Good morning and happy Friday. In the Hawaiian Islands, Fridays were referred to as ‘Aloha Friday’ and they had a great feel. Life there was always a bit more relaxed but even more so on Friday. Fridays here in North Texas are exciting but it seems they’re really more of a mad dash for the weekend. Traffic is by far the worst of the entire week on Friday afternoons as everyone is trying their best to hustle home and maximize their weekend. This brings up a great point, North Texas traffic.
Traffic is a basic equation. Total road lanes divided by licensed active drivers = traffic flow. The more drivers the more lanes needed right? In theory, yes. Last year Dallas/Fort Worth/Arlington (or what is called the Metroplex) had the largest growth of any other metro area in the entire US. Over 146,000 people migrated to DFW area in 2018. Also of note, in the last 3 years, DFW has claimed the title as 4th most populous metropolitan area, behind New York, LA and Chicago. Over 7.4 million people now reside in the DFW area. I think its safe to say, somewhat stratospheric growth, and it shows little signs of slowing down. Plentiful land, affordable housing and living conditions and moderate climate, all offer a good combination of life quality and people are moving to Texas by the droves. So back to traffic. If you have hundreds of thousands of licensed drivers move to an area with little to no traffic lanes added guess what you get? DFW traffic. Marge and I can tell a huge difference just being gone 2 years. I’m curious as to how you can really combat this type of traffic dilemma. We’ll see, for now we are both thankful that we don’t have long commutes that force us to drive in horrible traffic everyday. But if you do want a way to force an increase in your prayer life…drive in lots of Dallas traffic, ha!
Today we’ll be moving on to look at 1 Timothy chapter 5. This is another very practical, chapter from Paul to Timothy that includes a lot of very applicable information that will aid Timothy in operating a church that will glorify God. As you’ll see, this may not be considered as one of the most inspirational chapters from Paul, but it does clearly lay out topics about the healthy operation of a local church that we all need to be aware of. Some of the stuff in God’s Word we just skim over and think that it doesn’t apply to us. It always seems to be the Pastor’s job, right?. But the church is not a building, but a body of believers, and if you are part of a local church then YOU are part of that body and you have an obligation to know what God says about the operation of that body. That’s what Paul will be talking about today as we learn about Pastor/member relationships, qualifying widows, pastor compensation, church discipline and qualifications of teachers within the church. Let’s get after it.
“Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers, 2 older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity.” 1 Tim 5:1
These of course, are wise words from Paul to Timothy, a new young Pastor of the church at Ephesus. We cannot however assume that these wise words are for pastors or preachers only. God’s Word is for His children and if you have called upon the name of Jesus as your Savior, these Words are a lamp unto your feet. Paul starts off here talking about our relationships with other Christians within the body of Christ, which is your local church.
Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if her were your father. Now why would you need to rebuke an older man? Well, I’m assuming he had wronged you in some way. If this happens you are not to call him out in public, especially not in a harsh way. It’s between you and he, address him in love and do it in a private setting that is appropriate. This treatment stems out of respect and we are told to respect our elders. (1 Pet 5:5)
Treat younger men as brothers. We are likewise, in love, to treat those younger men like loving brothers in Christ. What really sticks out to me here is the multi-generational approach that Paul mentions here. I’ve been in many churches where the older crowd and the younger crowd is like oil and water. The 75 year old guy wouldn’t dare talk to the 16 year old kid with his hat on backwards and the 16 year old kid would never dare talk to the 75 year old guy in a suit and tie. You see satan can use these generational differences to create division within the body of Christ. How do you defend against this? Well, it all starts with the love that Paul is speaking of right here. He talks of treating older men as a father and younger men as a brother. Do you love your father and you siblings? I sure hope so. And I hope it’s a deep, sincere love that you can draw upon and use as comparison here with how you should love those of all ages within your church.
Try this experiment Sunday at church. I want you to approach someone that is way out of your age range, older or younger. Someone that you would never talk to because you feel you have absolutely nothing in common with them. Do one thing. Introduce yourself and offer a warm greeting in Christ. After all this is your brother or sister in Christ, you just haven’t met them yet. Older folks, make it a point to reach out to the youth of the church. Younger folk, reach out to the older folks in the church. A church that can enjoy strong multi-generational bonds is a strong church indeed. In fact, this Sunday I will be teaching a class that is comprised of 75+ year olds. I’m a little nervous, but I’m thankful God has given me this opportunity to create genuine, loving multi-generational bonds based on the study of His Word. Make a connection this week, you’ll be blessed!
