Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.
Summary: Once again, Paul’s words challenge traditional thinking about what it means to be saved.
Once again, Paul’s words challenge us to question how we think about our relationship with God.
Some people I have known have a tendency to judge others based on their own ideas of what is right and wrong. If you do what they think is ‘right,’ then you are a ‘good person.’ If, on the other hand, you do or say what they don’t agree with, then you are a ‘bad person.’
What defines ‘good’ or ‘bad’ is up for grabs. Some might question your morality if you don’t share their love of sports or engage in the same pastimes. Groups of people who think the same way form into cliques or gangs. Tribalism replaces individuality, and agreement replaces thinking.
When we open the Bible and read it, we expose ourselves to an entirely different way of thinking.
Instead of being centered on what we think is ‘good’ or ‘bad,’ the Bible is centered around God’s point of view. God has ideas on what is ‘good’ and ‘bad’ just like we do. The difference is that God’s views matter more than ours. He is, after all, God.
In our passage for this meditation, God uses Paul’s words to give us a peek into his value system.
“Anyone who does not provide for their relatives, and especially for their own household, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.” (1 Timothy 5:8)
Back in 1 Timothy 4:10, Paul writes that the “living God” is “… the Savior of all people, and especially of those who believe.”
It seems clear, from Paul’s own words, that God can save people who are not believers. Some of us will bridle at the thought of God saving unbelievers, while others might find that the most reasonable statement in the world. The fact is that God’s Word is rather clear on this point.
Now, in the passage we are looking at, Paul goes one step further; he implies that unbelievers are worse than believers. Then, he states that people who do not provide for their own relatives are “worse than an unbeliever.”
He doesn’t say that they are condemned to hell, but he does suggest that they are lacking in some way.
Which brings up the question: Do you care what God thinks of you?
Application: Love God above all else, and strive to please him.
Food for Thought: Why do you think it is important to please God, or is it?
Why do you think it is important to please God, or is it?
I believe it is important that God is pleased with us.
God desires to give us the fullness of His Glory. As a vessel, God desires to fill that vessel fully with His goodness. If there are other things in the vessel (sin), it cannot be filled with His goodness. God is pleased by a heart that seeks Him in all of its ways, obeys the commands He has set forth that ultimately glorifies Him, and loves Him and others.
As we open all our life to Him, seek Him and walk His path in truth and love, His pleasure is expressed by our awareness of His presence within us and in our lives. Our efforts to please Him are not for our own justification, or to gain favor. It is us choosing to forgo the world and our own sinful nature, so we can enter the joy of His Spirit. It is not our works that please Him, it is our heart open to Him that performs the works He has prepared for us, and the reward is an ever increasing awareness of His presence.
2 Timothy 2:21
21 Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work.
Thank you, Chris.
I like the imagery of a “vessel,” meaning a container. A silly comparison would be a coffee cup. If it holds coffee until we drink it, we are “pleased” with it. If it leaks, or the handle falls off, it is not pleasing. And if it objects when we try and “save” it, then there isn’t much we can do except toss it out.
Why do you think it is important to please God, or is it?
Seeking to please God is a manifestation of an inner state of being, pleasing God and doing as we please, is a central theme throughout the Bible, teaching the importance of aligning our life with God’s will and purposes.
1Thessalonians 4:1-2, Finally, brothers, we ask and encourage you in the Lord Jesus to live in a way that is pleasing to God, just as you have received from us. This is how you already live, so you should do so all the more. 2 For you know the instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus.
Ephesians 5:20, Always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Thanks, Ron!
I always appreciate your perspective, and I agree on your summary of the Bible’s “central theme.”