels in Mark 9:1 and Luke 9:27 lends support to this interpretation. All three sayings are set within the same context immediately before the Transfiguration, yet whereas Matthew speaks of some living long enough to see the coming of the Son of Man, Mark and Luke speak of some living long enough to see the coming of the kingdom of God. The "coming of the Son of Man" then is simply another way of saying "the coming of the kingdom of God." It is the assumption that the words "coming of the Son of Man" must mean "Second Coming" that has caused much of the confusion. Once we realize that Jesus is simply using a phrase from Daniel 7 to allude to the whole prophecy, texts such as Matthew 16:28 are much more readily understood. Jesus was not predicting that his Second Coming would occur within the lifetime of some of his hearers. He wasn't speaking of the Second Coming at all.v He was referring to the fulfillment of Daniel 7, his reception of the kingdom from the Father, and this was fulfilled within the lifetime of some of his hearers (cf. Matt. 28:18).vi

As noted above, Matthew 16:28, unlike Matthew 10:23, is set within the context of a discussion of judgment. Verse 27 speaks of the Son of Man coming with angels and judging man. If the coming of the Son of Man in verse 28 is an allusion to Daniel's prophecy of one like a Son of Man coming up to the Ancient of Days, is the coming of the Son of Man in verse 27 a different "coming"? If it is the same "coming," then what is the judgment spoken of in verse 27? There are two possibilities. Since Jesus' receiving of the kingdom is part of an entire nexus of events that concludes only at the consummation and Second Coming, it could be that the judgment referred to in verse 27 is the final judgment. If so, Jesus speaks of the first and last events in the connected series as parts of a single whole but without mentioning the amount of time that might lapse between them. Another, more likely, possibility is that the judgment Jesus is referring to in verse 27 is the judgment referred to in Daniel 7:9–10, a heavenly judgment of the "beasts/nations" that is directly related to Jesus' receiving of the kingdom of God from the Father, an event that occurs in connection with his first advent.vii

i W. D. Davies and D. C. Allison, Matthew 8–18 (London: T&T Clark, 1991), 677–9.
ii See Craig L. Blomberg, Matthew (Nashville: Broadman, 1992), 261.
iii See Donald A. Hagner, "Matthew's Eschatology," in To Tell the Mystery, JSNTSup 100, ed. Thomas E. Schmidt and Moises Silva (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic, 1994), 62.
iv There are also some who believe that Jesus correctly predicted that his Second Coming would occur within the lifetime of some of those who were listening to him speak. They argue that the Second Coming of Jesus and all the events associated with it occurred already in the first century. For a critique of this interpretation, see Keith A. Mathison, ed, When Shall These Things Be? (Phillipsburg: P&R, 2004).
v Some might ask whether this interpretation requires us to believe that nothing is said in the New Testament about the Second Coming of Christ. I do not believe this to be true. Jesus himself may have said very little about the Second Coming, but it must be remembered that his disciples were barely able to grasp the idea that he would be leaving them. It makes sense that the bulk of the New Testament's teaching on the Second Coming would be found after the resurrection and ascension (e.g., Acts 1:9–11; 1 Cor. 15:23; 1 Thess. 4:16–17; Heb. 9:28).
vi In our discussion of the "already/not yet" nature of the Kingdom of God, we observed that the incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection, ascension, second coming, and final judgment are all distinct events, but events that are part of a single whole – the coming of the kingdom. Some of these events are associated with the kingdom's inauguration, some with its consummation. What I am arguing here does not contradict this previous assertion. I am arguing here that when Jesus speaks of the "coming of the Son of Man" he is referring specifically to the events at the beginning of the series, those associated with the inauguration of the kingdom, not to events at the end of the series that are associated with its consummation. The events associated with the inauguration and with the consummation of the kingdom cannot ultimately be separated, but they are distinguished in the New Testament. It should also be observed that some of the events associated with the inauguration of the kingdom are seen as "first-fruits" of a larger whole that includes events associated with the consummation of the kingdom. The resurrection of Jesus, for example, is the "firstfruits" of a larger harvest that includes the general resurrection of the last day. The "coming of the Son of Man" is to the "Second Coming" what the inauguration of the kingdom is to the consummation of the kingdom, closely related but distinct concepts.
vii Even if the judgment mentioned in Matthew 16:27 is the heavenly judgment of the beasts/nations found in Daniel 7, it is possible that there is a secondary reference to the final judgment since all of the events from the first advent to the second advent are part of a whole. The heavenly judgment of the beasts/nations at the first advent may be viewed as the "first fruits" of the eschatological judgment.

