Mutual Ministry in a Multigenerational Community

Introduction

This portion of the letter has to do with instructing Timothy how to lead the church well as a pastor.

This involves confronting false teaching and those who teach it (4:1-5)

It also means pursuing godliness and teaching what is good and right (4:6-16)

Pursuing godliness necessarily involves the way we interact with others, especially those within the church.

Galatians 6:10 ESV

10 So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith.

If we can’t show love inside the Church, it is highly unlikely that we will be able to love others well outside of the Church.

The NT teaches Christians to find their identity in Jesus Christ; personally and filially (as a family).

John 1:12 ESV

12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God,

We all belong to the same adopted family.

We have the same Father, with whom we all enjoy a close relationship.

We are adopted in through the ministry of Jesus Christ.

As such, the Church is the Christian’s first family, taking precedence over all others.

Hopefully this isn’t a conflict; but when it is, Christ comes first.

Maintaining Proper Familial Relationships

1 Timothy 5:1–2 ESV

1 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.

Two commands dominate this portion of the passage: Do not rebuke…but encourage.

Now, is Paul really telling Timothy that he should not rebuke people?

No; elsewhere, Paul explicitly teaches Timothy and Titus to rebuke those in the church.

1 Timothy 1:3 ESV

3 As I urged you when I was going to Macedonia, remain at Ephesus so that you may charge certain persons not to teach any different doctrine,

2 Timothy 2:25 ESV

25 correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth,

Titus 1:9 ESV

9 He must hold firm to the trustworthy word as taught, so that he may be able to give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it.

Further, the Scripture commends a faithful rebuke.

Proverbs 17:10 ESV

10 A rebuke goes deeper into a man of understanding than a hundred blows into a fool.

It’s loving.

Proverbs 27:5 ESV

5 Better is open rebuke than hidden love.

It builds trust.

Proverbs 28:23 ESV

23 Whoever rebukes a man will afterward find more favor than he who flatters with his tongue.

A properly rendered rebuke can be helpful and even life-giving, but the kind that Paul is warning Timothy.

The word Paul is using suggests a violent or abusive word meant to beat someone down.

As a pastor, Timothy should seek to reconcile rather than antagonize.

This kind of rebuke seeks to let others know you are for them.

To encourage others can mean a very strong exhortation, but it confronts others in a way that respects the one addressed.

Proverbs 12:18 ESV

18 There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.

One commentator said that it seeks to render healing grace rather than a coup de grace.

Respect and propriety are necessary for a pastor who desires to faithfully serve God.

Older Men—as fathers.

Younger men, especially pastors, should not talk down to their seniors, but show the proper respect one would to their father.

This is about the reverence and honor that are due to a father in the Lord, not the respect we think a man is due.

Proverbs 15:1 ESV

1 A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

Older men are not always right, but that doesn’t mean they should not be accorded the same respect.

We aren’t engaged in competition (as men are prone to do) but unification. Young men should not poison the well but seek to win them over.

Younger men—as brothers.

There is a different kind of respect that is due to young men.

Rather than talk down to them as juniors, we should elevate them by showing them the respect of brothers (equals).

We invite them to aspire to what we wish for them to be in the Lord.

Older Christians can bridge the generation gap by approaching younger Christians as equals, getting down on their level and moving forward together.

This requires respectful honesty, but also truthfulness and forebearance.

Older women—as mothers.

What characterizes Paul’s attitude most about his relationships with women is actually the affection that he holds for them (We will see more in a moment).

Timothy should consider (as should we) every older woman in the church as another mother.

(Affection) Love and cherish them; listening to them and not neglecting them.

(Protectiveness) Protect and care for them.

When we speak to them, we ask the question, Would you talk to your mother like that?

Younger women—as sisters, in all purity.

This is the only one with a descriptor…because there is a great need for the men of the church generally, and pastors especially, to take great care in the way they treat the young women of the church.

There should be a purity in the way we treat them.

Moral purity (chastity)—young women in the church should never become objects of lust for young men in the church.

But at the same time, we must treat them with the same affectionate warmth that we would give to a sister.

Pastors must guard themselves from going to either side in order to show genuine filial love to their sisters in the faith.

The practical application of this passage for the church is that we ought to adopt the same respectfulness for one another that is required fo pastors.

Children ought to be taught to respect their elders.

No one was ever hurt by saying, “sir and ma’am.”

Older Christians ought to give thought to how they can come along side their juniors and lift them up.

A Theology of Widowhood

It’s fitting that this should be the text to come up on Mother’s Day.

Widow (Chera) means a woman whose husband has died.

