Heavenly Father, we come,
humbling ourselves before you,
waiting to be addressed by you from your word.
Speak to us and by your spirit,
work in us
so that we might be characterized as a church
by the humility and service and sacrifice
that this passage calls us to.
In Jesus' name we pray, amen.
Today is an exciting day in the life of our church.
In September of this year,
it will have been two full years
since we launched our public services,
and today we are finally appointing our first deacons.
For this reason, I'm not going to stay in our series
through the book of Jeremiah today,
but I'm going to preach instead from 1 Timothy 3, 8-13,
which Justin hopefully read for us.
And from here, we'll be discussing three things.
First, the requirements for deacons.
Second, the roles of deacons.
And third, the rewards for deacons.
And the main point of this passage really
is that the church should appoint
Christ-like servants of the church as deacons.
The early church faced a crisis in 1st century AD.
After Peter's sermon at Pentecost in Jerusalem,
the church grew exponentially,
and it was really a community like no other
that existed prior to that point
because it was a mixed community of Jews and Gentiles,
and they lived in equality.
They lived in community together,
in unity and diversity.
But that kind of unity and diversity
always creates tensions
that more homogenous groups don't have to deal with.
And so that's what we find in Acts 6, 1-7,
where this crisis is recorded.
The Greek believers raise a complaint to the apostles
saying that while the Jewish widows
are being taken care of in their daily rations with food,
the Greek widows were being neglected.
And so the apostles summoned the whole church,
and they say this.
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 the apostles are here not downplaying
the importance of caring for the poor
because, in fact, the task is so weighed and important
that people who are of good repute
and full of the spirit and wisdom
must be appointed to do it.
But while this is a necessary and important task,
the preaching of the word and prayer
likewise cannot be neglected.
So because of that,
because both of those tasks are so important,
they had to appoint new leaders in the church.
And many believe that this instance recorded in Acts 6
was the beginning of the diaconate,
or the deaconship, the office of deacon.
And the word deacon, of course, isn't used here,
but the highlighted word serve in verse 2
is this verbal form of the word deacon.
And the pattern established here for the role of deacons
fits the description of deacons in other parts of Scripture,
as well as the example we see in church history.
What they do in the church is they meet a need
and they preserve the peace of the church.
So then Acts 6 teaches us
that there are two types of ministries,
two main types.
First is the ministry of the word,
and second is the ministry of the table.
After the apostles,
the ministry of the word was entrusted
to the elders of the church,
or the overseers of the church, also called that.
And the ministry of the table
was entrusted to the deacons of the church.
And while ministry of the table, of course,
includes care for the poor and the widows,
it's, I don't think, strictly limited to that
because the reason for the deacons in Acts 6 BC
is not merely to meet the need
but also to relieve the elders
so that they can continue to preach the word
and to pray.
And so because of that, I think anything,
and this is how historically church
has observed this practice,
any ministry that relieves and releases the elders
to focus on the ministry of the word and prayer
would fit under the category of the deacons' ministry.
And so there are two offices in the church,
and only two,
and it's the elder, office of elder,
and the office of deacon.
And we see both of those addressed together
in Philippians 1-1, for example.
And at the end of Acts 6 in verse 7,
we find out what happened
as a result of this solution to the problem
that faced the crisis that faced the early church.
And it says in Acts 6-7,
And the word of God continued to increase,
and the number of the disciples
multiplied greatly in Jerusalem,
and a great many of the priests
became obedient to the faith.
The possible crisis and schism of the church
was avoided,
and the church continued to grow in unity and in faith,
and that's really the hope that we have
as we appoint our first deacons as well,
that that will be the result that we see in our church.
And so let's take a look first
at the requirements for deacons from this passage.
Verse 8 says, follow with me,
deacons likewise must be dignified,
not double-tongued,
not addicted to much wine,
not greedy for dishonest gain.
So first, the deacons must be dignified,
meaning they have to be worthy of esteem and respect.
Deacons should be people
who are not given in their lives
to cheap, you know,
crass or ignoble things and tendencies,
but they should show,
they should have the tendency toward good things,
noble things and worthy causes.
And secondly, the deacons must not be double-tongued.
