This article is a work in progress…
Introduction
I’m working through forming language and an overall vision for church leadership, governance, activity, and responsibility. In this post, I’m going to wrestle with the role of elders. It’s part of a larger series that starts with the very succinctly titled Towards Church Leadership; Elder/Deacon/Congregational Organizational Distinctions – an Overview. I will update this article as I add to my understanding, shift or change my understanding through reading or discussion, and complete other posts that more fully nuance or clarify certain positions. This post represents my specific beliefs at the time it was written; hopefully I’ve updated it if my beliefs have shifted, but please talk to me or comment if you have a tension, clarifier, addition, or question.
First, the Word: Deacon
The word Deacon is a transliteration of the Greek word diákonos (διάκονος) which means one who serves as an intermediary, or profoundly – one who gets something done. Diákonos is used in the New Testament 29 times, with the majority of those uses in the ESV being translated as “servant” (“whoever would be great among you must be your servant” Matt 20:26) or “minister” (“of this gospel I was made a minister according to the gift of God’s grace” Eph 3:7).
It also appears to be a title for a role in the local church.
I will allow the translators, who are much more skilled at this than I, distinguish between the appropriate applications of the word. For the sake of this discussion, we’re interested in the role.
The Role of Deacons
The church I serve in doesn’t have anyone in roles titled deacons. Most Protestant churches in formalized denominations do, however. Their responsibility is usually that of doing – managing the budget and facilities, overseeing the insurance riders and mortgage payments on the building. Many non-denomination churches do not have formalized deacons (my church is EFCA affiliated).
Deacon, along with elder/overseer/bishop, are the only two named roles in the church in Scripture. Just as I believe it is important to faithfully and eagerly practice communion and baptism, even when or if the practice itself might seem outmoded or esoteric, so too establishing a deacon role seems important as we seek to remain faithful to Scripture.
Passages and Comments
There are many passages that use the term translated as deacon, but again, we must parse the usage – is it referring to a role, posture/attitude, or action? There are far fewer passages referencing deacons than elders. But I want to consider these before I ask about the responsibility of deacons, because these passages must shape that discussion.
I Timothy 3:8-13 – First, Paul continues his list of qualifications for the role of elders by listing qualifications for deacons. The list is very similar. He starts by saying, “Deacons, likewise…” This is summative of the whole of 1 Timothy 3:1-7, not just verse 7. As elders must be of high moral character in order to lead the church, so too deacons must be of high moral character and standing as they serve the church. They are held to similar standards as elders.
The feel of the list is similar, but differs in quite a few points. Because I take these lists to be precise but not wholly exhaustive (that is, each qualification is important, but may not encompass the absolute entirety of what constitutes a good elder or deacon), it’s hard to know whether to draw strict functionality implications from the omissions. For instance, elders are to be hospitable (v 2), but the qualification isn’t listed for deacons. Does this imply different roles in housing outsiders or in conducting church-wide conversations? Does this imply a more isolated role for deacons, or is it related to different familial expectations between elders and deacons?
Philippians 1:1 – Paul says that his letter is addressed to the saints, the overseers (elders) and deacons. This three-fold delineation is striking. It speaks to the holistic structure of my overarching article – in a local church, there are to be those serving as elders, as deacons, and as the congregation. Paul addresses his letter to the church in Philippi to all three.
Acts 6:1-8 – If this passage didn’t exist, we would have little indication as to the role of deacons. As it is, this passage isn’t even directly addressing the role of deacons – to apply it is a bit assumptive. But, it seems a worthy assumption, given the role distinction and leadership characteristics associated with the passage, and given the nature of the word diákonos and it’s various usages throughout the New Testament. This is clearly a description of those being assigned to get things done and as agents of another.
In the passage, seven men are set aside to manage the practical duty of serving, so that the apostles could “not give up preaching” (v 2) and instead “devote themselves to prayer and the ministry of the word.” This is the role of the elders, and it’s contrasted to the role of these servants, appointed to “this duty,” which is to “serve tables” so that no widows would be neglected in the daily food distribution.
It seems, then, that the role of deacons (if we’re to assume these are proto-deacons) is to be about the “practical” aspects of church ministry. A deacon is to coordinate logistics and activities and budgets and the ‘stuff’ of running ministry – and the stuff these days is much more complex.
That said, it is also important to note that the qualifications for deacons in I Timothy – like elders – does not include any expectations of experience or workplace excellence. Instead, they are character requirements. Likewise, the requirements for these seven men selected were that they would be, “men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom” (v3) Stephen, the most notable among those selected, was, “a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit” (v5). The immediate next passage has him, “full of grace and power, doing great wonders and signs among the people” (v8). He’s brought up on trial, and boldly preaches the gospel and is stoned to death while praying. The most notable deacon – chosen to manage the ministries of the church – is a bold, faithful preacher who gives his life for the gospel. This is certainly not merely a “logistics” job, or one to be filled by merely the, “experienced or effective” leaders of the church.
The Responsibility of Deacons
And so what are deacons?
At a minimum, they’re servants. That’s what the title means. But they are also highly qualified, honorable leaders in the local church who focus on – instead of on discernment and discipline – the “doing” of the church. They make the church ministries happen.
Where people need to be fed – the deacons are tasked with coordinating it. Where resources need to be managed – the deacons are tasked with doing it. I think it’s fair even to say, “Where the mission of the church needs to be lived out – the deacons are tasked with doing it.” The elders discern, shape, and share the ministry vision while the deacons implement, facilitate, and accomplish that vision.
