First Timothy 4:15

The Bible says in First Timothy 4:15, “Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear unto all.” You have probably heard the phrase, “You are what you eat.” That is a catchy little phrase, but it is not really true. This is what is true: You are what you think about. “As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he.” The quality of your Christian life and the level of your spiritual maturity will largely be determined by what you think about. Romans 12:1 says, “Be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Philippians 2:5 says, “Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus.” Perhaps the biggest battle of the Christian life is simply for you to think about what you ought to think about and when you ought to think about it.

Timothy was told to “meditate upon these things.” It is in the present tense and it means to be constantly meditating on these things. What does it mean to meditate? We are not talking about here anything like the eastern oriental religious type of meditation. We are simply referring to what you think about. The American Standard dictionary says that to meditate means, “To reflect upon, ponder, contemplate. To plan or intend in the mind.” First Timothy 4:13 said to give attention to reading. But do not just read some verses of the Bible and then close the Bible and forget them. Sometimes it is good to read a verse and then think about it for a while before going on to the next verse. Learn to meditate upon these things.

Paul said to Timothy, “Meditate upon these things, give thyself wholly to them, that thy profiting may appear unto all.” If you think what you ought to think, then you will do what you ought to do. Before there is any behavior, there is always a thought process that results in that behavior. Of course, the greatest testimony that we have is what we do. People see what we do. The influence that we have on other people is ultimately based upon what we do. If you are not doing what you ought to do, then you are probably not meditating upon these things.

We are here to help others, but before we can help others, we must help ourselves. First Timothy 4:16 says, “Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in so doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.” Some people make a good start, but then they do not continue. There are some projects in life that you can start and then stop if need be. But of course, the Christian life is not meant to be that way. There are many, many people who started following Christ, but then something happened and they gave up. They fell away from fellowship with Jesus.

The dark spiritual forces of the world want to find a way to get you to give up. If you can go your entire life without giving up no matter what happens, then you will have won a great victory. Just before his death Paul said in Second Timothy 4:7, “I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith.” Someone may ask you what you have done for Christ in this world. If at the end of your life you can say with the Apostle Paul, “I have kept the faith,” then you will have accomplished a great accomplishment. You will have done what many others will not have done. Instead of starting and then stopping, you will have started and continued which is one of the great goals of life.

Paul said that if you continue in these things, “You will both save yourself, and them that hear thee.” When the Bible speaks of being saved, there are always one of two things it is talking about. It is either talking about the salvation of the soul or the salvation of your life. When we read the Bible, we must determine by the context what is being talked about. We know that the salvation of the soul comes by grace through faith. Ephesians 2:8-9 says, “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Therefore, First Timothy 4:16 is talking about the salvation of your life.

The most important thing is the salvation of your soul. Jesus said, “What shall it profit a man should he gain the whole world, but lose his own soul?” The second most important thing is the salvation of your life. You are here for a reason. God wants to accomplish something through you. The only thing that will keep that from happening is for you to stop following the Lord. If you “continue,” then your life will be saved. No matter what is your calling, you will also have a part in the salvation of the lives of the believers who will hear you and see your example.

When Timothy was speaking to a congregation, what should Timothy’s attitude be towards the various people in the congregation to whom he would be speaking? The Bible says in First Timothy 5:1-2, “Rebuke not an elder, but intreat him as a father; and the younger men as brethren; The elder women as mothers; the younger as sisters, with all purity.” Earlier Timothy was told, “Let no man despise thy youth.” But there are limits. Honor should still be rendered to whom it is due. With four simple phrases Timothy was told how to treat each person in the congregation. Everyone in any congregation fits into one of these four categories. Older men should be treated as fathers and younger men as brothers. Older women should be treated as mothers and younger women as sisters. Notice the similarities to a family. These are all family terms and family relationships. Christians are in one big family. By the way, the family relationships that exist with your Christian brothers and sisters will last into eternity. In that sense your spiritual family is actually more important than your human family.

On the subject of the various members of the congregation and their ages and circumstances, the following is said in First Timothy 5:3-7, “Honour 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, trusts in God, and continues in supplications and prayers night and day. But she that lives in pleasure is dead while she lives. And these things give in charge, that they may be blameless.” In the church of the first century there was no such thing as Social Security or health insurance. A congregation of believers saw the need to help those of the congregation who really needed help. Hopefully congregations today feel the same way.