It is generally associated with neediness…often paired with the orphan in Scripture.

Widow does not refer to any woman without a husband, not just a woman whose husband has died.

This is especially appropriate in the modern American culture.

The past century has given rise to a whole new category of women who are effective widows.

Those who have been abandoned by their husbands and left without meaningful support.

Godly single mothers are a sadly growing category of modern widow, and they are the Church’s responsibility.

Especially in light of the fact that God has established Himself as the “Protector of Widows”

Deuteronomy 10:17–18 ESV

17 For the Lord your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great, the mighty, and the awesome God, who is not partial and takes no bribe. 18 He executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing.

This is something praise worthy about the Lord as we heard in our call to worship.

Psalm 68:4–5 ESV

4 Sing to God, sing praises to his name; lift up a song to him who rides through the deserts; his name is the Lord; exult before him! 5 Father of the fatherless and protector of widows is God in his holy habitation.

Through out the Scripture, God showed kindness and care to widows and mothers:

Ruth and Naomi.

The Widow of Zarephath in the days of Elijah.

The widow in the days of Elisha.

Jesus cared for widows as well.

He raised the widow’s only Son in Nain (Luke 7:11-15)

Luke 7:11–15 ESV

11 Soon afterward he went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a great crowd went with him. 12 As he drew near to the gate of the town, behold, a man who had died was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow, and a considerable crowd from the town was with her. 13 And when the Lord saw her, he had compassion on her and said to her, “Do not weep.” 14 Then he came up and touched the bier, and the bearers stood still. And he said, “Young man, I say to you, arise.” 15 And the dead man sat up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother.

He upholds the cause of the persistent widow in Luke 18:1-18.

Luke 18:1–18 ESV

1 And he told them a parable to the effect that they ought always to pray and not lose heart. 2 He said, “In a certain city there was a judge who neither feared God nor respected man. 3 And there was a widow in that city who kept coming to him and saying, ‘Give me justice against my adversary.’ 4 For a while he refused, but afterward he said to himself, ‘Though I neither fear God nor respect man, 5 yet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will give her justice, so that she will not beat me down by her continual coming.’ ” 6 And the Lord said, “Hear what the unrighteous judge says. 7 And will not God give justice to his elect, who cry to him day and night? Will he delay long over them? 8 I tell you, he will give justice to them speedily. Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on earth?” 9 He also told this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and treated others with contempt: 10 “Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ 13 But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” 15 Now they were bringing even infants to him that he might touch them. And when the disciples saw it, they rebuked them. 16 But Jesus called them to him, saying, “Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. 17 Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” 18 And a ruler asked him, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

And again with the widow’s mite in Mark 12:41-44.

Mark 12:41–44 ESV

41 And he sat down opposite the treasury and watched the people putting money into the offering box. Many rich people put in large sums. 42 And a poor widow came and put in two small copper coins, which make a penny. 43 And he called his disciples to him and said to them, “Truly, I say to you, this poor widow has put in more than all those who are contributing to the offering box. 44 For they all contributed out of their abundance, but she out of her poverty has put in everything she had, all she had to live on.”

Mark 12:40 ESV

40 who devour widows’ houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation.”

God has special care for widows because they were especially vulnerable in the ancient world.

So God charges His people to take up the cause of the widow.

Isaiah 1:17 ESV

17 learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause.

Exodus 22:22 ESV

22 You shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child.

Responsible Ministry

1 Timothy 5:3–8 ESV

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

Honor widows—this takes us back to the fifth commandment in Ex. 20:12

Exodus 20:12 ESV

12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.

Showing reverence to them as mothers in the church will mean giving material help.

All the widows of the church should be cared for, but the primary responsibility for their care falls first to her own family.

Caring for aging parents is practical theology.

Piety starts at home.

There are two strong motives for providing widows care.

Because it is owed to her.

She labored many years in raising her children—she is more than deserving of some recompense.

Jesus led the way in providing for his widowed mother, even as he was nailed upon the cross.

John 19:26–27 ESV

26 When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple whom he loved standing nearby, he said to his mother, “Woman, behold, your son!” 27 Then he said to the disciple, “Behold, your mother!” And from that hour the disciple took her to his own home.

He was uncompromising about this commandment, as he showed in his rebuke of the Pharisees in Matt. 15:3-9

Matthew 15:3–9 ESV

3 He answered them, “And why do you break the commandment of God for the sake of your tradition? 4 For God commanded, ‘Honor your father and your mother,’ and, ‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’ 5 But you say, ‘If anyone tells his father or his mother, “What you would have gained from me is given to God,” 6 he need not honor his father.’ So for the sake of your tradition you have made void the word of God. 7 You hypocrites! Well did Isaiah prophesy of you, when he said: 8 “ ‘This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; 9 in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ ”

It is the height of hypocrisy and vanity for Christians to fail to care for the widows and mothers of the church.