The word literally means speaking twice.
It refers to repeating something
that ought not to be repeated.
So, for example,
it would include betraying someone's confidence
and repeating their secret to someone else.
Or secondly,
it would also include any form of gossip and slander
instead of talking to someone directly
about an offense that they have caused
or about their faults and flaws.
You talk about it,
talk about that person with someone else.
You're repeating it
where you're not supposed to repeat it.
Double-tongued to talk twice.
And so deacons,
because they're charged with keeping the peace of the church,
they are not to be double-tongued
because that destroys community.
Third,
the deacons must not be addicted to much wine.
The phrase literally means
to be devoted to much wine.
Right?
Those who are addicted to alcohol
devote themselves to it.
They spend their fortunes on it.
They sacrifice their relationships
and their families for it.
So to be devoted
really means to pay attention to
or to occupy oneself with something.
And by definition,
that means a Christian
cannot be devoted to the things of God
and simultaneously be devoted to wine.
Being controlled by the Holy Spirit
excludes being controlled by wine.
So deacons must not be devoted to wine.
Fourth,
the deacons must not be greedy for dishonest gain.
They must not be people
who sell,
peddle religion for profit.
Using their office and station
for dishonest gain
brings shame on Christ
and His gospel.
So the deacons must not be greedy
for dishonest gain.
Before I continue,
I just want to tell you
that this passage is about deacons,
but deacons,
the qualifications for deacons,
really is something
that all Christians should aspire to.
It's the characteristic
of all godly Christians.
So it's applicable to all of us.
It's pertinent to all of us.
And then verse 9,
look with me, continues.
They must hold the mystery of the faith
with a clear conscience.
The mystery of the faith
is referenced to
the hidden plan of God
from generations past
that was revealed fully
in Jesus Christ.
So in short,
the mystery of the faith
is the gospel
or the good news of Jesus Christ,
His saving message.
And that gospel,
deacons must grasp firmly
and they must hold onto the gospel
with a clear conscience.
Earlier in chapter 1,
verse 19 of the same book,
Paul charged Timothy in this way.
He said,
wage the good warfare,
holding faith and a good conscience.
By rejecting this,
some have made shipwreck
of their faith.
So there are people
who even though
they have faith in the gospel,
they go on sinning
in spite of it.
Unrepentantly,
they go on sinning.
And as they do that,
they make shipwreck
of their own faith itself.
And so Paul is saying
deacons have to be people
who are able to,
with a clear conscience,
hold the mystery of faith.
This doesn't mean
that they have to be sinless.
That's the case.
We would have no deacons.
But it does mean
that the way they live
should confirm the gospel
rather than contradicted.
Their faith in the good news
of Jesus Christ
must be borne out
by the good works
that they do in their lives.
And they should be able
to hold the mystery of faith
without feeling like a fraud
and a hypocrite,
not being condemned
by their own consciences.
So deacons have to be able
to do with the clear conscience,
hold the mystery of faith.
And not only are deacons
supposed to meet
these character requirements,
they must also,
according to verse 10,
be tested first.
Then let them serve as deacons
if they prove themselves blameless.
The worthiness of the deacon candidates
are proven over time.
And I think there's multiple reasons for that.
One of them,
Paul himself tells us
later in chapter 5, verse 24,
the sins of some people
are conspicuous,
going before them to judgment,
but the sins of others
appear later.
So because of this,
and it's important
that the deacons first be tested.
And if they prove themselves blameless,
they are to be appointed as deacons.
And this is why in our church
we have diaconal interns first.
That's the period of testing.
And when they have proven themselves blameless,
we appoint them as deacons
as we're doing today.
And the word blameless
is a synonym of the word
that means above reproach.
That was the character requirement
for elders earlier
in this chapter.
And so that means
the deacon's character
must be of such quality
that they do not bring reproach
to Christ and his gospel.
The description is pretty straightforward
so far, right?
And the requirements for deacons
is pretty clear from here.
But in verse 11,
the description takes
an unexpected turn.
So look with me
in verse 11 of this chapter.
Their wives, likewise,
must be dignified,
not slanderers,
but sober-minded,
faithful in all things.
So if you are using
the English Standard Version ESV,
you probably have a footnote
next to the word likewise.
