1 Timothy 3:8-13: A Household in Order -- 'Dentifying 'Deal 'Dividuals: Dignified and Demon Deacons
1 Timothy: Living in the Household of God • Sermon • Submitted
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8 Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for dishonest gain. 9 They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. 10 And let them also be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless. 11 Their wives likewise must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things. 12 Let deacons each be the husband of one wife, managing their children and their own households well. 13 For those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.
Pray
Introduction
If you know one thing about me, you know that I love cats. If you know two things about me, you also know that I’m terrible at history, but that’s not going to stop me from trying to justify the alliteration in my sermon title.
In more recent history, like last week, Hayden gave us the pithy and memorable title of “Identifying Ideal Individuals” in the household of God, and as Jonathan Stout especially knows, I’m not opposed to stretching words to the very limits to see when they start breaking, so I figured I’d just steal the car and put a different coat of paint on it.
And in less recent history, our town was home to a particular university, Wake Forest University, whose mascot is the “Demon Deacon”. Wikipedia says,
“The first few decades of the 20th century were particularly rough for the Wake Forest athletic squads, but in 1923, Hank Garrity took the head football and basketball coaching jobs. His leadership gave the school a short relief from its early mediocrity when he led the football team to three consecutive winning seasons, and the basketball team compiled a 33-14 combined record in two seasons.
In 1923, the Wake Forest football team defeated rival Trinity (later renamed Duke University). In the following issue of the school newspaper, the editor of the paper, Mayon Parker (1924 Wake Forest graduate), first referred to the team as "Demon Deacons", in recognition of what he called their "devilish" play and fighting spirit. Henry Belk, Wake Forest's news director, and Garrity liked the title and used it often, so the popularity of the term grew.”
And, truthfully, there are many, many churches whose deacons are known far more for their “devilish” play and fighting spirit, aren’t there? Horror stories abound in seminary pastoral leadership classes around the question of moving a church from having a deacon board to a plurality of elders, and success stories are far too few.
And this is tragic. God did not design his household to be bicameral, with a board of deacons and a board of elders vying for influence and power over the congregation — no, his design is far different, with deacons and overseers fulfilling distinct roles within his household, both exemplifying Christlike character and standing as examples both to those within the household and to those outside the household who might wander in.
The point is this: the servants, or deacons, of God’s household must possess exemplary character because their work is indispensable and their reward is great. But far too often, people with deficient character end up in leadership positions, causing havoc in the lives of the people they lead — and in the case of the church, not only damaging the lives of the people inside, but tarnishing Christ’s reputation outside.
Fortunately today, I don’t think I’m going to be ruffling too many feathers — at least not as we’re talking about the qualities of deacons, since our deacons already possess these qualities in spades and carry out the duties of their office faithfully with integrity. Put differently, I would not look forward to preaching this text in a church with a deacon board trying to find a reason to fire me so they can find another pastor, which is a situation that requires far too little imagination in Baptist life.
Our text today divides into three sections, verses 8-10, in which we’ll see Dignified Deacons. Then, in verses 11-12, we’ll see Domesticated Deacons. Finally, in verse 13, we’ll see Deserving Deacons.
vv. 8-10: Dignified Deacons
vv. 11-12: Domesticated Deacons
v 13: Deserving Deacons
So let’s dive in. First, verses 8-10.
vv. 8-10: Dignified Deacons
8 Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for dishonest gain. 9 They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. 10 And let them also be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless.
First, I want to point out something interesting because this will help us understand Paul’s flow of thought a little better. Where the ESV has “must”, there is actually no verb at all in the Greek — likewise, in verse 11. Effectively, if we were either really ambitious or really cruel, we could have made Hayden preach this section, too, since these verses all fall under the same head verb. So we’re certainly not starting a new topic but rather moving along in the same vein as last week.
And in the same vein as last week, the first adjective, dignified, is the main point. All of the other qualities are ways of explaining what Paul has in mind, and you’ll notice that these qualities are nothing particularly special, with the difference here being a must instead of an ought. These qualities are non-negotiable for officers of the church, while it’s okay for non-officers to have room for growth in these areas.