Adapted from From Age to Age by Keith Mathison. ISBN 978-0-87552-745-1
Used with permission of P&R Publishing Co. P O Box 817, Phillipsburg N.J. 08865 www.prpbooks.com

From Age to Age is available in the Ligonier store.

Twitter Highlights (5/13/12)

Here are highlights from our various Twitter accounts over the past week.

Under the influence of an evil heart, every thing appears in false colors (Archibald Alexander).

— Ligonier Academy (@LigonierAcademy) May 7, 2012

The LORD is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble; he knows those who take refuge in him (Nah. 1:7).

— Tabletalk Magazine (@Tabletalk) May 7, 2012

Though sin often brings immediate pleasure, it gives no lasting joy. —R.C. Sproul bit.ly/qznEC2

— Reformation Trust (@RefTrust) May 7, 2012

God does not need me. —R.C. Sproul

— Ligonier Ministries (@Ligonier) May 8, 2012

Recent polls suggest that two-thirds of evangelicals believe that man is basically good. Learn more about free will: bit.ly/IFxB74

— Ligonier Connect (@LigonierConnect) May 8, 2012

Becoming a Christian involves nothing less than a radical deliverance from the dominion of sin. —Sinclair Ferguson

— Ligonier Ministries (@Ligonier) May 9, 2012

God's law is a constant mirror; it never "cracks," no matter how many years pass or how many stones are thrown at it (@davidpmurray).

— Tabletalk Magazine (@Tabletalk) May 10, 2012

The Gospel Focus of Charles Spurgeon by Steven Lawson is now available for #Kindle at Amazon bit.ly/LxL83F

— Reformation Trust (@RefTrust) May 11, 2012

You can also find our various ministries on Facebook:

Ligonier Ministries | Ligonier Academy | Ligonier Connect
Reformation Bible College | Reformation Trust | Tabletalk Magazine

The Eternal Significance of The Infinitely Insignificant

And he said, "The kingdom of God is as if a man should scatter seed on the ground. He sleeps and rises night and day, and the seed sprouts and grows; he knows not how. The earth produces by itself, first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear." — Matthew 4:26-28

Jesus said the spread of the kingdom of God is much like this process. It begins small, but while our attention is elsewhere, so to speak, the kingdom grows. Like the growth of a seed, it is a mysterious process.

We cannot see grass growing with the naked eye.

When I was in seminary, we often read and discussed the ideas of the higher critical scholars, who attacked every page of the Bible with their cynicism and skepticism. One of my professors constantly expressed amazement at "the arrogance of these men." When I asked what he meant, he said, "They think that they can watch the grass growing from two thousand years away." I instantly understood his point. We cannot see grass growing in the here and now; it is not a process we can observe with the naked eye. In the same way, the higher critical scholars are not able to make actual observations to support their conclusions about the biblical texts.

The things I say and do, though they seem infinitely insignificant to me, may have eternal significance as God uses me —Sproul

I find it very comforting to know that this is how God's kingdom works. This parable teaches me that the things I say and do, though they seem infinitely insignificant to me, may have eternal significance as God uses me in the building of His kingdom.

The power of a simple word.

Once, when I was standing at the church door after a service, a young man came up to me and began to tell me that he had heard me speak fifteen years before at a small church in Pennsylvania. He told me that following that service, he had asked me a question, and he was able to repeat my answer to him verbatim all those years later. He said, "When I went home, I could not get your words out of my head, and God used that comment that you made that day to convict me to go into the ministry." As I reflected on his story, I wondered how many other words I had spoken to people that had helped them—or, perhaps, wounded them, leaving scars on their souls that they carry to this day. We have no idea how powerful a simple word can be, for good or ill.