As such, in modern church functions, I don’t fully understand why teaching and instruction are so expected to be elder roles – while deacons are expected to work with Excel spreadsheets and order forms. This doesn’t seem to be a biblical model or distinction at all. It could be because elders are expected to the able to teach (1 Tim 3:2), but the very first thing Stephen is recorded as doing is teaching – boldly. I think deacons should also be eagerly engaged in teaching and discipleship ministries – including preaching and prayer.
As the role of elder is perhaps more clearly defined in Scripture, I think understanding the role of deacon is well foiled against the role of elder. An elder is to discern the overall direction of the church – the deacon is to implement and live out that direction. The direction may include teaching, directing, organizing, implementing, budgeting, and more. I believe the extent to which implementation of that vision is delegated to the deacon is at the discretion of the Spirit-filled elder; that is to say, if the elders say, “Jesus is leading us to reach the homeless population,” it is also the elders that say, “We feel the deacons can determine who it is that falls within the term homeless,” or vice versa. They can delegate that authority as led by the Spirit.
Is the Role of Deacon Restricted to Men?
Differing from the position of elder, I say no. This takes a careful reading of the passages, but I believe it is the most plausible, faithful reading of 1 Timothy 3. The inclusion of verse 12 is the most difficult part of this to explain, but I’m content in my understanding of this passage.
The ESV translations of 1 Tim 3:11 reads, “Their wives, likewise must be dignified, not slanders, but sober-minded, faithful in all things.” This is a plausible translation of the Greek. However, this would place a responsibility on the wives of the servants of the church that doesn’t exist for the wives of the leaders of the church – essentially, the standard for deacon is raised beyond the standard for elder. Nowhere in 1 Tim 3:1-7 are there standards laid out for how an elder’s wife is to behave. It seems unlikely that Paul would so elevate the standards for deacons (especially considering that elders are the ones expected to be hospitable – welcoming others into their homes), while elders are clearly a more leadership-oriented role in the local church.
An equally plausible translation of verse 11 would be, “Women, likewise must be dignified..” that is, women filling the role of deacon (the Greek word for women and wife is the same). And I find this incredibly compelling because of the list of four characteristics and the structure of the sentence perfectly parallels verse 8 – male deacons are to be dignified; so are female deacons. Male deacons are to not be double-tongued, female deacons should not be slanderers. Male deacons should not be addicted to much wine, female deacons should be sober-minded. Male deacons should be not greedy for dishonest gain, and female deacons should be faithful in all things. There is a clear parallel between verse 8 and 11 in terms or character, and that coupled with the expectation that Paul wouldn’t have higher standards for deacons than for elders draws me to read the passage in this way.
But if that’s true, how do we approach verse 12? It still says, “husband of one wife,” which for elders, is a ‘nail-in-the-coffin verse’ for male-only. We need to simply let it stand. I believe it means essentially the same thing for deacons as it does for elders – that is, that the role is restricted to those who show faithful leadership in the marriage role they’re in. But the relatively clear interpretation of verse 11 needs to allow for subtext in the interpretation of verse 12 – that is, an implicit qualifier: “Let [male] deacons each be the husband of one wife…” This interpretation is allowed in verse 12 because of verse 11; it’s not allowed in verse 2 both because there is no elder corollary for verse 11, and because of Titus 1:6 (I would be more inclined to read 1 Tim 3:2 similarly to 1 Tim 3:11 if Titus 1:6 didn’t exist).
What’s more, Romans 16 gives striking indication of women deacons. Verse 1 says, “I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a diákonos of the church in Cenchreae.” The ESV translates that word “servant,” but (and despite my comments earlier about trusting the translators), many translate it as “deacon.” It is also likely that Phoebe was the carrier of the letter and was the one to read it to the church in Rome (verse 2). While some have taken to changing her name to a male name, and other’s have dismissed her position, it is incredibly likely that Paul acknowledges the female Phoebe to be a faithful deacon, serving in a local church.
Furthermore, there is indication in the early church that women served as deacons. The testimony of the early church is certainly not inspired, but it also culturally closer to the writing of the New Testament that we are, and so we should disproportionately weight their interpretations. That is to say, if there was inscrutable evidence that the church in Ephesus, under the leadership of bishop Timothy, appointed female deacons but not female elders, then we would have a de facto confirmation of the above interpretation of I Timothy 3; that’s how Timothy read it! As it stands, we don’t have this confirmation, but we do have evidence that women served as deacons in the early church (we also have contrary writings, to be fair).
Should Deacons be Paid?
Yes.
Conclusion
A deacon is a role in the early church, and is passed along as a role in a local church – they are the ones tasked with doing the work of ministry. Deacons are important – they compliment elders in their work. In terms of church structure, elders find primacy. But deacons can teach and lead and interpret quite faithfully. Females can be deacons.
God will work through deacons to further His church.
Questions and Follow-up:
Content for future posts:
It would be good to do a more careful comparison and contrast between the lists of qualifications for elders and deacons.
What’s the distinction between a pastor and a deacon?
What early church evidence is there for female deacons?
Why does there seem to be so much more Scripture on the role of the elder than a deacon?
Is the presence of deacons necessary for the formation of a local church? I argue that elders are necessary – are deacons?
Are we required or expected to use the term deacon?