Having been a high school principal, teacher, and

parent, I have heard more than one hundred student

graduation speeches. I was quite impressed on the
night of Geneva Academy's first graduation to hear
Josh Bailey's challenging address to himself and his
classmates. Never have I heard a young man take a
stand for Jesus Christ and challenge others to do the
same in the way Josh did. He explained to his
listeners in emphatic terms, backed by scripture,
what it means to live for Jesus Christ. Josh cited that
the world will present temptations, but strength from
Christ enables the Christian to withstand those
temptations. It became obvious to me, not far into
the speech, that Christ has his hand on this young
man and has provided some tremendous Christian
teaching since early childhood from his parents, his
ministers, and the teachers in the Christian schools
he has attended the last two years. Josh is a prime
example of the kind of student we want all of our
grae!uates of Geneva Academy to be -- devotedly
Christian with an eagerness for learning throughout
life!
-- Bob Boyd
Member of the Board of Governors
Geneva Academy
We have finally made it to the end of our
high school career. This final year has been a
difficult challenge for all of us, but I believe,
however, that we are all better for the experi-
ence and knowledge that we have gained due to
this challenge. Our generation for the most part
looks down upon the hard work and dedication
that it took to accomplish what we have accom-
plished. As we move on to college I think that it
is appropriate to look back upon some of the
things tbat we have learnee! this year that will
better equip us to serve Christ and His kingdom.
Now is the time when we can truly make an
impact upon this world. We can choose whether
we will now fall to the background and let
others define our lifestyle and our interests, or
we can take a stand for the only thing for which
it is worth living. We can say that, and it sounds
nice, but what does it mean? What does it mean
to live for Christ? Among the many things that
living for Christ entails, I would like to stress a
few major traits that ought to characterize a
person that is living for Christ.
First of all, there needs to be a desire to be
righteous. Righteousness is not something that
we can wear, or pretend to be - it is an inner
desire to be like Christ. It is holy living. God's
Word tells us to "be holy for I am holy." It is
not something as a Christian that we can
choose to do occasionally or when we feel like
it. We are commanded to be righteous. I
believe that we must challenge ourselves to be
holy in a culture that ridicules righteousness
and glorifies sinfulness. It is not easy. Just go
to a movie, or turn on the radio, or walk into a
store. The world is competing for our minds;
they want us to become like them. It is so
appealing to be like everyone else. No one
wants to be the outcast or laughed at; it is
much easier to "go with the flow" and succumb
to the pressure that surrounds us. We know
however that all those who reject Christ will
recei ve their just reward. I encourage you as
your fellow graduate and friend not to be
allured by the temptations of our day but to be
a warrior for Christ. Paul tells us in Ephesians
6 to "Be strong in the Lord and in the power
of His might. Put on the whole armor of
God, that you may be able to stand against
the wiles of the devil... Therefore take up the
whole armor of God, that you may be able
to withstand in the evil day, and having
done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having
girded your waist with truth, having put on
the breastplate of righteousness, and having
shod your feet with the preparation of the
gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield
offaith with which you will be able to
quench all the fiery darts of the wicked
one. " Truth, righteousness, and faith charac-
terize a righteous man. Let these things be
June/July, 2000 - THE COUNSEL ofChalcedon - 21
foremost in your mind as you enter college and
you will be able to stand unflinchingly for
Christ.
Secondly, we must have a desire to learn.
Learning is an incredible gift. Oftentimes we
forget what a blessing it is to be able to learn.
We cannot forget the words of Solomon in
Proverbs 1:5,7. He says, "A wise man will
hear and increase in learning, and a man of
understanding will attain wise counsel ... The
fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowl-
edge, but FOOLS DESPISE WISDOM AND
INSTRUCTION. "We are fools if we despise
learning. We need to be consumed with a
passion for deepening our knowledge. It is to
despise the mind that God has blessed you
with to allow yourselfto stop learning.
Tennyson in the great poem "Ulysses" chal-
lenges us through his character's example "to
strive, to seek, to frod and not to yield .. . to
follow knowledge like a sinking star, beyond
the utmost bound of human thought." To live
for Christ means, secondly, to strive after
knowledge.
Lastly, the man or woman who lives for
Christ is c1w.!,!!cterize.d.bya.prayerfullife.
Prayer is a means of grace given by God so
tha.t we may confess our sins, acknowledge His
mercy towards us, and draw closer to Him in
communion. Pastor Strevel pointed out to us
how Daniel's life is an excellent example ofthe
effectiveness of a life filled with prayer. God
will honor those who honor Him. As we meet
with the temptations which the world will
present to us, we must run to the Lord for the
strength we need to remain faithful to Him. We
do not walk this life alone, and thus we cannot
expect to have the power to live as becomes a
follower of Christ withQut His help and sustain-
ing power. We are told that "the prayer of the
righteous man availeth much." Let us remember
to utilize the means of grace which God has
given us in order that we might be able to
withstand the pressure put upon us to conform
to the world's standards. Be a man of prayer-
encouraged, strengthened, and built up for
Christ's service.
Metallica has a song entitled "Nothing Else
Matters" in which the lead singer, James
Hetfield, sings, "life is ours we live it our
way ... and nothing else matters." This idea of
living for self and pleasing yourself even at the
expense of others characterizes the majorityof
our generation. We must reJect this unbiblical
outlook upon life by being a servant and
seeking the needs of others above that of our
own. Our life is NOT our own, it is God's, and
because we owe our very existence to our
Creator EVERYTHING else matters. Our
speech, our conduct, our view of history,
. science, and literature all must be affected by
this belief. In Galatians 2 :20 Paul says, "I
have been crucified with Christ; it is no
longer I who live, but Christ lives in me;
and the life which I now live in the flesh I .
live by faith in the Son of God who loved
me and gave Himself for me. " We are '
Christ's and we must act as becomes the name
Christian. We must be righteous and prayerful
young people who love to learn and apply
God's Word to all areas oflife. We doubtlessly
will be presented with new and challenging
ideas in the coming years, and unlesS we.
decide today that we will stand firm in the.
belief that Christ alone is King of the uni:l(erse, .
we will be washed away by every new idea ' .
and fad. In Christ alone can we find the stabil-
ity and persevering power that the world so
desperately craves. We must not forget that
true happiness is found only in Jehovah.
, "Those who wait upon the Lord shall renew
their strength; they shall mount up with
wings as eagles; they shall run and not be
weary; they shall walk and As
we stand, remember that God honors those
who honor Him and that we run for a prize
which is imperiShable - established in the
heavens by the work of our Lord Jesus Christ.
I want to challenge my fellow graduates ,and
my generation as a whole to strive, to seek, to
frod, and not to yield until this culture has been
conquered for Christ and His kingdom.
22 - THE COUNSEL ofChalcedon - June/July, 2000