1 Timothy 5:22-25 - A little wine!

5:22

“Laying on of hands” here is generally taken in the sense of ordaining someone to a special task or office, eg to be an elder or deacon. These things should be done only after careful consideration. Sometimes we elevant new Christians too soon, this does no good either to them nor to the church as a whole. The leader must keep himself pure, not partaking in the sins of others at all. We may think “a leader would never dream of doing that”. Well maybe we wouldn’t, but it is very easy to be carried along without thinking. So we need to act with care.

5:23

Paul here gives some very practical advice. Notice that he does not tell Timothy to cast the demon out or even to pray for healing. In the New Testament we find both miraculous healings, people dying and straightforward practical advice on illness. The reason for Paul recommending “a little wine” is that it would reduce the risk of problems from contaminated water. By the way, the wine would be alcoholic. There is no Biblical mandate for insisting on abstaining from alcohol, though of course the Bible is absolutely clear that we must not be drunkards. Now, there may be pragmatic reasons for an individual, or for a church in a certain social context, to have a no-alcohol rule. Such an individual or church should recognise that it is a pragmatic decision, and not look down or condemn Christians or churches who allow drinking in moderation. At the same time, those who are quite happy with drinking in moderation should respect the decision of those who choose to abstain completely.

5:24,25

This just seems to be a general comment on life! Some people receive judgement for their sins in this life (at least in part). Ie they are found out and condemned. Others seem to get away with an awful lot, but they will receive the just penalty at the final judgement. This is just the way things are.

Likewise, some people receive recognition for their good deeds in this life, others do lots of good things for seemingly little reward. However, all good deeds will be recognised one day. We should live knowing that one day we will have to give an account for all that we do. We should also note that the New Testament has no problem with recognising that some deeds are good, and some are bad, some ways of living are good, and others are bad, some people are good and some are evil. None of this conflicts with our being saved by Christ alone. Moreover the “do not judge others” teaching is the most abused saying of Jesus that there is. The New Testament, and Jesus in particular, is quite clear that we should distinguish between good behaviour and bad behaviour.