1 Timothy 5:1-25--Instructions for the Church

1 Timothy 5
English Standard Version

Instructions for the Church
5 Do not rebuke an older man but encourage him as you would a father, younger men as brothers, 2 older women as mothers, younger women as sisters, in all purity.

3 Honor widows who are truly widows. 4 But if a widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn to show godliness to their own household and to make some return to their parents, for this is pleasing in the sight of God. 5 She who is truly a widow, left all alone, has set her hope on God and continues in supplications and prayers night and day, 6 but she who is self-indulgent is dead even while she lives. 7 Command these things as well, so that they may be without reproach. 8 But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

9 Let a widow be enrolled if she is not less than sixty years of age, having been the wife of one husband, 10 and having a reputation for good works: if she has brought up children, has shown hospitality, has washed the feet of the saints, has cared for the afflicted, and has devoted herself to every good work. 11 But refuse to enroll younger widows, for when their passions draw them away from Christ, they desire to marry 12 and so incur condemnation for having abandoned their former faith. 13 Besides that, they learn to be idlers, going about from house to house, and not only idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying what they should not. 14 So I would have younger widows marry, bear children, manage their households, and give the adversary no occasion for slander. 15 For some have already strayed after Satan. 16 If any believing woman has relatives who are widows, let her care for them. Let the church not be burdened, so that it may care for those who are truly widows.

17 Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching. 18 For the Scripture says, “You shall not muzzle an ox when it treads out the grain,” and, “The laborer deserves his wages.” 19 Do not admit a charge against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses. 20 As for those who persist in sin, rebuke them in the presence of all, so that the rest may stand in fear. 21 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus and of the elect angels I charge you to keep these rules without prejudging, doing nothing from partiality. 22 Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands, nor take part in the sins of others; keep yourself pure. 23 No longer drink only water, but use a little wine for the sake of your stomach and your frequent ailments. 24 The sins of some people are conspicuous, going before them to judgment, but the sins of others appear later. 25 So also good works are conspicuous, and even those that are not cannot remain hidden.

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This passage is still within the context of the local church, and Paul now brings up the idea that we should treat each other like family (like family should treat each other, whether or not we come from a family that does is irrelevant to this discussion).  We are to put each others needs above our own, look out for and take care of each other, treat each other with dignity and respect, and have a lot of grace with each other as we love each other.

Next comes instructions on how to handle situations of benevolence and charity in the local Church.  The Jewish people had a system of alms and tithes with the Levites being responsible for collecting the tithes and storing and distributing them to people who were in need.  No such system exists in the churches in Gentile areas.  How do they decide who they are responsible to care for?  Should they give everyone everything they ask for? The short answer is "No."   In general, the principles taught here are that a person who is that able-bodied men are to support themselves and their families--and there seems to be an assumption here that men of any age should be able to find some kind of work to do that is in line with their age and level of ability.  The man who does not work should not eat and the man who claims to be a Christian and does not care for his wife and children does not have true faith and is worse than the pagans--at least they would be ashamed by this and know it is their responsibility to take care of their own.  The man who claims the name of Christ and does not support his family tarnishes not only his own name, but the name of the Church and the name of Christ.

So then, who should the church be caring for?  Paul is talking about a very specific group of people here--women over the age of 60 with no husband and no children who belong to the local congregation (they are on some kind of registry, which might presume church membership).  This registry probably assumes it will become to responsibility of a particular congregation to take care of this "true widow" and they will not church-shop looking for handouts from multiple churches to which they have no connection or affiliation.  Note that there need not be an assumption that someone needs taken care of just because they are old and single.  With things like pensions, Social Security, and retirement accounts, there are all kinds of ways that a husband could provide for the long-term care of his wife and children after his death.  So, it's very rare today to find a woman like the one described here who has no resources.  I don't love the fact that the government has taken over what we call welfare so that it is no longer connected with the Church, but that is the world we live in.  In some ways it makes it easier for the churches to refer those looking for help to Social Services, but Social Services cannot meet the spiritual needs of the people it serves.  Therefore, there is still a place for the Church to offer gospel-focused benevolence and charity.

Paul then warns that those receiving such care from the church should not use their idle time to become busybodies or gossips, but they should instead devote themselves to prayer (and maybe fasting along with it) as they pray for the needs of the congregation.

We now change topic and look back to the Elders of the Church (we just discussed the position of Elder in the last chapter).  Elders should be given double-honor.  They should be paid for their labor and they should receive the hospitality and gratitude of the congregation.  They should have all the needs of them and their families met by the congregation.  So, the Elders are now the group that replaces the Levites of the Old Testament that the tithe belonged to.  Similar to a man who does not care for his wife and children, a congregation who will not care for their pastor and his family should be ashamed and does not possess the faith they claim to have.  I switched to the word "pastor" here because the pastor is typically the one given to full-time ministry that is dependent on the Church.  Typically, though not always, the other Elders are laymen with other jobs to support them and their families and there are a plurality of Elders to help divide the duties enough to what it is only a part-time job for them .  The pastor should not have to have to be bi-vocational.  He should be able to give himself completely to fasting, prayer, and the study, teaching, and preaching of the Word.

The Church is to be careful about ordaining Elders.  They should not do so in a hasty manner, nor should they show partiality (favoritism) either for or against anyone outside of the boundaries laid out by God in the Scriptures.  Elders are to live in a way that is blameless and above reproach, however, they are not to be so concerned with what other people think of them that they neglect to take care of themselves.  The example given here is that Timothy was so concerned about this that he wouldn't drink any wine in private or public.  The water in ancient times was often contaminated and drinking a little wine was medicinal in that it would kill off the bacteria in the water to prevent dysentery and other ailments.  Paul tells Timothy that it's okay to drink a little wine for his stomach and he is not disqualified from being an Elder because he drinks a little alcohol for medicinal reasons (not to get drunk).

Paul finishes this section by coming back to the point of not being too hasty to lay hands on someone to ordain them to be an Elder.  If you wait a while, sin will find out those who should not be confirmed.  Their sin issues will become obvious to all and likewise the good works of those who are to be confirmed will also be conspicuous.  So then, we should be careful about who we appoint to lead our congregations and treat them with double-honor, and we should be charitable to all who are members of the household of faith (like they were our family), but most especially towards the older women who have no one else to take care of them and have no means by which to take care of themselves.  Such women are just the kind of people whom the Lord is calling into a special ministry of prayer and discipleship.

Different churches handle the questions of benevolence differently (hopefully in line with the principles taught in this passage) and there is no one right way to live out these principles.  If you have questions about your church's position and policy on these issues, I would encourage you to speak to your local church leadership (pastors, Elders, and Deacons), especially if you have any concerns after reading this passage.