Let’s look at these qualities a little closer.
First, not double-tongued. Deacons must not be the type of person who speaks out of both sides of his mouth, in other words — one commentator puts it, “He is the kind of man who is not afraid to sell the family parrot to the town gossip!”
Second, not addicted to much wine. Literally, he must not “devote” himself or “give himself over” to much wine. And just to be clear, this doesn’t mean he can be addicted to a little wine, or much beer, or much vodka. Just as elders must be temperate, deacons must exercise self-control in the sphere of potentially dangerous substances, especially substances whose consumption carries a clear social connotation. You’d be right to cringe at the sight of, say, Mike Hill, smoking a cigarette. There’s nothing inherently wrong with tobacco consumption (the obvious dangers notwithstanding), but cigarettes aren’t exactly known for their health benefits or the air of dignity they impart to their consumers.
Third, the last of the negative qualities to avoid, deacons must not be greedy for dishonest gain — they must not pursue after money with grubby hands and a gold-toothed smile that says, “I would eat you alive for a dollar.”
And all of these make really good sense when you consider the job deacons do. As they take care of the physical and practical needs of the church body, it is absolutely crucial that their word be absolutely reliable, especially since they are carrying out critical functions in the life of the body. A deacon pulling a no-call no-show causes a lot more harm and disorder than a member with fewer responsibilities. A drunk deacon’s debauchery will require far more damage control than a mere difficult discipleship dialogue. And you certainly don’t want to entrust a dishonest, greedy deacon with the body’s financial wellbeing, neither of the church body’s funds, nor of individuals with physical needs.
Imagine if, for example, the proto-deacons in Acts 6 who were entrusted with the distribution of food to the widows showed preference to those widows who slipped them a coin on the downlow. It would be especially heinous for a deacon, whom you elected, to show up to your house to help fix something, then send you an invoice for the work already completed when he said he was doing it for heavenly rewards.
No, it is far better for a church to have no deacons if none is qualified than it is to lower the bar even one inch. The stakes are far too high.
Those are the three negative qualities that would prohibit someone from being a deacon — now let’s look at the positive quality: namely, holding the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. Fortunately for us, this “mystery” doesn’t require Scooby-Doo’s detective skills to solve. In Paul’s writings, a “mystery” isn’t a secret code to crack so much as it is something that was previously hidden or unclear but which has now been made clear. For example, Ephesians 6:19-20
19 and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.
Simply put, deacons must hold fast the gospel message with a clear conscience, unlike Hymenaus and Alexander, whom you may recall from 1 Timothy 1:18-20
18 This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, 19 holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith, 20 among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.
And now we can point out one key difference between elders and deacons. Elders and deacons are held to basically exactly the same character standards; we shouldn’t understand Paul’s shorter deacon list to mean that they get a free pass on violence, quarreling, or inhospitality, but there is one critical difference.
Whereas elders must be able to teach, deacons must only hold fast the gospel with a clear conscience. And this is because deacons are not charged with authoritatively teaching God’s people. They are as free as anybody else to teach God’s people if they want to, of course, but it’s not part of their job description in the same way it’s part of the job description of elders/pastors/overseers, who have no real choice in deciding whether or not they’re going to be teaching.
8 Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for dishonest gain. 9 They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. 10 And let them also be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless.
Finally, if all of those character qualities are present, there is one further proviso: deacons are to be tested first and, only if they prove themselves blameless are they to be installed into the office. First, just as with elders, we’re not looking for sinless perfection when we’re thinking of blamelessness. Rather, we’re looking for a person of integrity, with whom you could comfortably entrust the responsibility of caring for the practical and physical needs of the church so that you’re not worrying about whether or not those mission-critical jobs are getting taken care of. A deacon should be someone who is an aim-and-shoot kind of person, eager to take on whatever jobs need to get done to smooth the road for the church’s onward march with the gospel.
