&&Objektive Verbraucherberatung & &&Nicht manipulierbare Tests & &&Unabh&ngige Produktinformationen & &&Kein Pr&flabor & &&Keine Simulationen & &&Keine durch Menschen ermittelten Testsieger & &&Mathematikwissenschaftlicher Ansatz errechnet die Testergebnisse & neutralisiert Werbeaussagen & &&Kein Preisvergleichsportal, sondern eine neutrale Kaufberatung&&&F&r Alle, die keine Lust haben, sich von Werbung beeinflussen zu lassenOld Age: What Saith the Scriptures - A Special Section for Seniors
Section for Seniors
What.Saith.the.Scripture?
"Now also when I am old and greyheaded,
&& until I have shewed thy strength unto this generation,
and thy power to every one that is to come."
Psalms 71:18
by Diane S. Dew
The population of Americans over 65 will grow from 34 million to 53 million
by 2020, according to Census Bureau forecasts. The over-85 population will
nearly double to 7.million.
Currently 2 million Americans live in nursing homes. Fifty million Americans
alive now are expected to spend their
last days in a nursing home.
The Greying
Every day in America,
10,000 people turn 50 years of age. One out of every five people are now
over 65. And many of these individuals live alone.
In fact,&Census Bureau statistics indicate that of the 23.6 million
people in the United States currently living alone, 38 percent are elderly.
If today's church is to meet the needs of society's changing demographics,
it must develop a sensitivity to the special needs of the elderly.
For example, take the issue of transportation. Poor eyesight and ill health
may impair seniors' driving ability, making accessibility to church services
impossible or unsafe, particularly in inclement weather, when sidewalks are
Church and community food pantries should be willing to adapt to the special
needs of the elderly and accommodate their inability to participate in programs
requiring transportation for pickup of goods.
While medical science
has succeeded in extending the average life expectancy of Americans, it has
been confronted with the challenge to compromise on ethics. In the greying
of America, issues once viewed as black and white, life and death, right
and wrong, now have become "grey," or nonabsolute. Thus, the issue of euthanasia
has boldly been thrust into the foray of social debate -- whether termed
"mercy-killing" or murder, the immutability of Scripture unmistakably declares
God's Word unalterable in respect toward&the sanctity of life.&
Meanwhile, the dominion of darkness does not sit idly by. Knowing "his time
is short," Satan has made it his mission, more than ever, as the enemy of
our souls, to "kill and destroy." As he conspired to legalize infanticide
via abortion, he seeks today to slay the elderly as well, by corrupting our
courts with the evil of euthanasia.
Diane S. Dew
Nearly one in five seniors take medication for chronic pain,
according to a 1997 survey of The National Council on the Aging (NCOA).
What does the Bible say about...
PAIN & SUFFERING
Heart Disease
SPIRITUAL &
ENTERTAINMENT
MISCELLANEOUS
Trusting God with Finances
Social Security
Senior Law
.Census Bureau statistics indicate that of
the 23.6 million people in the United States currently living alone,
38.percent are elderly.
Euthanasia
Illegal in Australia, Belgium, Britain,
China, France, Italy, assisted suicide is permitted in the Netherlands and,
in Oregon, U.S.A.&In Michigan, (where Dr. Jack Kevorkian has admitted
assisting in over 100 deaths), the issue will be voted on Nov. 3. Columbia
allows assisted suicide for consenting terminally ill patients. It is illegal
in Germany, except in Hesse state, where it can be allowed for coma patients
when approved by a guardianship court. &Source: Associated
press story 7/27/98
Senior Trivia:
One-fourth of U.S. seniors own personal computers,
according to a recent study by the Commerce Department.
For a printed copy of this and other studies in this series,
at cost, write:
PO Box 340945
Milwaukee, WI 53234&.
"And I will restore to you the years that the locust
hath eaten, the cankerworm, and the caterpillar, and the palmerworm..."
