Distinctive Office? Trainee Elder? Ecclesiastical Financier?

The Deacon's Qualifications

The distinction between someone's person and his office is a well known one. It is one of the ways soldiers cope with unpleasant officers: 'Salute the uniform,' they say. And while the police officer personally may not command respect, only a fool would despise his office when pulled over for a breath check! This distinction is not only well known: it is thoroughly biblical. (Think, for instance of Christ's offices of prophet, priest and king.)

A person who fills an office deserves the respect due to that office, and of course, he owes it to his office to live up to its requirements. This is certainly true in the case of the two New Testament offices of elder and deacon. We are exhorted to respect and obey those whom God has placed over us, out of reverence for the One who ordained the office. We should never let the weaknesses of some office-bearers lead us to despise the office itself.

The New Testament knows two, and only two offices in the church. In this article we shall think about the sometimes neglected biblical office of deacon. What qualifications does God lay down for those in this office? What duties attach to the office - what is it to 'deak'?

Qualifications For Deacons

As we look at the New Testament requirements for deacons, there are two points to note:

1. While this office is ordained by God, and certain qualifications are laid down, we will discover that these are no different from the qualities required of every believer. This should remind us of the general principle that the Lord sets apart those in his Church who are to occupy office by graciously giving them a heightened measure of the various gifts and fruit of the Spirit. The Church does not create the office-bearer when she elects him to office: she recognizes that the Lord himself has equipped this man to exercise that office.

2. The second point is really quite obvious, but is sometimes forgotten or deliberately ignored. It is that the qualifications laid down for office-bearers are qualities permanently belonging to the office. They are therefore not only 'conditions of entry' to the office, but are qualities which the office-bearer must continue to cultivate in prayerful dependence upon the Spirit of Christ. When a person ceases to display the qualities belonging to his office, unless he repent, he will have to be removed from it. If not, the name of Christ is dishonoured, and the Church discouraged from pursuing those holy traits which should be exemplified in her leaders.

Two passages in the New Testament bear directly upon the qualifications for serving as a deacon: they are 1Timothy 3:8-13 and Acts 6:1-6.

In 1Timothy 3, the Apostle Paul spells out 8 qualifications for deacons--5 positive and 3 negative. (Remember, these are qualities which should be evident in every Christian man, but very evident in those suited to serve as deacons.) The Apostle has just described the man fitted to be an elder; now he turns, with a 'likewise,' to the deacon.

Verse 8
1. Dignity. The deacon must be a man worthy of respect . He does not aspire to office in order to gain respect; he is appointed to office because he already commands respect in the Church. His upright and orderly life, a product of self-discipline, gives him a serious and dignified demeanour. Sometimes we confuse dignity with distance, but Christian dignity is a warm, attractive quality flowing from love.

2. Sincerity (NIV). He is not double-tongued (KJV,NASB), but straightforward, open and honest. You can depend on his word: he says what he means, and means what he says.

3. Temperance. If he drinks wine, he does so with moderation. No one mastered by drugs (whether alcohol or other kinds) or other appetites, can serve Christ effectively in office. No man can have two masters.

4. Not pursuing dishonest gain (NIV). Unlike Judas Iscariot, the disciples' treasurer, who, like so many after him, could not keep his hand out of the till. Those charged with handling the Church's money must be free of the love of it...

Verse 9
5. A clear conscience. His profession of the Christian Faith is not paralyzed by a guilty conscience. He is no hypocrite, subscribing to the Confession with mental reservations. He holds unequivocally to Christ (who is the mystery of God - Colossians 2:2), and to the gospel, and his sins are washed away through a daily dependence upon the Lord and his work of redemption.

Verse 10
6. Found blameless. He is not a new convert, rapidly elevated to office because he is enthusiastic, and to 'give him something to do.' Paul tells Timothy, 'Do not lay hands on anyone hastily...' (1 Timothy 5:22). The deacon is a man who has proved his worth in the life of the Church, and whose spirituality and maturity are evident to all. He is 'beyond reproach.'

Verse 11
7. Godly wife. Every man should be striving to develop these qualities of spiritual maturity, but so should the women! Whether they are already the wives of deacons, or only prospectively so, the women too should be people of dignity, with their tongues, appetites and passions under control. No man can successfully fulfil the requirements of spiritual office if he is being undermined by his wife. The two are one, so they must be one in godliness too.

