1 Timothy: Qualifications of Deacons

I. Introduction

A. Paul in this passage continues to instruct Timothy regarding qualifications for certain positions of service within the church so Timothy can teach the Christians in Ephesus, but also so he would have a standard to compare men to who were being considered for these positions.

B. In verses 8-13 we come to our qualifications for deacons in the church. Paul does not spend any time here telling us exactly what the duties of deacons are, probably because this was already well understood by Timothy as well as the church in Ephesus. But I would like to spend some time talking about the word deacon as well as the duties of deacons before we look at the qualifications…

II. Deacons = Servants

A. There are only two passages that use our English word deacon, and they are this passage and where Paul says that he wrote the letter to the church in Philippi, including the “overseers and the deacons.”

B. In these two passages the Greek word is transliterated… what that means is that they took the Greek word and gave it English letters, in essence creating a new word in our language… If the translators actually translated the word into English, it would be translated as ‘servant.’ Whenever Timothy or the Ephesians would have seen the word here in in the original Greek, they would have known and understood that this term was speaking of servants within the church who are entrusted with duties by those in leadership. Just seeing how the word should be translated helps us see this. But the reason why translators did this makes sense. They wanted some way to try to differentiate the special service in the church from other servants and types of service in the New Testament and in society…

C. The Greek noun used for ‘deacon’ (diakonos) is used about 30 times in the New Testament, and in every instance but the three instances the word is found in these two passages, it is translated as either ‘minister’ or ‘servant.’ The original meaning of the word had the primary idea of serving tables… It was probably the basic word for what we know as a “waiter” at a restaurant. But through usage it came to broaden until it meant any kind of service at all... any kind.

1. For instance, in at the wedding in Cana, and in verse 5, it says that Jesus’ mother talked to the servants at the feast. Then in verse 7, Jesus told the servants to fill the jars with the water which He was going to turn into wine. The word for servants in in this passage is ‘diakonos.’ They were “the deacons” of the feast, serving the tables…

2. Another example is in , " If anyone serves (v. diakoneō) me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant (n. diakonos) be also. If anyone serves (n. diakoneō) me, the Father will honor him." ()

a) So in these two passages, we see that the word for deacon was a common word used, and even all those who serve Jesus have the Greek word where deacon comes from applied to them.

3. But then you also have specific duties within the body of Christ that the word is used for.

a) Apostles - - "[He] made us sufficient to be ministers (n. diakonos) of a new covenant…" ()

b) Evangelist – – “If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant (n. diakonos) of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed....

D. With all of these other types of service, it does make sense to try to differentiate between the special service within the church of “deacon” and other types of serving that these passages talk about. We can have confidence that at least is because the word is coupled with overseers…

E. There is one other passage comes up frequently in discussions of deacons that I would like to talk about, and this passage is . There are 7 men in this passage who are appointed to do the specific work of caring for the needy Hellenistic widows. Now, these men are not directly called deacons in this passage, but it is commonly believed that these are deacons; or at least a precursor to them. One reason why is because of what the Apostles say in v2 of :

1. “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables.”

2. When the Apostles say that they should not be taken away from their serving with the word of God and prayer to “wait/serve tables,” they use the verb form of the word deacon… So you have seven men who must have met certain qualifications put over this work of “deaconing”/ serving tables…

3. Some implications from this passage:

a) This passage would also show us that deacons are appointed when there is work for them to do. If there is not a specific duty that needs done or a specific type of work they are to oversee, then more deacons do not need to be appointed. Churches should not appoint deacons just so they can say they have deacons. Having deacons implies you have ongoing work to be done…

b) This passage would also probably imply that a church can appoint a deacon to do a specific service that is not long-term, but short-term – and once the work of service is done, the appointment ends

(1) The service being done in this passage was for a limited amount of time… more than likely, once the scattering happens in ch8 because of the persecution of Saul, the daily distribution ended because all of the Christians who were in Jerusalem for the feast would go elsewhere or go home. We see Phillip, who was one of the seven chosen men, leave Jerusalem, and is never called a deacon later on, but an evangelist.

c) A final implication would be what the jobs of a deacon are. There are two that can be implied from this passage.

(1) That one of the roles of deacons is to serve in a way that takes things off of the plate of those who are shepherding, teaching, or preaching God’s word; duties that are more physical in nature, so that they can be more devoted to the work that God has given them to do in their specific roles of teaching and prayer…

(a) In this specific text, one of the works that we see deacons focusing on is the care of widows and making sure their physical needs are met. The elders would focus on ministering to them and shepherding them with the word, but the deacons would be appointed to make sure their physical needs.

(2) And second, deacons also are examples to the rest of a congregation regarding what service looks like. Deacons are, in a sense, leaders in the congregation in that they are to be the leading examples of what service to the Lord, to the overseers, and to God’s people looks like. These men in , and I believe we also see in the qualifications in , have been examples to their brethren of men who were filled with the Spirit and had wisdom and good character. This led to their being appointed, and would continue throughout their time as deacons.

