The Difference Deacons Make Pt. 2
The Difference Deacons Make • Sermon • Submitted
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Theres a story that is told about the influence of Deacons in the middle of WW2.
See, it turns out that the Nazi’s weren't big fans of Deacons.
Matt Symherust wrote about this in a little book entitled Deacons...
In 1940, the Netherlands fell into the hands of German occupation, and like much of the rest of Europe during the time…things were tough.
There was a lack of food. Nazi police were arresting people and sending them to concentration camps.
But there was one pesky group of people that rose up and frustrated the efforts of German soldiers more than any other…and it wasn't any military organization
it wasn't some foreign nation
nor some special ops group
it was the deacons from the local churches!
Deacons from churches all around the Netherlands saw the oppression and mistreatment of their Dutch brothers and sisters and they rose to the occasion.
They began caring for the oppressed,
feeding the hungry,
And giving refuge to those that were in hiding from Nazi imprisonment.
And they made such a ruckus that the Nazi government took notice of them and decreed to terminate the office of deacon.
Until the Dutch Church fired back at them on July 17, 1941 saying,
“Whoever touches the deaconate interferes with what Christ has ordained as the task of the Church…whoever lays hands on the deacons lays hands on worship...”
AKA… “You lay hands on the deacon…and God is gonna lay hands on you...” And believe it or not, the Nazi’s backed-down.
See…the Deacons made a difference...
And they didn't make a difference with bullets…or dollar bills even…they made a difference through servanthood.
Smethurst goes on to write these words:
“Historian Rodney Stark notes that deacons in the early church were of ‘considerable importance,’ assisting in liturgical functions and administering the benevolent and charitable activities of the church. A fourth-century treaties called the Apostolic Constitutions further outlined the duties of Deacons:
They visited martyrs who were in prison, clothed and buried the dead, looked after the excommunicated with the hope of restoring them, provided the needs of widows and orphans, and visited the sick and those who were otherwise in distress. In a plague that struck Alexandria about AD 259, deacons were described by an eyewitness as those who ‘visited the sick fearlessly,’ ‘ministered to them continually,’ and ‘died with them most joyfully.
Indeed, it was this kind of risky, self-giving love—modeled often by deacons—that bewildered the Roman world.
As the African Bishop and early church father Tertullian observed,
“It is our care of the helpless, our practice of lovingkindness that brands us in the eyes of many of our opponents. ‘Only look’ they say, ‘Look how they love one-another.’
This is the role of the deacon that has been passed down to us…Heucks Retreat
Its the role of the Deacon that we see in Scripture...
And it is the role of Deacon that we have seen manifested here at our church so often...
See, the position of Deacon is irreplaceable…but it is only irreplaceable when it functions according to how the scripture lays it out for us.
And the truth is, many churches struggle to understand the role of the deacon in the life of the local church.
When deacons fall short of the Biblical model of deacon…they make little impact…but when deacons function according to what the Bible says…the Deacons Make the Difference in the life of the local church.
Last week we highlighted who a deacon is in 1 Tim. 3:8-13. Which shows us the character qualifications of a deacon...
This morning I want to highlight what the Biblical Portrait of the Deacon is...
That is, what a deacon does...
Big truth is this: Deacons serve…that is what they do and it is who they are…deacons are servants.
But what does this look like practically?
But what does this look like practically?
Deacons Serve to Resolve Conflict
Deacons Serve to Resolve Conflict
1 In those days, as the disciples were increasing in number, there arose a complaint by the Hellenistic Jews against the Hebraic Jews that their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution.
Because of the growth of the church, the apostles were unable to accomplish everything that needed to be accomplished.
They were obviously dropping the ball on making sure that all of the people were having their needs met.
There was a conflict the Gentile widows being overlooked in the daily service.
So people began to complain…this was the beginning of a church conflict in the first century.
And who stepped up to bring resolution to the conflict? The deacons!
This is one of the roles that Deacons are designed to fulfill.
The deacons are called to function as cushions that soften the blow during church conflict…
And conflict in the church is inevitable…in fact…every church needs a little good conflict.
All churches have conflict…every single one of them.
In fact, the only churches that have absolutely no conflict are imaginary churches—they dont exist.
Every church should have a little bit of conflict…and every church should have some issues that they need to work through…especially if the church is reaching sinners.
A church that reaches sinners is going to have some problems to work through. There are going to be some uncomfortable times where people say things and do things that dont feel very Christlike.
When a church reaches sinners…it means its going to have some people with problems.
Ive heard this said a few different ways over the years,
No church gets to choose whether or not it has problems…
But churches can choose what kind of problems we face.
We can either have growing pains…or we can have dying pains...
Growing pains come from being the church that God has called us to be…growing pains come from reaching sinners and being a church that storms the gates of hell with a Bible in one hand and a water pistol in the other.
And if we do that…we will have some growing pains to work through.
But the truth is, if we dont do that we will have some dying pains to work through.
See…we cant choose whether or not we fight…but we can choose who we fight.
We can either fight against Hell and Satan…or we can fight each other.
churches that have dying pains have stopped fighting against Satan, Sin, and Hell…and they have chosen to fight each other.
They fight over their traditions...
They fight over their preferences...
They fight over their turf…their sacred cows...
But a church that fights against Satan, Sin, and Hell…doesnt have time to fight each other.
We get to choose which fight we face...
We either face growing pains…or we face dying pains
I know which fight I want…I know which types of pains I want…I want growing pains…I want to reach sinners and preach the gospel…and watch God transform lives from the inside out.
This is what was happening in the church in Acts…the church was having some growing pains...
They were reaching sinners, and peoples lives were being transformed…but there were issues that came up...
