Okay, again, good evening and a warm welcome to our service tonight. Thank you for coming. Do keep in prayer some of the folk who are not well at the moment. There's a whole bunch of people have gone down with the bucket brigade, if you know what I'm saying. So, better to get it over and done with now, I suppose, before Christmas. Actually, it may be better to have it at Christmas, then you wouldn't be able to eat and get fat, but anyway. All right, 1 Timothy and Chapter 5, please. 1 Timothy Chapter 5, we get back into our series through this book and this will be our last message in 1 Timothy for this year. We still have some ground to cover early next year, finishing off Chapter 5 and Chapter 6, but we want to just endeavor to spend a little bit more time in this epistle tonight together and then we will next weekend we'll have more of a Christmas emphasis in the evening as you already know. Okay, all right, I'm going to read the first seven verses of chapter five for us and if you'd like to just follow along quietly in your Bibles as I read, that would be great. Let's just read, it says, Rebuke not an elder but entreat him as a father and the younger men as brethren, the elder women as mothers, the younger as sisters with all purity. Honor widows that are widows indeed. But if any widow have children or nephews, let them learn first to show piety at home and to requite their parents, for that is good and acceptable before God. Now she that is a widow indeed and desolate trusteth in God, and continueth in supplications and prayers night and day. But she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth, and these things give in charge, that they may be blameless. The title of my message this evening is Proper Pastoral Relationships. Proper Pastoral Relationships and for those of you who have been following us through the series, you'll remember the theme of 1st Timothy. Could anybody tell me what that is, please? Those who've been... Yes, Luke? How to behave ourselves in the house of God. And the key verses are found where? Mr. Ridings? Chapter 1. There are some key verses there. Every verse is a key verse in the Bible. Very good, you're sitting next to Luke. No, that's good, well done. All right, chapter 3 and verse 15, but if I tarry long that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to what? Behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth. And so 1 Timothy as an epistle presents to us God's mindset, God's view of the structure of the local church, how the local church is to function. Very, very important and First Timothy presents for us what I would call a benchmark with which local churches can examine themselves. Very important that we bring the practice of the local church into conformity with the blueprint we find in Scripture. Now this is quite contrary to much of the philosophy that permeates much of Christendom today that says we can just do church how we like, let's adjust things, let's turn the church more into a nightclub sort of atmosphere but we find in First Timothy that God does have specific instructions concerning the house of God, the local church and how it is to run. So very important that we do that, that we bring ourselves back into alignment with the mind of God on these things. Now in this chapter, in chapter 5, the Apostle Paul now instructs Timothy concerning how he is to interact with five groups of people within the church. Within every church, or most churches, we will find these five groups of people and we're now going through the section of the book towards the end here where Paul is giving Timothy personal counsel and instruction related to his conduct within the local assembly. And so there are five groups of people that we are to have an understanding of as pastors. There are men, obviously, young and old, women, young and old, widows, elders or pastors and servants. and the servants are actually covered in chapter 6, 1 and 2. But these are the five groups of people that Paul is going to now deal with and in this lesson tonight we're looking at Paul's instructions to Timothy on how he is to deal with men, women and widows in the church. Now the subject of widows is quite extensive in this passage and we will need to cover the rest of that in our next message but we want to get started on these verses tonight and see what the mind of God is on that. But let's just pray and commit this time to the Lord in prayer. Father, we again acknowledge our great need of Your help in understanding the Scriptures. We thank You, Lord, that every word here is God-breathed, that these men, as they wrote the Bible, did not just write down their own thoughts and ideas, but they were literally born along, carried along moved by the Holy Spirit in what they wrote, so that what we have today is not the opinion of man, but the very mind of God revealed to us. Lord, what a privilege to be able to just read and study this book. And so tonight, help us to, again, just align our minds with your mind. and to be instructed on perhaps even new things tonight that we haven't thought too much about. And Lord, just to take very seriously to heart every word that we find here. So Lord, we again, we ask for your help, that you would just guide us and direct us, that you would have your will and your way in this time that ultimately we would hear your voice. and not man's voice this evening. We ask these things in Jesus' name and for his sake. Amen. Alright, so we commence this lesson tonight with proper... looking at the subject of proper pastoral relationships and we know that 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy and Titus are commonly referred