Church Relations

Introduction

Welcome

Glad to see everyone tonight

I hope everyone has a had a good week

We will be continuing our study through 1 Timothy tonight

If you have your Bibles you can turn to there to chapter 5

I have titled this series “An Overview of the Church”

And thats really what we are doing

We are going over Paul’s instructions to Timothy about how a church should function and operate

The subject tonight is “Church Relations”

Sunday we learned how to treat our neighbor

Tonight we are going to learn how to treat each other inside the church

It is important that we treat each other in a biblical manner

We are going to talk about the young and the old

The widows

The pastor

The leaders

And why all this matters

1 Timothy 5:1-2

The pastor must treat all people with respect

This is Paul speaking to Timothy who is a pastor

And he is telling the pastor to treat the people respectfully

Now we could skip this part because it is instruction to me, but it is important that the church knows how a pastor should act!

Just because the pastor has the highest office in the church does not mean he can treat others poorly

“Do not rebuke an older man, but exhort him as a father”

A better translation is, “do not rebuke an older man harshly”

The word rebuke describes a severe verbal reprimand

He is not to treat older men with disrespect

Now it is part of his job to rebuke

2 Timothy 4:2 NASB95

preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.

But even in rebuke, a pastor can still be respectful

He is to treat an older man with respect just as he would treat his own father

The pastor must respect the age of an older man

“younger men as brothers”

The pastor should not look down upon the younger men

He should treat them as his own brothers

They are to be an equal to him, not less than

“older women as mothers”

He should treat the older women in the church with the same love and kindness as he would show his own mother

He is to listen to them

Exercise a true love towards them

“younger women as sisters”

He is to be protective over the younger women

He should seek to keep them from harm and train them in godliness

Protect them in any way that he can

The church has a responsibility to honor true widows

“Honor widows who are really widows”

What does the word mean to honor them?

In Acts 6 the church was feeding them

It means the church is to meet their needs

It is to take care of them when they need it

The church is to help them financially if they are in need

The church must show them honor

They become a responsibility of the church when they become widows

WHAT IS A TRUE WIDOW?

One who has no children or grandchildren

The church is not to take over the responsibilities of the family

If you have a mother or a father who is a widow they are your responsibility

A true widow is one who is left alone (v 5)

This is speaking about a widow who has no one around them

If a widow has children but they live in another state, or are unable to help them then this would not disqualify them

“let them first learn to show piety at home”

In other words give the children or grandchildren a chance to do what is right

The church shouldn’t step in unless there is no one else

A true widow must also trust in God (v 5)

“trusts in God”

Notice it doesn’t say “believe in God”

She must trust in God

There must be evidence that she is a believing woman

To claim the faith but not walk the walk would not fit the category of a true widow

Her trust must be evident in her life

She must be one who has a regular prayer life (v 5)

“trusts in God and continues in supplications and prayers night and day”

How do you know if you trust in God?

It will show in your life by a vibrant prayer life

Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding. In all your ways Acknowledge HIM!

Trust manifests through prayer

When we truly pray it is an expression of trust in God

If we pray and wait for God’s answer it shows we are truly trusting in God!

For a widow to be a true widow she must be a woman of prayer!

She must not be self indulgent (v 6)

“But she who lives in pleasure is dead while she lives”

A true widow lives for something other than the pleasures of this world

It doesn’t mean a widow cannot get a new car or get her hair done

But if she is more interested in pleasure rather than the church she is not a true widow

(v 7) “And these things command, that they may be blameless”

The reason for these requirements?

So the widow will be above reproach

To keep the widows from falling into the lifestyle of verse 6

verses 9-19

Treatment of younger widows

The church is not to take care of a widow under 60

She must also be a woman of one wife

And she must have a good reputation in the faith

brought up her children well

shown kindness to strangers

humbled herself among other believers

she must have shown empathy to those in distress

The purpose of these commands is to protect the church

(v 16) “If any believing man or woman has widows, let them relieve them, and do not let the church be burdened, that it may relieve those who are really widows”

Paul put these commands in place so the church would not become a well-fare center

Because even in his day, people were taking advantage of the church

Yes the church really does need to step in and help the true widows but only the true widows

If it helps all the widows then it becomes impossible to carry outs its mission

and do not let the church be burdened, that it may relieve those who are really widows

