Jewell

The gospel sows the seeds of destoying slavery in the request that the slaves respect their Christian and non-Christian masters so as not to give the perception that Christianity encourages rebellion. I don't know that Paul condones slavery as much as he encourages slaves to act in a way that does not bring reasons for others to speak against or persecute Christians.

Paul says not to be hasty in laying on of hands in order that they have a chance to get to know the person before commissioning them. Otherwise they may choose too quickly and the deeds (good or bad) that are associated with the intended elders may not be obvious. These dangers are lessened when you get to know a person.

It was necessary to make formal accusations and "try" false preachers in order to make it known that the teachings were false and to take a stand on teaching that which doctrine provides. There were, and are, temptations to compromise because it's difficult to bring charges against a person who is influential or a friend or who could harm us in retribution. It also required that 3 people bring the charge - this prevents one person from standing alone against the accused and helps eliminate the possibility of a personal conflict rather than a spiritual reckoning.

Elders should be compensated financially when they labor in teaching and preaching. This is scripturally supported in 5:18 "The worker deserves his wages".

We are responsible to help aging family members by caring for them as they cared for us. They may be in need of a home, food, or money, or they may need only our time and companionship. It is a Christian responsibility because it ties into the 5th commandment to honor our father and mother. Those who refuse this responsibility are compared to non-christians.

Rigid, unsmiling orthodoxy comes from the head - godliness comes from the heart. It takes what we learn in our head, applied to our heart, a heart filled with love for our Lord, to produce godliness. Anyone taking a leadership role is looked up to as an example of that which they teach. When that leadership waffles in the church because of indecisiveness or a weak desire to follow our Lord, people take that as acceptable and are prone to pattern their own lives in the same way, creating unhealthy relationships within the church and between the church members and God.

Godliness - to fear the Lord, having a healthy respect for God, seeking to please Him in the way we live, training our heart and mind to live in a way that pleases Him. Godliness is produced in a person by a sincere desire to please God and by training - living a life that demonstrates a godly life. Strict morality is determined by the head, godliness is determined by the heart.

Legalistic requirements are black and white - you follow the rules or you don't - there's no in-between making it easy for one to pass judgement on another or to rationalize one's own righteousness. The fruit produced in legalistic requirements is external whereas the emphasis of the true gospel is internal, from the heart.

Paul reminds them so that they will not be surprised and overwhelmed by the chaos. The knowledge should make it easier for them to stand firm to the end.

An elder takes on a greater responsibility of not only encouraging others with sound doctrine, but refuting those who oppose it.

Anger, intimidation, force and pride are not good people skills. These leaders are expected not only to lead the congregation, but to interceed when needed in situations that probably involve many of these things. They cannot provide adequate guidance for issues they themselves are struggling with.

Leaders should be observed carefully and tested before placing them in office to ensure that they are the right person with the right characteristics for leading the church. These characteristics would include being above reproach, blameless, trustworthy in everything, one who loves what is good, who is upright and holy, and not a recent convert.

Paul is looking for a leader who can set an example for those in the congregation and as a "husband of one wife" I believe he's referring to one who is faithful. A leader's family is an important indicator of leadership because it's felt that if a man is unable to lead his own family well, he is unable to lead the church family well. I believe, however, that these situations need to be addressed individually. I remember as a young woman (about 25) with young children, attending a church where the pastor's 18 year old unmarried daughter got pregnant and they fired him. I remember him as a gentle, caring, Christ-loving man who led his church well, and was well spoken with a good sense of humor. At that time, I did not understand why he was judged for another's sins, although these verses were used as rationalization. I lost faith in that church, maybe because I felt that if I made a mistake, I would get the same kind of treatment, I don't know. For different people at different ages and stages of their Christian life, we put importance on different things, sometimes because it's close to our heart and sometimes because it's the extent of what we understand.

I believe the cultural differences between Paul's time and the 21st century are vastly different and there is a need to assess those differences in the light of how a woman should conduct herself in the area of teaching or leading in the church. My views: A domineering attitude is not a proper tool for teaching (whether by man or woman). God's gifts to us should never be wasted but should be used in a way that honors him. In such a circumstance, a woman may find herself using a teaching gift in the church, not as an act of rebellion or domination, but as a loving act in bringing others to Christ.

Dressing in fancy clothes emphasized the division between rich and poor, taking away from representing oneself as one who puts God first. In the 21st century, I believe dressing modestly is as important now because the tendency for women to draw attention to themselves through their clothing (or lack of) can easily lead men into temptation and sin (from Matthew 5: "if a man even looks at a women with ****...."), and I believe in those circumstances, the woman is as guilty as the man. As for braided hair and jewelry, under most circumstances it does not show a division of class as it would have when there were slaves. Taking care in what type and when we wear jewelry, however, is important to ensuring that we are now presenting ourselves for "show".