1 Timothy, 5;8 (kjv)

http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Timothy+5%3A8&version=KJV

" But if any provide not for his own, and specially for those of his own house, he hath denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel."

This sounds simple, and clear enough to me. I was utterly amazed the other night at work while talking with a co-worker who is a professed Christian. He was expressing concerns about his daughter and her second husband. The main concern seemed to be about the husband refusing to look for work after 2 years of unemployment, and no longer being eligible for unemployment. I asked if the young couple went to church (for the purpose of pointing out people to reach out to for job leads) when the conversation turned to the bible. My co-worker quoted proverbs 17;14 (niv) Starting a quarrel is like breaching a dam; so drop the matter before a dispute breaks out. Using this passage he claimed there was nothing he could do to encourage the young man to look for gainful employment. I showed him 1st Timothy 5;8 (kjv) and asked if the young man deserved the respect normally accorded a good husband.


So I pose the same question here, just to see what you have to say. Does a man who chooses not to provide for his family (in this case two children from a previous marriage, and a third on the way, along with a new wife) deserve to be respected and treated the same as a man who works hard or if unemployed does what ever he can to find work, and provide for his family. (excluding disabled, sick, and injured persons of course)

What say you??

I was off work for 1 1/2 years starting in 2009. It was the first time I was without work since I was 16 years old. I can tell you that I felt ashamed, usless, less of a man, and desprite. The Lord provided us (me, my wife, and our first born) with all we needed, but I still felt like it was my duty to do so.

I said that to show you where I am coming from in respose to your question. Personally I have a hard time giving anyone who refuses to work respect. That goes against all of my upbringing. The problem here is our socioty. Not just the fact that it is becoming more and more socilest, but also the fact that poeple dance around hurt feelings too much. Eveything must be PC. That is the ruin of this nation! It is nolonger "right" to tell someone "work or don't eat" or "get saved or go to Hell." I blame the lawyers.

Ecclesiastes 7:1 A good name is better than precious ointment; and the day of death than the day of one's birth.

Proverbs 13:22 A good man leaveth an inheritance to his children's children: and the wealth of the sinner is laid up for the just.

JMHO

God bless,
Chad

The very first thing God gave to man was a job, to give names to all he had created. IMO that set the precedent. Then throughout the scriptures we are reminded that one of the things God created us to do was to work. Of course it changed after the fall because work became hard, ie the sweat of your brow, etc. I'm not sure about the whole respect thing, but I do believe man is failing when they fail to at least try to follow the teachings in the scriptures.

Work is what men are supposed to to. I believe this verse means what it says, while at the same time I know what it is to be out of work. I remember many many years ago when I was out of work and very low on $$. Work could not be found anywhere. My church packed a food box for a couple in need and didn't say who it was going for. Even though we didn't have much we still contributed to that box. Imagine our surprise when they gave the box(es) to us. It made us realize that our brothers and sisters in the church cared for us.

Another time, I knew a woman who would come to church every November and "get saved" . Her husband was not a Christian, and she did have a rough life. She had 5-6 children. She would attend all the services faithfully and testify about God's saving her and that she was praying for Him to supply her needs. The church would help her out and buy her groceries and give her clothes and provide Christmas gifts for the family but after the New Year she would "backslide" and not show up at church again until the next November. After this behavior for several years the church people stopped helping her and started helping someone else and she never came back.

I believe that able bodied people should support them selves if they are able. I know that sometimes they are going through the storms of life and need some TLC from other Christians, But if they really want to work and make their own way they can eventually find a way to do it.

God doesn't expect us to be lazy and have our hand out for free gifts when we can do things for ourselves.

That's my two cents worth.

Reading Rohns post reminds me of a time, 12 years or so ago, when the factory I was working at closed down, unexpectedly. I was out of work, or at least officially unemployed, for 13 weeks. During that time I sent resumes daily and interviewed weekly. In the afternoons I did odd jobs for anyone willing to pay or barter, or I hunted food and gardened with my grandfather on his farm. Heck I worked harder then than I ever have had to when gainfully employed, and that includes when I worked my way through college as a waiter. I will never forget the day my last unemployment check arrived in the mail. I was walking back to the house from the mail box with what I knew to be the last check I was qualified to receive when my wife threw open the door and hollered for me to hurry up, I had a phone call. It was Whirlpool, Evansville division, asking me to start work that next Monday. I stayed with them for 7 years, until they announced that plant was also going to shut down. So while I worked 50 to 60 hours a week I submitted resumes, and interviewed almost every week. This time I was already employed somewhere else when they turned out the lights and locked the doors.