Pray for the Deacons

So we have been working our way through 1 Timothy using it as a prayer guide. It is a letter from Paul to Timothy his protege. We began with the idea that Paul taught Timothy what he knew, he was preparing him to take over, training the next generation so that the good work he had begun would not end with him. All of us should be doing the same, training the next generation to take up the torch when we can no longer carry it. Even better to work beside us while we work and double our efforts as Timothy was doing alongside Paul. If we don’t want our faith and our way of life to die when we do we need to have others who are willing to come up behind us just as we followed the ones before us.

We talked about praying for our government, for the leaders who are making decisions about how we will live and how our resources will be spent. Praying for those who make our laws and those who enforce them that they would be converted into men and women who think and act like men and women of God.

We talked of praying for our spouse and with our spouse. A marriage is not just a man and a woman but a man and a woman and their God. We need to ask for God’s help in making our marriage work, making us good husbands and wives and praying for our children’s spouse or future spouse, living out an example for them to follow.

We prayed for the young men and women who were next, the ones who will take over when we are gone, they need heroes to look up to. Society offers them sports figures and movie stars. Are these the kind of people we want them to look up to, instead how about someone who fills out this list.

1 Timothy 3:1–15 NASB95

It is a trustworthy statement: if any man aspires to the office of overseer, it is a fine work he desires to do. An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not addicted to wine or pugnacious, but gentle, peaceable, free from the love of money. He must be one who manages his own household well, keeping his children under control with all dignity (but if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of the church of God?), and not a new convert, so that he will not become conceited and fall into the condemnation incurred by the devil. And he must have a good reputation with those outside the church, so that he will not fall into reproach and the snare of the devil. Deacons likewise must be men of dignity, not double-tongued, or addicted to much wine or fond of sordid gain, but holding to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. These men must also first be tested; then let them serve as deacons if they are beyond reproach. Women must likewise be dignified, not malicious gossips, but temperate, faithful in all things. Deacons must be husbands of only one wife, and good managers of their children and their own households. For those who have served well as deacons obtain for themselves a high standing and great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus. I am writing these things to you, hoping to come to you before long; but in case I am delayed, I write so that you will know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.

A good husband with a good wife, good managers of their family and their finances, dignified and faithful. Doesn’t that seem like a better goal to aspire to than what we see on television? These are leaders, people who are put in charge of things to make sure they get done right, people who are trustworthy and honorable. They have responsibilities and are held to a high standard because of what they do. If we pray for the leaders in our government shouldn’t we pray for the leaders in our church?

How many of you think you have mastered this list of qualifications, I haven’t, I suspect our deacons would readily agree that they haven’t mastered all of these things yet. Should we fire them. Should we refuse to allow anyone to accept the position of deacon or pastor unless they are perfect, should we work diligently to remove ever person who falls short or has a flaw?

The problem with such a course of action is obvious. No one would be left. So what are we to do? Do we throw out the qualifications all together and let anyone serve in this position. Of course not, if we did that we would be ignoring the bible, ignoring the will of God. So what is the answer?

We know that no one short of Jesus Christ is perfect. No one meets all of the qualifications in every way at all times. But there are some who meet them better than others, there are some who meet them more consistently than most. We search for those we trust, the ones who are honorable, the ones who try hard, the ones we believe in.

We look for someone who doesn’t have any outstanding warrants or unpaid parking tickets but also someone who is not feuding in the community, who has a good reputation and nothing that makes others whisper behind his back. Someone who does not overindulge, not obsessed with his hobbies or his own pleasure. A guy who makes good decisions, who is respectable and friendly. A man who can teach and has something to say. Not a drunkard or a fighter but a peacemaker. Someone who is not greedy, you can look his home and family and tell that he has done well. Someone who has been there and done that and knows how to handle it. Someone people can respect and trust, someone people have seen go through the fire and come out the other side. His wife must be respectable as well. They both need to know when to keep quiet and not spread gossip around.