to as the pastoral epistles because they deal with men in ministry and there are very important lessons for those who are called to be leaders over the local churches but of course there are important lessons and applications for each and every one of us. Alright, so we see, we're going to just go through the verses here and look at the five things tonight, the treatment of older men, how to treat younger men, older women, younger women and then widows. Okay, very simple, very simple outline. We're going to look firstly at the treatment of older men. How is a pastor to interact with and relate to older men within the assembly. It says in verse 1, rebuke not an elder but entreat him as a father. Now the word elder here is not referring to the office of elder, okay, we will find that later on. We know that elder is one of the terms used to describe the pastor or office. There are three titles describing that office, that of bishop, pastor and elder and these three terms, though they have a distinction in meaning, are used interchangeably in the New Testament. Read Titus chapter 1 sometime, and see how Paul uses the word bishop and elder interchangeably there in the description of the qualifications. But here it's quite clear, just from the context, that he's talking about an elder man in relation to his age, not his office, because it's quite clear, rebuke not an elder and treat him as a father, the younger men as brethren, elder women as mothers, younger women as sisters. Okay, so it's quite clear he's referring to age, that's what the reference is there for. And it says that a pastor, particularly a young pastor, remember that Timothy was a young man because back in chapter 4 and verse 12 it says, let no man despise thy youth. So we have here Timothy, a young man, comparatively speaking to some of the men within the assembly, was to interact with the older men in a certain way And specifically here, he was to be careful in the manner in which he would bring correction to an older man. Now, this verse is not saying that a young pastor can never correct an older man. It does not say that. a pastor has to, at times, take the Word of God and lovingly bring correction, it is more dealing with the manner in which the correction is given, okay? In fact, it seems the Apostle has in mind here a scenario where Timothy has to bring correction but he's warning about doing it properly and that is very important. It says he is not to rebuke an elder. Now the word rebuke here is a very, very strong word. literally means to strike, to beat with a blow, in fact it was used originally to refer to fist-fighting, okay, that was the word, okay, the word rebuke there, originally back in the Bible times was used to refer to fist-fighting but it came to be understood in reference to the manner of speaking one with another and it means that we are not to to censure severely, to reprimand harshly or to beat an older man down with verbal abuse. Okay, so it's quite clear. This is a very sharp rebuke where maybe a young man tears strips off somebody and we are not to treat older men in the assembly in that way. We're to have a respectful manner in our approach to them. And this principle goes right back to the Old Testament, Leviticus 19.32 says, Thou shalt rise up before the hoary head, or grey head, there you go, grey hair's not so bad after all, men, and honour the face of the old man and fear thy God, I am the Lord. So we're to have a respectful attitude towards the older men within the church. That is absent today in our culture. The other day I was at, I'm not an older man with grey hair, but the principle's there, I was there at the park the other day, with the kids and they were going down the slide and there was one particular child that just kept blocking the slide and I said, look, could you just hop out of the way and let the others come down and he looked down at me with this sassy look on his face and said, you don't own the place. I thought, boy, proverbs the rot. Anyway, I'm like, you know, but that's the sort of attitude we have today with very often young people towards older people. There's very little respect. In some other cultures they still have a much more respect for the older men and so A pastor is to be aware of this in his manner in approaching an older man. Again, it does not place an older man above rebuke because it goes on to say, but entreat him as a father. And you know what the word entreat means there? It's the word exhort. It comes from the exact same word translated elsewhere, exhort. What's an exhortation? Well, when you take the Word of God and you encourage, you come alongside and you encourage, entreat somebody to walk according to the Word of God. So he's not saying, again, that a young pastor cannot bring loving correction into an older man's life, but it must be done in the right manner. Very, very important. I've made mistakes in this in years gone past. Speaking inappropriately to older men. I had to go back sometimes and apologise and as young men we have to be careful. It's a natural tendency at times to get hot-headed and we need to be careful of that. Again, it does not mean that an older man is above reproach and it does not mean that an older man should not respect a young pastor because in verse 12 of chapter 4 it says quite clearly, Again, we see how the Word of God works. A young pastor is to have a respectful attitude towards an older man and the older man is to not despise his young pastor because of his youth but rather uphold and honour the offers that God has given. All right, so as an older man in the church your concern should not be so much about the