Furthermore, nearly every work that the young people were called by God to do was a work that turned the age. God called Moses to turn one age, and He called Joshua to turn another age. Obviously, His calling of Samuel turned another age. The prophethood, priesthood, and kingship all hung on this young man Samuel. He was truly one who turned the age. David was also one who turned the age. Furthermore, we can see that Daniel and his three friends were young ones among the people in captivity. Through them God turned that age of captivity. Then in the New Testament, the first to emerge was John the Baptist. We know that he was a young man called by the Lord. God used him to turn the age at his time. We can go on to look at Paul, who was an apostle especially used by God. The Bible says that he was a young man when he was visited by the Lord (Acts 7:58). We all admit that Paul was a man who turned the age. I dare not overstate the case, but my feeling is that the work which the Lord started among us in the East thirty years ago also considerably bore the nature and element of an age-turning work. For the carrying out of all these works of great consequences, God always called young men.

I would like to tell you, brothers and sisters, that because we saw this, we have been paying much attention to the young people’s work for nearly twenty years. This is not to say that one young person’s soul is worth two older persons’ souls. This is not what I mean. What I am saying is that a person has to be gained by the Lord at a young age if he will have some usefulness in God’s hands or a future in God’s work. This is an obvious fact.

Not only is this shown in the Bible and confirmed in church history, but it is even seen in all of human society. You have never seen old people being trained to start any new project or any new move. There is no school that solely accepts elderly students, nor is there any training center established exclusively for old people. Concerning this matter, I have to ask especially the older brothers and sisters to forgive me. There may be a seventy-year-old brother here who truly loves the Lord, and you may want to spend some time to help him. However, you will find out that it is a very difficult thing to do. You may tell him something in the morning, and he forgets it before noon. You may have clearly explained something in the morning, but in the afternoon he asks, “What is that all about?” He has forgotten again. His heart is fully burdened, but his mind is no longer fully competent. This is a cruel fact, but we cannot deny it.

Quite often I have said that for salvation, for the receiving of grace, and for the enjoyment of the Lord’s salvation the older ones are absolutely precious. However, for usefulness in the Lord’s hand, for the spread of the Lord’s kingdom, and for the propagation of the Lord’s work, the responsibility undoubtedly falls on the shoulders of the young people. If the Lord delays His coming back for five, ten, fifteen, or twenty years and He wants to accomplish something, the commission will have to be entrusted to the young people. Concerning those of us who are already over fifty, we all hope that we may be alive to see the Lord come back and not have to pass through the Jordan River of death. Nevertheless, we have to admit that the conditions today, such as the “greenness of the crops,” the desolation of the church, and the scarcity of overcomers, tell us that the Lord cannot come back so soon. It is not that the Lord does not want to come back. Rather, He desperately wants to come back soon, but our condition does not allow Him. Therefore, seeing such a situation, we believe that there may be still a considerable amount of time in which the Lord wants to accomplish something on the earth.

Of course, we should also believe that the Lord may come back tomorrow. Nearly two thousand years ago He already said, “Behold, I come quickly!” In His estimation a thousand years are like one day; with Him there is no time element. On our side, however, if the Lord delays, I cannot believe that a number of us who are now over fifty will still be alive thirty years later. Some of the brothers and sisters are even older than I am and are in their sixties, and others are in their seventies. In any case, if the Lord delays His coming back, I am afraid we cannot wait that long and will all be gone. May I ask, who then will continue to do the Lord’s work? You may be very spiritual, even too spiritual, and say, “The Lord will be responsible for all these matters.” Of course, this is true; the Lord will be responsible. There is no denying this. But one thing is clear: Whether He takes direct responsibility or He wants you or me to do something for Him, the way is with the young people. Twenty years from now those who will be useful to the Lord are those who are in their twenties or younger today.
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