An encouragement for pastors.

Every year in the United States, thousands of pastors leave the ministry. Some leave for moral reasons, but most leave because they feel unappreciated by their congregations. They feel like they're spinning their wheels, that they're preaching their hearts out but nothing is happening. They need to hear this parable. Or they need to listen to Paul when he says, "Neither he who plants is anything, nor he who waters, but God who gives the increase"(1 Cor. 3:7). God can and does use their faithful preaching of His Word, though the preachers themselves may never see the effect their words have.

We are called to take the light and let it shine, then let God do with it whatever He pleases. —R.C. Sproul

I have been blessed to have some glimpses into how God has used my words. Some time ago, I had a conversation with Joni Eareckson Tada. At the time, she was dealing with chronic pain, and it was so bad she could not even sit in her wheelchair. To my surprise, she said, "I've been watching your videos and listening to your tapes every single day for hours, and I'm getting strength from those." Similarly, I received a letter recently from a man telling me how he first heard one of my lectures twenty years ago, then read some of my books, and he simply wanted to thank me for Ligonier Ministries. The letter was written by a man who is on national radio every day; he's one of the great leaders of the church today. I had no idea that anything I had said or written had had any impact on him.

Forget about trying to see the fruit.

That's the way the kingdom is. We often do not know what God does with our service. We plant the seed, go to bed, and, while we sleep, God germinates the seed so that life grows and eventually produces a full harvest. Then God Himself reaps for His own glory. We simply need to forget about trying to see the fruit of our service immediately. It does not matter if we ever see it. We are called to take the light and let it shine, then let God do with it whatever He pleases.

Excerpt adapted from R.C. Sproul's Mark, the fifth volume in the St. Andrew's Expositional Commentary series. Available in the Ligonier store.

All Truth is God's Truth — A Reformed Approach to Science and Scripture

In the Introduction to this series of blog posts, I asserted that Dr. Sproul's response to a question about the age of the universe at Ligonier's 2012 National Conference should be heard by every Reformed Christian interested in the topic. Why? Because Dr. Sproul takes into account issues that are usually mishandled or ignored altogether.

Dr. Sproul and the other panelists were asked about the age of the universe and asked whether it was an intramural discussion. Dr. Sproul began his response with the following words:

Not for some people. For some people it's an all or nothing issue. When people ask me how old the earth is I tell them "I don't know," because I don't. And I'll tell you why I don't. In the first place, the Bible does not give us a date of creation. Now it gives us hints and inclinations that would indicate in many cases a young earth. And at the same time you get all this expanding universe and all this astronomical dating, and triangulation and all that stuff coming from outside the church that makes me wonder, and I'll tell you why. I believe firmly that all of truth is God's truth...

I want to stop here because Dr. Sproul's statement "All truth is God's truth" is an important one that is questioned by many today. There are those with a postmodern mindset who question it because they question the very existence of objective truth, but postmodernism is not our present concern. Our present concern is with those who grant the existence of objective truth but who might also question this statement because of a suspicion that it might contradict the doctrine of sola scriptura or that it might in some other way be "non-Reformed."

We will address the issue of God's revelation (general and special) in the next installment of this series. Here, I simply want to ask whether the basic idea "All truth is God's truth" is something that a Reformed Christian should affirm. The idea was clearly expressed before the time of the Reformation. Augustine, the greatest theologian of the first millennium, expresses it in several places. In his On Christian Doctrine, for example, he writes, "Nay, but let every good and true Christian understand that wherever truth may be found, it belongs to his Master…" (II.18). The medieval theologian Thomas Aquinas developed the idea in more detail in his theological and philosophical works.

