The Ministry of Widows
Enduring in Ministry • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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Introduction & Context
Introduction & Context
We hear a lot about what it means to be a Christian in the world.
The word religion often comes up.
A standardized set of beliefs and practices.
Now, Christians don’t tend to like having Christianity called a religion.
It brings up all kinds of negative connotations of Pharisees and Fundamentalists.
But Christianity is a religion, whatever we might think of the word; we have a set of beliefs and practices that we agree to and participate in.
But, when it comes right down to it, we have a very simple religion that does not depend on great ability but great faith and a willingness to obey.
God made this clear to his rebellious people in Micah 6:8:
8 He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the Lord require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?
Jesus repeated this simple religion in the Great Commandment:
37 And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.
38 This is the great and first commandment.
39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”
And James provided us with a practical outworking of this simple religion in James 1:27
27 Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.
Taking care of widows is one of the best ways that we can honor and please God.
This section of Paul’s letter deals with how to relate to different groups in the Church.
This last week, we began to examine the important practice of caring for the needy in the church, particularly care for the widows of the church..
Widows, women who have lost their husbands and do not have means to provide for themselves, become the responsibility of the church.
This includes, especially in this day and age, single mothers who have been abandoned by their husbands.
We also saw that God honors the widows by providing for their needs and by providing important ministry for them to do.
The Qualified Widow
The Qualified Widow
Last week, we examined 1 Timothy 5:3-8 which deals with the church’s general obligation to care for widows.
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.
Looking after the widow and the orphan is essential to the Christian faith.
To show mercy and grace to those in need; those who have no means of repayment.
He has explained what a true widow is.
He has commended widows to the ministry of intercessory prayer.
He has commanded that widows should first be provided for by their family members if possible.
That leaves the question of how the church should go about caring for the “true” widows in its care.
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.
The early church (or at least the Ephesian church) had an official list of widows (a widow roll).
The church provided for their material needs; we see this evidenced in Acts 6:1
1 Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution.
This indicates that the church should know who its widows are and what are their needs.
But, it also indicates that they provided some kind of special service in the church, for which they were provided support.
Widows are the glue that holds the community together through their intercession, their mercy, and their hospitality.
The presence of qualifications for these widows is important evidence of this being the case.
Because to require such stringent qualifications simply to provide benevolence seems overly strict.
Paul provides three qualifications for these “enrolled” widows.
[Seniority/Maturity] Not less that sixty years of age: She must be older; mature in the faith and unlikely to remarry; and probably incapable of supporting themselves.
60 was the age of retirement in that period. And Roman law required remarriage under 50.
Such a widow will have lived long enough to have don her duty as a wife and mother.
There seems to have been some sort of vow or pledge involved in this enrollment where widows would commit not to remarry.
Such a widow would be the ideal age for such a commitment.
This is a wonderful revelation to the widow that feels left behind by time; God has something extremely valuable for them to contribute…her time.
[Fidelity] The wife of one husband: She must have demonstrated faithful devotion to her husband over the course of their marriage.
[Activity] Having a reputation for good works.
Paul provides a fivefold description of the kinds of good works that would qualify a widow for enrollment.
Bringing up children: she is a servant in the home (practical discipleship)
Paul has previously taught that this is an important work for Christian women.
Showing hospitality: she is a servant of her community (practical generosity)
This is welcoming strangers into the home; especially travelling ministers.
Washing the feet of the saints: she is a servant in the church (practical humility)
This is the quintessential act of Christian humility after the pattern of Jesus Christ.
Caring for the afflicted: she is a servant of the needy (practical charity)
Devoted to every good work: she is a servant in all of life (practical holiness)
These qualifications are indicative rather than exhaustive.
God honors the widows’ work!
We often make is seem, or adopt the attitude, that only the people who do great things for Christ are worthy of honor.
But the widows’ works are not some great and glorious feats, but rather ordinary common faithfulness.
This is the glory of the gospel and of Jesus Christ among us…that we all, by the grace of god, get to make meaningful contributions to the work of Christ in the world.
These qualifications demonstrate that she is a woman of excellent character, serving the Lord and others out of a well-ordered home.
