By John A. Huffman, Jr.
1 Timothy 5:8
And whoever does not provide for relatives, and especially for family members, has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.
Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, was writing to his apprentice, Timothy, words that spoke to the specific situation in Ephesus.
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At the same time, Paul, our mentor, is writing to us, his mentorees, words that speak in principle to how we are to function in the primary relationships of our lives. Paul gives three words of counsel.
I.
Word of Counsel One: Treat each relationship with RESPECT.
Paul writes: "Do not speak harshly to an older man, but speak to him as a father, to younger men as brothers, to older women as mothers, to younger women as sisters — with absolute purity. Honor widows who are really widows" (1 Timothy 5:1-3).
Can you be more specific and more practical? I don't think so.
In his call to relational respect, Paul, in very practical terms, addresses three negative human tendencies.
First, he addresses the animosity of ageism.
He tells Timothy to not let anyone put him down because he is a young man. At the same time, as a leader in the church, he is going to have to address people older than him who might be quite set in their ways. He tells Timothy to be very careful to treat older persons with sensitivity, respect, in the way one would speak to one's own father. Remember that in that culture, respect for one's father and mother was of ultimate importance. We need to be reminded of that virtue for today.
A friend of mine, Jay Kesler, was leading a weekend retreat at The Cove, the Billy Graham Training Center in Asheville, North Carolina. The theme of the weekend was "Grandparenting." During the question and answer period after his first presentation, it became apparent that the whole weekend was going to begin to go a different direction than he anticipated.