Among the few official “roles” there are in the church of the Lord Jesus Christ, one of them truly reflects the nature, the heart of Jesus on earth: the office of the deacon. In Mark 10:45, the words “to be served” and “to serve” are the verb form of the word “deacon.” Jesus, in essence, says He came to “be a deacon.” Ferguson writes in The Church of Christ: An Ecclesiology for Today (333): “His work of bringing spiritual and physical healing to people is continued in the church, where it is represented especially by the deacons, the appointed servants to take the lead in this broad area of ministry.”
To understand these different qualifications, it is helpful to just look at how they are translated in various translations. But also, as we look at these qualifications, we notice that these are really, simply characteristics of mature Christians. These are qualities that God expects all Christians to develop:
QUALITIES OF DEACONS – 3:8-9:
These men, while not pictured as necessarily being as old as elders, are mature enough to learn self-control and to walk with Christ with a high degree of seriousness.
Tested Deacons – 3:10:
Different men are given some smaller, more minor responsibilities. If they prove faithful in those responsibilities, Paul writes to Timothy, give them bigger responsibilities: make them deacons.
These men “must be tested” is present passive imperative; that is, a continual testing so that when the work of a deacon comes up, then a man has proven himself worthy to fulfill that role. So we do not make a man a deacon to make him a faithful Christian; we appoint a man a deacon who has been tested and proven himself to be faithful and dedicated: “beyond reproach.”
MARRIED DEACONS – 3:11-12:
Verse 11 begins with the word “women” (gyne). We need to recognize first that Paul does not specifically refer to these “women” as the deacon’s wives. So, some have suggested that Paul is adding another “office / role” to the church, in essence, creating a “deaconess” role. That is an honest question but we need to be honest in how we answer that question.
First, does Paul talk about deacons in verses 8-10, shift in verse 11 to talk about “deaconesses”, then back to deacons in verses 12-13? Probably not. That would be unusual.
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Third, there is no Greek word for “deaconess.”
Fourth, the first time the Latin word for deaconess is used in a written document is called the Apostolic Constitutions, which is dated around 390 A. D. There are no Latin Christian writings earlier to shed any more light on the service of Christian women.
We know from other early texts that churches were autonomous, that they had elders, deacons, and members. Women in the early centuries of the church were not in speaking roles in worship. They helped women being baptized. They helped widows. They served other women. These were possibly women like those mentioned in 1 Timothy 5 who were widows, supported by the church, and so they worked in and around the church building performing various areas of service. But, they were not in a leadership role in the church.
So, we are very safe, on doctrinal grounds (God always gave leadership roles to men) and on historical grounds, to understand verse 11 to refer to the deacon’s wife. Because the deacon is to be a family-man, then it would be appropriate for Paul to describe the type of wife the man is to have.
REWARDED DEACONS – 3:13:
Unfortunately, this word “standing” or “rank” is not used anywhere else in the Scriptures so it is not easy to understand just what Paul means. Certainly, a man who serves well as a deacon receives admiration: a “good standing” within the congregation itself and, no doubt, in the eyes of the “Deacon of deacons.”
He can also have great confidence as he stands before Jesus Christ, standing in the Christian faith, having been faithful to that faith and serving the church and the community in the Christian faith.
What happens when you do things God’s way? Acts 6:7, after deacons were appointed, says: “The word of God kept on spreading; and the number of the disciples continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were becoming obedient to the faith.”
Men, the church needs you to step up and show your commitment to Jesus Christ and your love for the church by accepting the role of being a deacon. When you do, you will have our full support, our prayers; we’ll “have your back.” We need you to lead in serving the church. Paul Holland
