1 Timothy 5:16 -- Don't burden the church

To catch up on our adventure through 1 Timothy, click here and read from the bottom post up.

1 Timothy 5:16 (NIV):

"If any woman who is a believer has widows in her family, she should help them and not let the church be burdened with them, so that the church can help those widows who are really in need."

Paul amplifies his thoughts from verse 8 here and restates them in a different way. (You can read what we said about v. 8 here.) These two verses are directed to families who have widows. Taken together, these two verses pack a powerful punch:

1. If there is a widow in your family, you are responsible for helping her and providing for her.
2. Doing so means the church will not be burdened with the responsibility. Remember that the church has a finite and limited budget and cannot take care of every need. Doing your part with your own family means that the church can focus in and help widows who are really in need.
3. Believers who don't provide for their own relatives have denied the faith and are worse than unbelievers.

Verse 8 focused on the moral reasoning behind providing for your relatives, while verse 16 focuses on the practical and financial reasons. Both are valid.

The bottom line is this: If you don't know how to show God's love in a practical way to your own flesh and blood, how will you do it to the world?