Verse 12
8. A good manager. The deacon must be 'one wife's husband' (which I take to mean that he is faithful in the marriage bond), and he must be a good manager of his own household. His children do not 'run riot'--as with the elder, he keeps his children under control with all dignity. And the Apostle adds significantly, 'But if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of the Church of God'? (1Timothy 3:5).

Verse 13
The man whose conduct is in keeping with his office of deacon gains great respect in the Church. Indeed, some have seen that the high 'degree' mentioned in this verse refers to a faithful deacon's being elevated to the office of elder in Christ's Church, for the qualifications are, with one main exception, the same. And, as faith is strengthened by living according to God's norms, a faithful deacon is also promised great assurance of salvation. What a wonderful incentive to cultivate the qualities required for this office, both for those already in it, and those not yet in it, as well as for those 'better halves' who will support them in it!

In conclusion we may note that there is a still greater incentive for deacons: they bear a very wonderful name, for it is one of the names of our Saviour. The word, 'deacon' simply means one who serves. We find the related verb in Mark 10:45: '...the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.' He is the Suffering Servant, who bore our griefs and carried our sorrows. He is the Deacon par excellence, and the Church in her diaconal ministry is privileged to portray him to one another, and before a watching world. To the degree that we display the traits listed above, we proclaim the beauty of Jesus. What a privilege; what a responsibility! May the Lord by his Spirit work in us what is well-pleasing to him, so that men may see our good deeds, and glorify not us, but our Father in heaven.

Acts 6 and the Word 'Deacon'

We have considered the qualifications required of deacons, as spelled out by the Apostle Paul in his first letter to Timothy. Although we cannot be certain, this letter was probably written not long before the Apostle's death in about AD 64. By this time, the office of deacon was established in the Church, as is also indicated by Paul's salutation in his letter to the Church at Philippi, probably written from Rome in about AD 60: 'Paul and Timothy, bond servants of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, including the overseers (or, bishops) and deacons.'

The interesting thing is that, unlike the eldership, the New Testament seems not to record the institution of this office, nor to describe its functions. Or does it? If we ask, 'Is there any passage which fills this apparent gap?' there is one which quickly comes to mind: the account in Acts 6 of the appointment of The Seven (as they were known - see Acts 21:8). Before we turn to consider the data presented in Acts 6, just a few words about words, and about biblical background.

Our word 'deacon' is the Anglicized version of the Greek word, diakonos. The related verb, diakoneo, in Classical Greek referred to waiting upon tables, then from this, to caring for household needs, and then, by extension, to serving others more generally. The diakonos was a waiter, a garçon.

In the New Testament, the word-group is used in both the wider and narrower senses. For instance, Jesus uses it of himself in Mark 10:45, as mentioned above. In Acts 6 itself, the Apostles express their intention to devote themselves to 'prayer, and to the ministry (literally, diakonia, service) of the Word.' Paul, in 1Corinthians 12:5, states: 'here are varieties of ministries (lit., diakonia), and the same Lord.' In this context the word refers to the gifts of the Spirit distributed to all Christians. And then, in Philippians 1:1 and 1Timothy 3, the word-group is used in its narrow sense, referring to the second of the New Testament offices.

In Acts 6, the word diakonos does not appear; it is not used to describe The Seven. This is why some deny any connection between Acts 6 and the office of the diaconate. However, the word-group is used in reference to the functions of The Seven: in v.1, the word translated 'daily service', (or ministration (KJV), or distribution (NIV)), is diakonia, while in v.2, the word translated 'to serve tables' is the infinitive of the verb diakoneo.

From this we see that, while the word 'deacon' does not appear in Acts 6, nevertheless the idea of serving in an official capacity is clearly present, thus providing a strong link to the passage in 1Timothy 3 which spells out the qualifications required of those who would serve in this capacity. And since it seems unlikely that God would reveal to us the requirements of deacons without telling us their job, I believe that we must see Acts 6 as recording the institution of the office of diaconate.

Biblical Background

Throughout Scripture the Lord God reveals his concern for those in need: the widow, the orphan, the stranger, the homeless. When Ruth gleaned in the barley-fields of Boaz she did so by virtue of a provision in the Law of Moses for the care of the poor (Leviticus 19:9-10). Note too in the Old Testament the detailed provision made for those in 'full-time service,' the priests and Levites.

The Lord Jesus in his earthly ministry showed care and compassion to those in need: he healed the sick, fed the hungry crowds, and raised the son of the widow of Nain.