A truly godly woman is a godly woman in every way.
These women have an important ministry in the church, so they must be proven servants because they are being officially enrolled and supported financially by the church.
This is a strong statement agains the retirement mentality (which is incompatible with Christian living).
Service to Christ and to others is not the strict purview of the young.
People who are entering retirement have the gift of discretionary time.
Devote it to what has eternal significance.
Make the most of the time.
The Danger of Idleness
The Danger of Idleness
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.
Again, we see Paul demonstrating his pastoral care.
His concern was for the reputation and welfare of the believing community.
Top to bottom, every one is important.
But in a multigenerational community, people at different life stages carry in them different desires and ambitions.
The elderly are concerned with finishing well, leaving a legacy, and the perceived shortness of tim lends itself to a clarity of purpose.
The young are concerned with becoming established and laying down roots (family, career, etc.). They perceive a great deal of time ahead and possess a desire for significance and belonging.
Paul gives a command considering younger widows, that they are not to be enrolled regardless of whether they meet the other qualifications.
Younger widows are less likely to keep their promise to remain single
Younger women are more likely to desire to remarry.
She has passions; natural desires that are to be fulfilled in marriage.
8 To the unmarried and the widows I say that it is good for them to remain single, as I am.
9 But if they cannot exercise self-control, they should marry. For it is better to marry than to burn with passion.
Paul doesn’t mean this as a condemnation but a way of releasing them to pursue what is good and natural and given by God to be a blessing.
Singleness is a blessing, but it is not easy; nor is it for everyone.
Their passions (desires for marriage and family) are in competition with their service in the church.
This desire would likely draw them into abandoning their faith.
This is not a declaration that remarriage is sinful or unlawful…that is not what Paul has taught previously.
Rather, these women will have made a pledge to remain unmarried for the rest of their lives so that they could provide spiritual service to the church.
To abandon that would mean bringing themselves under condemnation from God and from the outside.
God cares a great deal about honesty and integrity.
We should never make vows that we are unable to keep.
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.
The danger of enrolling widows who do not have proven moral character and spiritual maturity; it provides a temptation to sin.
Those who should busy themselves with serving others, become self-serving by intruding in the business of others.
Young widows without a purpose have big problems on the horizon.
Rather than give their time to prayer and good works (acts of service, words of encouragement, and pointing others to Christ), they waste their time.
Instead of selfless service to others, which produces love and faith, they become self-focused, spreading selfishness and distrust.
Become idlers: this is the language of laziness or uselessness.
When their material needs are provided for, and with nothing to pursue and plenty of time not to pursue it, a person can become purposeless and listless.
Doing nothing leads to nothing good.
Idlers are unwilling to make the effort; this becomes all the easier a trap to fall into when you have all your bills paid.
But we are made to work.
9 Six days you shall labor, and do all your work,
And we all have work to do; to be productive in some way.
But idleness doesn’t stay idle; it leads to other sins.
But also gossips and busybodies:
Meddlesome;
In the electronic age, news and gossip spreads a the speed of light.
In light of such temptations, we must be vigilant about the way we talk to one another about one another.
How we handle the confidence of others and the intimate, private conversations we have with them says a great deal about what is in our heart.
Our words should always be directed at what loves others well:
Encouraging the weak.
Helping the needy.
Saving the lost.
Setting the agenda of our prayer.
Idleness and gossip are destructive.
Idleness destroys our property, leading to ruin.
9 How long will you lie there, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep?
10 A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest,
11 and poverty will come upon you like a robber, and want like an armed man.
It destroys our soul.
Idleness robs us of our zeal for God, for our work, and for our life.
Once we become accustomed to doing nothing, it becomes more difficult to do anything.
That way leads depression and malaise.
Gossip is equally destructive:
28 A dishonest man spreads strife, and a whisperer separates close friends.
Gossip fuels controversy and erodes unity among believers.
Paul’s solution to this danger is that younger widows should not be permitted to take up such service.
Paul requires that only wise and faithful widows who have proven themselves over a long life of holiness be officially enrolled as ministering widows.
The application for all of us: Resist idleness…be active in following Jesus Christ and doing good works.
