The Offices of the Church Part 1
Notes
Transcript
Intro:
The New Testament speaks of two offices in the Church.
Paul and Timothy, bondservants of Jesus Christ, To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the bishops and deacons:
One office is the Pastor/Elder/Shepherd/Bishop/Minister role. We will look at that role in detail next week.
The second office helps the church in different ways than the Pastor/Elder roles. That office is called the deacons. While our constitution calls for them as part of this church, at present we have none qualified and so a study on this topic will help us look for and identify potential candidates when we see them.
Theme: Deacons are highly qualified men who assist in the physical affairs of the church.
The start of deacons.
The start of deacons.
A. The Greek word diakonos, which we translate "deacon," = a person who ministers to or serves others. Therefore, deacons in the local church seek to serve other church members by meeting their practical and physical needs.
The word is used of men in the masculine form most often There are exceptions, like where a lady named Phoebe is referred to in the feminine form of the word. Romans 16.1 and in Mt 8.14 where it refers to Peters mother-in-law who served Jesus after being healed.
The word always carries the expectation of meeting the needs of another. In very ancient Greek it could also mean a letter carrier (and that is a role Phoebe was also believed to hold.)
B. Acts 6 is the commonly held beginning of the office of deacon.
Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution. And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them.
The situation is that the church is growing fast (multiplying)! In this fast growth problems are recognised. As sometimes happens, some people were way to busy while others (widows no less) were being neglected.
The Apostles ask for the congregation to choose people (they chose 7 godly men) to “serve tables”.
Over the years there has been a lot of debate on if that number (7) is a standard or just the number that they believed could do the job. I hold to the second view. In fact, we put in our church constitution a 1 for 50 regular attenders.
The role of deacons.
The role of deacons.
A. We believe the first deacons served the physical, financial, and to some extent organisational needs of the church while the Apostles carried on the spiritual side. The serving tables became what they were known for. They were also the ones that met the widows needs.
I’m sure we can think about some of the many areas that a widow needed help. These would take the ability to receive contributions and disperse them in a non discriminatory manner.
B. The Deacons were spiritual men who also had a practical focus. Their partnership with the Apostles was a cooperative thing.
It was not because they had no ability to teach. Stephen was stoned for the level of conviction his sermon brought in peoples hearts. The last half of Acts 6-chapter 7
It was not because they couldn’t do evangelism. Phillip proclaimed quite effectively. Acts 8.4-8; 26-40
Our constitution also includes the following as a mini description of their intended role: ARTICLE II, 2.d “It shall be the duty of the deacons to visit the sick, to prepare and distribute the elements of the Lord’s Supper, to assume a general supervision of the temporal interests, of the church; to cooperate with the Pastor(s) in the performance of his /their duties. The deacons shall interview all prospective church members and make recommendations to the church before they are voted into membership.”
The qualifications to be deacons.
The qualifications to be deacons.
Likewise deacons must be reverent, not double-tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy for money, holding the mystery of the faith with a pure conscience. But let these also first be tested; then let them serve as deacons, being found blameless. Likewise, their wives must be reverent, not slanderers, temperate, faithful in all things. Let deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well. For those who have served well as deacons obtain for themselves a good standing and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus.
Deacons control their tongue. v8
Can’t be wild with their speech. This means they think before they talk, and they consider the ramifications of even their jokes.
The second mentioned here is that they are not known lairs or two faced. That would give the church a bad reputation. You would also have to wonder if they were doing their job or just saying they were meeting the needs of the church.
Deacons are not drunks. v8
Yes, the word “much” is in this verse. If a person desires the buzz, or is repeatedly found to be controlled by the alchohol, then they are not qualified.
Deacons are not to be greedy money swindelers. v8
The deacons look over the finances of the church. Therefore they must be trusted.
These men are to be regular visitors in peoples (widows) homes. Therefore the church can’t have people in this role who can talk people out of their money.
Deacons must be solid believers. v9
They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience.
So they are not business people who cant make it as pastors. These are strong Christians who take the responsibility from a deep understanding of God, His church, and their role in it all.
Deacons should have a track record. v10;
Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty.
There are 2 distinctive differences in the qualifications of Pastors and deacons. Pastors must MUST be able to teach, and Deacons must have proven themselves by serving before officially being given the role.
Our constitution says they need to have been in the church for 1 year.
Deacons should have good families lives vv11-12
Wives matter! The lack of a wife does not disqualify someone, but when they have one, she must be onboard spiritually.
The children in the home also matter! It is a fairly universally excepted position, that after a child leaves the home, they are not included. Think of the father of the prodigal son. He was not diminished in Christ’s parable when the one son left home to live a wild life.
Deacons should have confidence. v 13
Those who serve well as officers will earn a good reputation and will be highly respected for their faith in Christ Jesus.
Conclusion: Deacons are highly qualified men who assist in the physical affairs of the church.
Conclusion: Deacons are highly qualified men who assist in the physical affairs of the church.
Deacons are important. The last one we had here as a church went home to be with the Lord. When we are very small, it is not as urgent, but as we grow we need to look to identify people who can rise to this office.
Q1. Do we understand that God does not expect one man to do everything?
Q2. Are we committed to looking for potential deacons and willing to encourage people to take up this role as they meet the qualifications?
Q3. Having deacons does not mean we would not have to serve one another. How are we willing to step up and serve each other till we can fill this office?