age of your pastor but has God placed him over me has God appointed him in the church and then you respect him appropriately for that. So, don't have the puffed up and proud mentality that because you're old that you are beyond correction. That's a very sad attitude to get into. You know, we often hear the phrase, you know, well, you know, I'm just too old to change. Well, big pardon, but that is not a scriptural idea, all right? Your age does not excuse behavior, bad behavior. Proverbs 16.31 says, the hoary head, meaning again the gray head, is a crown of glory if it be found in the way of righteousness. Okay, so just because you're old does not mean all of a sudden you have attained this wonderful plateau. It is only a crown of glory if you are found in the way of righteousness. If you're an old person who's just living an ungodly life, then that is not an honorable thing. Alright, so we see the Word of God works there. Young pastors are to treat older men with a respectful manner when correction is needed. Okay, again it's not prohibiting correction but dealing with the manner in which the correction is given and we need to bring this into our own lives and this applies of course to young men across the board, very important. We notice as we go through here, notice, you will notice the family terms coming through, can you see that? Father, brethren, mothers, sisters, can you see how Paul sees the local church as functioning almost like a family? That's the way it is supposed to work. So, let's be respectful of the older men in the church, treat them correctly, older men remember the balance of chapter 4 verse 12 and have the right attitude towards your pastor and recognize that he is appointed of God by the Holy Spirit And because of that, God will give certain wisdom and things which are to be noted and considered. All right, so in our treatment of the older men, let's be respectful, use respectful titles. A lot of people say, oh, you don't find titles in the Word of God. I think it's a principle based on these types of truths that it's good for us to refer to older people in respectful terms. Now, in Australia, we are not very good at this. And in fact, very often, older people will discourage it sometimes. They'll say, don't call me sir, don't call me mister, you know, makes me feel old. That's not how we should be encouraging our young people. We should encourage them to use respectful terms, respectful language when dealing with older men. You know, maybe this is more my opinion than the word of God, but I personally like to refer to my in-laws by mum and dad. I just think it's disrespectful to call them by their first name. The culture today is, again, very much moving away from respect and we have married men and women, Joe and Jack, and I'm thinking, who are you talking about? It's your in-laws. All right, but we need to be respectful. We need to get back to this culture of respect within the local church. And older people, don't discourage that. Encourage that. We want to teach respect in a day where respect for authority is largely absent in our world. All right, so that's how we are to treat older men. Now we have younger men. Alright, we're to rebuke, not an elder, but entreat him as a father, and the younger men as brethren. Again, another family term. In other words, a pastor is to treat the other young men in the church as he would his own brothers. Alright? Brethren, and so we are to bring this, have that type of spirit, we should not have a spirit of superiority or arrogance when dealing with our peers in the Lord, okay? We're all part of the family of God and of course, again, a pastor has to, by the nature of his calling, lead and exercise appropriate authority but that does not mean that he treats other young men his age as second-class Citizens, not at all. We are a family and we are to treat each other accordingly. Then we have the treatment of older women. Older women, we are to treat them as mothers. Mothers. Okay, so it's a similar concept to the older men. We treat the older men as we would treat a father. We treat the older women as mothers. Okay, and you think about this, you say, well how would you treat your mother? Okay, as a young person, well hopefully, these types of words would characterize your treatment of her, kindness, gentleness, respect, love, care, concern, and those are the sorts of words that should also be a part of our vocabulary in dealing with the other ladies in the church who are older than us, okay? treating them with respect, with care, kindness, the way we would treat our own mother. And then the treatment of younger women, okay, older men, younger men, older women, now younger women. He says in the latter part of the second half of verse 2, the younger as sisters with all purity. Again, another family term, sisters. We are to, the word sister again denotes appropriate affection, respect, chivalry hopefully, looking after your sister. If you're a good brother, you look after her, look out for her, have a protective spirit and attitude and so it should be also with us within the local church. View the other young ladies as sisters in the Lord, as being part of the family of God. And the Bible adds a very important phrase here, that they are to be treated as sisters with all purity. With all purity. This is very, very important, particularly as it relates to the pastoral office. There are many men today that are falling because of inappropriate behaviour with the opposite gender. And God's wisdom is enshrined here in the Word of God. It just shows us quite clearly We are to treat them as sisters, but we're to do so with a pureness of