1 Timothy 5:1-8
Eternity Online: John Edmiston (Editor)
Eternity-Inspiration for Monday 9th March 1998
1 Timothy 5:1-8
(1 Tim 5:1-8 NKJV) Do not rebuke an older man, but exhort him as a
father, younger men as brothers, {2} older women as mothers, younger
as sisters, with all purity. {3} Honour widows who are really widows.
{4} But if any widow has children or grandchildren, let them first
learn to show piety at home and to repay their parents; for this is
good and acceptable before God. {5} Now she who is really a widow, and
left alone, trusts in God and continues in supplications and prayers
night and day. {6} But she who lives in pleasure is dead while she
lives. {7} And these things command, that they may be blameless. {8}
But if anyone does not provide for his own, and especially for those
of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an
unbeliever.
It was only when I was a church worker in a Chinese church that these
verses came alive to me. The Chinese defer to their elders and
support their aged parents as a matter of course and this is very
biblical. The Bible says that those who honour their father and
mother will "dwell a long time in the land" and the Chinese have done
so for 5000 years! The godly part of their tradition has been
honoured by God who is gracious to all and who is without partiality.
In Western churches verse 8 is generally applied to the nuclear
family - Mum, Dad and the kids and this is seen as the "household"
that we are responsible for. But that is not the context of the
verse. It is smack bang in the middle of a discussion of the support
of "widows" who were over 60 and thus were the aged parents of the
Christians Paul was writing to. The verse is saying not to dump these
people onto the church (or Social Security) to take care of but for
Christians to support their aged parents themselves. (see verse 4).
Christians are obliged to care financially for their aged parents.
If we do not do so we have denied the faith and are worse than an
unbeliever.
Obviously if our parents are wealthy or have large superannuation
packages then this responsibility of ours has been taken care of.
However many older people are poor and lonely and feel very
neglected by the children they have raised. When I was 21 I tried
door to door selling for a few weeks and the thing that stood out
was the enormous number of old people who were desperately lonely,
ill and neglected. They would stand at the door and talk to a
salesman just for the company. This is not right. Our older folk are
precious and we should honour them.
Modern society has taken to blaming parents for all our hang-ups and
this enculturated bitterness towards parents means that many people
are very reluctant to financially support those that they see as the
source of all their troubles. This is a lie of the Devil.
Bitterness, unforgiveness and blaming parents is from the Accuser
not from God. God wants us to honour our parents.
Many of you may be struggling with this devotional because it is new
teaching, because it involves painful relationships, or because it
involves financial sacrifice. I suggest you put the question to God -
ask Him what your attitude to your parents should be and be prepared
to walk in forgiveness, love and honour towards them. Let this
teaching sit inside you and ask the Holy Spirit to quicken the word
to you if it is true. Sometimes we have to practice a righteousness
that is not of our culture and which is inconvenient and difficult. A
Christian attitude to parents will be very counter-cultural. It will
be going against the flow. Remember - it is the first commandment
with a blessing - your sacrifices and changes will be well rewarded.
Prayer:
Lord cause us to forgive our parents and to honour them with both
love and with financial support. Change our perspective on our
parents so that we do this out of Christ-like love. Amen.
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John Edmiston ([email protected])
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