 heaven thank you for this passage of scripture God I praise you and thank you that you have given us your word God a sure guide a pure converting the soul and we are grateful for it God and rejoice to submit ourselves to it we acknowledge Lord that we are under the authority of your word attend to the preaching of your word with your spirit God pierce our hearts convict us Lord over where we are in sin and God soften humble our hearts towards you that we might live for you more fervently and obey you God to walk worthy of the calling which you've called us that we want to honor you in these things we want to see Christ exalted and so Lord be with us as we do this and God I pray that if there's anyone here that isn't saved kind of you would convict them over sin that you would draw them to yourself God that you would plow up the stony ground of their heart and save their soul for your great namesake and we pray all these things for your glory God in Jesus name amen you may be seated in our scripture our sermon title this morning is godly compassion godly compassion and we are working through this paragraph in first Timothy now chapter 5 verses 3 through 16 and as is our custom we just go verse by verse through the Bible and so we've been working verse by verse through first Timothy and we finally come here to chapter 5 where Paul turns in his emphasis on the character and quality of Timothy's ministry to now how Timothy and how the church at Ephesus is to interrelate with one another again all of this with a purpose that we are to know how we're to conduct ourselves in the household of God so as we come to this passage we in verses one and two from chapter 5 we know how to interact interact with older men older women younger men younger women and now in verse 5 or chapter 5 verse 3 we begin to look at widows and there is a fairly lengthy chapter here a fairly lengthy passage dealing with widows and there's a lot to be said here and a lot that we can glean that will help us to get started I guess to set the stage for godly compassion and God's heart of compassion toward the needy I want you to take a moment and I want you to think about your greatest need what's the greatest need that you have very good think about it I mean some may say right off the bat I don't know where my next check is gonna come from or my car needs the oil changed or whatever it may be think about your greatest need Baptist pastor I heard the story of a Baptist pastor Baptist pastor gets on a plane he was on a trip gets on a plane in Washington DC and he sits down on the plane next to a lawyer from Washington DC so the lawyer turns to him said hey you know my name is so-and-so what do you do for a living I'm a Baptist pastor what do you do for a living I'm a lawyer and so the lawyer turns to him and asks the question he says you know with all the things that are going wrong in this world with all the problems and problems here and problems there how do you focus on all those problems in order to be able to preach to the people and help the people and so the Baptist pastor responds there aren't all those problems there's only three problems in the world there is sin there's sorrow and there's death as the lawyer said no no no there are all kinds of problems you've got problems with people problems in families problems with the economy problems in other countries problems with the government problems with x y and z and the Baptist pastor said oh no there are only three problems in the world it is sin sorrow and death so the lawyer there are many more problems than that think about all the psychological disorders I mean you hear how the conversation is going and the Baptist pastor replies there are only three problems in the world sin sorrow and death and so on the plane flight he left the Washington lawyer to sit and consider that by the time the plane lands the Washington lawyer turns to the Baptist pastor and says there's only three problems in the world there's sin sorrow and death everything flows really out of those three problems sin sorrow and death sorrow and death flow out of the greatest problem which is sin everything flows out of the greatest problem which is sin the greatest problem that we have the greatest problems that we face all flow out of sin that's whether you're a Christian an atheist a Muslim a Buddhist you have a sin problem the world has a sin problem and all problems flow from sin if you sit and think about it and ponder it for a while you'll know that to be true think about it the reason that we have lawyers in the first place is because of sin right but think about it all the the sorrow all sickness all pain all suffering all guilt all shame all destruction all despair all hopelessness all emptiness all loneliness all terror every fear every doubt every hurtful loss every form of injury every form of hurt every wrong every form of injustice all poverty all starvation all war every form of decay the depraved nature of man death both physical and spiritual eternal everlasting torment in hell the eternally rising smoke of an unquenchable fire the righteous anger the justifiable fury the perfect wrath of our deeply offended creator God who is holy holy holy and will punish sinners because of their sin have you come to sense your greatest problem that is the greatest problem everything else pales in comparison everything else flows from that our greatest problem what is your greatest problem your personal you personally your greatest problem I'm talking to you you liar you thief you adulterer you who have had lustful thoughts in your heart you drunkard you idolater you