Caring For Family: Relatives, 1 Timothy 5:7- 8

Caring For family: Relatives

1 Timothy 5:7-8 Give the people these instructions, too, so that no one may be open to blame. If anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially his immediate family, he has denied the faith and is worse off than an unbeliever.

Yikes, that's pretty strong! Paul wants us to sense the importance of family. How can we say that we love God, if we are not willing to help our family members who are in need? Jesus said to love one another. Love takes on an act of kindness if it is truly love. You cannot love God and not care for your family.

K and A, yesterday I wrote about your responsibility to take care of your parents. But, it must not stop there. The need goes beyond just them and expands to your relatives as well, especially to your brothers and sisters. If they are in need, reach out and help. Now, I have been around long enough to know that even family can take advantage of you, so be wise in how you help. The Bible says that the one who wont work shall not eat. This is a good policy and a good template for evaluating who is deserving of help. But, we must not be too critical and give ourselves excuses. It is not how the person got to the stage of being need, but are they in need. Spiritually, we all got ourselves into trouble, but Christ came anyway to help us out of the mire of sin. So, be willing to help, especially, to help your brothers and sisters.

~Dad

I was reminded of this song while writing...

He Brought Me Out