attitude and activity. So we need to be pure in thought, pure in word, okay? Not speaking in a manner that is crude or crass. We need to be pure in our conduct. with the opposite gender, establishing good standards for interaction with other young ladies within the church, okay? Remember the three big killers of men in the ministry, the three F's, fame, fortune and females, okay? In other words, these are the three big things that often make men get out of the ministry. Fame goes to their head, they become puffed up in pride, fortune, getting lustful after money, or females. And a lot of this comes back to not having that purity of conduct in our interactions together. So we need to be careful today. As I've mentioned, I believe, in a previous message about social media and this applies to everybody, how we interact with other young ladies in the church or further abroad. We need to establish some good boundaries for ourselves in this matter. Now, modern technology is a great blessing. and that there is a place for communicating with someone of the opposite gender, of course, you know, you meet for choir practice tonight at five o'clock, whatever, we understand that, but we do need to be very careful because very often technology breaks down some of the normal barriers that would be in place. And we can very easily become familiar and flirtatious. Okay, this happens, don't look at me as though this doesn't happen, there is a lot of emotional flirtation and even real affairs that go on because of social media. and the sort of things that are going on. So, as Christian young men, we need to establish godly standards for interacting with our sisters in Christ. Treat them as a sister. Think about your own sister. If you're a godly young man, you would be very zealous for your own sister's purity and being protective of her. That should be our attitude towards other ladies in the church. We should have a protective attitude as a sister, a spirit that would want to guard and stand up for her. that's the sort of philosophy we should adopt. So, this is again, dealing with appropriate pastoral relationships, how a pastor is to interact with the various people within the assembly, the older men, respectful, the younger men, treating them appropriately as brothers, older women, again, treating them with respect and care and love and the younger women with purity. And again, there's applications for all of us here as well. But now we come to the treatment of widows and this is a little more lengthy in verses 3 through 7, in fact the teaching concerning widows goes right down to verse number 16, so it's quite extensive and it's really quite, it's been a little bit of a challenge to study because I think Because of the sort of society we live in, with all the welfare security and various things, it is sometimes hard for us to put our mind into the biblical mode here. But, as I... I mean, you can kind of read through it and think, this is... it sort of seems like just, you know, a lot of space taken up, but I thought, hang on a second, God has specifically put all these verses concerning the treatment of widows in His Word. Tells us something of the character of God, doesn't it? The Bible talks a lot about the fatherless, the widows, God, the God we serve, is a tender-hearted God and God, just the extensiveness of the teaching here reflects to us something of the mind of God and his concern for the needy within the local church. Very important. So it tells us in verse 3 that we are to treat widows in a certain way. We are to honor widows that are widows indeed. So there's the command in verse 3 and then in verse 4 through 7 we have a discussion that clarifies for us who these widows are, the widows that fall into the category of widows indeed, okay? And this is quite clear in the passage, the Apostle has got a particular group of widows in mind and there are certain ones who do not qualify under this title, a widow indeed. Alright, so in verse 3 we have the command that we are to honour these widows that are widows indeed. Now the word honour, again in the context, denotes respect but it also very likely has in mind the idea of financial support as well because as we go down through the passage we'll find that is the primary thing on the Apostle's mind. He's dealing with those widows who would qualify for financial assistance from the local church. So honour, we are to honour them, they are to be seen as a special group of people within the church and they are deserving of our respect and also our care and concern. Now, in order to explain to us what he means by a widow indeed, he basically tells us about three groups of widows in these verses. In verse four he talks about a widow who has children, Verse 5 he then defines what it means, what he means by a widow indeed and then in verse 6 he describes again another widow who is a worldly widow who does not fall into the category of a widow indeed. Now the word indeed simply means truly or genuinely, so we're talking about, he's saying honour widows that are genuine widows, alright, genuine widows and he now wants to make it clear to us what he means by a genuine widow. Alright, so he talks about the three groups here, he defines what a widow indeed is, And in so doing, he makes it clear that these other two groups do not qualify. So in verse 4, we have widows with children or family. All right, so here he has in mind a group of widows that do not need to be supported financially by the church because they have family that should be fulfilling that responsibility. Now, the language in the passage here is quite strong concerning the family responsibility to care