Next Paul gets into some very practical advice for Timothy. This is very practical for us a well. How to deal with the opposite sex within the body of Christ. “Treat older women as mothers and younger women as sisters.” There is to be a respect and reverence for those of the opposite sex. We are not to “muddy the waters” with how we treat, speak to, interact with, touch or have private moments with the opposite sex. More ministries have been destroyed because of inappropriate behavior between men and women than any other thing. Marge and I can personally attest to this as the first church we attended was literally devastated and mostly decimated because of an event of this nature. It took us both many years to overcome the effect. It caused us to doubt our faith and doubt the church. It’s amazing the effects that sin can have on the body of Christ.
Early in my ministry, I was given some wise advice on these matters. One’s ministry can be destroyed in a matter of seconds if he allows himself to be in the wrong situation that could allow false accusation. Don’t put yourself in that situation. Be very careful how you deal with the opposite sex within the body of Christ. Love your brothers and sisters in Christ as just that, brothers and sisters.
Next Paul goes on to discuss widows at length. You see in Paul’s day, the church cared for the widows. It got to be a burden as all of the sudden a lot of widows started showing up for support. Paul tells Timothy that there are some qualifications that need to be met. They truly need to be in a state that requires aid. Here are the qualifications that Paul sets forth for widows to get aid from the church:
1) She does not have any children or grandchildren still alive to care for her. If she does, THEY are commanded to care for her, not the church.
2) She is truly a widow, left all alone. Meaning she has no family left to care for her.
3)She does not 'live in pleasure.' If she’s well off and throwing parties all the time, she does not need the help of the church.
4)She needs to be 60 or older and the wife of one husband
5) She has set her hope on God and prays night and day
6) She has a reputation for good works. Has washed the feet of the Saints, shown hospitality, cared for the afflicted and has devoted herself to every good work.
Next Paul specifically mentions what to do with younger widows. He says that they should be careful to remarry a believer. Young and widowed, they are in danger of remarrying an unbeliever and straying from the faith. They also need to be wary of not remarrying for if they have too much free time on their hands they can become idle gossips going ‘from house to house’ with nothing to do. Paul says they should remarry a believer, have children, manage their households and give the adversary (satan) no occasion for slander. Paul is careful here to make these qualifications for widows so that only those truly in need will be of any burden to the church.
Paul moves on to address Pastor compensation. “Let the elders who rule well be considered worth of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching.” 1 Tim 5:17. The early church paid its teachers and if you were really good at what God had called you to do, you deserved more money. The same rings true today, good, honorable Godly Pastors should be compensated fairly. But watch out, I’m not sure about God paying teachers of His Word 5 million a year and giving them private jets.
So what do you do if an elder or pastor in the church has done wrong? Paul says you are NOT to go around gossiping about the person. You are to first make sure the accusations have merit, are true and not unfounded. Next you get two or more people and you have a sit down. A face to face meeting. I am a HUGE fan of the sit down. In todays world most problems go straight to Facebook or twitter and we never have to look the person in the face and deal with the problem. A lot of the hate and cruel sayings on social media would never be said if the person was sitting in front of them. It’s a cowards way out to trash talk somebody online. Have a sit down. Get in front of each other, hash out the problem and make amends. The reason there’s not more of this is because most people don’t want to resolve the problem. They enjoy the fight and they kindle it. If the elder has wronged you personally, the sit down should involve the witnesses and be held in private, as it did not directly involve the body of the church. If the offense did involve the body of the church the meeting could be held publicly if chosen. Church discipline is something that usually gets overlooked or completely forgotten. Problems within the church need to be dealt with swiftly before they are allowed to escalate. A good plan to handle church discipline effectively can do great things in keeping satan out of the picture.
Lastly, Paul speaks to the teachers within the church. “Do not be hasty in the laying on of hands.” This means don’t be quick to put new believers in places of teaching. When we become Christians we need time to grow in God. Time in His Word and time to walk with Him. Through this walk comes wisdom and experience and that is what’s needed to lead others in God’s Word.
Great experiential, practical wisdom in God’s Word today. I pray that your personal time in God’s Word offers you the knowledge and wisdom you require to stand for Him today in whatever circumstance the world may present.
Blessings.
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