homosexual you who go through the outward external motions of an empty religion with no heart for Christ you who love the passing pleasures of this world you who are ashamed of Christ and ashamed of his word and you who despise the preaching of his word so what is your greatest problem what's your greatest problem I submit to you that your greatest problem is God submit to you the greatest problem is God for you personally because God is holy and will not tolerate the least rebellion God is just and he will not allow the least of impurities in your wicked heart to go unpunished you're gonna stand before him one day very soon and you're gonna be judged you could die at any moment and it will be too late today you could die tomorrow you could die in your house in your car you could die in your sleep you could die at the game on your phone climbing a flight of stairs in a storm at a party slipping on a sidewalk alone in your room you could die slowly because of sickness or you could die quickly and unexpectedly because of an injury but be certain your time is running out you may know ahead of time or it may come on you unexpectedly so you have a need you have a great problem and you have a great need what is a great need that you have if you come to understand have you come to sense what a great need that you have it is a great need it's a great need not if you don't truly fear living or dying without it you don't sense it if you can lay your head on your pillow and sleep in peace without it you don't sense it if you are hard-hearted self-righteous and defensive you don't get it you don't sense your great need if you haven't mourned over your wicked sin and your lack of it you haven't sensed your great need if you haven't hungered and thirsted for it if you haven't sorrowed in a godly manner over lack of it if you haven't given heart soul mind and strength to live in light of it you haven't sensed your need if you're deceived and you're oath you think you're okay even though you're a sinner your great need a great need is to be right with him to be right with God your great need is to be righteous in his sight if you haven't come to sense your great need you are not a Christian the Lord will bear it bring it to bear on your heart to come to understand your great need of him you can't do it yourself you can't be righteous in his sight by yourself you can't be right with him by yourself you can't make yourself cleansed in all your filth you are by nature a child of wrath you are by nature a son of disobedience and you need a perfect substitute someone who is righteous for you to stand in your place before God someone who will take upon himself the wicked stains of your sin someone who will credit to you the white robes of his own righteousness someone who will bear the awful punishment that you rightly deserve someone who can perfectly satisfy the perfect justice of God against your sin someone who conquered death and was raised from the dead for your justification the only one who can do that is God himself so it's not as much an it that you need as much as is a who that you need you need Christ you need the righteousness of another in that great grace alone God made himself of no reputation took the form of a bond servant and came in the likeness of men and being found in appearance as a man he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death even the death of the cross and Jesus Christ the Lord of glory the perfect spotless lamb of God died for sinners you have a great problem a great problem you have a great need but we have a great Savior we've been given a great compassionate gift from a compassionate God Jesus Christ calls you now to despise and to turn from your greatest problem that's the sin and to turn to and embrace and trust in and rely upon your greatest need which is Christ God is a God who rejoices in showing compassion displaying his perfect attribute of love through his acts of compassion toward those in need and rejoices in showing compassion toward our greatest need our greatest need is him is Christ that's a felt needs theology right unlike the felt needs that we come to know and most of evangelicals and today that's our need d.a. Carson in his book entitled a call to spiritual reformation said this he said if God had perceived that our greatest need was economic he would have sent us an economist if he had perceived that our greatest need was entertainment he would have sent us a comedian or an artist if God had perceived that our greatest need was political he would have sent us a politician if he had perceived that our greatest need was health he would have sent us a doctor but he perceived that our greatest need involved our sin our alienation from him our profound rebellion and our death and he sent us a savior that's the compassion of God that's godly compassion when we don't deserve it you are a wicked sinner and you don't deserve it God didn't have to make provision for our sin and yet he did in his great love and his great compassion we serve a God who is compassionate and God who meets our greatest need in Christ Jesus says in Romans 8 32 he who did not spare his own son but delivered him up for us all how shall he not with him also freely give us all things and the Lord promises in compassion toward needy sinners that he'll work all things together for good give you every spiritual blessings all spiritual blessings in Christ this is a God of compassion I'll think about it for a moment to make an argument here from the lesser to the greater God displays his perfect attribute of love through compassion in many ways to those who are