Genuine spirituality cannot be separated from how we treat those in need and nowhere does that apply more than in the Church.
While families bear primary responsibility, the church community has a crucial role in supporting those who are truly without other options. Paul believed families should look after their own but he also believed that of the church too.
His teaching on these matters reveal a beautiful aspect of who he was. This great apostle of our faith had a heart for the least and the vulnerable and he expected Timothy, his leader for the Ephesian church, to build a community that strategically takes care of every member, regardless of age or status.
Let’s read some more.
“Give proper recognition to those widows who are really in need. But if a widow has children or grandchildren, these should learn first of all to put their religion into practice by caring for their own family and so repaying their parents and grandparents, for this is pleasing to God. The widow who is really in need and left all alone puts her hope in God and continues night and day to pray and to ask God for help. But the widow who lives for pleasure is dead even while she lives. Give the people these instructions, so that no one may be open to blame.” 1 Timothy 5:3-7
The widows in Timothy’s generation were not too dissimilar to those in places of Africa and Asia today. They faced extreme vulnerability without the social securities that many in the West afford. The early church (Acts 6) developed a strategy to help them and Paul continues to build on that in his instruction.
*There are widows who are really in need. They don’t have family support. The church is their only hope, that and of course God. She is repeatedly praying for help. Her dependence on God and her devotion to Him is clear;y seen by the Church and they are to recognise this with both honour and practical support.
*There are widows who have their own family. 1 Timothy 5:3-7Paul makes it clear that the primary responsibility lies with their families. Children and grandchildren should “learn first of all to put their religion into practice by caring for their own family.” The phrase “repaying their parents and grandparents” suggests that caring for aging family members is both a duty and an act of gratitude for the care received in childhood.
*There are widows who are self-indulgent. Being wealthy is not wrong of course but self-indulgence is and they don’t qualify for any support.
The repeated emphasis on putting “religion into practice” reminds us that genuine faith inevitably manifests in practical love. How we treat the vulnerable—especially in our own families—reveals the authenticity of our spiritual commitments.
Paul’s instructions about widows reveal a beautiful balance of compassion and wisdom. The early church was called to be a community where the vulnerable found genuine care, where families took their responsibilities seriously, and where faith expressed itself in practical love.
Today’s believers can learn from this model:, especially within our own families. The “true widow” who puts her hope entirely in God becomes not just a recipient of care, but a model of faith for the entire community.
Missions Paul 