Let’s press onwards to verses 11-12, Domesticated Deacons.
vv. 11-12: Domesticated Deacons
11 Their wives likewise must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things. 12 Let deacons each be the husband of one wife, managing their children and their own households well.
I mentioned earlier I wouldn’t be ruffling too many feathers because of the quality of our current deacons, but this is a place where I am going to ruffle feathers no matter what I say, simply because it would be irresponsible for me to take no position. With that said, I hope my ruffling is gentle, pleasant, and charitable — more of a scalp massage that leaves your hair messy, not a scalping that leaves you bloody and hairless.
Although the ESV says “their wives”, this may not necessarily be the best translation. First, the word “their” is absent in Greek, and second, the word “wives” may also mean “women”, as it does in 1 Timothy 2:9-14
9 likewise also that women should adorn themselves in respectable apparel, with modesty and self-control, not with braided hair and gold or pearls or costly attire, 10 but with what is proper for women who profess godliness—with good works. 11 Let a woman learn quietly with all submissiveness. 12 I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet. 13 For Adam was formed first, then Eve; 14 and Adam was not deceived, but the woman was deceived and became a transgressor.
11 Their wives likewise must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things. 12 Let deacons each be the husband of one wife, managing their children and their own households well.
On the other hand, this is also the same word in verse 12, where it certainly means wife.
I could go into exquisite detail regarding other grammatical and contextual nuances, but I’m going to cut straight to one commentator’s summary of those considerations:
“Thus the convoluted verse with its multivalent signals images the ambivalent situation of the women described.”
In other words, this is not a place where we can say, “Scripture clearly says” and then destroy our opponents for being heretics. But we do have to decide: can women be deacons or not?
And *I* think they can. I believe Paul is here introducing qualifications for women serving as deacons, not just talking about deacons’ wives, so that my preferred translation of this text is “women likewise must be dignified”.
In fact, I’m of the opinion that within the Bible, we do have an example of a woman serving in the office of deacon; but you should ask Hayden about that, since he wrote a paper on that passage and turned it into a sermon.
Furthermore, there are at least three prominent figures in early church history who seem to speak of women holding that very office. All this to say — this isn’t a discussion we’re having because of the rise of modern feminism.
After all, consider what deacons do: they serve. Their office, in my opinion, does not involve teaching or exercising authority over men, the only things women are explicitly prohibited from doing.
Now, I want to be clear on this point — this puts me at odds with GBC’s bylaws, which explicitly state men alone are permitted to occupy the office of deacon. So let me take this opportunity to say that I am not opening this can of worms right now.
Our household is going through too many other changes right now to take on one more thing, especially something as important as this, about which we may have differing levels of convictions. Someday, I’d like to have the conversation, but not until we’re ready. And I’m also entirely fine with keeping the bylaws as they are, if we as a congregation end up deciding that is best. In other words, I see a can of worms on the shelves — but it’s a can of worms well-preserved that doesn’t need to be addressed any time soon. It doesn’t seem to be hurting anybody, and there are far more urgent concerns in our pantry.
Either way, these women, whether deacons’ wives or women serving as deacons, must meet certain character qualifications, all falling under the heading dignified, just like the men. These women must not be “slanderers”, one of Satan’s many titles, and they must be sober-minded, just like overseers in 1 Timothy 3:2, and faithful in all things, just like the women of 1 Timothy 2:15, who are commanded to continue in “faith”, or “faithfulness”, love, and holiness.
So the standards are nothing new, nor are they any higher than for any other Christian. The only difference is, yet again, that they are musts rather than oughts.
Turning back to verse 12, which could be a return to male deacons or a summary of qualifications for deacons, whether men or women if “husband of one wife” refers to current marital fidelity as a character trait rather than marital status, we see that just like overseers, deacons are to manage their children and their own households well. Yet again, the home is the proving ground for the church, and yet again we must emphasize that children need fathers and mothers much more than the church needs officers. If your family is s languishing because of your service to the church, my friend, your priorities are backwards.