needy all right that compassion should drive the sinner to the greatest display of compassion in Christ that godly compassion displayed by God for us should drive the Christian to display godly compassion to others in need this is the goodness as Roman says and forbearance of God that should lead the sinner to repentance it's a goodness of God let me give you several examples of this the heart of God God's compassion toward the needy in Acts chapter 14 verse 15 Paul's preaching he says to pagans to lost people he says that you should turn from these useless things to the living God who made the heaven the earth the sea and all things that are in them who in bygone generations allowed all nations to walk in their own ways nevertheless God did not leave himself without witness in that he did good even to lost people to pagans he did good he gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons filling our hearts with food and gladness that's the compassion of God that's a common grace of God to all people filling our hearts with food and gladness in Proverbs chapter 19 verse 17 the bible says he who has pity on the poor lends to the Lord and the Lord will pay back what he has given in other words the Lord blesses the someone who takes pity on the poor in Psalm chapter 9 verse 18 he says for the needy shall not always be forgotten the expectation of the poor shall not perish forever in Psalm 146 beginning in verse 7 he says who executes justice for the oppressed who gives food to the hungry the Lord gives freedom to the prisoners the Lord opens the eyes of the blind the Lord raises those who are bowed down the Lord loves the righteous the Lord watches over the strangers he relieves the fatherless and widow but the way of the wicked he turns upside down here in Psalm 146 it's interesting he begins to mention those that at the time were the most needy the most needy the stranger the fatherless and the widow and the Lord shows compassion toward them there are many places in scripture that describe that Deuteronomy chapter 24 beginning in verse 19 listen to the Lord's compassion toward the stranger the fatherless and the widow he says when you reap your harvest in your field and forget a sheep in the field you shall not go back to get it why it shall be God says for the stranger for the fatherless and for the widow that the Lord your God may bless you in all the work of your hands in other words if you're compassionate if you're compassionate toward the stranger toward the fatherless and toward the widow the Lord's gonna bless you in the work of your hands the opposite would also be true show no compassion toward the fatherless the orphan in the widow there will be no blessing for the work of your hands it goes on to say when you beat your olive trees you shall not go over the boughs again in other words leave some of the fruit on the tree he says it shall be for the stranger for the fatherless and for the widow and when you gather the grapes in your vineyard you shall not glean it afterward it shall be for the stranger for the fatherless and for the widow we see the example of Elijah caring for the widow in Zarephath in 1st Kings chapter 17 we see the great compassion of God don't we towards Ruth Ruth gleaning in the fields because Boaz was obeying the Lord here being compassionate on the fatherless and the widow and the kinsman redeemer I encourage you man to go read Ruth and study that issue of the kinsman redeemer Boaz the kinsman redeemer redeems Ruth from being a widow showing great compassion and so then out of great compassion Boaz and Ruth are marrying Boaz and Ruth give birth to Obed who is the father of Jesse he was the grandfather of David and through David's lineage we see the compassion of God toward wicked sinners like you and me because it points forward to our great kinsman redeemer in Jesus Christ who redeemed us from every lawless need it's an awesome picture God's compassion toward the needy pointing toward his compassion towards our greatest need satisfied fully in Christ God's compassion widows here in particular were very often very poor very destitute unable to provide for themselves women were barred from employment outside the home and so when their husband died they were often left very vulnerable very poor if they had a son the son would take care of them if there was a brother of their husband who died the brother would take care of them in such a situation with Boaz the great compassion of God toward these who are most needy in society the Lord in his compassion gives specific instruction for how we're to interrelate with him how we're to take care of them how we're to provide for them the widow is to be cared for by her remaining family when there was no family the people God's people were to do it look at one account i want to give you an example of this look at Luke chapter seven Luke chapter seven here an example of Christ showing compassion toward a widow specifically here a widow again keeping in mind keeping in his heart the the circumstances that the widow was in these are the most needy we have needy in our day and age don't we may be a fatherless maybe a widow maybe an orphan we have many needy look at Luke chapter seven look in beginning in verse 11 Jesus in his great compassion sees that this widow's son her only support in her life was now dead moved with compassion for the widow Jesus Christ raises her son from the dead in verse 11 it says now it happened the day after that he went into a city called Nain and many of his disciples went with him in a large crowd and when he came near the gate of the city behold a dead man