deacons

Biblical Teaching

The important role/office of deacons is highly honored by God (1 Timothy 3:13). Deacons are under the leadership of the elders. Deacons serve and build the church spiritually by carrying out essential practical ministry designated by the elders. They free up church leaders to be devoted to the ministry of the Word and prayer (Acts 6:4). They serve by meeting practical needs so the Word can spread unhindered (Acts 6:7). They conduct ministry that does not emphasize teaching or shepherding.

The word deacon is a general term. The Bible uses diakeno (serve), diakonia (service) and diakonos (servant) to describe the ministry of all believers (Ephesians 4:12). The term "deacon" also has a specialized meaning as a recognized position or office in church ministry (Philippians 1:1; 1 Timothy 3:8-13). Deacons may have originated with the seven who were chosen by the apostles and the church to care for the widows (Acts 6:1-6). The name implies that they do specially designated service necessary for the church's effectiveness, though Scripture gives no job description.

The spiritual and character qualifications for deacons are almost identical with elders. The requirements of teaching ability (1 Timothy 3:2; Titus 1:9) and "not a new convert" (1 Timothy 3:6) are not included for deacons. They must be first tested in ministry and show themselves faithful and effective (1 Timothy 3:10). Like the elders, deacons must be the "husband of one wife" (1 Timothy 3:2; 3:12). We understand that this qualification does not exclude an unmarried person, those remarried after the death of a spouse, nor necessarily those who have divorced and remarried. The phrase describes someone with a reputation as a "faithful" spouse or a "one-wife kind of man."

1 Timothy 3:11 mentions "women/wives". The term may refer to the wives of deacons, but the adjective "their" (wives) is missing. There was no Greek word for deaconess and so a term like "woman" or the masculine "deacon" (Romans 16:1) had to be used. It seems unlikely that there were qualifications for the wife of a deacon when there were none for an elder's wife. The service nature of the position does not require the authoritative teaching of the church or the leading of the whole church, which are restricted to elder/overseers. Thus, deacons may be either women or men who meet the Scriptural qualifications.

Each generation of the church may have a different emphasis on the specific ministries of deacons. The elders of each church must decide where they are most needed. The position of Imago Dei is to commission deacons to lead teams of serving believers whose function is not primarily pastoring or teaching, e.g. leading a team to distribute money to the poor (benevolence), leading area set-up and teardown teams, leading security teams, leading a parking team, leading a hospitality team, leading an usher team, leading an emergency response team, leading a team of financial advisors, leading a building team.