So look with me
if you see the footnote.
Follow the footnote down
and it will say this,
quote,
or woman likewise.
You guys see that?
I'm not seeing any,
no,
if you guys are using ESV.
So in Greek,
there's one word
for both woman and wife,
which is why
there are translational variations
for this verse.
So for example,
both the NIV
and the NASB
translate the word
in this verse
as woman
rather than wives.
And so look,
so NIV says,
in the same way,
the women
are to be worthy of respect,
not malicious talkers,
but temperate
and trustworthy
in everything.
Why does this matter?
Because if we translate it
as wives,
then it's a reference
to deacons' wives.
But if we translate it
as woman,
then it most likely
refers to woman deacons.
That's why this one
translational difference
is significant.
And faithful teachers
of the word
have disagreed
on this matter
throughout church history,
so it's not something
to be dogmatic about.
But I am nevertheless
personally convinced
that Paul is referring here
to woman deacons
and not to deacons' wives.
And here are the reasons
why.
First,
there is no possessive pronoun
there in the text
as there is in ESV.
It just says,
likewise woman.
It doesn't say
their woman
or their wives.
If the possessive pronoun
was there,
that would be very clear
that it's referring to wives,
but it's not there
in the Greek.
Second,
due to the ambiguity
of the generic Greek word
for woman,
whenever scripture authors
use the word
to mean wife,
they provide contextual clues,
such as mentioning
their husbands
or including modifiers
like their own wives,
that's what invariably
happens throughout scripture.
for example,
next verse,
verse 12,
when Paul says
that a deacon
must be a one-woman man,
that's clearly a reference
to a one-wife husband,
right?
So it's saying
that the husband
must be faithful
to one wife.
But verse 11
doesn't have
those contextual clues.
It simply says
woman.
And so I think
as it is translated
in other parts of scripture,
I think it's more natural
to translate it as woman.
And then third,
the transitional word
likewise
suggests
that Paul is introducing
a new subset category
here in verse 11
because
he used the word
likewise earlier
when he was transitioning
from a description
of elders
in verses 1 to 7
to deacons
in verse 8
and he makes
the same transition
in verse 11
and says likewise,
woman.
So I think
it's probably
not referring
to their wives
but to another
subset category
of the offices
that he's dealing with.
And fifth,
the character qualities
required of these women
fit what we would expect
of woman deacons
but not necessarily
what we would expect
of deacons' wives.
Let me explain.
Whenever scripture
mentions the character traits
of godly wives,
for example,
in Ephesians 5,
22 to 24,
Colossians 3,
18,
1 Timothy 2,
15,
1 Peter 3,
whenever it mentions
wives and their godly traits,
it refers directly
to their wifely duty
to their husbands
and commends
how they submit
to their husbands
and how they perform
their duties in the home.
But those kinds of traits
and characteristics
are not mentioned here
at all
when it's referring
to the deacons' wives
if it's referring to them.
Instead,
the description
is almost identical
to the requirements
for male deacons
given in verses 8 to 9.
So compare the two with me.
Both are called
to be dignified,
verse 8,
verse 11.
They're called
to be not double-tongued
in verse 8,
which parallels
not slanderers
in verse 11.
Male deacons
are called
to be not addicted
to much wine
in verse 8,
that parallels
the need to be sober-minded
in verse 11.
And holding
the mystery of faith
with the clear conscience
in verse 9,
parallels being faithful
in all things
in verse 11.
So I think
these parallels
are there intentionally
to signal to us
that it's not
referring to the deacons' wives
but to women deacons
just as it referred
to male deacons.
And sixth,
and this is my last reason
that I'm going to give
for why I'm convinced
of this,
there's confirmation
from elsewhere in Scripture
that there were women deacons
in the church.
In Romans 16.1,
it says,
I commend to you
our sister Phoebe,
a servant
of the church
at Centria.
The word servant,
there is the exact same word
that is translated
as deacon.
And of course,
it could mean
generically servant,
but I don't think
that's likely
and most translators
agree that that's not
what it's referring to
because of the description.
Not just a servant,
but a servant
of the church
at Centria,
which seems to be
signaling an official role,
a representative role,
a recognized role
within the church.