When it takes care of all the widows, then it no longer can take care of those who truly need the help

When the church bends on some of the smallest issues, compromise of larger things are sure to come

When the church turns into a help center rather than a worship center it becomes burdened

When the church is burdened it becomes ineffective in all that it does

God put these principles in place to protect the church

“Do good to others whom good is due”

A church was never meant to be a well-fare institution

We must never let it become something other than what Scripture teaches us

The church has a responsibility to take care of it’s pastor

(v 17) “Let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in the word and doctrine”

As uncomfortable as this is to talk about it is an important issue for the church to follow

That word honor here is used the same way it is for the widows

It speaks of finances

“You shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain” and “the laborer is worthy of his wages”

When a pastor has to work to make a living and try to lead the church he becomes a muzzled ox

A bi-vocational pastor is a very difficult position

He does not have one responsibility but two

And anyone who serves two masters will love one and hate the other

For a church to have the money to pay a pastor properly and refuse to do so is really juts shooting themselves in the foot

They are muzzling their ox

I am grateful for the salary I receive at this church

I am blessed with the ability to go to school and the church to pay for that also

Please don’t take this as me complaining

It is just a matter of biblical teaching of the church

The church also has a responsibility of rebuking it’s leaders

(v 19-20) “Do not receive an accusation against an elder except from two or three witnesses. Those who are sinning rebuke in the presence of all, that the rest also may fear”

The word elder here is the same word for overseer or pastor

Paul is telling Timothy that one person complaining against a pastor is not enough

There must be at least two and possibly three

Any charge that does not come by at least two witnesses should not be recieved

A witness is not someone who heard something from another person

It is someone who experienced it for themselves

They heard it from the pastors mouth

They saw the pastor do it with their eyes

Notice when a leader is sinning he is to be rebuked in the presence of all (v 20)

Its a little different from the Matt 18

When a leader sins then he is to be rebuked in the presence of the entire church so all will fear

(v 21) all this is to be done without partiality

In other words, there is no grandfathering in

There is no good ol’ boy system

Timothy is not to show favor to one over the other

All members are to be treated the same

Sin is sin and we need to call it what it is

Never ordain hastily!

(v 22) “Do not lay hands on anyone hastily, nor share in other people’s sins; keep yourself pure”

How important is it for the church to follow this truth!

Never ordain anyone that does not meet the qualifications of this letter!

Regardless of the situation!

Regardless of how nice they are!

Regardless of how gifted they seem

Never ordain a pastor that is not absolutely sure of his calling, meets the qualifications, and the entire church is absolutely sure of his conversion!

Never ordain a deacon that has not been chosen by the church and tested by the church, and meets the deacon qualifications

I am telling you Satan can highjack a church when he gets his man in leadership

Church you better know who you are following

You better know your man

One of the tools of Satan is to get you to make quick decisions!

Do it now!

Get it done!

Ordination should never be rushed!

All sin and good deeds come before the Lord

(v 24) “Some men’s sins are clearly evident, preceding them to judgment, but those of some men follow later. Likewise, the good works of some are clearly evident, and those that are otherwise cannot be hidden

The sins of some people are clearly evident

These who clearly sin may be in need of a rebuke

There is no mistaking the sins of some

There are some, who’s sins are not so evident. They are hidden

Just as some people’s obvious sins receive judgement, so do the hidden sins of others

Whether sins are visible or invisible, God sees them all

There may be someone in the church who is sinning out right and everyone can see it…judgement awaits them

And there may be others who’s sins are hidden and secret, but God sees them

Sin receives judgment whether its open or hidden

This is a comforting word to Timothy, the young pastor that it is God who will take care of them in the end

Whether the sins are evident or hidden it is God who will bring judgement to them all

Also “Good deeds are evident” (v 25)

Just as there will be sin in the church, there will also be good deeds done

It’s a reminder to not get discouraged

It’s a reminder to always point out the good things that are happening and not only look a the bad

God has His people in the church and they are evident by their deeds

But it’s also a reminder that not all good deeds are evident

Some people truly do their good deeds in secret as Matt 6:4 tells us to

Matthew 6:3–4 NASB95

“But when you give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving will be in secret; and your Father who sees what is done in secret will reward you.

Do right and do not tell others about it

Do your good deeds only for the Father to see

AND HE WILL REWARD YOU!

~PRAYER~