was being carried out the only son of his mother and she was a widow the only son of his mother in other words that was her only source of help her only source of support and he now was dead verse 13 when the Lord saw her he had compassion on her and he said to her do not weep and then he came and he touched the open coffin and those who carried him stood still and he said young man I say to you arise and so he who is dead sat up and began to speak and he presented him to his mother you know the Lord doing a miracle to attest to the fact that he was God in the flesh but also to in his compassion to support this widow by raising her son from the dead move with compassion another example in Acts chapter six we have the new church in Jerusalem and the Hellenist widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of food and so the church took care to assign deacons raised up deacons so they could provide for the widow compassion toward the needy specifically here toward widows it reflects the heart of God incidentally here God's heart of compassion toward those in need is to be lived out and demonstrated and displayed by the Christian when we talk about bringing glory to God or glorifying God God is fully glorified in and of himself you can't add to his glory and you can't take away from his glory so when we speak of glorifying God what we speak of is reflecting the attributes of God reflecting him and who he is in what we say and do and as such we are reflecting his glory so when we reflect the glory of God in his heart of compassion toward the needy we ourselves in the name of Christ are compassionate we're to show compassion so much so and to the point where James says in chapter one verse twenty seven that pure and undefiled religion before God and the father is this to visit orphans and widows in their trouble and to keep oneself unspotted from the world we are to be the hands and feet of God's compassion toward the needy to demonstrate his heart we're to point them to Christ in that and bear in mind now the compassion here should be shown to all those in need the sick the elderly the disabled a whole another category that has been brought about today that wasn't as popular back then is abandoned single mothers where the husband abandons them with the kids they're often in need and in first Timothy chapter five we're to see the compassion of God certainly towards all those in need but specifically here toward widows and it's a compassion that we are commanded to display as well and we get that from verse three beginning with point one on your notes there is the compassion to provide if we're going to have godly compassion you must have the compassion to provide for those in need verse three says we're to honor widows who are really widows that is a command we're to honor widows who are really widows now it's important to note here that the word for widow doesn't mean only a woman whose husband has died it means a woman without a husband it can do double duty not only a woman whose husband has died but it as a category of woman who doesn't have a husband and in this sense it's important today because in our day and age we've produced this category of women who've been abandoned by their husbands and left without anything from verse three now though it is obvious that a distinction is being made honor widows who are really widows are widows indeed truly widows and we get this distinction cleared up for us from verses four through eight who are widows who are really widows if we look at verses four through eight we can see two characteristics two primary characteristics that are brought forth here in verse four but if any widow has children or grandchildren let them first learn to show piety at home and to repay their parents for this is good and acceptable before god so the first characteristic is she must be in need having temporal needs that no one else can meet there are no grandchildren there are no children there's no one else in the family that can take care of our of her needs she is truly in need there are no one else there's no one else that can meet that need in other words a rich widow isn't in need if she's got a bunch of money she doesn't need help she's can provide for herself if she's got family that should provide for her she doesn't need help she can provide for herself through her family all right so she must be in need characteristic two we see in verse five look at verse five it says now she who is really a widow and left alone trusts in god and continues in supplications and prayers night and day the second characteristic of those who are really widows is she must have a record of godly christian life godly christian service an exemplary christian character one she needs to be really in need there's no one else that can take care of her to she has a godly example a godly life she's showing piety in her christian life and says of those that person who is really a widow then who meets those two characteristics that we are to honor them to mao is the word it's a present active imperative it means it's a command to us and it's to be a part of the way that we generally do things we're to care for those in need who are really widows now that word honor there at a minimum it includes respect or reverence the way that we would think about it today but that word honor in the greek is also loaded down with a sense of financial support financial aid when the scripture says in exodus 20 honor your father and your mother that word their honor the greek word is used in the greek translation of the old testament the same word and it means not only reverence