That's why NIV translates it,
I commend to you
our sister Phoebe,
a deacon of the church
in Centria.
And historical evidence
confirms the existence
of deacons.
Pliny the Younger
was a Roman magistrate
in the interim,
and he corresponded
with Emperor Trojan.
And in one of his letters,
he boasts about
how he tortured
and interrogated
two Christian women
who are called
deaconesses.
And my interpretation
of this is not novel
or creative.
If I ever teach you
anything that is novel,
that's new,
that no one in the church
has ever taught in the past,
I want you guys
to call me out on it
and challenge me
because I don't ever
want to do that.
This is something
that faithful exegetes
of scripture
and some of the most
reliable church fathers
have said.
This is what this passage
in fact means.
John Chrysostom,
Clement of Alexandria,
Theodoric,
one of my favorites
of the church fathers,
they all argue
that 1 Timothy 3.11
is a reference
to women deacons,
not to deacons' wives.
And other church fathers
like Origen,
Epiphanes,
Basil of Caesarea,
Gregory of Nyssa,
as well as the council
of Nicaea,
the canons of the council
of Nicaea in 3.25,
they took the existence
of deaconess
is for granted.
And some of the main reasons
I think is given
in a third century
church manual
called the teaching
or the didascalia
of the apostles
and it says this,
Appoint a woman
for the ministry of women
for there are homes
to which you cannot
send a male deacon
to their woman
on account of the heathen
but you may send
the deaconess.
Also in many other matters
the office of a woman deacon
is required.
This is a third century
church manual.
So I think
for these reasons
I'm very convinced
that this is referring
to women deacons
and that's why
we are appointing
women deacons as well.
Now turn with me
back to verse 12.
That was kind of a long excursus
on explaining that.
Whenever scripture lists
the qualifications
for church officers
it always addresses
both their personal character
and secondly
their family life
as a candidate.
Paul follows
the same pattern here.
So having addressed
the personal character
of male deacons
in verses 8 to 10
and having addressed
the personal character
of female deacons
in verse 11
Paul now turns
to address
the family life
of deacons.
And here he focuses
particularly on the male deacons
because they
as heads
of their respective
households
they had a particular
responsibility to the home
and the way
they managed their homes
had to be taken
into account
before their appointment.
So Paul says
in verse 12
let deacons
each be the husband
of one wife
managing their children
and their own
households well.
These qualifications
are the same
as the ones
that were given
to elders
earlier in this chapter
and in Titus 1.
and the phrase
husband of one wife
is literally
like I said before
one woman man.
A deacon
must be a one woman man.
This doesn't mean
that he has to be married
it just means
that if he is married
that he must be
a one woman
kind of man.
Obviously this
excludes polygamy
but the standard
is much higher than that.
He must be a husband
that is faithful
and devoted
to his wife.
A man who has eyes
and heart
for one woman only.
If you want
a more detailed
explanation of that phrase
you could refer back
to my sermon
in Titus 1
from a few weeks ago
because that's all
I'm going to say
for that part for now.
And the male deacons
must also give evidence
of managing their children
and their own households well.
And the rationale
behind this qualification
is that married elder
is called
to lead two families.
His personal family
and God's family.
And the former
his leading
of his own family
functions as the testing ground
for how he will do
in God's family.
Because if the man
cannot even manage
his own family
which he has had
I mean basically
a family that he has
had charge of
from the very beginning
of the life of the family
and with whom
he even shares
natural biological kinship
if he can't even
manage that family
how will he manage
God's family
which is far more numerous
and more diverse
and with whom
there is neither
a natural kinship bond
nor a legal right
how can you manage
that kind of family well
if you can't even manage
your own family well
when you have everything
else going for you.
That's the idea.
And so these are
the requirements
for deacons.
And notice
that all the requirements here
deal with
the person's character
and not with
the person's competence.
the world values
intelligence
skill
and competence
far more than they do
personal character
and that's
precisely why
we see moral lapses
abuses
and scandals
at all levels
of corporations
and governments.
But that must
not be the case
with the church
as it has been
in the past.