The idea, then, was obviously represented by the most important pre-Reformation theologians. But what about the Reformation itself? Was this idea rejected at that time? No. John Calvin picked up where Augustine and Aquinas left off. In his commentary on Titus 1:12, for example, Calvin states: "All truth is from God; and consequently, if wicked men have said anything that is true and just, we ought not to reject it; for it has come from God." He expands on this idea in his Institutes of the Christian Religion:

Therefore, in reading profane authors, the admirable light of truth displayed in them should remind us, that the human mind, however much fallen and perverted from its original integrity, is still adorned and invested with admirable gifts from its Creator. If we reflect that the Spirit of God is the only fountain of truth, we will be careful, as we would avoid offering insult to him, not to reject or condemn truth wherever it appears (II.2.15, emphasis mine).

So is the statement "All truth is God's truth" non-Reformed? Only if John Calvin is "non-Reformed." Calvin was able to assert, "All truth is God's truth," while also asserting the doctrine of sola scriptura because the doctrine of sola scriptura does not say that all truths are found in the Bible.i The doctrine of sola scriptura, in a nutshell, asserts that Scripture is our sole source of normative, infallible apostolic revelation and that "all things necessary for salvation and concerning faith and life are taught in the Bible with enough clarity that the ordinary believer can find them there and understand."ii The truths that are not found in the Bible (e.g. the date of your birth, the structure of protein molecules) are not necessary for salvation.

Closer to our own day, the Dutch Reformed systematic theologian Herman Bavinck wrote the following: "He [God] is the truth in its absolute fullness. He, therefore, is the primary, the original truth, the source of all truth, the truth in all truth. He is the ground of the truth – of the true being – of all things, of their knowability and conceivability, the ideal and archetype of all truth, of all ethical being, of all the rules and laws, in light of which the nature and manifestation of all things should be judged and on which they should be modeled. God is the source and origin of the knowledge of truth in all areas of life..."iii

It is evident, then, that the general idea "All truth is God's truth" is not foreign to Reformed theology. But why not? It is beyond the scope of this brief blog post to delve into the philosophical discussions regarding the different theories of truth (correspondence, coherence, pragmatic, etc.). Because this article is addressed to Reformed Christians who, by and large, adhere to the correspondence concept of truth, and because the intent is to keep this as simple and straightforward as possible, we will assume the correspondence theory of truth for the remainder of this series of posts.iv

The statement "All truth is God's truth" is consistent with Reformed theology because if something is true, it is because it is something that has been revealed by God, or because it is an accurate understanding of the nature of something created by God, or because it is an accurate description of something decreed by God. In other words, a God-centered view of truth demands that we affirm that all truth is God's truth. That which is true is true because God said it, created it, or decreed it.

Regarding the first part of this statement, God is a God who reveals. God Himself is true and cannot lie (Heb. 6:18). Therefore all that he reveals, whether through general revelation in His creation or through special revelation in Scripture is necessarily true.

Second, God is the God who creates (Gen. 1:1). He is the Maker of heaven and earth and all that is within them (Acts 14:15). This fact is closely related to the first, because God reveals certain things about Himself through creation (e.g. Rom. 1:18–20). In order for us to correctly see that revelation about God in His creation we have to accurately grasp the nature of what He has created. If we misread what is actually there, we will misrepresent God.

It is also worth observing that God's creation is real and not an illusion, and God created man with the ability to learn about and have true knowledge of what He created. As Calvin noted, this ability was impacted by the Fall, but it was not completely destroyed. Scripture regularly assumes man has the ability to learn about creation. Proverbs is probably the most obvious example of this phenomenon because in Proverbs man is expected to draw true conclusions about God and reality based on his observations of creation. Created things are what they are because God created them a certain way rather than another. When we learn something about creation that corresponds with what God actually made, we have learned something true. God is the source of these truths by virtue of the fact that He is the Creator.

Finally, God is the one who has decreed whatsoever comes to pass, and this is the basis of historical truths. When we learn something about history that is in accordance with what actually happened, we have learned something true to the extent that our knowledge corresponds with what actually happened, and what actually happened only happened, ultimately, because God decreed it.