Elderly suffer from depression, study shows
& According to a mortality study released by the national Center for
Health Statistics, more than 25% of the nation's elderly live alone, and
many feel trapped in loneliness and poverty.
&& Of 802 Americans aged 60 or older, only 1 percent admitted
temptations to commit suicide, the study showed. But the elderly have the
highest suicide rate of all age groups: 20.1 per 100,000.
&& The elderly often mask their suicide attempts by starving themselves
or not taking medicine, the Gallup poll found. And their self-inflicted deaths
often go unreported.
&& The church ignores senior citizens, unless it needs their time
or money, according to the National Interfaith Coalition on Aging. While
churches will gladly accept financial donations or volunteer work from the
elderly, they said, they rarely accept their advice.
From the National & International Religion Report. By
permission....
Doctors ignore guidelines
on euthanasia
Doctors often ignore guidelines for euthanasia and assisted suicide, even
to the point of not consulting the patient, according to results of a study
published in The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Aug.
Of 355 cancer specialists surveyed, 10.7 percent reported a case of either
euthanasia or assisted suicide.
The study identified three safeguards proposed by supporters of euthanasia
and assisted suicide for terminally ill patients: the patient must 1) initiate
an 2) be evaluated
and 3) be in
extreme pain.
Only 34.2 percent of doctors reporting a case reported that they adhered
to all three guidelines. In 15.3 percent of the reports, patients were not
invo it was their families who asked to end the patients'
The study also indicated doctors instructed their nurses to administer the
lethal dose of medication, rather than doing it themselves.
The study also indicated many doctors sensed regret for their participation
in euthanasia and assisted suicide, and 39.5 percent feared prosecution.
Depression&linked to cancer in elderly
Being chronically depressed for 6 years or more nearly doubles the risk of
developing cancer for seniors, according to a report in the Journal of
the National Cancer Institute Dec. 16, 1998.
Why chronically depressed people appear to have a higher risk of cancer is
unknown, but one possibility is that depressed individuals have changes in
central nervous system activity that interfere with the immune system, says
Dr. Richard J. Havlik, of the National Institute on Aging in Bethesda, Md.
Other possible explanations include genetic predisposition, smoking, use
of antidepressants, alcohol abuse and overeating.
But these findings apply only to elderly people, says Dr. Robert Croyle,
of the National Cancer Institute in Bethesda, Md.
"It may be that the mechanisms responsible for the relationship between
depression and cancer are part of a more complex aging process, producing
age-specific vulnerability to disease," Croyle says. "Thus, it would be premature
to conclude that adults might reduce their risk of cancer through the treatment
of depression."
Source: Journal of the National Cancer Institute 6-1857,
The population of Americans over 65 will grow from 34 million to 53 million
by 2020, according to Census Bureau forecasts. The over-85 population will
nearly double to 7 million.
..........................
More Senior Links
I. Scripture promises many blessings to the aged.
A. Honor and respect.
Leviticus 19:32 "Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, and honour
the face of the old man, and fear thy God: I am the Lord."
Job 32:4, 6 "Now Elihu had waited till Job had spoken, because they
were elder than he....And Elihu ... said, I am young,
wherefore I was afraid, and durst not shew you mine opinion."
1 Chronicles 29:28 "a good old age, full of days, riches, and
Proverbs 23:22 "Hearken unto thy father that begat thee, and despise
not thy mother when she is old."
B. Wisdom.
Job 12:12 "With t and in length of days
understanding."
Job 32:7 "I said, Days should speak, and multitude of years should
teach wisdom."
1 Kings 12:6 "And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men... and
said, How do ye advise that I may answer this people?"
1 Kings 12:8, 13, 14 "But he forsook the counsel of the old men...
and consulted with the young men that were grown up with him, and which stood
before him... And the king answered the people roughly, and forsook the old
men's counse and spake to them after the counsel of
the young men..."
