1 Timothy 5:8 Faith Denying

1 Timothy 5:8 Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.

In 1 Timothy 5 Paul tells Timothy how to relate to different church members - older and younger men, older and younger women. Mention of women leads to a fairly lengthy section on widows. “Widow” seems to have been a recognised office in the church. Such women were supported financially by the church in exchange for service. Paul is concerned that recognition be given only to the genuinely needy who cannot be supported by their own families (charity begins at home). He counsels widows under 60 to re-marry. Widows placed on the list too soon may live for pleasure and want to re-marry so breaking their pledge not to. He also fears that they will become idlers or even busybodies instead of hoping in God and being prayerful. His rule is that no-one under 60 can go on the list. Those on the list must also be reputable women who were faithful to their husbands while they lived and doers of various good deeds such as raising children, being hospitable, etc. He next mentions elders, who may also be supported, especially preachers and teachers. If they are accused of wrongdoing the truth must be established carefully. The guilty are to be reproved publicly as a warning. The chapter ends with further exhortations to Timothy about avoiding favouritism, being cautious, pure and not over-fastidious about drinking alcohol for his health's sake. While speaking about widows Paul says, strikingly, in verse 8, Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. To fail to provide for one's own relatives is not just a sin, it is a sin that is so serious that it suggests the perpetrator was never converted. It is a practical denial of the faith and something that even an unbeliever would not often be guilty of. Before we ever think of helping others we must be concerned for the physical and spiritual needs of our own families. Not to be so concerned suggests something very wrong indeed. Those who the Lord has placed near to us by blood ought to be considered a priority in our order of needs that we feel responsible to meet.