1 Timothy 5:8 — 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.

One of the commonest of distresses for Christians — one that I share — is the uncertainty about the eternal future of some family members. There are, I suppose, three or four groups whose heavenly security is in doubt. I can count family in each group.
One group is formed by those who are untouched by any consideration of faith. Jesus says “No man can come to me, except the Father which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day.” (John 6:44). It is sadly true that there are those who do not have “ears to hear”, and on whom any efforts to evangelize are wasted.
A second group is filled with those who have heard the call of God, who may even have come close to accepting Jesus as Lord, but have finally rejected Him. Hebrews 10:26-31 speaks of this group. It begins “For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries.” (Hebrews 10:26-27).
The last group is saddest, perhaps. These are they who are convinced that they are perfectly good Christians yet reject the basic tenets of the faith:
— The Godhood of Christ, (which involves The Trinity)
— His resurrection
— Salvation by grace (and grace alone).
In our extended family, Myra and I have those that are convinced that the good things that they have done and are doing far outweigh the wrong things that they have done, and that a “fair” God will surely pass them into heaven. Somehow, they overlook the force of “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)
“How is it,”, you might ask, “that anyone can overlook or misunderstand God’s Word completely?” I am reminded of what Jesus said to the Sadducees who tried to trap Him into denying the resurrection: “And Jesus answering said unto them, Do ye not therefore err, because ye know not the scriptures, neither the power of God?” (Mark 12:24). So it is, I think, with those whose fate we are concerned about — either they don’t know what the Bible says, or they underestimate God.
The next thing I can imagine you saying is “Yes, well it’s very sad, but how is it your problem?”. That’s where the passage from Timothy comes in.
When Paul wrote of “his own, and specially for those of his own house” he was speaking of a man’s nearest relations, and of more distant relatives who might expect material support. In our time we might reasonably consider that to include any of the extended family with whom we are in regular contact. When he spoke of “providing” he spoke primarily of physical needs — but it might also be understood as meaning any reasonably anticipated need … and there can be no greater need than the need for the gospel.
I am sure that most of you, like us, have been impelled to share the gospel with family members and have been rejected. One of my new year intentions is to keep trying, and one of my prayers for you is that you will too!