In 1888, J.C. Ryle published twenty-one of his “sermons, addresses, lectures, and tracts” in a work titled The Upper Room. Of those twenty-one pieces, Thoughts for Young Men particularly stands out as an exemplary work that has remained stunningly contemporary.
The pamphlet is composed of four sections all focusing on specific biblical counsel to young men. And though this work is over 120 years old, the insights are quite relevant for a modern audience. Ryle begins with Titus 2:6 – “You men likewise exhort to be sober minded – to launch into an ardent call to young men to watch their hearts carefully. From there, he alternates between the general and the special (specific): general reasons for exhorting young men to special dangers to young men, general counsels to young men to special rules for young men.
The first half of the work is particularly strong; Ryle goes after young men. He knows young men need to seek Christ early so that they “will be spared many a bitter tear” (p. 16). He knows that the devil has it out for young men – to draw their strength (physical and internal) away from the pursuit of godly things to the pursuit of destructive vanities. And he knows how acute the peer pressure is to conform to the world’s opinions.
In the second half, Ryle lays down practical wisdom to help young men abide in Christ and live out of that fellowship. He starts with repentance and moves on to counsel and rules (practices) related to Christ, the Bible, prayer, and fellowship – the basics of Christianity. As direct and strong as the second half is, Ryle anchors his exhortations in our living upon Christ. He writes, “To live on Christ,—to draw all from Christ,—to do all in the strength of Christ,—to be ever looking unto Christ;—this is the true secret of spiritual prosperity” (p. 41).
Ryle speaks true wisdom for an age when masculinity is being undermined through redefinition (or outright erasure). The fact remains, our young men have the most potential – either to shine the light of Christ or to spiral down into darkness. This has always been the case. It just seems that the call to Christ upon young men is more urgent than ever, a fact which makes reading this classic a must.
If you are a young man, read this book. Give it to the young men in your sphere of influence. It’s a refreshing, sobering wake-up call to consider the seriousness of the soul and the big-God realities of the gospel.