and respect but also provide for them financially it's honor and we get the same word if you drop down in chapter five to verse 17 we see this word again referring to elders look at verse 17 it says here let the elders who rule well be counted worthy of double honor there it is it's a noun form especially those who labor and word and doctrine and here's where we get the understanding where we see the sense of financial support in verse 18 for the scripture says you shall not muzzle an ox while it treads out the grain and the laborer is worthy of his wages so that word for honor there implies the sense of financially supporting okay so this is the compassion to provide you respect and you honor you financially care for one those who have no one else that can meet that need two they have a godly christian example all right but point two on your notes you must have if you want to have godly compassion you've got to have the compassion to pastor compassion to provide and now compassion to pastor to shepherd this circumstance appropriately sometimes in these situations it's not always about writing the check right you've got a concern for the widow the one in need you've got a concern for the family you have a concern for the church and those things need to be managed they need to be shepherded they need to be pastored correctly verse four says but if any window has children or grandchildren let them first learn to show piety at home and to repay their parents for this is good and acceptable before god now in this thoughtful shepherding point one here is that if there is family involved the family verse four is to first take care of the widow it says let them learn that's another imperative command in other words timothy is to let the family learn this lesson they are to first take care of the widow and there's going to be benefit for them in this let them learn Paul says and it says they must first learn first learn here how to take care of things in their own home godliness piety living for god being of a pure heart a pure mind a pure conscience living for the lord begins at home godliness and piety begins within the doors of your own house if you're going to live a godly life it begins with how you treat your husband it begins with how you treat your wife how you raise your kids it begins with how you manage the home piety starts at home and here this is going to cultivate godliness out at home verse four they are to learn to show piety at home and then it says something interesting it says here to repay their parents godly piety begins at home and this is practical godliness this is what it means to serve god but this also represents the care that we're to take in providing for a widow or providing here for father and mother as a means of repaying them for all that they've invested in you there's two things here that these parents so this family members are going to learn one they're going to learn how to provide for those in their own household by obeying where does that command come from come from exodus 20 the 10 commandments honor your father and your mother listen one of the things that paul has to take into consideration here with timothy is to say the family needs to obey that commandment and in obeying that commandment there's a blessing for obeying that commandment they need to learn how to do that at home godly piety begins at home obey the lord honor your father and your mother and part of honoring your father and your mother is taking care of those in need in your own household father and mother who may need financial support that's how you're going to do that and in a sense think about it for a moment all that your mother and father invested in you think about the time if you were blessed to be raised in a godly christian home wow i mean what a tremendous blessing if you were raised and just made it through what a tremendous blessing often you know talk to people that are you know younger folks disgruntled about their parents and like you know let's put this in perspective for a moment have your parents ever taken a hot oven rack to you no okay praise the lord you have clothes on your back where'd you get those clothes from yeah praise the lord you don't look like you've gone hungry lately you've been eating good yeah praise the lord right think about all that was invested in you from your parents are you thankful are you grateful from your heart for your mom and dad for your father and your mother or are you embittered against them are you holding onto resentment against your father or your mother are you holding on to anger unforgiveness that's sin that is inconsistent with the christian life you need to repent of that and honor your father and your mother certainly it means respect but it also means financial support this is in a sense god's retirement plan you know we're to save it's prudent to save it's wise to save to make provisions for the future but this also is the way that the lord has commanded that we are to take care of those in need in society we're to honor our father and our mother take care of widows it's something that has to be learned and if we simply wrote a check all of that gets missed right this takes discretion and how we apply the word of god it takes discretion with how we serve those in need all right and this is representing here a way to repay the bible says repay their parents for this is good and acceptable before god incidentally that's our motivation right what's your motivation for doing this for command for obeying the commands of the lord well our motivation one is because we want to please him here a great