THE DEACONSHIP
T.P. Simmons
It is quite certain that we
have the origin of the deaconship in the sixth chapter of Acts. The word for
"serve" (diakoneo) in Acts 6:2 is exactly the same word that is used
to designate the office of the deacon in 1 Tim. 3:10, 13; and is the verb corresponding to the noun for deacons in Phil. 1:1; 1 Tim:
3:8,12.
It is interesting and
instructive to note how the first deacons received their office. They were
elected by the church. The twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto
them, and said. "It is not fit that we should forsake the Word of God, and
serve tables. Look ye out therefore, brethren, from among
you seven men of good report, full of the Holy Spirit and of wisdom, whom we
may appoint over this business" (Acts 6:2,3).
The apostles set the deacons
in their office, or ordained them, as we see in verse six, this
being the meaning of "appoint" in verse three; but the apostles did
not presume to select them. They left this to the church. They did not even
recommend to the church the ones they should elect. They left the church to
find this out from the Holy Spirit. This was an exceedingly important matter,
but the apostles were not afraid to trust it to the church. This is an
excellent example of the democracy of New Testament
churches.
I.
THE DUTIES OF THIS OFFICE
The first seven deacons were
selected and ordained to "serve tables," that is, to distribute
food to the needy, especially widows. But from the fact that the office became
a permanent one (Phil. 1:1; 1 Tim. 3:8-13) and from the fact that no church
other than Jerusalem, so far as we know, had the community of goods that called
for the original establishment of the office, as well as from the
qualifications given in 1 Tim. 3:8-13, we infer that the duties of the office
must have undergone expansion. Perhaps the deacons came to
have charge of all the secular affairs of the church and to be the pastor's
helpers in spiritual matters.
However, let it be borne in
mind that deacons are "servants," according to the meaning of the
title, and not bosses. They are to take instructions from the church rather than dictating to the church. They are to help the
pastor rather than telling him what to do. Let them ever remember that their
office is subordinate to that of the pastor. The abuse of the office of deacon
has rendered deacons useless or worse than useless in many churches. Perhaps
this is because proper attention has not been given to the scriptural
qualifications of deacons, to which we shall now direct our
attention.
II. THE QUALIFICATIONS OF DEACONS
1. As Given In Acts 6.
(1) Men of Good Report
Deacons are to be men of good reputation
in general. They are to be men in whom the people have the utmost confidence.
Of course, first of all, they should be men that are
scrupulously honest; men that can be trusted.
(2) Full of the Spirit
The Holy Spirit is in every
believer (John 7:38, 39; Rom. 8:9, 14; 1 Cor. 6:19; Gal. 4:6;
Eph. 1:13). He is received at the time we are saved, and abides with us forever
afterward. When we receive the Holy Spirit, we receive all of Him, for He is a
person and, therefore, indivisible. The doctrine that the Spirit is received
today subsequent to conversion, as was the case with believers on the day of
Pentecost, is not a scriptural doctrine. There can no more be a repetition of
Pentecost than there can be a repetition of Calvary. All the
works of grace are definite, and those who are still talking about the second
one are to be pitied. Those who are truly saved have received innumerable
definite works of grace. Folks who do not have the Holy Spirit abiding in them
need not seek the second blessing; they have not yet received the first.
Though all saved people have
the Spirit in them, they are not all filled with Him. They have all of Him, but
He does not have all of them. The need is not that they should seek the Spirit,
but that they should surrender to the Spirit already in them so that He will
fill them with His presence and power. His is an expansive presence, and He fills so much of us, and only so much of us, as is not
filled with something else. If the Spirit is to fill us, we must empty our lives
of self and the world. It is only of men that have made a full surrender to the
Spirit that we are to make deacons.
(3) And of Wisdom.
Deacons are to be men of
discernment and skill. The wisdom here spoken of is not human wisdom, but that
wisdom which is from above (Jas. 1:5; 3.17). "Sanctified common
sense" is a misnomer. There is no such thing. Common sense is the ordinary
thinking of man. And the ordinary thinking of man is the thinking of the carnal mind. And the carnal mind is enmity against God (Rom.
8:7). Therefore one might as well talk about sanctified enmity against God as
to talk about sanctified common sense. God's estimate of man's sense will be
found in Jas. 3:15. Much harm results from trying to carry on God's business
after the manner of secular business. Jas. 1:5 tells how to secure the wisdom
necessary to a deacon.
2. As Given in 1 Tim. 3.
(1) Grave.
This means
that they are to be dignified, serious minded, and free from levity and
frivolity. It does not mean that they
are to be grouchy and long-faced.
(2) Not Doubletongued.
This means
that deacons are not to be men who talk one way to one person and another way
to another. Such a deacon will be an
endless source of shame to the church.
Deacons are to be men whose word can be trusted.
(3) Not Given to Much Wine.
In the New Testament times
alcoholic drinks had not been abused as they have today; therefore they were
not absolutely forbidden. Only the abuse of them was prohibited. But today they
have been subject to such abuse that it is well for all believers, and
especially pastors and deacons, to abstain wholly even from wine, except for medical and sacred purposes.
(4) Not Greedy of Filthy
Lucre.
