Reading: 1 Timothy 5-6, Psalm 21
Paul wraps up his first letter to Timothy with some advice on managing the church’s resources, a final note on false teaching, and a personal charge to his protege to remain faithful to his calling. The tenor of the entire letter has been the primacy of the gospel, so it makes sense to read all of these things in the same light. Paul’s speech about widows who are enrolled by the church versus those who might marry again is about the primacy of the gospel. Paul’s warning to steer clear of false teachers and their love of both vanity and money is about the primacy of the gospel. Paul’s charge to Timothy to keep the faith, and keep healthy while he’s at it, it about the primacy of the gospel.
What Paul says about widows, teachers, and the church’s resources give us an interesting window into the practices of the very early church. It appears that there was a system for supporting older women who had no other means of support, but that it came with the obligations that meant one would not remarry. This was not supposed to take the place of the socially normal ways that such people were supported in that day- their own resources, their children and relatives, or the ability to seek another husband who could support them. Paul makes a couple of observations that tally well with his call back to the creation order in yesterday’s reading. Young widows should remarry. Marriage is a creation order norm, singleness the exception. Not an inferior exception, but not to be considered the norm. No one can accuse Paul of not valuing singleness (see 1 Corinthians 7), but here he makes it clear he supports most people getting married, and even remarried. I think Paul is working against two potential problems. The first, seen earlier when he condemned those who forbid marriage, is a church that runs counter to the created order. The second is his concern that personal liberty not overshadow the gospel. Paul believes true social justice can only be achieved through the lordship of Jesus Christ. If the church becomes a social organization for supporting widows, it is not carrying out its mission.
On that topic, we come to supporting teachers and preachers. Paul makes sure that Timothy understands that the resources of the church are to be given to the proclamation of the gospel. It is often a point of contention in the church where the money goes, with the implication that the church ought to support the poor and marginalized before it supports its own mission. Paul says no. This flies in the face of popular movements, and it can go too far the other direction- Paul does not forbid supporting the poor, and elsewhere says it is quite important- but it cannot become primary. Only the gospel is primary, and those who spend their lives proclaiming the gospel ought to be supported by the resources of the church.
The pull the other direction can make money the motivator for teachers. Paul immediately addresses this problem. He warns Timothy against teachers who love money and who are full of pride. It is really the same issue as the problem of making social programs primary over the gospel. Making the teacher primary over gospel is just as bad. It is not the teacher that it important but the message. Jesus is Lord, not a teacher in the church or a missionary in the world. Paul warns Timothy that those who teach a doctrine other than repentance unto life in the name of Jesus is self promoting and dangerous. They are to be opposed vigorously.
Finally, Paul closes the letter with a personal charge to Timothy. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called and about which you made the good confession in the presence of many witnesses. Paul wants Timothy to look at the promise of God and pull it into the present. To live the life of the new creation now. As Jesus before Pontius Pilate made the good confession that he was King and Lord. It was not the obvious truth that a man about to be condemned to crucifixion was the King of Kings, but Jesus declared it anyway. Timothy is to do the same. The gospel, the whole gospel, and only the gospel is Timothy’s concern. But to effectively share the good news, he needs to stay healthy, act responsibly, and be respectable. It is the calling of leadership.