for widows. If you go down to verse 16, it says, If any man or woman that believeth have widows, let them relieve them, and let not the church be charged that it may relieve them that a widow is what? Indeed, He's drawing a distinction through this passage between those who genuinely deserve the church's financial support and those who do not. Then in verse 8 he says, But if any provide not for his own, and especially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel. Now very often I hear this verse used in relation to the husband's responsibility to provide for his wife and children. That is an application, absolutely, of this verse, but it is not the primary interpretation. because the context here, he's discussing widows and he's saying, if any, will not provide for his own, that is what he's just been talking about, the widows, and especially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith and is worse than an infidel. Does it apply to your responsibility for your wife and children? Absolutely, that's an application, but the primary interpretation in the context is he's dealing with widows, so it's very strong language that widows who have families should be able to look to their family to provide for them. And this is again something that is largely absent in our society where we are used to palming this all off onto the government and the government's welfare system and we park a dear old widow somewhere in a nursing home and leave her to rot in front of the television. And so, this is not what God would have within the Church of God, this is the mind of God for us. So, he says, he describes these ones who have children or, that's quite basic, we understand what the word children means, or nephews. Now you say, okay, I understand what nephew is, a nephew is the son or daughter of my brother or sister. Is that right? Yes. Okay, that is not actually what it means, because when the King James version was translated, if you study this out, even in just an English dictionary, the word nephew meant grandchild. Okay, back in the 1600s, that was the primary use of the word nephew. Understand words in English, or words in any language, do sometimes adjust over time. At the time of translation here, when the King James translators translated this passage, they used the word nephew, because in the old English, nephew was a reference to grandchild, okay? So, he says, if any widow have children or grandchildren, then they are to bear the responsibility of the care. The word nephew, he literally means sprung from one, that is offspring or descendants. So that's what he has in mind, the children and even the grandchildren should bear the responsibility of caring for the elderly widow. Because it says here, let them, not the widows, let them, the children or nephews, learn first to show piety at home and to requite their parents, for that is good and acceptable before God. Can you see that? We have here a situation where we have a widow who's in need, she's bereft of her husband, And the Word of God says, okay, He says, I want you to honour widows, and particularly has in mind financial assistance, as we're going to see, but He says, hang on, He says, but let me just make this clear. The widow who has children or grandchildren, let them bear the responsibility of the care. He says, let them, the children or grandchildren, learn first to show or demonstrate piety or godliness at home, That's what the word piety means, it means godliness and to requite their parents. The word requite means to render recompense or to reward or pay back. So it's quite clear. Think about it, your parents have invested and channeled a tremendous amount of time and love and money into your life. It is a reasonable thing for you to pay them back in this way. It doesn't mean you have to pay your parents back for all the millions they've poured into you, that would be impossible. Some cultures do almost lay that type of idea upon a child. And that's not biblical because the Bible says the parents are the lay-up for the children, not the children for the parents. And Proverbs says that a good man leaveth an inheritance to his children's children. Look at the context there, it's financial inheritance, okay? So, but the natural reciprocation should be from the child, the least I can do is I can look after and care for my mother if she is bereft of her husband. And God says, sees this as being a demonstration of genuine godliness in the home. Very often we think about holiness and godliness and we just need to be godly and we see here God's mind, God sees again godliness as something as basic as caring for an elderly lady within the home. Very often we are more concerned about having some sort of godliness that others can see and respect as opposed to the quiet pursuit of godliness within our homes that often is not seen. Alright, so that's the teaching of Scripture. He says it's good and acceptable before God. Again, this is the mind of God. In case there's any doubt in your mind, let me reassure you that this is something that is good and acceptable. This is something that has God's stamp of approval upon it. Now in verse 5, he now explains what he meant back in verse 3 by the term, widows indeed. Now he says, she that is a widow indeed, and desolate, trusteth in God, and continueth in supplications and prayers night and day." So, verse 3 he says, I want you to honour widows indeed. It's not this type of widow in verse 4, but it is now this one in verse 5. We notice that a widow indeed is characterised by a number of things. Firstly, she is without family. We see that in the word desolate. In fact, the word widow