Jesus will provide for all the needs of his bride and his people, but it’s a lot easier to find or raise up, qualified church officers than it is to find replacement husbands, wives, fathers, and mothers.
Now let’s turn our eyes to verse 13 to see why all the hubbub about the character of the church’s allegedly lower office.
v. 13: Deserving Deacons
13 For those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.
Inherent in the Lord’s good economy is the prospect of reward, and deacons are by no means exempt. Those who carry on doing a good job in their office gain a good standing — that is, they gain the respect of outsiders in the community. They also gain great confidence, or boldness, in their faith — both in their own, personal faith, such as the boldness we have in Christ according to Hebrews 10:19
19 Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus,
and Ephesians 3:12
12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith in him.
as well as in their proclamation of that faith in Christ, as in Philippians 1:20
20 as it is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be at all ashamed, but that with full courage now as always Christ will be honored in my body, whether by life or by death.
and Acts 4:13
13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.
Simply put, God looks with the utmost favor on people of quality character willing to step up to the plate and carry out the most menial duties of service to ensure the wellbeing and smooth functioning of his household.
By the way, this is one of the reasons I would like to have the discussion concerning women as deacons — we could easily circumvent our bylaws by asking women to do deacon work and just not give them the title, but I’m concerned we would be robbing them of the compensation they are due in God’s economy. But that’s for another time.
How starkly does this portrayal of deacons contrast with the deacons we’re all familiar with: successful businessmen and people of high standing in their community, who are able to “get things done” — as long as their hands stay soft and clean — and who are so ready and eager to grab on to authority that is not rightfully theirs under the pretense of doing so for the good of the church and God’s people.
At best, this is misguided. Vocational success or prominence outside the church are not the character requirements enumerated here, nor do they guarantee that a person is fit to lead by example in God’s household.
At worst, this is one thing that makes the gospel a laughingstock among outsiders. Churches with a rowdy deacon board who strike fear into the pastor’s heart and treat God’s household as their own boys’ club are no different from the way worldly people live, with the exception that maybe these deacons don’t dance (as if they could anyways) and they don’t drink or smoke — at least not in public.
It is critical that we get deacons right. And returning to the previous paragraph, it’s critical that we get elders right — this is all governed by the same head verb, after all. Now think with me why this might be.
Conclusion:
Elders and deacons together portray Jesus, both within God’s household, and to those outside.
Jesus is the great “shepherd and overseer of the flock.” 1 Peter 2:25
25 For you were straying like sheep, but have now returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.
He is the greatest “deacon” of all. Mark 10:45
45 For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
Getting elders and deacons is crucial for the health of the church and a non-negotiable component of the church carrying out God’s mission; we must remember this entire letter is not merely ecclesiastical in concern, but rather missional, as we’ll see next week. Conduct in the household of God is not an end in and of itself. The household of God is a “pillar and buttress of the truth”; the Gospel message, upholding that gospel message as the power of God to save sinners and unite people who would otherwise be strangers and enemies, and if that pillar and buttress is structurally unsound, the entire edifice will collapse if not quickly repaired.
As we conclude, I want to give thanks to God. I want to thank him for providing Grace Baptist Church with a plurality of elders who meet the qualifications laid out last week, in large part due to the work that Pastor Kyle did in starting out his ministry here and continued carrying out during his tenure. Leadership according to God’s design is part and parcel of life at GBC, and it’s a credit to all our previous elders and to the congregation that I can’t even imagine GBC electing an unfit elder. Thank you especially, Noah Kelley, who was not only my first friend at GBC, but one of those who most closely examined me during my candidacy for eldership here, in addition to being among those previous elders.
More germane to this week, I want to thank God for providing Grace Baptist Church with deacons who embody this paragraph. Mike Ragsdale, Mike Hill, Stephen Haffly, and Steve Dacus, thank you. You have the highest standing in my estimation of you, and you have every right to be very confident before God and others because of how well you execute your office. You are dignified (most of the time, anyway), and greatly deserving of the rewards you receive for your work. No demon deacons in our household. Let’s pray.
