Paul knew there
were “elders” within the church in Ephesus, so he gave
direction concerning them to Timothy his young “son in the
faith” who was the pastor there. The “elders” were
to be given “double honor” and were “worthy” of
their “reward” particularly if they labored “in the
word and doctrine”. Timothy was not to “receive an
accusation” against an “elder” unless there were two
or three witnesses to confirm the action brought against him,
however, in verse twenty of chapter five of Paul's letter to Timothy,
we learn that if the accusation is “sin”, Timothy was to
rebuke the elder before everyone where we read:
Them that
sin rebuke before all, that others also may fear.
The verse begins, “Them
that sin rebuke before all,...” Paul
began with the words, “Them that sin”
which refers to “the elders who miss the mark, err, are mistaken,
miss or wander from the path of uprightness and honor, do or go
wrong, wander from the law of God and violate God's law”
“rebuke” or “convict, refute, confute generally with a
suggestion of shame of the person convicted; to bring to the light,
to expose; to find fault with and correct in word and deed”
“before all” which means “in the presence of each, every,
any, all, the whole and everyone”. In other words, if an “elder”
was actually involved in a sin that was known and confirmed, Timothy
was to bring his deed to light in the presence of everyone in the
church.
The
verse goes on to say, “...that others also may fear.” Paul
went on to give the reason why such a drastic measure should be
taken, “that others” meaning “the rest of the people who
remain within the church” “also may” or “indeed will
hold, possess, own and have” “fear” or “dread, terror
and reverence”. The result of bringing to light the sin of the
elder would have a dramatic affect upon everyone else who was
watching, as they would have a fear and dread that they too might be
corrected before everyone.
When
we meditate upon these words of Paul, they may seem ominous to us.
What if we were the “elder” who was accused and “rebuked”
before everyone in the church? How would we be if there were certain
“elders” who were brought before the remaining church body
and shamed for their “sin”?There is no doubt that Paul
took “sin” among the “elders” very seriously,
and his desire was that Timothy do the same. The “fear”
that would be struck within the remaining church would be a great
deterrent for anyone else committing sin. One thing is certain, we
need Jesus Christ in our lives to keep us from the path of sin, and
should we ever have to encounter “sin” in this manner, may
He give us the wisdom to correct or be corrected according to His
will.
Next
time Paul tells Timothy to do these things without partiality, so
read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow…there is more…
Look
for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From
Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be
Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the
Mount” in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com
; http://www.barnesandnobles.com
; download to e-books, and find it locally at
http://www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
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