The hellenistic Jewish widows werent being taken care of…the church was showing partiality (unintentionally it seems) to the ethnic Hebrew widows
And so the Deacons were appointed…and they functioned as shock absorbers...
And this is what our deacons who you nominate today will have to be…they must be shock absorbers…they must be willing and able to bring resolution to the inevitable conflicts that we will face.
As Ive heard many of our deacons here say:
“Deacons are supposed to carry buckets of water…not buckets of gasoline.”
They are to help put out fires…not stoke them.
This is why they must to be people who are “full of faith and the Holy Spirit” (v.5)
This is why they are to be people who hold the character qualifications of 1 Timothy 3:8-13
Because they must be people who can handle the shock of conflict…
Church…lets make the job of our deacons easy...
Let’s make sure that we have growing pains…not death pains.
Let’s make sure that we fight with one another against sin, Satan, and hell…and that we dont just fight each other...
Let’s make sure our deacons deal with good conflict…and the way we do that is by deciding that we want growing pains…not dying pains.
Deacons serve to resolve conflict…This is the first responsibility
The second is this:
Deacons Serve by Responding to Important Problems
Deacons Serve by Responding to Important Problems
Deacons are called to respond to important problems.
Lets look at the problem in this story in Acts:
Acts 6:1–3 (CSB)
1 In those days, as the disciples were increasing in number, there arose a complaint by the Hellenistic Jews against the Hebraic Jews that their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution. 2 The Twelve summoned the whole company of the disciples and said, “It would not be right for us to give up preaching the word of God to wait on tables. 3 Brothers and sisters, select from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and wisdom, whom we can appoint to this duty.
The problem was that the Apostles were having to give up praying, preaching, and teaching...
They were having to devote their time to making sure that the mercy ministries of the church was being done…and as a result…they didn't have the time they needed to do the work they were primarily called to do.
We might be tempted to think that the problem that arose was not that big of a deal…Was it really that big of a deal that some of the widows were being overlooked?
Was it really that big of a deal that the Apostles were having to take time away from praying and preaching?
The answer is…yes.
Its a really big deal.
It was the ministry of prayer, the preaching of the Word, and the ministries of mercy that had led to the growth of the church.
Acts 2:42–47 (CSB)
42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer. 43 Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and signs were being performed through the apostles. 44 Now all the believers were together and held all things in common. 45 They sold their possessions and property and distributed the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46 Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple, and broke bread from house to house. They ate their food with joyful and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. Every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.
Four things led to the growth of the church:
The Word
Prayer
Fellowship
And mercy ministry…those that had, sold everything to ensure that everybody had something.
And now here in Acts chapter 6…the church had grown so much that the needs were too much for the Apostles to handle on their own.
They were having to choose serving those in need over giving their attention to the work that needed their attention…preaching, teaching, and praying...
And because the Apostles understood just how important it was to serve…they appointed men who could meet that need.
Deacons exist to do what the pastors dont have the capacity to do.
They solve problems…important problems…and in doing so, they share the load of the ministry in the church.
Deacons are called to be those that can respond to problems...
Deacons help to solve important problems so that the ministry of the gospel is accelerated…not hindered.
So…make sure when you nominate deacons that you nominate those men who you are willing and able to do the important work of solving problems in the life of the church.
That means they must be selfless men...
They must be men who desire…ultimately…to reflect the heart of Christ.
This is the third…and most important element of who the deacon is called to be:
Deacons Serve for the Purpose of Reflecting Christ
Deacons Serve for the Purpose of Reflecting Christ
Deacons are those who serve to magnify the nature and character of Christ.
Deacons seek to fulfill the calling of the Apostle Paul in Philippians 2:3-11.
They arent motivated by selfish ambition or conceit.
They humbly consider others as more important than themselves.
Deacons are those who look out, not for their own interest, but rather to the intrests of others...
Why? Because this is what Jesus did...
Jesus was the one who, “existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be exploited. Instead he emptied himself by assuming the for of a servant, taking on the likeness of humanity. And when he had come as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death—even to death on a cross.
For this reason, God highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow—in heaven and on earth and under the earth—and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”
Christ became our servant...
Christ set his own needs aside...
He served the will of God obediently...
And he served to meet the need of humanity...
He took on sin…death…hell…and the grave...
So that God would be glorified...
And so that we could be saved...
This is why deacons serve…because they want to magnify Christ...
And as deacons serve—selflessly—the reflect the image of Christ.
They put on display the love of God for those that deserve it the least.
And when that happens the same thing that the church experienced in Acts 6:7
7 So the word of God spread, the disciples in Jerusalem increased greatly in number, and a large group of priests became obedient to the faith.
Church…we exist for one reason…and one reason only.
We dont exist to keep people happy...
We dont exist to make people feel good...
We dont exist to give people good advice for life...
We exist to put the glory of God on display through preaching the good news about the victorious death of Christ for sinners, and the abundant and eternal life that Christ offers for those that will repent of their and surrender their life to Him by faith.
We need Godly deacons because we want people to know our Jesus who has served us...
The only way that you can serve as you ought to is if you know how God has served you in Christ Jesus in a personal way.
Deacons serve as the hands and feet of Jesus…because they know the heart of Jesus.
They serve because they know that Christ served them by living a sinless life and by dying a selfless death...
Deacons resolve conflict…because they know that Jesus has resolved the ultimate conflict that existed once existed between God and man...
Deacons respond to problems…because they know that Jesus responded and solved the ultimate problem in their own hearts…sin and seperation from God.
Deacons serve…because they know that through their service…Jesus is magnified and God is glorified...
And we desire to be that Chruch…we want people to know Jesus...
We want people to know Jesus’ heart…and so we seek to be His hands and feet...
So we need good deacons church...
Because we want people to know Christ.
Do you know Christ?