Sermons

BEARING FRUIT IN OLD AGE
Psalm 92: 12-15
By: Rev. Greg Tupas, Jr.

“THE RIGHTEOUS shall flourish like the palm tree: he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon.
Those that be planted in the house of the LORD shall flourish in the courts of our God.
They shall still bring forth fruit in old age; they shall be fat and flourishing;
To show that the LORD is upright; he is my rock, and there is no unrighteousness in him” (Psalm 92: 12-15).
Something serious is happening everyday, that is, we are all getting older, whether we like it or not. Our body cells are limited to reproduce. Inevitably, aging is taking place everyday. Aging is the irreversible biological changes that take place in all living things which ultimately result to death.
1/5 of the Americans are more than 65 years old. 40% of them were born after World War II. Statistics also show that there are 60,000 Americans today who are more than 100 years old. It is estimated that by the year 2060 there will be 2.5 million Centenarians in the US. Nowadays you can still find people aging 105 years old any place you go.

In Japan it is said that by 2025 old people are twice as many as children; At present, there are 1 billion people worldwide. Partly, this is the result of better public health researches, good living conditions and the advances in medical studies.

However, no matter how long one’s life is, still, no one escapes from aging! What then shall we do with it? Prepare for our retirement? During retirement, we should enjoy life – by going fishing; be a member of a Golf Club, Yacht Club? Some are willing to pay as high as $50,000.00 yearly club membership fee, just so they will have something to do in their old age. But unfortunately, not all reach their goals; some of them die.

The real purpose of man’s life on earth is not the acquisition of material things. Yes, man can make his plans, but God decides. Therefore, it is foolish to make plans without God in your plans. Remember the Parable of the Rich Fool?

Do you know that there is no retirement in the work for the LORD? If you retire from your secular work, you can work full time for the LORD.
The Grace Baptist Church International (GBCI) is celebrating every quarter Seniors Sunday. It is a Sunday where all the activities in the church are led by the seniors. Let us see how God used the seniors in the Bible.

1. Moses and Aaron were 80 and 83, respectively when they were used by God in leading the Israelites out of Egypt. (Exodus 7: 7);
2. Joshua was old when he conquered Canaan; he defeated many nations and died at 110 years old (Joshua 24:29).
3. Zacharias was a priest at his old age (Luke 1:5-7), and so was Elisabeth, his wife was old too. (They were the parents of John the Baptist.);
4. Simeon was old but was just and devout (Luke 2: 25);
5. Anna, a prophetess, an 84 year old widow who departed from the temple but served God with fasting and prayers night and day (Luke 2: 36-37).
· What about the seniors today, what can they do?

- The seniors can be teachers in Sunday School. They are more qualified to teach because of their age, experience and knowledge;
- They can likewise be ushers in the church;
- They have all the time for visitation and they can visit and encourage the sick brethren; if not, they can use the phone to make follow-ups and get in touch with the brethren;
- They can evangelize because they are the ones with so much time to share;
- They can fast and pray like what Anna did;
- They can attend prayer meetings;
- They can sing for the LORD.
Our calling is a lifetime calling: old age, sickness and physical handicaps are not hindrances for serving the LORD.
-Be thankful to the LORD; praise God; worship Him day and night.
-When you reach the age of seniority you should be most thankful because not everybody reaches the age that you have.
- We should be thankful that here in Canada we have an abundance of food while in other countries, they are hungry. One of the common ailments here is obesity and people pay much to remove their unwanted fats. They submit to liposuction.
- Seniors, proclaim God’s Word to the next generation; be consistent in your prayer life.

There is no limit what the seniors can do; only death can stop them from serving God.
*We can’t stop the aging process but we can renew our spiritual growth daily.
*Our job is only to obey and serve the LORD; God takes care of the rest.