The David Spoon Experience 8-21-23 Part 1

A) In 1 Timothy chapter 5, the Apostle Paul advises Timothy to have relationships with people of all ages. He instructs Timothy to exhort older men as fathers, younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with all purity. This teaches us that Christians in relationships with one another should treat each other with the same level of respect as their own families.

B) Paul then instructs Timothy and the church on how to handle widows - women whose husbands have died and have no family left to care for them. The church bears responsibility for social support, but the people they support must be genuine in their needs and void of any other support.

C) Interestingly, verse four of this chapter mentions that there should be repayment to parents. This is not commonly taught in our current society, but it is practiced in some societies on the planet. The idea is to give respect to elders, especially if they are righteous. We should care for those who are older than us and not dismiss them. This doesn’t mean that older people run the show, but it does mean that we help them.

D) Paul then clarifies that anyone who claims to be a widow but lives for pleasure is not actually a widow. When Paul references a person not providing for their own, it does not mean that God hates people who can’t pay all the bills for their family. This refers to caring for widows and one’s own family, not the amount of financial support provided. The idea behind being a person who has denied the faith and is an unbeliever is someone who couldn’t care less about their family - we would call these people selfish.