Qualifications for Deacons and Deaconesses (I)

Dear Bethelites,

Qualifications for Deacons and Deaconesses (I)

In our previous pastoral chat, we had considered how the Apostle Paul focused on God’s divine standard for the elders, then he moved on to focus on the deacons and deaconesses. Today, we will consider the spiritual qualifications for deacons.

I. The Spiritual Qualifications for Deacons

1 Timothy 3:8, Likewise must the deacons be grave, not doubletongued, not given to much wine, not greedy of filthy lucre;

Take note of the word, likewise. It is a very important word because it indicates to us that Paul had just finished discussing the spiritual qualifications for the elders, and he moved on to a new category, the deacons. The word likewise means in the same manner. In other words, the standard for deacons was in no way inferior to that of the elders. Elders were to lead, and deacons were to serve tables, both may performed different duties, but the spiritual qualifications were the same, likewise, (that is what it means).

The original word for, deacon, means servant, attendant or minister, someone who serves, ministers, waits on tables, and cares for others. This word appears about 100 times in the New Testament. Sometimes, Paul used this word to refer to himself, as a minister or servant of Christ, and he used this word to refer to the believers having the spiritual gift to serve (c.f. Romans 12:7).

In a general sense, every believer is a deacon, we are called to serve and minister, in one way or another. So, this word deacon can mean serving in a general sense, or serving as a spiritual gift, or serving in the office of a deacon, depending on the context.

But, remember, Paul was talking about the church, how things should be organised in the church, so here he was referring to the office of a deacon (not in a general sense, but someone who was serving as a deacon in the church).

If I may put it this way, every believer is called to serve, but God has called some believers to serve as deacons in the church, to set an example for the others to follow in this matter of service. That is why, deacons must always be willing to serve, others may not be willing, they may give up, hrow in the towel, may not want to be active, may not want to attend the prayer meetings and other activities, but deacons must press on and persevere, setting themselves as examples, because that is their office.

Firstly, deacons must be grave which means worthy of honour, it can also mean a certain seriousness in the way they live their lives. In other words, they are not playing the fool but they are serious about life and the things of God. When they do that, they will be respected by the people.

Deacons must not (be) doubletongued; it refers to gossip, saying one thing to one person and another thing to someone else. His speech must be sincere, and not with hypocrisy. He means what he says, and he says what he means in truth and integrity. When a person starts to tell different stories to different persons, he would quickly lose the respect and confidence of others, and soon, nobody would trust him. No deacons should be characterized like that.

Not given to much wine refers to drunkenness. The Bible teaches total abstinence from alcohol. Proverbs 20:1, “Wine is a mocker, strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.” The words not given means do not give in, or be enslaved by it. What does much wine do to you? it will cause drunkenness, right? Some people would quote this phrase and say, not given to much wine, means you can drink a little bit, just not too much, or you can drink, but just don’t get drunk.

The reality is that these people want to drink, that is why they are looking for ways to twist the Word of God, and they are putting words into the Bible which God did not say. In fact, God said in Proverbs 23:31 warned us not to even look at the glass of wine, because it will bite us like a serpent. This prohibition was also given to the elder (in verse 3). A deacon cannot drink alcohol, because he will be incapable of the kind of sober judgment that good spiritual leadership requires.

Not greedy of filthy lucre speaks of pursuing dishonest and selfish gains. In the early church, the deacons were first elected to help the widows (c.f. Acts 6). So, they would need to distribute money to the widows, and there might be the temptation to steal from the church funds, or misuse the money for their own selfish purposes.

Today, our church treasurer is a deacon, and he is being assisted by two other deacons, and together they form the finance committee. They are the ones responsible for handling the church funds, and at every Annual Congregational Meeting, and they must prepare the financial report on how the funds have been administered. Can you imagine putting someone who is greedy of money, as a deacon in charge of our church funds? God forbids!

Verse 9, Holding the mystery of the faith in a pure conscience.

This word mystery means something that was once hidden in the past, but was then revealed; something hidden in the Old Testament, but was then revealed in the New Testament. Jesus said to His disciples, “To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted.” In other words, God revealed these mysteries to them so that they would be able to believe. What are some of the mysteries of the faith? For example, how Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was manifest in the flesh, how the Holy Spirit indwelt in the believer, how the Gentiles could be included in God’s plan of salvation through the gospel of Christ, etc. The rapture was also a mystery, hidden in the Old Testament but revealed in the New Testament, that was why Paul said in 1 Corinthians 15:51, “Behold, I shew you a mystery, We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed” - some believers would not die, they would be raptured to meet Christ when He comes in the clouds.

The deacons must understand all these truths, they must believe all these truths, and they were serving because of all these truths, in a pure conscience. So when you ask them, “Why are you serving?” “Because my Lord Jesus came into this world for me, He died on the cross and rose again from the dead for me, the Holy Spirit indwells in me, giving me the power to serve and glorify my Lord. One day, my Lord Jesus will come in the clouds, and if I am still alive, I will be caught up to meet Him in the air, (I understand all these truths), and how wonderful it will be, that when He comes, I am still serving Him, as a deacon.”

Verse 10, And let these also first be proved; then let them use the office of a deacon, being found blameless.

They ought to first be proved, which means they must first be tested and proven.

In the Old Testament, just before young David went to fight against the giant Goliath the Philistine, King Saul tried to arm David with his armour, and put on his head a helmet, and put on his parment. But David said, “I cannot go with these, for I have not proved them.” In other words, I cannot fight with these weapons because I have not tested them. I have not tried them. Instead David took the shepherd staff, the sling and the stones. Why did they do that? Because he had tested them before.

How do we know certain believers are able to serve as deacons, unless we have tested and examined them, and they have proven themselves to be faithful, right?

So, before we nominate someone to be elected as a deacon, we must first watch how he has lived his life, and served in the church. Is he able to work with the leaders? Is he able to work with the members? Is he someone who is willing to serve? Is he spiritually mature? Is he godly? There will always be troubles in the ministry, and those troubles will reveal who they are, and what they are really made of, and we will never know them, unless we test them.

After careful evaluation and examination, and when he is found to be blameless, then we will let him take up the office of a deacon. Blameless does not mean perfect, or sinless (no man is). What it means is that his life and his leadership should not be in question. There should be nothing you can accuse him of, and nothing to disqualify him from being a deacon, and he must never give the enemies of the gospel reasons for attack.

Verse 12, Let the deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well.

Like the elders, deacons must also be the husbands of one wife. In the Greek original language, the literal meaning is “one-woman’s man.” It is not referring to his marital status, but rather his spiritual and moral character. Otherwise the Apostle Paul would be disqualified because he was not married. Many married men are not “one-woman’s man” because they have been unfaithful to their wives. The “one-woman’s man” is someone who is devoted in his heart and mind to his wife.

They are not only able to rule their children but also their money, possessions and everything associated with their own houses. If they cannot manage their own family, how can they be entrusted to take care of the church family? Take a moment and consider this, if the deacon cannot lead his wife and children (let’s say his wife and two children, altogether three individuals), how can he lead the widows and their families (maybe fifty or one hundred individuals), the amount of problems will be compounded. If he cannot lead on a lesser scale, how can he lead on a larger scale!

(To be continued in the next pastoral chat)

With love in Christ, Pastor Paul Cheng