When Dr. Sproul asserts "All truth is God's truth," he is not making a statement that is somehow less than Reformed. On the contrary, he is making an assertion, following Augustine, Calvin, and ultimately Scripture, that is the only statement a consistently Reformed Christian can make.

In our next installment, we will take a closer look at general and special revelation.

iW. Robert Godfrey, "What Do We Mean By Sola Scriptura," in Sola Scriptura: The Protestant Position on the Bible, 2d ed., edited by Don Kistler (Reformation Trust, 2009), 2.
iiIbid.
iiiReformed Dogmatics, 2:209–10.
ivThe correspondence theory of truth asserts that a true proposition is one that corresponds to fact – to some aspect of reality. Aristotle summed up the concept in a well-known definition: "To say of what is that it is not, or of what is not that it is, is false, while to say of what is that it is, and of what is not that it is not, is true" (Metaphysics 1011b25).

See also:

Introduction — A Reformed Approach to Science and Scripture

$5 Friday: Postmodernism, the Arts, & Prayer

It's $5 Friday again! This week we have resources that cover such topics as postmodernism, the arts, prayer, apologetics, Reformed confessions, children's books, music, eternal security, and more.

Sale runs through 12:01 a.m. — 11:59 p.m. Friday EST.

View today's $5 Friday sale items.

Heavenly Mindedness

Here's an excerpt from Heavenly Mindedness, Randy Alcorn's contribution to the May issue of Tabletalk.

Jonathan Edwards said, "It becomes us to spend this life only as a journey toward heaven … to which we should subordinate all other concerns of life. Why should we labor for or set our hearts on anything else, but that which is our proper end and true happiness?"

In his early twenties, Edwards composed a set of life resolutions. One read, "Resolved, to endeavor to obtain for myself as much happiness, in the other world, as I possibly can." Unfortunately, many believers find no joy when they think about heaven.

A pastor once confessed to me: "Whenever I think about heaven, it makes me depressed. I'd rather just cease to exist when I die." "Why?" I asked. "I can't stand the thought of that endless tedium. To float around in the clouds with nothing to do but strum a harp … it's all so terribly boring. Heaven doesn't sound much better than hell."

Continue reading Heavenly Mindedness.

An Update on Reformation Bible College

"I would have given anything to have been able to go to a college like this after I graduated from high school."

That's what I thought after we finalized the curriculum for Reformation Bible College (RBC). After many years of praying and planning, we developed a program that emphasizes the triumvirate of virtues revealed in Scripture and embodied in God Himself: the good, the true, and the beautiful. These are things of eternal consequence.

We don't know what the world will look like in ten, twenty, or thirty years. But we do know that our future leaders are the young people of today. Grounding college students in what is good, true, and beautiful is one of the most effective ways we can seize tomorrow's ground for Christ today.

Ligonier Ministries has long endeavored to help remind the church of what is good, true, and beautiful, and Reformation Bible College is key to this ongoing mission.

Reformation Bible College is a natural extension of Ligonier's mission to equip people to know what they believe, why they believe it, how to defend it, and how to share it. We all need a well-formed Christian worldview to bring Christ's lordship to bear on all of life. RBC trains students in the classical Christian worldview that they will be able to serve Christ everywhere and teach others to do the same.

I firmly believe that Reformation Bible College will help the church for generations to come. Our goal is education, a term derived from the Latin prefix e- ("out") and root ducere ("to lead"). By providing a biblical education, we are helping to lead our young people out of the darkness of this culture into the light. Our curriculum focuses on biblical and theological studies, apologetics, church history, philosophy, and the great works of art, music, and literature so as to equip students to discern good from evil, truth from falsehood, and beauty from ugliness.

Hosea 4:6 warns us that ignorance of the things of God leads inevitably to destruction, not only in our generation but in the generations that follow. With Reformation Bible College, we have an outstanding opportunity to train future leaders who will stand for truth in an age of ignorance. Momentum is building. More than thirty students are already working toward a degree in our first year of classes, and we are expecting many more students next fall.

Think of the reach that is possible as each student impacts friends and family members, who then impact their friends and family members, and so on. This is how reformation happens: a group of dedicated laypeople and future church leaders is trained in the things of God, and their impact is felt for generations.