Serving others and encouraging them.
Praying for one another.
Pointing each other to Christ.
Pursuing Godliness and Purpose in the Ordinary Things
Pursuing Godliness and Purpose in the Ordinary Things
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.
Paul’s solution is that young widows should remarry.
Paul encourages such young widows to pursue what comes naturally, and what God has provided as an avenue for godly womanhood.
It is no sin to remarry.
15 Yet she will be saved through childbearing—if they continue in faith and love and holiness, with self-control.
Younger widows are not only free to remarry, but are encouraged to do so because it is an avenue for living a godly life full of purpose.
This is not about settling for second best in service.
Ordinary faithfulness and godliness is of great value for everyone. It is no less a pleasing or important life than whatever “great” service we could imagine doing.
A widow in service to the church is not greater than a woman embracing her familial role.
A young widow who pursues family life is to be commended—it is a good work and pleases God.
4 and so train the young women to love their husbands and children,
5 to be self-controlled, pure, working at home, kind, and submissive to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be reviled.
It is good for young widows to devote themselves to the care of their families.
Through the pursuit of godly womanhood, she will remove herself from the temptations of idleness, gossip, busy-bodying.
It robs the enemy of an avenue of attack.
Busying oneself with running a household is an excellent solution to idleness.
Just ask any mother.
When Christians, any Christians fail to pursue godliness, it brings the gospel into disrepute.
Pauls teaching on marriage supports good order in our lives.
32 I want you to be free from anxieties. The unmarried man is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to please the Lord.
33 But the married man is anxious about worldly things, how to please his wife,
34 and his interests are divided. And the unmarried or betrothed woman is anxious about the things of the Lord, how to be holy in body and spirit. But the married woman is anxious about worldly things, how to please her husband.
35 I say this for your own benefit, not to lay any restraint upon you, but to promote good order and to secure your undivided devotion to the Lord.
Whether single or married, we must take care to please God in the way we live our lives before Him.
Through her devotion, the young widow upholds the gospel of Jesus Christ and lives a life above reproach.
The application for us is that we should not ignore the opportunities that God has provided for us to pursue godliness and holiness in our everyday lives.
There is nothing lesser about a disciplined life of Scripture reading, prayer, personal evangelism, or any other of the “regular” things.
It is in these things that the gospel goes out to our neighbors as much as any great missionary or evangelist.
Don’t look down on these things.
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.
Paul finishes with a summary of the teaching of chapter 5.
There are many in the church who are in need: Widows and orphans most of all.
Widow care begins in the family and then the church.
The family is the first line of defense in caring for the poor in the church.
John Calvin: Before the Church has to carry the burden, let the children do their duty.
The church is the second line of defense in caring for the church.
But since her resources are limited, she must steward them well by direct them toward those who are most needy.
The church doesn’t give indiscriminate handouts to everyone with an outstretched hand.
We must give though to what is well-ordered.
Each family bears responsibility for its own needy members.
The church’s primary responsibility is to fulfill the Great Commission, not to assume the responsibility of providing for every member’s physical needs.
This was the issue in Acts 6.
Need alone is not a claim on the Church’s financial resources.
Rather, support should be given to those who exhibit true need alongside spiritual maturity and service.
The church should always ensure that the neediest among them are provided for.
If we neglect this important ministry, surely the name of Jesus will be brought into disrepute.
He who showed mercy to us in our wretchedness and need.
Conclusion
Conclusion
We live in a youth-obsessed culture.
It’s easy to feel that in retirement or widowhood, we have nothing to offer compared to the younger, the more able, the more resourced among us.
But the Scripture paints us a more beautiful picture.
God honors the widow and her offering.
She can take great comfort in knowing that God isn’t done using us because the world has decided we are too old.
He intends for us to be a blessing to the church and to the world.
As long as I’m alive, there is service that I can render.
Let us all look for the ways in which we can pursue ordinary faithfulness to God.
Conforming lives to His character and serving one another in love and humility.
He will do great things with those ordinary acts of faithfulness.
We will not be let down when we stand before him after a lifetime spent in humble obedience to him.