We live in a city
that has an overabundance
of human resources
and to tell you
the truth
I stopped being impressed
by smart
and competent people
a long long time ago.
Smart people
are a dime
and a dozen.
They're common.
There's a lot of smart people
in this world.
Skilled people
are a dime
a dozen.
You know what's
really rare?
Humble people.
Godly people.
people who are dignified
not double-tongued
sober-minded
faithful
in all
things.
That's rare.
And as Christians
let's wear
those characteristics
as the badge
of our honor
and not conform
to ourselves
to the value systems
of this world.
And I want to speak
directly to the
deacon Candace
for a moment.
How you care
how you care
for and lead
the people
in your respective
ministry teams
is far more important
than what you are able
to get them to do.
Your character
as a deacon
is far more important
for the advancement
of the gospel
than your competence
and I believe
that's the implication
of this passage.
And this is why
our deacons
although they are
very gifted
in many ways
they're not necessarily
the ones that are
most gifted
at everything
that they do.
What's been more
important and prominent
in our consideration
of deacons
has been their
demonstration
of Christ-like
servanthood.
So with that
proper emphasis
on the requirements
for deacons
let's now turn
to the second point
the roles
of deacons.
The scripture
actually doesn't tell us
too much about
the roles of deacons
what they do
because it's
more focused
on who they are
what they should be like
rather than
on what they do.
So we kind of have to
read between the lines
a little bit
but I think it's
clearly here in the text.
And the first
character qualification
for deacons
well he gave
the character qualification
for elders
in verses 1-7
and the deacons
in verses 8-13
and they're very similar
but by comparing
the two lists
and see where
they differ
we can figure out
what the distinct
roles of deacons are.
And first of course
is the title
an elder
is called
the overseer
referring to
his leadership
and oversight
over the church.
The word deacon
on the other hand
means servant.
It points to
ministries of service.
As H.B. Charles Jr.
the pastor of Shiloh
Metropolitan Baptist Church
puts it
elders
serve by leading
deacons
lead by serving.
It's
a little bit
you guys follow
this
elders
serve by leading
deacons
lead by serving.
It's a very helpful
and memorable way
to distinguish
the roles
of elders
and deacons.
Elders serve
the church
through their
leadership
and the deacons
lead the church
through their
service.
And a deacon
according to
verse 9
must hold
the mystery
of the faith
with a clear
conscience
and that's
similar to
the description
of elders
in Titus 1-9
which must
hold firm
to the trustworthy
word as taught
but then
for an elder
there's also
an added description.
It says
in addition to
holding firmly
to the trustworthy
word as taught
they have to
be able to
give instruction
in sound
doctrine
and also
to rebuke
those who
contradict it.
That's a key
difference between
an elder
and a deacon.
In 1 Timothy 3
we see this
as well.
Look with me
go back a little
bit on your
Bible and go
to verse 2
of chapter 3
because if you
look through the
list toward the
end of verse 2
it tells us that
an elder has to
be able to
teach
and that's
not a requirement
for deacons.