C. Strength.
I Samuel 46:4 "And even to your old age I and even to hoar
hairs will I carry you... even I will carry, and will deliver you."
Psalms 71:9 "Cast me not off in forsake me not
when my strength faileth."
Psalms 71:17 "O God, thou hast taught me from my youth: and hitherto
have I declared thy wondrous works."
Psalms 71:18 "Now also when I am old and greyheaded, O God, forsake
until I have shewed thy strength unto this generation, and thy power
to every one that is to come."
Deuteronomy 33:25 "...as thy days, so shall thy strength be."
Isaiah 40:29 "He givet and to them that have
no might he increaseth strength."
Psalms 103:5 "[He] satisfieth thy mo so that
thy youth is renewed like the eagle's."
Joshua 14:7 "Forty years old was I when Moses the servant of the
Lord sent me from Kadeshbarnea to spy out the land ..."
Joshua 14:10 "And now, behold, the Lord hath kept me alive, as he
said, these 45 years ... and now, lo, I am this day 85 years old. As yet
I am as strong this day ...as my strength was then, even so is my strength
now, for war, both to go out, and to come in..."
D. Grandchildren.
Proverbs 17:6 "Children's children are the crown of old men..."
Ruth 4:13-16 "...And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the Lord,
which hath not left thee this day without a kinsman ... And he shall be unto
thee a restorer of thy life, and a nourisher of thine old age ..."
II. Long life.
Genesis 6:3 "And the Lord said, My spirit shall not always strive
with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be 120 years."
A. Before the flood.
1. People typically lived to over 900 years old.
Genesis 5:5, 8, 11, 14, 17, 20, 23, 27, 31
2. They also bore children in old age.
Genesis 5:3 Adam, at 130 Genesis 5:6 Seth, at 105 Genesis
5:9 Enos, at 90 Genesis 5:12 Cainan, at 70 Genesis 5:15 Mahalaleel,
at 65 Genesis 5:18 Jared, at 162 Genesis 5:21 Enoch, at 65
Genesis 5:25 Methuselah, at 187 Genesis 5:28, 29 Lamech, at 182
Genesis 5:32 Noah, at 500
B. After the flood.
1. People did not live as long (200-400 years), but still much longer
than today. Genesis 11:10-32.
Abraham lived 175 years
(Genesis 25:7, 8).&Isaac
lived to be 180 (Genesis 35:28). Jacob lived to 130 years of age (Genesis
47:8, 9). Moses was 120 (Deuteronomy 34:7). Joshua lived to
Joshua 24:29
2. Today people usually live 70 to 80 years.
Psalms 90:10 "The days of our years are 70 and if by reason
of strength they be 80 years, yet is their streng for
it is soon cut off, and we fly away."
3. God can still provide a child even in our old age.
Genesis 17 and 18 "...Abraham and Sarah were old and well stricken
and it ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women. .."
Genesis 37:3 "Now Israel loved Joseph more than all his children,
because he was the son of his old age ..."
Luke 1:5-20, 36"... Zacharias ... [and] Elisabeth ... had no child,
because that Elisabeth was barren, and they both were now well stricken in
years.... she hath also conceived a son in her old age..."
C. God blesses the righteous with long life.
1. Many experience good health right until the time of their departure.
2 Chronicles 24:15 But Jehoiada waxed old, and was full of days when
130 years old was he when he died.
Genesis 15:15 And thou shalt go to
thou shalt
be buried in a good old age.
Genesis 25:8 Then Abraham gave up the ghost, and died in a good old
age, an old man, and full of years...
Deuteronomy 34:7 And Moses was 120 years old when he died: his eye
was not dim, nor his natural force abated.
1 Chronicles 29:28 And he died in a good old age, full of
Job 5:26 Thou shalt come to thy grave in a full age, like as a shock
of corn cometh in in his season.
Psalms 91:14, 16 Because he hath set his love upon me ... because
he hath known my name.... With long life will I satisfy him...
