Regional Synod of Canada - Reformed Church in America

Pioneer Christian Monthly

Date - Jan/71

Contributor - Jerry Potma

Title - Teenager - Who's in the Driver's Seat?

Topic - Meditation

Galatians 2: 20 (T.E.V.)

I have been put to death with Christ on his cross, so that it is no longer I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me. This life that I live now, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave his life for me.

You've come of age. You're not the kid you used to be. You're doing pretty good at school. You're in the Honours Club and play on the school's basketball team. Within reason, you can do anything you pretty well like; from buying your own things to going on dates. You've even got your driver's license now, and can drive the car to places you want to go to. Oh sure, a car can be dangerous, it can be a lethal weapon in immature and irrational hands, but you can handle that.

You've come of age. You're beginning to understand some of the problems of this world. You don't know all the answers yet, but you're working on it. You're searching for truth, and you know that when you find it, you'll have the answers. Some of the kids "drop acid" and "get spaced" in their search for truth, but you don't think that's the answer. Maybe you've even tried that and got scared out of your wits. No, you've got control of yourself now. You know how powerful the human body is; how with the flick of the tongue or one short glance, we can sometimes completely shatter someone else. No, you're in the driver's seat of your life and as far as you can see, the route you're following seems to be a pretty good one. You haven't had too many accidents, not too many driving offenses, and all in all, the car's in pretty good shape.

There's a story of a young man in the bible (Luke 18 : 18-23) who claimed to be pretty good driver. He had competed in all the major rallies and his trophy case was packed. Yet he came to Jesus to ask where the finish line was and how he could get there. It seems strange that, even though he was such a good driver, he didn't know where the finish line was. That's why the answer, Jesus gave him, upset him so much. What did Jesus tell him? Why, in very plain words, Jesus told him to get out of the driver's seat and let Him do the driving from now on.

So many of us are anxious to do the will of God and live respectable Christian lives, never realizing that our basic relationship with Christ is unacceptable to Him. Vainly we try to overcome our weaknesses, praying for strength we never seem to get. We press ourselves into the pew on Sundays, and through the week, try to live as Christ would have us live. We attempt to be nice to people even though we don't feel up to it. Somehow it all seems phony and unreal. No wonder some young people in search for reality get bombed right out of their minds.

But if we want to be like Christ why don't we open up the driver's manual and see what the rules of the road are. What's required for us to reach the finish line. In Matthew 16 :24, Jesus said to his disciples: "If anyone wants to come with me, he must forget himself, carry his cross, and follow me. For the man who wants to save his own life will lose, it; but the man who loses his life for my sake will find it."

Maybe you like to receive Christ's influence in your life but would rather have Him as a navigator than a driver. In that case you can always turn down a side street even though the navigator says "straight ahead". But let's not kid ourselves. The bible is very clear as to how we should ask Christ into our lives. TEENAGER - ask Christ to be in the driver's seat of your life. Can you, in all honesty, say the words that Paul spoke in Galatians 2 verse 20 ? If not, why not?

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