actually, interestingly, contains the basic idea at its root of loneliness. The word comes from an adjective meaning bereft and speaks of her resultant loneliness, says one author, as having been bereft of her husband. So, right at its heart, the word widow means one who is lonely, okay, and it would be a lonely thing after living many years with a man to be bereft and so we should, we need to honour them, we need to have a caring attitude towards them. So, a widow indeed is one who does not have family available to provide the care that she needs, like in verse 4. She is a widow indeed and desolate. The word desolate means, again, alone, means to be without family. So she's without family. She's also a woman of faith. The Bible says that she trusteth in God. Because of that desolate position she's in, she grows more in this aspect of faith towards God. She has her hope and her trust centred in God. And she's a woman of prayer. So we now start to see, forming before us, what he means by a widow indeed, who is a genuine widow worthy of church financial support. one who does not have family, who can fulfill that responsibility, one who is a woman of faith, she trusts in God and she's a woman of prayer, she continues in supplications and prayers night and day. Now there's an example of this type of widow in Luke chapter 2 and verse 36 and 37 and you'll remember her name very likely, anyone remember who she is? Anna, the prophetess. we find very similar wording to what we've just read concerning her life, Luke chapter 2 and verse 36 and 37, and there was one Anna, a prophetess, the daughter of Phenuel, of the tribe of Asa. She was of a great age and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity. And she was a widow of about four score and four years, okay? A score is 20, so four score is, that's 80, isn't it? And four so eight, she was an 84 year old lady, which departed not from the temple, but served God with what? Fastings and prayers night and day. We don't often view prayer as a service to the Lord, do we? But it is, it is a service to God and this is a great avenue of service if you find yourself in a desolate or lonely position as an elderly person. Don't think that you do not, you no longer have a ministry and as I've sought to go around and visit some of our senior folk, I've been trying to encourage them along this line that they still have a very, very important ministry in the church of serving God in this area of prayer. Okay, they can't get out like they used to but they can channel their time into beseeching God and seeking the face of God. So here we have an example for us, Anna the prophetess, one who again was desolate, she was lonely, she didn't have the blessing of family surrounding her, but she channeled her time into the things of God. That is a widow indeed, a widow indeed who is worthy of special attention by the church. So, if we here at Northside Baptist Church were to have a lady in such a case who did not have, say, Christian children or grandchildren to care for them properly, we should be prepared as a church, if needed, to provide some financial assistance. Now, it very often doesn't happen in our churches in Australia because, again, the government does all of that. But, as I see the Word of God here, the primary responsibility for the widows in this type of case is the local church. This is God's mind. Alright, so that's the widow indeed and then he finishes off in verse 6 by again describing another type of widow who would not qualify as a widow indeed. He says, but she that liveth in pleasure is dead while she liveth. This is a worldly widow, one who rather than pursuing the things of God, like the widow indeed in verse 5, rather turns her attention to the things of the world to try and find fulfillment. So he says, okay, I want you as a church to honour, that means respect, but also care for financially, if necessary, the widows indeed. He says it's not this group here that have family that can fulfil that responsibility, and he says it is not this one over here either who is living in pleasure. So it's very important, and this will come through later on as we look at further qualifications, it is very important that a woman in this condition qualify spiritually for the church's assistance, right? We don't just, just because, just because she, she's alone and doesn't have, have much, if she's living a worldly life, then she is not entitled to the church's care. right? An old fool, as somebody said, is still a fool and sadly sometimes in times of grief people, rather than turning to the Lord with trust and faith and pursuing a greater relationship with God, sometimes people turn the other way to the things of the world to try and fill the void. And that's what we see here, a woman who is living in pleasure, she's just selling herself out to the lust of the flesh, living according to the world, living a life just for the pleasure of this world. And the Bible says that that is a living death, that she is dead while she liveth. That's a true statement, isn't it? Not just of widows that live that way, but anybody who seeks to live without God. A lot of people out there today, they say, man, we're really living. But they're dead while they live, aren't they? They're dead while they live. Why? Because the things of this world, their passing, the pleasures, the enjoyments of this world are temporary. And true life, true life, is found only in the Lord Jesus Christ, isn't it? Jesus said, I am come that they might have life and that they might have it more abundantly. True life is found by placing Christ at the very centre and heart of my life. So, let me