Isaiah 65:22 ... for as the days of a tree are the days of my people,
and mine elect shall long enjoy the work of their hands.
Zechariah 8:3, 4 ... There shall yet old men and old women dwell
in the streets ... every man with his staff in his hand for very age.
2. God's promise of a long life is conditional upon obedience to his
commandments.
Exodus 20:12 "Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may
be long upon the land ...."
Deuteronomy 5:33 "Ye shall walk in all the ways which the Lord your
God hath commanded you, that ye may live, and that it may be well with you,
and that ye may prolong your days ..."
Deuteronomy 30:20 "That thou mayest love the Lord thy God, and that
thou mayest obey his voice, and that thou mayest cleave unto him: for he
is thy life, and the length of thy days ..."
1 Kings 3:14 "And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my statutes
and my commandments ... I will lengthen thy days. "
Psalms 34:12-13 "What man is he that desireth life, and loveth many
days, that he may see good? Keep thy tongue from evil, and thy lips from
speaking guile."
Psalms 91:16 "With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my
salvation."
Proverbs 3:1, 2 "My son, ... keep my commandments: For length of
days, and long life, and peace, shall they add to thee."
Proverbs 9:10, 11 "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom:
and the knowledge of the holy is understanding. For by me thy days shall
be multiplied, and the years of thy life shall be increased."
Proverbs 10:27 "The fear of the Lord prolongeth days: but the years
of the wicked shall be shortened."
Proverbs 3:1, 2, 16 "My son, but let thine heart
keep my commandments ... For length of days, and long life, and peace, shall
they add to thee ..."
Proverbs 3:13 "Happy is the man that findeth wisdom, and the man
that getteth understanding."
Proverbs 4:7 "Wisdom is therefore get wisdom:
and with all thy getting get understanding."
Proverbs 4:10 "Hear, O my son, an and the years
of thy life shall be many."
Proverbs 9:10, 11 "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom:
and the knowledge of the holy is understanding. For by me thy days shall
be multiplied, and the years of thy life shall be increased."
1 Peter 3:10, 11 "For he that will love life, and see good days,
let him refrain his tongue from evil ... Let him eschew evil, and do
3. God at times has extended the length of one's life in response to
2 Kings 20:1-7 (cp. Isaiah 38:2-5) "In those days was Hezekiah sick
unto death. And the prophet Isaiah ... said unto him, Thus saith the Lord,
for thou shalt die, and not live. Then he turned
his face to the wall, and prayed unto the Lord, saying, I beseech thee, O
Lord, remember now how I have walked before thee in truth and with a perfect
heart, and have done that which is good in thy sight. And Hezekiah wept sore.
And it came to pass, afore Isaiah was gone out into the middle court, that
the word of the Lord came to him, saying, Turn again, and tell Hezekiah ...
I have heard thy prayer, I have seen thy tears: behold, I will heal thee:
on the third day thou shalt go up unto the house of the Lord. And I will
add unto thy days 15 years.... And Isaiah said, Take a lump of figs. And
they took and laid it on the boil, and he recovered."
Psalms 21:4 "He asked life of thee, and thou gavest it him, even
length of days for ever and ever."
James 5:15 "And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the
Lor and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven
III. We should not worry about dying.
Genesis 27:1-4 "And it came to pass, that when Isaac was old, and
his eyes were dim, so that he could not see, he called Esau his eldest son,
and said unto him, My son: and he said unto him, Behold, here am I. And he
said, Behold now, I am old, I know not the day of my death... my soul may
bless thee before I die."
Genesis 35:28, 29 "And the days of Isaac were 180 years.. And Isaac
gave up the ghost, and died, and was gathered unto his people, being old
and full of days: and his sons Esau and Jacob buried him."
1 Samuel 27:1 "And David said in his heart, I shall now perish one
day by the hand of Saul: there is nothing better for me than that I should
speedily escape into the land of the P and Saul shall despair
of me, to seek me any more in any coast of Israel: so shall I escape out
of his hand."