motivation is that this is good and acceptable before god we want to honor god we're going to obey him in this there's another factor here all right with handling things this way allowing the family to care for those widows their father or mother who is under their care and that's another issue is that it will relieve the church the church is to care for those who are really in need if the church cares for everyone resources are spread too thin and they can't care for those who really need the care so the church in an effort to be wise stewards of the resources that god has given are to be wise and who they care for if you look at verse 16 look at what it says it says 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 now this time in emphasis there were likely a lot of widows a lot of folks in need not just widows there were so many widows that in many churches there was actually a group an identifiable group of widows in the church that were working and serving that the church was supporting but in order for the church to be careful about those who they care for to have the resources to obey the lord and caring for those in need that's why the characteristics are here one that they have no one else who can provide it for them and two they meet this godly standard they have a godly example we need to care for those who are really truly widows and again this is a shepherding decision a pastoral decision a compassionate decision it's not always the compassionate thing to do is just simply to write a check and there is listen a rebuke from christ if we don't obey this there are many rebukes in scripture let me give you one example turn with me to mark chapter seven mark chapter seven we're not faithful in this there's a rebuke in mark chapter seven there's a rebuke for those that hypocritically fail to take care of father and mother hypocritically fail to take care of those in need mark chapter seven and look down beginning at verse nine right and just uh godless hypocrites that wanted to neglect the command of god in these things and verse nine the bible says he said to them jesus did all too well you reject the commandment of god that you may keep your tradition verse 10 for moses said here it is in the 10 commandments right honor your father and your mother and he who curses father or mother let him be put to death it's a capital offense to curse your father or mother it meant death if you're a young man young woman and you need to watch your tongue watch how you interact with your father and mother this was a capital offense by god's doing in the old testament you could be put to death for disrespect toward your parents okay but there's a contrast verse 11 you hear what moses said verse 10 but in verse 11 but you say if a man says to his father or mother whatever prophet you might have received from me is korban that is gift to god then you no longer let him do anything for his father or mother making the word of god of no effect through your tradition would you have handed down and many such things as you do in other words he you take the words of moses honor your father or mother by your tradition what you say is that everything you have your possessions your finances are vowed or committed to the temple committed to god and so you know what mom and dad i i'd really take care of you if i could i mean i've got all this extra money in my bank account but listen that's been dedicated to the temple it's been dedicated to god so i'd take care of you if i could but that money's been assigned already and oftentimes it was only given at their death they had full access to it until they died sometimes it was given right away but in other words they neglect what moses said and avoid the commandment given by moses by saying this has been a gift given to god this has been dedicated to god and i can't help you it's just wicked hypocrisy right and that's what they were doing um this is making them they thought exempt from what moses said i don't want to obey god i want this for myself and so i'm going to make some wicked thing up to get around you know i'm gonna find a loophole it's wickedness there is a rebuke here for those that do that we need to be faithful to take care of those in need under this issue of compassion to pastor here though there's a widow in the church who is really a widow one it's this defined by or that widow who's really a widow described by her family circumstances and again by her character look at that in verse um five now she who is really a widow and left alone that there for left alone means made solitary left without family left without anyone right so she's left alone but look what she does she trusts in god and continues in supplications and prayers night and day look again at her character again these two issues right those who are really in need they've got no one else to take care of them and those who display godly character godly example here it's she trusts in god she's relying on god she's depending on god and that is demonstrated or manifested displayed in her prayer life in her supplications and prayers figure of speech night and day we have the same figure of speech today right it means all the time she's praying to god all the time here this godly character so not only dictated by family circumstances the true widow the one who is to be supported is the one with a godly example a good example she's selfless in this sense she's devoted to god she is with great need but she completely trusts god for her provision she's depending on god completely and listen to this if if you hope in god if you truly are trusting god if you're truly