encourage you tonight. You might say, well look, I don't really quite qualify as a widow indeed to receive financial assistance, but look, You know, I'm, as an elderly person, I don't, you know, I spend a lot of time by myself, I don't have a lot of, you know, responsibilities, what do I do with myself, is that it? It's all over, you know, I've just, I can't contribute anything. No, be like an Anna and channel your energy and time into prayer, seeking God, what a, imagine that, imagine if our senior saints in the church really took that on board and spent many hours in prayer before the Lord and just sought the face of God. I'm greatly challenged by my mother's example, she's not a widow, but every time you talk to her on the phone she's telling me about, oh now I'm just, you know, I've got to get back to having my day of prayer and fasting and she's praying for this one and praying for that one and just channeling her time, now that she doesn't have small children, channeling her time into into prayer and just using her time wisely in that regard and really being a real prayer warrior, praying for many people, probably praying for most of you as well. I don't know how she remembers to pray for all these people, she keeps in touch with people much better by phone book than anybody does on Facebook. But, you get the point, I'm saying, is that channel your time, elderly folk. If you have physical limitations, channel your time into pursuing God and trusting Him, supplicating before His throne, offering prayers there, night and day. Alright, so there we have, we commence the subject of widows and then in verse 7, He now gives another command to Timothy, concerning these things, he says, and these things give in charge that they may be blameless. We find these types of commands coming through quite frequently, don't we, in 1st Timothy? He gives certain instruction and then he says, now Timothy, I want you to take personal responsibility for this, you need to give these things in charge, the word charge means to command, alright, it's another prominent word in the epistle, want you to impress upon the church there at Ephesus their responsibility why that they may be blameless. Okay, pastor needs to be blameless but here God says I want the church to be blameless in this matter, unrebukable, being above reproach in the treatment of older men, younger men, older women, younger women and also the widows. Now in our next lesson which will be, Lord willing, in January after the Christmas season is over, we will continue down and Lord willing finish off the rest of the verses on widows as we look at more specifically the qualifications. of a widow who is deserving of financial support, more specifics than what has been given so far, and he also deals with younger widows and what the will of God is for them, lest they become busybodies and professional gossips. Alright, so lots of interesting material coming up there, but tonight There's something for each of us, not just for the pastor, it's very important for me as a pastor to take these things to heart, to interact appropriately with each group of people within the church. Pray for me please, that I will do that. Okay, it's a learning curve and I want to be in subjection to the scriptures here in my own role, but there's a lesson for each of us and what we see here is that the church is to function as a family, There's to be a family atmosphere, treating one another as we would our own family. Let's do that in the local church. Let's treat the older people with care and respect. Let's have a loving heart towards the young people. Let's have that family spirit in the local church. Do you understand what I'm saying? We need to have that family spirit, alright? Don't just be concerned about your family according to the flesh. but understand the family of God is much broader than that. I was just saying to Brother Emmanuel this morning, I was just thinking about it last night, I said isn't the family of God just a blessed thing? You think about the connections we have, you can go to any country virtually in the world and you'll find they're born-again believers, there's an immediate bond, and that is how God sees the local church in this context as a family, functioning as a family ought to function with respect, care, concern, love and we need to get back to that in our isolated and cold society. We live in a very isolated and cold society in Australia. We spend very little time in each other's homes, we have very little family interaction often as churches and we need to get back to that and God will bless us richly for it. Let's pray this evening. Heavenly Father, we again thank you for the wisdom of God in this passage of scripture. Lord help us to take to heart the need for us to just have the right attitude one towards another. Lord, we know that this is your will and that you would have us to be respectful one towards another, respectful of authority, respectful of age, respectful of one another in our dealings with each other. Lord, help us in this. We pray that you would help us also to adopt your mindset concerning those who are needy within our midst, Lord, to have a caring attitude and a caring heart towards them, to care for them, to love them. We pray that we would just Serve one another that we might have that family spirit here at Northside Baptist Church, Lord. We would love each other, care for each other, and treat each other as we would treat our own children, parents, whatever that be. Bless us tonight, we pray. Thank you for the faithfulness of your people who've come out. We ask you would bless us now as we part ways in Jesus' name.