Because it pleases God, reflecting His character as “protector of widows.”

Paul gives us a description of the character of a “true widow.”

A true widow is one who does not have independent means of supporting herself.

She has no children or grandchildren.

Since they are all alone and destitute, they are in need of the Church’s support.

They are faithful: true followers of Jesus Christ.

Her hope is in God.

She appeals to Him in prayer for help.

She prays in worship to him alone.

She perseveres in these things continually.

Because she has nowhere else to go, she trusts in Christ and so she becomes an excellent example of true faith in Jesus Christ.

Her reward is that she knows that through faith in Jesus Christ, though she is alone, she is not truly alone.

Christ is always with her, and she has a family—the Church.

And the Church will show her mercy because they are her family.

God honors widows who are truly widows.

Calvin said: Consider what honor God does them , though they be destitute of all men’s aid, yet he offers himself of his own mind, to be their protector, and to defend them. And therefore, let widows comfort themselves herin and commit them wholly to God.

Psalm 146:5 ESV

5 Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob, whose hope is in the Lord his God,

For this reason, widows are perfectly fitted to the ministry of intercessory prayer.

R. Kent Hughes: It seems to me that widows have entered into a dimension of dependence on God that prepares them for the ministry of intercessory prayer. The widow’s mite was recognized and commended by Jesus because” she out of her poverty, put everything—all she had to live on.” Perhaps the widow’s “might” is most mighty when these women band together as helper-defenders in intercessory prayer. Older women who do not have the daily responsibilities of jobs are another power source for intercessory prayer.

The widow is called especially to a ministry of intercessory prayer.

She is uniquely free from hinderances of others such as heads of households (worldly cares).

A great ministry that the church greatly needs.

Though a woman may be a widow, it is not always the case that she is needy.

Paul issues a stern warning to a widow who is self-indulgent.

Rather than hope and trust in the Lord, she seeks pleasure and lives luxuriously.

In this, she commits the sin of Sodom, as Ezekiel names:

Ezekiel 16:49 ESV

49 Behold, this was the guilt of your sister Sodom: she and her daughters had pride, excess of food, and prosperous ease, but did not aid the poor and needy.

Her lifestyle shows that she is outside the family of God; she has shown by her actions that she is not a Christian.

The Church does not owe her support on the basis of her marital status. It is a matter of good stewardship not to extend the limited resources of the Church to those who have proven to be ill-deserving.

The final part of this passage addresses the children and grandchildren of the Church who have been entrusted with the care of their widowed mothers and grandmothers.

Christians should be above reproach in the way they live (not opening themselves to public scandal).

What does it say of our Christian charity when the neediest among us goes uncared for and wallows in destitution?

Such a sin brings dishonor on the gospel of Jesus Christ.

It is a repudiation of the generosity of Christ.

James 2:15–16 ESV

15 If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, 16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, be warmed and filled,” without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that?

Hebrews 13:6 ESV

6 So we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?”

2 Corinthians 9:6–15 ESV

6 The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7 Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. 8 And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that having all sufficiency in all things at all times, you may abound in every good work. 9 As it is written, “He has distributed freely, he has given to the poor; his righteousness endures forever.” 10 He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. 11 You will be enriched in every way to be generous in every way, which through us will produce thanksgiving to God. 12 For the ministry of this service is not only supplying the needs of the saints but is also overflowing in many thanksgivings to God. 13 By their approval of this service, they will glorify God because of your submission that comes from your confession of the gospel of Christ, and the generosity of your contribution for them and for all others, 14 while they long for you and pray for you, because of the surpassing grace of God upon you. 15 Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!

To not care for the needy amongst us, especially those precious mothers of the Church would be to show that we are worse than unbelievers.

Conclusion

Let us give thought this morning to how we might best build one another up in the Church.

Speaking truth in love to one another.

Seeking always to build one another up in the faith.

Christian sons and daughters are responsibly for the cares of widows and their own helpless parents and grand parents.

We should never accept the world’s replacements (social safety net) for the Christian duty to care for those of our household that are in need.

Care doesn’t just mean provision of material needs, but that of our ongoing presence.

To neglect or abandon our precious mothers would be a failure that would bring the name of God “Protector of Widows” to open shame.

May it never be so.