Hebrews 2:15 "And deliver them who through fear of death were all
their lifetime subject to bondage."
A. God has a plan regarding how long we will live. Death is a part of
Job 7:1 "Is there not an appointed time to man upon earth? are not
his days also like the days of an hireling?"
Psalms 31:15 "My times are in thy hand: deliver me from the hand
of mine enemies, and from them that persecute me."
Psalms 48:14 "For this God is our God for ever and ever: he will
be our guide even unto death."
B. Sometimes God lets us know our time to die is soon.
Psalms 39:4 "Lord, make me to know mine end, and the measure of my
days, what it is: that I may know how frail I am."
Psalms 90:12 "So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our
hearts unto wisdom."
Luke 2:26 "And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost, that he
should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ."
2 Timothy 4:6,7 "For I am now ready to be offered, and the time of
my departure is at hand.
I have fought a good fight, I have
finished my course, I have kept the faith."
2 Peter 1:14 "Knowing that shortly I must put off this my tabernacle,
even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me."
2 Kings 2:3 "And the sons of the prophets that were at Bethel came
forth to Elisha, and said unto him, Knowest thou that the Lord will take
away thy master from thy head to day? And he said, Yea, I hold ye
your peace."
C. A shorter life is sometimes better, depending on God's plan. But it
must be God's doing.
1. Enoch walked so close to God, that one day he just crossed over into
Genesis 5:23, 24 "And all the days of Enoch were 365 years: And Enoch
walked with God: for God took him."
Hebrews 11:5 "By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see
and was not found, because God had translated him: for before his
translation he had this testimony, that he pleased God."
2. Sometimes God removes the righteous so he can punish the wicked.
Isaiah 57:1 "... the righteous is taken away from the evil to
1 Kings 14:12, 13 "Arise thou therefore, get thee to thine own house:
and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die. And all Israel
shall mourn for him, and bury him: for he only of Jeroboam shall come to
the grave, because in him there is found some good thing toward the Lord
God of Israel in the house of Jeroboam."
D. Remaining alive on earth, rather than passing into the next life, can
be a place of difficult struggle and surrender, if our desire "to be with
Christ" is very instense.
Philippians 1:23-25 "For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire
to depart, and to be with C which is far better: Nevertheless to abide
in the flesh is more needful for you. And having this confidence, I know
that I shall abide and continue with you all for your furtherance and joy
of faith."
E. The dying traditionally have given parting instructions or blessings
or prophecy to family members.
Genesis 49:1, 33 "And Jacob called unto his sons, and said, Gather
yourselves together, that I may tell you that which shall befall you in the
last days. And when Jacob had made an end of commanding his sons, he gathered
up his feet into the bed, and yielded up the ghost, and was gathered unto
his people."
Genesis 50:22-25 "And Joseph saw Ephraim's children of the third
generation: the children ... were brought up upon Joseph's knees. And Joseph
said unto his brethren, I die: and God will surely visit you, and bring you
out of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and to
Jacob. And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying, God will
surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence."
1 Kings 2:1-10 "Now the days of David drew nig
and he charged Solomon his son, saying, I go the way of all the earth: be
thou strong therefore, an and keep the charge of the
Lord thy God, to walk in his ways... that thou mayest prosper in all that
thou doest, and whithersoever thou turnest thyself:... So David slept with
his fathers, and was buried in the city of David."
IV. The elderly are valuable and serve a unique and useful purpose in
the kingdom.
Psalms 92:14 "They shall still bring forth fruit in old age ..."
A. &A source of wisdom, attained by experience.
Job 12:12 "With t and in length of days
understanding."
Job 32:7 "I said, Days should speak, and multitude of years should
teach wisdom."
1 Kings 12:6 "And king Rehoboam consulted with the old men, that
stood before Solomon his father while he yet lived, and said, How do ye advise
that I may answer this people?"