But resources are limited. This passage of scripture makes it clear that two things must be present before someone is considered to be a “widow indeed.” The person must be without other help from her own human family. That is what is being talked about when the children and nephews are mentioned. The way that you honor your parents when they get older is by helping them when they need help. The first requirement is that the person that the congregation helps is one who has no family members to help them. The second requirement is that this is a person who is truly living for God. There are many people in the world. Some live for God and some do not. Because money that has been given to the church has been given for God’s work in this world, the money should be going to people who are serving God. Because a widow in the condition described in this passage does not have a husband or children to occupy her time, she has more time to spend on a very important ministry: “supplications and prayers night and day.” If God allows changes to come into your life such as the loss of one or more family members, He allows these changes for very definite reasons. Perhaps one reason is to give you more time for prayer and supplication.

Some people who have extra time on their hands will use it to live “in pleasures.” The word that is translated “pleasures” is used just one other time in the New Testament: James 5:5. It is referring to someone living in luxury and living high off the hog. Of course, the church should only be helping those who have a real need.

The Bible says in First Timothy 5:8-16, “But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel. Let not a widow be taken into the number under threescore years old, having been the wife of one man, Well reported of for good works; if she have brought up children, if she have lodged strangers, if she have washed the saints' feet, if she have relieved the afflicted, if she have diligently followed every good work. But the younger widows refuse: for when they have begun to wax wanton against Christ, they will marry; Having damnation, because they have cast off their first faith. And withal they learn to be idle, wandering about from house to house; and not only idle, but tattlers also and busybodies, speaking things which they ought not. I will therefore that the younger women marry, bear children, guide the house, give none occasion to the adversary to speak reproachfully. For some are already turned aside after Satan. 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 are widows indeed.”

Obviously some of the churches in the first century were having a big problem with this issue because of the amount of time that Paul spent discussing it. Who were these people that the church felt responsible for? Who were the ones that the church should not be responsible for? Women who lived in the first century lived in a male-dominated culture. Their material security usually came from their marriage. A woman who was not married in that culture could be in a very difficult situation. An older widow in that society might not be able to remarry, and if so, might genuinely be in need of assistance. The younger widows, instead of being a burden to the church, might find it better to get married again. That is what Paul is saying.

Instead of social security and retirement benefits, early believers had the church to help them. Widows were mentioned in particular because at that time widows were the more likely to need assistance. The same principles apply to older men. Notice the clear requirements for this social security system administered by the church:

1. The recipients had to be believers.

2. The recipients had to be older believers.

3. The recipients had to be faithful believers who had served the Lord over a lengthy period of time.

4. The recipients had to truly be in need. First, they should help themselves if they are young enough. They that do not work do not eat. Second, they should be helped by family members if they have any. “If any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel.”

The Bible says in First Timothy 5:17-20, “Let the elders that rule well be counted worthy of double honour, especially they who labour in the word and doctrine. For the scripture saith, Thou shalt not muzzle the ox that treadeth out the corn. And, The labourer is worthy of his reward. Against an elder receive not an accusation, but before two or three witnesses. Them that sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear.” In this context Paul is on the subject of what the finances of the church will be used for. He wrote in length of financial assistance to be given to believing, faithful, and destitute widows. The second thing that the finances of the church should be used for is payment to the pastors. When it says to count them worthy of double honor, the word honor is referring in this passage to “financial prize.”

If a pastor has labored “in word and doctrine,” he should be given double honor. In other words, once the church has determined what a reasonable salary should be for the pastor, they should then double it for those who have truly labored “in word and doctrine.” Doctrine refers to teaching, and the word refers to the Word of God. That is the primary responsibility of the pastor: to teach the Word of God. The pastor of a flock leads the flock to green pastures where the flock can feed and be well-nourished. Jesus said to Peter, “If you love me, feed my sheep.” The teaching of the Word of God by pastors is dying out. Pastors who are doing it should be given “double honor.”

This passage tells us how to reward the pastor financially, and then it deals with the question: what if someone wants to punish the pastor? What if someone brings an accusation against the pastor? It says, “Against an elder receive not an accusation, but before two or three witnesses.” Do not accept an accusation against an elder unless there are at least two or three witnesses whose testimony can be corroborated by evidence. One witness might be mistaken or might even be not telling the truth.

What if the evidence shows that the pastor has been guilty of that which he has been accused? The scripture says, “Them that sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear.” Public sin deserves public rebuke and confession. Private sin should result in private confession. Some things should be said only to God. Other things should be said to God and man. The sins of a pastor should not be brushed over or covered up. Those who take on such a great responsibility should know that if they succeed, they will win great honor. Those who fail deserve great shame. The testimony of a church of the Lord Jesus Christ in a community is at stake here. There is nothing more important than that.

___________________________________________________