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Providing for Others

Providing for Others

Here is an excerpt from the sermon "Snapshots of a Healthy Church Part 2: An Exposition of 1 Timothy 5:1-16"

"Do you realize that you – if you are a Christian – have the greatest reason to bear the cost of providing for others? This reason, of course, is the gospel: the Lord Jesus Christ, with overflowing grace, gladly bore the cost of providing eternal nourishment, eternal provision, and eternal shelter for His people. This grace of Jesus is the root of our love: if He so loved us, then shouldn’t we demonstrate that same kind of love for others? If He laid down His life for me, then shouldn’t I lay down my life for the members of my household, for the members of my extended family, and for the members of my church family? 

"Provision, of course, is closely bound up with our work, whether it is work that earns a profit or work that bakes an extra loaf of bread for the widow across the street. We work – we spend energy and resources – in order to meet the needs of our household, our relatives, and our fellow Christians. Work is a good gift from the Lord, and He has given us this good gift so that we can provide for others: “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.” (Ephesians 4:28) The motivation for work is not to make a name for ourselves, whether by climbing the corporate ladder or by posting self-promoting pictures on social media. The motivation for work is to build a way of life that honors God and meets the needs of loves ones within our regular family and within our church family. Obedience to 1 Timothy 5:8 requires not only a willing heart but also actual and shareable resources – therefore do your best to actually have shareable resources! Resources, of course, are often obtained through hard work. So work hard, that you might bless others."