from the heart depending on god that is going to be expressed in prayer if your prayer life is some dusty old unused thing that you've got shoved off in a corner that you only use when you really need something you have no communion with god in that sense you're not trusting him by faith you're not living for him in faith you're not depending on him if you trust and depend and rely and hope in christ it's going to express itself in your prayer life you're going to be in prayer and evidenced in her by her continuous prayer night and day just an expression of our faith it's interesting here that this godly character the life of this widow is contrasted in a couple of places one it's contrasted in verse six it's contrasted with the one who lives in pleasure who is dead while she lives right but it's also contrasted in verse 11 look at verse 11 refuse the younger widows listen don't help them refuse the younger widows don't enroll them in the number for when they have begun to grow wanton against christ they desire to marry having condemnation because they have cast off their first faith so again this necessity of those are we're going to help to maintain a godly character a godly example those in verse six those in verse 11 are self-indulgent living for themselves you know a good example of this is anna i mean you remember anna from luke chapter two turn there with me luke chapter two again just to see an example of a widow who is truly a widow a widow in need and a widow indeed luke chapter two and look at verse 36 36 here anna listen to this now there was one anna it says in verse 36 a prophetess the daughter of fanuel of the tribe of asher and she was of a great age and had lived with a husband seven years from her virginity and this woman was a widow of about 84 years who did not depart from the temple but served god with fastings and prayers night and day and coming in that instant she gave thanks to the lord and spoke of him to all those who look for redemption in Jerusalem look at how this elderly godly widow served the lord right this is a great example anna of one who is truly a widow you see her a widow by her family circumstances she had no one else anna was alone but then you see her by her godly character and this is defined again by contrast look at verse six back in first Timothy chapter five contrast anna with what we see in verse six in verse six it says but she who lives in pleasure is dead while she lives anna is contrasted with the self indulgent pleasure seeking widow in verse six she's dead while she lives this issue dead while she lives depicts the utter worthlessness the utter uselessness of a life lived for self if you are living life for yourself living life for the fleeting pleasures of this world you are living a useless worthless life that mean you can't have any fun no i mean you can't take a vacation every now and then or go to a movie or watch a tv show no but if your life is characterized by the pursuit of pleasure the pursuit of leisure the pursuit of your own self indulgence it is a worthless and useless life you are physically alive but you're dead as if dead and sins you're dead it's interesting in the septuagint the again the greek translation of the old testament this same word here this um living for pleasure is used to describe Sodom in Ezekiel chapter 16 verse 49 the bible says behold this was the guilt of your sister Sodom speaking of that wicked city you're familiar with that right wicked city of Sodom she and her daughters Sodom had pride excess of food and prosperous ease that's the same word their prosperous ease for living for pleasure but it says of Sodom they did not aid the poor and needy Sodom was Sodom was destroyed by God destroyed destroyed by God for their wickedness here seen in their excess of pride excess of food their prosperous ease and the fact they did not aid did not help the poor and needy this requires this distinguishing between the two and who that we help in distinguishing that requires a pastoral decision pastoral compassion requires you to be pastoral maybe in the decision that you make to help someone is this a person who is truly in need and don't take on false guilt about that that's a that's a decision that needs to be made and it's instructed that we make that from scripture here is this a person who has a godly example living a godly life living for the Lord are they truly in need or is there someone else who can meet this need if there's someone else that can meet that need it's the responsibility of those in the church to exhort them to meet that need through those that can provide for them so that the church is relieved right there are distinguishing characteristics that in the wisdom of God we're to take into consideration when we do these things. Paul goes on to say in first Timothy chapter five verse seven he says to Timothy these things Timothy you've got to command these things command that they may be blameless and it's just interesting there that they are the families you're to command these things so that those who are responsible to obey the command of the Lord to honor father and mother that they could be blameless certainly that the widows would be blameless certainly that the church would be above approach but that the families would be blameless also he goes on in verse eight but if anyone does not provide for his own and especially for those of his household he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever so after clarifying and contrasting after the instruction for who is a widow a widow in truth really a widow he brings up failing in this area failing to support