Now this doesn't
mean that all
elders teach
with regularity
it seems clear
that they didn't
according to
1 Timothy 5
17
but all elders
have to be
able to teach
and this doesn't
mean that all
deacons
no deacon
is able to
teach
but it means
that deacons
are not required
to be able
to teach
in order to
be a deacon
and so
that's a key
difference
so we could
put it this way
a deacon
must hold
firm to the
trustworthy word
and an elder
must be able
to teach
the trustworthy
word
so holding
the word
and trusting
the word
and preaching
the word
or teaching
the word
that's the
key difference
between the
role of an
elder and a
deacon
and as we
saw from
act 6
in the beginning
the deacons
were appointed
to meet
various needs
ministry needs
that arise
as the church
grows
so that the
elders can
continue to
pray
and to
preach the
word
and so
those two
primary roles
of ministry
to the word
and ministry
to the table
is I think
what Peter
has in mind
when he says
in 1 Peter 4
as each
has received
a gift
use it
to serve
one another
as good stewards
of God's
varied grace
whoever speaks
as one who speaks
oracles of God
whoever serves
as one who serves
by the strength
that God supplies
in order that
in everything
God may be glorified
through Jesus Christ
there are several
places in scripture
that list
the spiritual gifts
this is one of them
but this is the
briefest among them all
and I think it's because
Peter is summarizing
and he's listing
two gifts
that are really
representative
of all the gifts
in the church
because broadly
speaking
we could classify
every single
spiritual gift
either as a
speaking gift
or as a
serving gift
and I think
that's the
representative
leaders in those
roles are the
elders and
deacons
respectively
now that's the
role of deacons
now that brings us
to the final point
and the deacon
candidates are
particularly excited
about this one
the rewards
for deacons
sorry to break it
to you
but there will be
no financial
compensation
well
we may get you
a gift card
or something
because we love
you
but there will
be no
there's no salary
but there's
far better rewards
look at verse 13
with me
notice the logical
connection between
this and the
preceding verses
it says
for those who
serve well
so this is the
reason why the
character requirements
are non-negotiable
because it's only
those who exemplify
such character
in their service
who will experience
these rewards
four
those who serve
well as deacons
gain a good
standing for
themselves
and also great
confidence in the
faith that is in
Christ Jesus
so a deacon gains
two things
first they gain a
good standing
for themselves
second they gain
a great confidence
in Christ
first in their
relation to the
church
deacons gain a
good standing
because by serving
faithfully
they win the
respect and
appreciation of the
church
deaconship is no
menial task
it is an honorable
office
and we rightly
respect and
appreciate faithful
deacons
and the second
in their relation
to God
deacons gain a
great confidence
in the faith
that is in
Christ Jesus
faithful service
rendered to the
church
strengthens the
deacons faith
in Christ
this is because
by serving
humbly
the deacons
imitate and
grow more like
Christ
who came not
to be served
but to serve
in Matthew
20
25 to 28
when his
disciples
were bickering
among themselves
about who
among them
is the
greatest
I'm the
greatest
disciple
I will sit
at the
right hand
of God
they're
bickering in
this way
and Jesus
said to
them
this
you know
that the
rulers of
the Gentiles
lorded over
them
and their
great ones
exercised
authority
over them
it shall
not be so
among you
but whoever
would be
great among
you
must be
your servant
and whoever
would be
first among
you
must be
your slave
even as
the son
of man
came not
to be
served
but to
serve
and to
give his
life
as a
ransom
for many
right
Christ
is the
son
of
God
he was
a darling
of heaven
the delight
of the
father
in eternity
past
yet he
became
a son
of
man
so he
could save
us from
our sins
Jesus
of all
people
deserved
honor
of all
people
he deserved
glory
to have
everyone
bow down
before him
wherever he
goes
to put
the red
carpet
under him
wherever he
goes
to serve
him
with all
their life
that's what
he deserves
and he
humbled
himself
and chose
the shame
of the
cross
he died
for our
sins
so that we
could live
and have
eternal life
Jesus
lowered
himself
to the
lowest place
that any
human being
has ever
gone
so that
he could
lift
us
up
to
glory
with
God
Jesus
came
not
to be
served
but to
serve
and to
give his
life
as a
ransom
for many
so let
me ask
you
do you
have
a desire
to be
great
because
Jesus
said
whoever
would be
great
among
you
must
be
your
servant
the
servant
again
same
word
as
deacon
the
people
of this
world
seek
to
rule
rather
than
to
serve
to
lift
themselves
up
rather
than
to
humble
themselves
to
be
first
rather
than
last
but
as
Christians
we are
called
to
follow
a
different
pattern
set
by
the
Lord
Jesus
Christ
to
serve
rather
than
to
be
served
and
deacons
are
those
in
the
church
who
are
recognized
by
the
church
for
their
Christ
like
servanthood
and
given
particular
responsibilities
for
a
great
privilege
by
humbling
yourselves
and
by
serving
the
church
you
get
to
be
a
picture
of
Christ
to
the
church
and
picture
of
Christ
to
the
watching
world
as
you
humble
yourselves
and as
you
serve
the
church
sacrificially
you
give
off
the
aroma
of
Christ
and
you
give
people
a
taste
of
the
sweetness
of
the
humble
savior
that
we
have
become
the
one
little
your
hand
through
the
whole
and
their
the
enemy
puts
their
system