We are thankful for the donors who have come alongside of this endeavor to help us furnish additional classrooms for current and incoming students, provide computers to new first-year students, improve facilities, and alleviate the financial burden that outfitting our new campus has placed on ministry operations. These men and women have caught the vision to support a secure future for Ligonier Ministries and Reformation Bible College.

In closing out this brief update, I have two requests:

Would you help us to spread the word about Reformation Bible College? We are convinced that our focused curriculum and the commitment to godly instruction is unparalleled in undergraduate education anywhere.
Pray that this ambitious effort would bear fruit in the lives of young adults for the good of the church and the glory of God. Our desire is to be faithful workers in the Lord's vineyard, but He must cause the increase (1 Cor. 3:7).

Learn more about Reformation Bible College.
Support the ongoing work of Reformation Bible College.

4 Reasons to Remember Your Creator in Your Youth

Our enemy says, "Youth for pleasure, middle age for business, old age for religion." The Bible says, "Youth, middle age, and old age for your Creator."

But as it's especially in our youth that we are most inclined (determined?) to forget our Creator, it's especially in these years that we must work to remember our Creator (Ecc.12:1). Remember that He made you, that He provides for you, that He cares for you, that He watches you, that He controls you; and remember that He can save you too. That's a lot to remember, but it's much easier to start memorizing when we are young!

1. Energetic years

However, that's not the only reason why God commands us to remember our Creator in our young years. It's also because these are our most energetic years.

Why wait until we are pegging out, until we are running down, until our gas is almost empty, before serving our Creator? The God who made us deserves our most active and healthy years: our bodies are strong and muscular (well kind of), our minds are sharp and clear, our senses are receptive and keen and sensitive, our enthusiasm is bright and bushy, our wills are steely and determined. Remember Him in your energetic years.

2. Sensitive years

Why do far more of us become Christians in our youth than in our middle or old age? It's because youthful years are sensitive years. Without giving up our belief in "Total Depravity" we can say that it's "easier" to believe and repent when we are younger. It's never easy, but it's easier. And it's easier because as we get older our heart is hardened thicker, our conscience is seared number, our sins root deeper, our deadness becomes deader.

Let's use our youthful sensitivity and receptivity to remember our Creator before the evil days of callous indifference set in.

3. Teachable years

We learn more in our youth than in any other period of life. That's true in all subjects, but especially true in religious instruction. All the Christians I've met who were converted to Christ late in life have expressed huge regrets about how little they know and how little they can now learn. I encourage them to value and use whatever time the Lord gives them, but they often feel they have to study twice as hard to learn half as well.

4. Dangerous years

Young years are minefield years: hormones, peer pressure, alcohol, drugs, pornography, immorality, testosterone, etc. Few navigate these years without blowing up here and there. Dangers abound on every side – and on the inside. How many "first" temptations become "last" temptations! How much we need our Creator to keep us and carry us through this battlefield.

Remember to remember

Let me then give you some helps to remember your Creator during these best of years (and "worst" of years):

Be persuaded that you have a Creator: Get well grounded in a literal understanding of Genesis 1-2 and shun all evolutionary influences.
Get to know your Creator: Study His Word using sermons, commentaries, and good books. But also study His World using microscopes and telescopes and any other instruments He gives.
Join with your Creator's friends: Build friendships with other creatures that love to remember and respect their Creator.
Follow your Creator's order: He set and gave the pattern of six days work followed by one day of rest for contemplation of His Works.
Ask for your Creator's salvation: Even if your rejection of your Creator has broken you in pieces, He's willing to re-create you in His image.
And while we're on the subject of salvation, I don't want elderly readers to be discouraged. Compared to the aeons of eternity, you are still in your "youth." It's not too late to remember Him, before these evil days come even nearer.

David Murray is Professor of Old Testament and Practical Theology at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary, and chairman of HeadHeartHand. He blogs at Leadership For Servants and you can follow him on Twitter @DavidPMurray.