1 Kings 12:8, 13, 14 "But he forsook the counsel of the old men,
which they had given him, and consulted with the young men that were grown
up with him, and which stood before him... And the king answered the people
roughly, and forsook the old men's counse and spake
to them after the counsel of the young men ..."
B. Ministry.
(God sometimes doesn't use us until we are old).
Exodus 7:7 "And Moses was 80 years old, and Aaron 83 years old, when
they spake unto Pharaoh."
Joel 2:28 (cp. Acts 2:17-18, etc.) "... I will pour out my spirit
and your ... old men shall dream dreams...."
Acts 7:23-34 "And when he was full 40 years old ... Then fled Moses
... and was a stranger in the land of Madian, where he begat two sons. And
when 40 years were expired, there appeared to him in the wilderness of mount
Sinai an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush. ... and as he drew
near to behold it, the voice of the Lord came unto him, Saying, ... now come,
I will send thee..."
Titus 2:2, 3 "That the aged ... women likewise, that they be ... teachers
of good things."
C. Prayer and intercession.
Genesis 18 "And the Lord said, Shall I hide from Abraham that thing
which I do...? the cry of Sodom and Gomorrah is great, and because their
I will go down now... but Abraham stood yet before
the Lord. ...and said, Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?
... And he said, I will not destroy it ...."
1 Samuel 12:1, 2, 16, 19 "And Samuel said unto all Israel, Behold,
I have hearkened unto your voice in all that ye said unto me, and have made
a king over you ... and I am old and grayheaded...And all the people said
unto Samuel, Pray for thy servants unto the Lord ..."
Luke 2:36, 37 "And there was one Anna, a prophetess... she was of
a great age, and had lived with an husband seven year
and she was a widow of about 84 years, which departed not from the temple,
but served God with fastings and prayers night and day."
1 Timothy 5:5 "Now she that is a widow indeed, and desolate, trusteth
in God, and continueth in supplications and prayers night and day."
D. Witnessing and testifying to the faithfulness of God.
Luke 2:36-38 "And there was one Anna, a prophetess... of a great age,
and had lived with an husband seven year And she was
a widow of 84 years, which departed not from the temple, but served God with
fastings and prayers night and day. And she coming in that instant gave thanks
likewise unto the Lord, and spake of him to all them that looked for redemption
in Jerusalem."
Acts 28:30 "And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house,
and received all that came in unto him."
2 Timothy 1:5 "When I call to remembrance the unfeigned faith that
is in thee, which dwelt first in thy grandmother Lois, and thy mother E
and I am persuaded that in thee also."
2 Timothy 3:15 "And that from a child thou hast known the holy
scriptures, which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith
which is in Christ Jesus."
E. Exhortation. (A lifetime of experiences can be a great testimony of
God's faithfulness.)
Psalms 37:25 "I have been young, yet have I not seen
the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread."
2 Peter 1:12-15 "Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always
in remembrance of these things... as long as I am in this tabernacle, to
stir you up by puttin Knowing that shortly I must put
off this my tabernacle, even as our Lord Jesus Christ hath shewed me. Moreover
I will endeavour that ye may be able after my decease to have these things
always in remembrance."
Philemon 1:9 "Yet for love's sake I rather beseech thee, being such
an one as Paul the aged, and now also a prisoner of Jesus Christ."
F. Worship.
Psalms 148:12,13 "Both young men, old men, and children:
Let them praise the name of the Lord: for his nam his
glory is above the earth and heaven."
Joel 2:15, 16 "Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a
solemn assembly: Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the
elders, gather the children, and those that suck the breasts."
G. Practical assistance
(despite physical impairments: hearing loss, etc.).