A deacon must not be a man that
has an inordinate love of money. If he is, he will likely
misappropriate funds entrusted to him. Great has been the shame brought upon
churches because men greedy of filthy lucre have been entrusted with church
funds.
(5) Holding the Mystery of the
Faith in a Pure Conscience.
Deacons should be sound in the
faith. They are not official teachers, but they will have much opportunity for
private witnessing. Nothing but a sound Baptist should ever be elected as a
deacon. One that believes that one church is just as good as another, or one
who is the least tainted with modernism or Arminianism, or one that denies any fundamental Bible truth is not fit to be a deacon.
The deacon is to hold the faith in a pure conscience-one that has been purged
by the blood of Christ and renewed by the Holy Spirit. Such a conscience will
be free from gross selfishness and hypocrisy and will be regulated by devotion
and sincerity.
(6) Let
Those Also First Be Proved.
As with bishops, so with
deacons, we should lay hands suddenly or hastily on no man (1 Tim. 5:22). And
like a bishop, a deacon should not be a novice, or one newly come to the faith
(1 Tim. 3:6). We should not elect men as deacons just to honor them,
nor because they are influential or wealthy; but only when they have proved
themselves to be in possession of the scriptural qualifications.
(7) Their Wives Must be Grave,
Not Slanderers, Sober, Faithful in All Things.
It is
contended by some that female deacons are here referred to. And while this view
may seem to have some things in its favor; yet we consider it far from being
established. Let us note the usual arguments offered as proof that the
reference here is to female deacons:
A. It is
affirmed that such an office existed in some New Testament churches at least,
since Phebe is called a "diakonos" (Rom. 16: 1).
But "diakonos"
appears in many other places where the office of deacon is not signified. See 2
Cor. 2:6; 11:22; Eph. 3:7; 6:21; Col. 1:7, 23, 25; 1 Thess. 3:2; 1 Tim. 4:6, where "diakanos" is translated by
"-minister." This word and its cognate forms appear in many other
places similar to the above also. In view of this, we certainly have a very
slight foundation for the office of a deaconess because "diakanos" is
once applied to a woman. It is quite evident that Phebe, out of her strength
and her own wealth had been a "succorer of many" and of the Apostle
Paul also (Rom. 16: 1) ; therefore she was called a
"diakonos," or one that ministered to the needs of others. There is
no proof that she served officially in this capacity.
B. It is supposed also that
the women mentioned in Phil. 4:8 were deaconesses.
But there
is less evidence here for the office than there is in the former case. Not the
slightest hint is given here that these women were deaconesses. There were some
women who assisted Christ in His work; wonder if they were deaconesses too?
C. It is argued that such an
office existed in post-apostolic churches.
But many things existed in
most of the post-apostolic churches that were not of divine institution.
D. It is said that "the
Greek has not 'their wives,' but simply women, without article or
pronoun, and it is, therefore, properly rendered, not 'their wives,' but women,
and, in this context female deacons" (H. H. Harvey).
It is true that the Greek does
not expressly say "their wives," and, while the word for
"wives" is a word which may mean simply "women," yet it is
the only word in the New Testament for wives, and is,
therefore, the word that would be used to denote wives. The possessive pronoun
is easily understood since deacons are under discussion. As for the omission of
the article, that is not significant as there is no article before deacons in
verse 8. And when we read in the succeeding verse that the deacon is to be
husband of one wife, it adds force to the view that wives of deacons are intended in verse 11.
E. It is argued that there is
no reason for defining the qualifications of deacons' wives while nothing is
said of the wives of bishops.
There is
no reason for limiting "their wives" to the wives of deacons. We believe it refers both to the wives of
deacons and also to the wives of bishops.
Such an interpretation has nothing against it. And we believe it is the correct one.
(8) Let the deacons be the
husbands of one wife, ruling their own children and their own
houses well.
A deacon must have but one
living wife. He must have his children in subjection. One of the greatest
practical needs of this day is a revival of old time parental authority. The
lax authority, if authority indeed it can be called, in the average Christian home today is a shame and a disgrace. No wonder the
younger generation is conspicuous for its absence at church services in most
places. They are reared to have their own way, and it is not according to their
own way to go to church. Most children today, for the most part, obey only when
they please. The deacon is to RULE his children and not to let his children
rule him. And the deacon is to be head of his house, for
the Scripture not only specifies that he is to rule his children, but also his
whole house. The divine plan is for the husband to be the head of the home.
When the man is a Christian, and this is recognized, the home will be the
happiest of homes. If the man is not a Christian and the woman is, then she
will have to make the best of it. If she was a Christian when she married, she
violated the Word of God (2 Cor. 6:14), and must make the
best of the chastisement that she will receive. It has been said and quite
truly, if a woman marries a child of the Devil, she can expect to have trouble
with her father-in-law.
III. THE TEMPORAL RECOMPENSE OF A DEACON
Verse 13 gives us the temporal
recompense of a deacon. If he serves well as a deacon, he purchases a good
degree and great boldness in the faith. The New Testament pictures the
deaconship as an exalted office. It has been much degraded through our failure
to respect the qualifications laid down in the Scripture and by our altering the work of deacons to suit our own notions.