The New Testament Church continued this concern for the poor, as is evident in Paul's own ministry. He devoted much effort to raising funds to support those in need in the Church. Interestingly, John Calvin commenting on the practice of the early Church notes, "You will frequently find both in the decrees of synods and in ancient writers that all that the church possesses, either in lands or in money, is the patrimony of the poor To sum up, what (Ambrose) said in another place we see to be very true: 'Whatever then the church had was for the support of the needy'" (Institutes 4.4.7,9).

In the new-born Christian church, people were so liberated from the I-me-mine mentality that they pooled resources, and had all their possessions in common. They would sell property and bring the proceeds to the Apostles, who would distribute the money according to people's needs (see Acts 2:42-45; 4:32-35). What days they must have been!

Yet they were not without their problems: first there was the hypocrisy of Ananaias and Sapphira. Their sin was not that they declined to pool their property - there was no compulsion - but that they acted deceitfully, pretending to be more generous than they were. And then there was the problem of the widows.

Traditionally defenceless, and in a day of no pensions or social security,the widowed ladies needed special care. However, as the Church exploded numerically the administration task became overwhelming for the Apostles, so that some widows were apparently being neglected. It was at this point that the Apostles, perhaps following Moses' example (Exodus 18), decided to appoint helpers who would take responsibility for this work.

The Deacons' Work

What exactly did The Seven Deacons do? A superficial reading would suggest that they literally became table waiters, garçons (Acts 6:2). However, we have already seen that what the Apostles were administering was not the menu but the money! So why the expression 'to serve tables'?

The word table was used in Greek to refer not only to the meal table, but to the table of the money-changer, or the banker. For instance, in Luke 19:23, in the parable of the money, the nobleman enquires of his unfaithful slave, 'Why did you not put the money in the bank...?' What he says is literally, 'Why did you not give my money upon a table?' (Even our English word, 'bank' is related to the word 'bench.')

In Acts 6, then, The Seven were charged not merely with distributing food and drink, but being in charge of the common purse; they managed the financial affairs of the Church, with special concern for the poor.

Such a responsibility requires important spiritual qualities: the Apostles direct the people to choose out 'seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom,' and then they ordain them (ie. set them apart to this office) by prayer and the laying on of hands (v.6). These qualities parallel and summarize those spelled out in 1Timothy 3. We are all exhorted to 'go on being filled with the Spirit' (Ephesians 5:18), but men qualified to be deacons are those in whom this is outwardly obvious. As the context in Ephesians 5 shows, being Spirit-filled refers not so much to the emotions as to the will: you show that you are Spirit-filled by being subject to the Lordship of Christ in every area of life - in the Church, the family, your employment, etc. Wisdom, on the other hand, is the ability to translate godly principles into practical action so as to achieve spiritually profitable goals. How necessary this is when it comes to administering the funds of Christ's Church!

It is not too hard to see the parallels with 1Timothy 3 here, which requires a deacon to be dignified, respectable, of proven character, a good manager and so on. We may summarize that the deacons' work is to assist Christ's under-shepherds by taking from them the burden of managing the Church's material resources, so that they may be freed to pursue their particular responsibilities. In particular, in this office, the Church continues to express God's concern for those in need, particularly among his own people.

The Necessity For The Diaconate

Is the diaconate necessary in every Church, so that a Church is not properly constituted if it lacks deacons? In a word, no.

In Acts 6, The Seven were not ordained until they became necessary. In Titus 1, Paul commands Titus to appoint elders in every city, but makes no reference to deacons. Of interest also is Acts 11:29-30, which records that the relief offering entrusted to Barnabas and Saul was sent to the elders in Jerusalem (not The Seven). No doubt the elders may have passed the gift on to The Seven, but we are not told that they did.

The office of deacon is not essential to the being of the Church, but it may become necessary for her well-being, when so adjudged by the elders. This happens when the task of financial management becomes too onerous for the elders, and distracts from their ministry of the Word and prayer. In 1Timothy 3, the qualifications for the diaconate are very similar to those for the eldership, with the exception that the latter are to be 'apt to teach.' Clearly, then, the deacon's role was as an assistant to the elder. This is one reason why, in the PCEA, deacons are required to subscribe the Confession just as elders do.

Conclusion

We have surveyed the biblical teaching about the qualifications and functions of the diaconate, and have found that it is an important, spiritual office in the Church of Christ. The deacon serves to assist the elder by administering the Church' material property, and in his office expresses God's concern for the needy.

We see that while the diaconate is an auxiliary office, it is nonetheless of great importance to the well-being of the Church and her ministry. We should thank God for faithful deacons, and men in the congregation should be aspiring to this office, seeking to develop the requisite gifts in prayerful dependence on God.