Don’t rebuke an older man

Do not rebuke an older man, but exhort him as a father, younger men as brothers, - 1 Timothy 5v1

We find a lot in the word of God about older people, and virtually every instance that I know of it mentions wisdom, respect, and honour. Here Paul addresses Timothy on how to deal with people of different age groups in the church. He starts out with the older men.

Don’t rebuke an older man. That seems simple enough doesn’t it? Does that mean that older men can just do whatever they want and never be questioned or called up, even when they sin? No, of course not, but Paul addresses that as well. Instead of rebuking an older man, exhort him as you would a father.

The difference here is one of attitude. We rebuke with one spirit and we exhort with another. Older people earn our respect because of their age. We cannot let an older person simply walk in sin, but when we confront them we should do it with same spirit that a father is due, and that is always with respect and honour.

We need to be careful in our fervency to deal with sin, that we don’t miss the method of dealing with it, and older people deserve our respect.