2 Samuel 19:32, 33-35; cp. 17:27-29 "Now Barzillai was a very aged
man, even 80 years old: and he had provided the king of sustenance ... for
he was a very great man. And the king said unto Barzillai, Come thou over
with me, and I will feed thee with me in Jerusalem. And Barzillai said unto
the king, How long have I to live, that I should go up with the king unto
Jerusalem? I am this day 80 years old: and can I discern between good and
evil? can thy servant taste what I eat or what I drink? can I hear any more
the voice of singing men and singing women? ..."
H. An Example of Holy Living.
Titus 2:2, 3 "That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound
in faith, in charity, in patience. The aged women likewise, that they be
in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much
wine, teachers of good things."
V. Exhortations directed specifically to the elderly.
Titus 2:2, 3 "That the aged men be sober, grave, temperate, sound
in faith, in charity, in patience. The aged women likewise, that they be
in behaviour as becometh holiness, not false accusers, not given to much
wine, teachers of good things."
A. &&Age alone doesn't always make us wiser.
Only those who know God have true wisdom.
Job 32:9 "Great men are not always wise..."
Psalms 119:100 "I understand more than the ancients, because I keep
thy precepts."
Proverbs 16:31 "The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it be found
in the way of righteousness."
Job 12:13 "With him is wisdom and strength, he hath counsel and
understanding."
Job 12:20 "He removeth away the speech of the trusty, and taketh
away the understanding of the aged."
B. &The elderly can be stubborn regarding change.
Ecclesiastes 4:13 "Better is a poor and a wise child than an old and
foolish king, who will no more be admonished."
Ecclesiastes 7:10 "Say not thou, What is the cause that the former
days were better than these? for thou dost not enquire wisely concerning
Haggai 2:3 "Who is left among you that saw this house in her first
glory? and how do ye see it now? is it not in your eyes in comparison of
it as nothing?"
Ezra 3:11, 12 "And they sang together by course in praising and giving
thanks unto the Lord... And all the people shouted with a great shout, when
they praised the Lord, because the foundation of the house of the Lord was
laid. But many of the priests and Levites and chief of the fathers, who were
ancient men, that had seen the first house, when the foundation of this house
was laid before their eyes, we and many shouted aloud
C. Even the elderly must guard their relationship with God.
1 Kings 11:4 ".... when Solomon was old ...his wives turned away his
heart after other gods: and his heart was not perfect with the Lord
VI. Every form of murder – from abortion and infanticide to euthanasia
– is forbidden by God.
"Thou shalt not kill." (Exodus 20:13)
A. The value of life exceeds every possession.
Job 2:4 "And Satan answered the Lord, and said, Skin for skin, yea,
all that a man hath will he give for his life."
Matthew 6:25 "Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your
life, what ye shall eat, or nor yet for your body, what
ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?"
B. God is the author of life.
Genesis 2:7 "And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground,
and breathed into his nostril and man became a living
Acts 17:28 "For in him we live, and move, as
certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring."
C. God supplies every breath we take.
Joshua 14:10 "And now, behold, the Lord hath kept me alive, as he
said, these 45 years, even since the Lord spake this word unto Moses...and
now, lo, I am this day 45 years old."
Psalms 36:6 "... O Lord, thou preservest man and beast."
Psalms 66:9 "[He] holdeth our soul in life...."
D. God determines the length of an individual's life.
Job 12:10 "In whose hand is the soul of every living thing, and the
breath of all mankind."
Daniel 5:23 "... the God in whose hand thy breath is ..."
E. Scripture provides only a couple acceptable instances of laying down
one's life:
1. If necessary, for Christ. Matthew 10:39; Luke 14:26; Acts
2. If necessary, for the brethren. Romans 16:4; 1 John 3:16.
3. Never for oneself, never to relieve pain, never for financial reasons.
F. We are to care for our bodies as the temple of God, and protect the
life he gave&us. Our lives are not our own.
Matthew 10:23 "But when they persecute you in this city, flee ..."
Acts 27:34 "Wherefore I pray you to take some meat: for this is for
your health.."