(3) THIS, I BELIEVE, IS THE MOST IMPORTANT REASON WHY THESE QUALIFICATIONS ARE GIVEN TO US. They are leading by example, showing what service is all about.

III. The Qualifications:

A. Character Qualifications (v8):

1. DIGNIFIED. This is talking about the man’s reputation. This term normally refers to something that is honorable, respectable, esteemed, or worthy, and is closely related to “respectable,” which is given as a qualification for elders (). It is related to the qualification of the elders of respectability, but it is a different word used here. .

2. NOT DOUBLE-TONGUED. This is a man who does not say one thing and do another… If he is given a duty, and he says “I will do this”, you can trust that the job will get done. They are trustworthy.

3. NOT ADDICTED TO MUCH WINE. Literally, Paul is saying, “not holding near much wine.” This is not the same phrase as in the qualifications to elders. It is not as restrictive, in my judgment. This one focuses more on what controls this man’s judgment or is not what he devotes his thinking to… Alcohol does not preoccupy his thinking.

4. NOT GREEDY OR COVETOUS. This makes sense because it is often the case that the treasurers of a congregation would be deacons, so they need to have right attitudes towards money…

B. Their Spiritual Life

1. MUST HOLD TO THE “MYSTERY OF THE FAITH” W/ A CLEAR CONSCIENCE (V9). Paul also indicates that a deacon must “hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience.”

a) The phrase “the mystery of the faith” is simply one way Paul speaks of the gospel (cf. ).

(1) Verse 16 sums up what this great mystery of the faith is. It sums up the Gospel and the affects the Gospel has in this world

(a) “He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory.”

This qualification shows the need for deacons to hold firm to the true gospel without wavering, and it also shows that their lives must be in line with their beliefs. The deacon must also hold these beliefs “with a clear conscience.”

2. TESTING THEM (V10). Paul writes that deacons must “be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless” (v. 10). Don’t just assume that because you haven’t heard of anything that they believe is contrary to the Gospel or you have not seen them living in a way contrary to the Gospel that it is ok to appoint them. They need tested… these will be men who are spending time serving the brethren and at times spending time with those who are vulnerable. It needs to be known that they won’t influence those they spend time with through false doctrine or sin…

3. (ALSO…) implies this was also the case w/ elders?

a) Paul does not specify what type of testing is to take place, so we have some freedom to decide what the “testing” looks like… but at a minimum, the candidate’s reputation and theological positions should be examined in some way by those who are in leadership, whether that be the elders, or if there are not elders, the men of the congregation…

b) This qualification also shows that this man must pass the test in order to be appointed. If he is not without reproach in his beliefs and the application of them in his life, then he cannot be a deacon. One does not get appointed and grow into the position.

C. Their Household

1. HUSBAND OF ONE WIFE.

2. MANAGING WELL THEIR HOUSEHOLD AND CHILDREN.

a) Both of these qualifications, just as with the elders, I believe show how good this man will do at fulfilling the role… If he is faithful in fulfilling his duties in the important roles of husband and father, this shows that he will be faithful in fulfilling duties he is given in the church.

b) Unlike the qualifications for elders, we see in the qualifications for deacons that it is not necessary that the children of deacons to be believers, just that they are managed well…

(1) Paul defines this in verse 4 in the qualifications of elders. He says ruling one’s household well means “having his children in submission with all reverence”

IV. The blessing of good service

A. “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.”

1. I believe Paul may be alluding to what Jesus says in , “If anyone serves (n. diakoneō) me, the Father will honor him.” You will stand before the Lord in an honorable position… before God and possibly also the community of the faithful, one who serves well in this area gains a good standing.

2. and they have great reason to have confidence or boldness in your faith… Knowing that the Lord is using you in this role brings confidence. You can see what God is doing through you, and that is a great blessing and encouragement to do even more.

V. Conclusion Observations

A. So as we bring this lesson to a close, let’s talk about some applications:

1. First, to my brothers here who are deacons, I would encourage you to use these qualifications to continue to examine your character. As I said to the elders, just because you had met these qualifications when you were appointed does not mean that you will tomorrow… Guard yourself from Satan’s attacks by periodically examining yourself with these qualifications

2. Men, if you desire to be a deacon in the future, begin working on these character traits now. As I said with the qualifications for elders, these don’t come overnight

3. And women (v11), there is an application here for you also. I will give two

a) First, encourage the men in your life to serve, whether they are deacons or not. They need your encouragement.

b) Second, although there are not women deacons in this congregation (whether there should be is another discussion for another time), does not mean that you cannot serve others. There things that you see that are not getting done that you can be volunteering to do? Visiting the sick… visiting widows… or looking for opportunities to teach and encourage the younger ladies outside of our services so they can mature into godly women and servants in their future homes… putting together times so that all of the moms with young kids can get together to play and all the moms can spend time together helping each other spiritually

4. Just because we have deacons does not mean that we are freed from having to serve in God’s kingdom. There is something that each of us can do to serve. Everyone here who is a disciple of Christ is called to be a servant.