In short these men and women need to be the best of us, respected by the rest of us and honored for who they are and what they do.

Now most of us want the reward but we don’t want anyone watching us and grading our lives. Making sure that we check every box and fulfill every requirement. These men and their wives, however are willing to stand in the gap and put themselves out there for all to see. They are not perfect but they are exceptional. They are worthy of honor, and if anyone needs prayer, if anyone needs the help of God and support of the church surely it is them.

We should pray that God protects them and keeps them from harm. They are in some ways targets. People are watching and the enemy knows that if he can make them fall then others will go with them. They are leaders and they could lead into error as easily as they could lead into godliness. Let us pray that they lead correctly. The list of requirements is long and as I think honestly through the list I see that I have often failed in all of these areas. I have not always been the husband I should be, I have been to quick to jump into a fight, sometimes without even understanding what the fight is about. I have made dumb decisions and suffered for it, occasionally my family has lost out because I was not there for them as I should have been or because I gave in too quickly or did not give in enough. I was not the best father or the best husband. I had to learn. I am better now than I was but I still struggle sometimes.

I am a tea teetotaler now but there was a time when I drank too much, cussed too much, if you had known me then you would not have thought much of me, in fact I did not think much of myself. I have not always earned the respect of those around me, I have been dishonest and I have been greedy.

I am not those things anymore. At least not like I was. Every now and then I hit my thumb with a hammer and a bad word pops into my head. Sometimes I get mad when I should be calm and sometimes I speak when I should be quiet. I am not perfect, but by the grace of God, and with His help I am a thousand times better than I was before and not nearly as good as I intend to be.

I think the same can be said of our deacons and their wives. Maybe the deacons didn’t have as far to go as I did, maybe they were always better men, although I am sure I am a better man than their wives. We expect a lot from these men and their families. They are held to a higher standard and expected to excel, to be better than average, to follow God better than most church people. How about we give them a little help.

How about we pray for their marriage and for their children. If they are supposed to be good managers of their families lets pray that they are successful. Too many times we sit on the sidelines and watch for others to make a mistake. Rather than waiting for them to fail how about he pray them into success.

If they are supposed to be respectable lets give them respect and see what they do with it. If they are supposed to be prudent then lets let them make some decisions and see how they do. If they are able to teach let us listen to what they have to say. If they are to be gentle and peaceful then lets do our part by not being part of an argument they have to get involved in. If they are not to supposed to be greedy then we can help by each one of us doing our part to support the church and its ministries and not letting the entire burden fall on them.

It is hard to be a good leader, but it is easier when you have willing followers. It is hard to keep a church running and operating like it should but many hands make light work. It is difficult to raise a family today, it is even harder to raise a Godly family in an ungodly world. I have heard it said that it takes a village to raise a child but what about it taking a church to raise Godly children.

It is easy to sit on the sidelines and wait for someone who is in the game to make a bad play. Once the moment is over and we have time to analyze every action it is often obvious who blew it. He should have caught the ball, or it was a bad pass, maybe the line did not block, or maybe the play itself was a bad call. Everyone who tries fails. It is not wrong to hold the deacons to a higher standard. It is not wrong to expect more from the deacons, and even more from the pastor.

It is wrong to stand back and watch them struggle without lending a hand. Once Jesus spoke about the Pharisees, the group he criticized more than any other and he said

Matthew 23:4 NASB95

“They tie up heavy burdens and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as a finger.

Jesus criticized the Pharisees because they expected others to do the hard work and they themselves did nothing but criticize the workers. Don’t let Jesus find you and me sitting in the seat of the scoffers. Never sit idly by and watch others struggle while waiting for them to fail. Jump in there, lend a hand make their burdens lighter and easier to bear. Pray for them and help them and we will all be better for it. This is the will of God, that you pray for your deacons and help them in the work they are called to do. Let us pray.