and in verse eight if anyone does not provide that word there for provide means foresight it means planning we're to think through ahead of time how we're going to provide for those who are in our sphere of influence that we're to meet their need how we're going to do that we need to make plans to do it for his own it goes beyond just widows here it says especially of those for his own household men especially applies to you in this this goes beyond just meeting the needs of widows goes beyond just honoring father and mother and speaks to you providing for your own household if you don't provide for those of your own household you're not adequately and faithfully making provision for your house it is as if you have disowned the faith it's as if you are a living denial of the gospel in your life a living denial of the faith even an unbeliever a lost person knows that the family needs to be provided for even a lost person knows that and so those that know that and fail to uphold that and fail to provide are worse than an unbeliever and they live as though they're denying the faith so in that sense verse eight if you don't provide for your own and especially for those of your own household you've denied the faith you walk in a way that is denying the christian gospel and you're worse than an unbeliever who knows better and in that you bring reproach on yourself and you bring reproach on the church so demonstrating compassion in this is necessary godly compassion and providing it's interesting you know to use an example our great example jesus christ jesus christ with the the burden of the world's sins on his shoulders spoke to three people on the cross right god the father he spoke to the thief that was hanging next to him who else did he speak to spoke to john why make arrangements for his mother right he's about to die and jesus christ is caring for his mother who is a widow now without a son to care for her so what does he do he makes arrangements for john to care for her that's the compassion of god toward those who are most needy and in caring for those who are most needy it points us to the great care and compassion that god showed in providing the needy center christ it's god's compassion to sum up if it's determined that there's no family and that a widow is truly alone and if the widow meets the character standards laid out then the widow becomes the responsibility of the church and we're to care for them examine yourself how are you providing are you honoring father and mother do you have those around you who are in need the christian if you're here today claiming the name of christ when you see a need you see a needy brother a needy sister someone comes with a need do you jump in and help or is it be warm and be filled right it's not to be be warm and be filled we're to put feet we're to put action to our compassion we're to display the need meeting compassion of god toward those in need we need to be faithful in that we need to be faithful in that as a church in that you need to be faithful in your family with that well we can't see our brother or our sister in need when we have goods that can meet that need and we hold up those goods to ourselves we have the capacity to help and we don't are you guilty of that when you're made aware of the need email comes through the call comes through you think yourself you have somebody else will get that we're to meet those needs what whose are those things that you have gods and what would he have you do with them meet the need we're to obey the lord in that otherwise you bring reproach on yourself you bring reproach on the church and we've got to be faithful to the lord in those things and i tell you we're faithful to the lord in those things there's a great blessing i'm amazed i'm i'm so grateful to god for the many many ways that he's blessed this church it is a beautiful thing and would you say amen amen grateful to god for all that he's done here that the the joy the love the fellowship the the evangelism the people being saved all that doesn't happen by accident that comes about as a fruit of the faithfulness of god's people to obey the lord to love him to hate sin to love his word to obey him and we've got to obey him in this area if there's a need step up and meet that need if you have this world's goods meet the need there'll be a time when you're in need right we find ourselves in need and the brothers be faithful to meet your need to let's serve the lord in this let's be faithful to lord in this and let's watch god work god is faithful to his promises all right let's pray father in heaven we praise you and thank you for this very practical very clear instruction from scripture and god thank you for this and i pray even now by your spirit that you would apply this truth to our hearts that we might live fervently for you god that we by the strength of your spirit might show godly compassion to those in need and in doing that point them to christ point them to their greatest need point them to your greatest provision point them to the love of god and christ jesus our lord they might be saved we want to be a good testimony of you lord displaying your attributes god displaying your great love and compassion toward us and how we show love and compassion toward others and so help us in this god convict us where we're in sin keep this in our minds lord don't let it seep in one ear and out the other and help us to live for you in this fervently and to be faithful in these things for your glory we love you lord thank you for this time and your word thank you for your word and thank you for christ in jesus name amen