1 Corinthians 3:16 "Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and
that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?"
1 Corinthians 6:19 "What? know ye not that your body is the temple
of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your
VII. Who is responsible to provide for the elderly?
A. The church.
1 Timothy 5:5 Now she that is a widow indeed, and desolate, trusteth
in God, and continueth in supplications and prayers night and day.
1 Timothy 5:9 Let not a widow be taken into the number under 60 years
old, having been the wife of one man.
B. The Family.
Exodus 20:12 "Honour thy father and thy mother: that thy days may
be long upon the land ...."
Ruth 4:13-16 "...And the women said unto Naomi, Blessed be the Lord,
which hath not left thee this day without a kinsman ... And he shall be unto
thee a restorer of thy life, and a nourisher of thine old age ..."
Proverbs 23:22 "Hearken unto thy father that begat thee, and despise
not thy mother when she is old."
C. God Himself.
Genesis 48:15 "And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my
fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long
unto this day."
VIII. Our outlook on aging influences how we feel about ourselves, as
well as our usefulness toward God.
A. Old age can be beautiful.
Proverbs 16:31 "The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it be found
in the way of righteousness."
Proverbs 20:29 "The glory of young men is their strength: and the
beauty of old men is the grey head."
B. Old age is described in Scripture
as good: "good old age."
2 Chronicles 24:15 "old, and ... full of days ..."
Genesis 15:15 "a good old age"
Genesis 25:8 " a good old age, an old man, and full of
1 Chronicles 29:28 "a good old age, full of days"
Job 5:26 "a full age, like as a shock of corn cometh in his
Job 42:17 "old and full of days"
C. Growing old should not discourage us.
Ecclesiastes 11:10 "Therefore remove sorrow from thy heart, and put away
evil from thy flesh: for childhood and youth are vanity."
1. Life can be troublesome anyway.
Job 5:7 "Man is born unto trouble, as the sparks fly upward."
Job 14:1 "Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble.
a. It full of uncertainties (James 4:13-15)
b. It can seem empty at times (Ecclesiastes 6:12; Psalms 89:47)
2. It is only temporary.
Job 7:1 "Is there not an appointed time to man upon earth? are not his days
also like the days of an hireling? "
Job 14:1 "Man that is born of a woman is of few days, and full of trouble.
Job 14:5 "Seeing his days are determined, the number of his months are with
thee, thou hast appointed his bounds that he cannot pass."
Psalms 89:47 "... how short my time is ..."
Psalms 90:10 "The days of our years ... yet is their strength labour and
sorrow, for it is soon cut off, and we fly away."
3. Life is short.
a. Too soon over, like a vacation or trip. Genesis 47:9
b. Unable to grasp or hold onto, as liquid poured&on the ground. 2 Samuel
c. Transitory, like the days of a hireling. Job 7:1
d. Quickly moving, like a passing ship, an eagle hasting to its prey, or
a hand-breadth. Job 9:25, 26
e. Swift as a weaver's shuttle. Job 7:6
f. Soon surrendering its beauty, as a fading flower, or withering grass.
Job 14:2; 1 Peter 1:24
g. A shepherd's tent removed. Psalms 39:5
h. Not something we can grasp: A fading shadow. Psalms 73:20; 90:5
i. Soon forgotten, as a spoken tale. Psalms 90:9
j. Short as a cut thread. Isaiah 38:12 Wind. Job 7:7
k. A swift post. Isaiah 38:18
l. Quickly forgotten, as a dream, in sleep. Ecclesisastes 6:12
m. Indistinguishable, after time, as a passing vapor. James 4:14
4. Realization of the brevity of life should not make us despondent, but
inspire us to focus on eternal and spiritual things to make each day count.
Deuteronomy 32:29 "that they were wise, that they understood this, that they
would consider their latter end!"
Psalms 90:12 "So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts
unto wisdom."
Today's.Senior.News