ALL TOGETHER NOW
Why do we need deacons?
The
short answer: the NT church had deacons, so we do too.
The long
answer is not so concise or glib. Defining the work of a deacon has, in my
research, been a difficult journey through the centuries.
When as
a young minister in my first church I was asked what deacons did in my home
church, I replied “I have no idea.” Some of you might feel the same way. Even
the NT does not describe the work of a deacon, only what qualifies a person to
be a deacon.
In Acts
6, the church of Christ is very new. A crisis arises and the apostles and the
congregation agree to appoint men to address the need. They are not called
“deacons,” but one could argue that they are the prototypes for deacons’
ministry. Let’s suppose that they are deacons. What does the text tell us about
the need for deacons in the church?
Trouble in the Church
When Christ does something good, the devil reacts with
evil. Christ through the Holy Spirit on Pentecost gave us the community we call
“the church.” Satan attacked this Spirit-driven movement of people first by
persecution or force when Peter and John were seized and put on trial by the
Sanhedrin (4:1ff). Then Satan tried to disrupt the harmony of the church
through internal corruption (the hypocrisy of Ananias and Sapphira 5:1-11). Now
Satan, in Acts 6, tries to distract the church from its main mission through
distraction. (Satan is not mentioned in any of these texts, but we know his
work).
We read “Now in these days when the disciples were
increasing in number…” (6:1a). Wonderful things are happening. People are
being drawn to the gospel of Jesus Christ and joining the community of His
followers. But as the numbers grow, so does the potential for conflict: “…a complaint by the Hellenists arose
against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily
distribution” (6:1b).
Hellenists
were Greek-speaking Jews who had been scattered all over the world, but had now
returned to Jerusalem. These Jews wanted to return to the Land Promised by God
to their forefathers so that they could die “at home.” Men were typically much
older than their wives so they died and left widows without support systems and
income.
The
Hebrews were Aramaic-speaking Jews who were born and raised in Palestine. They
were steeped in the traditions of the Temple and the culture of the land. But a
Jew is a Jew right? Not so. The Hellenists not only spoke Greek, they acted
like Greeks. What resulted was a cultural divide. They didn’t understand each
other.
The
crisis was not intentional according to Luke. We don’t know why it happened
that Hellenist widows were being overlooked. We do know that there was a
regular collection for the poor (4:32-37). And for some reason the relief money
or food did not make it to those widows. It likely had to do with poor
supervision.
How the Apostles Responded to Trouble
The Apostles (aka “the Twelve) were responsible for the
leadership of the church. But as the church grew in number (5-6000 people) that
responsibility became overwhelming.
Have you
ever heard of the Peter Principle? It’s not based on the Apostle Peter but was
formulated by Lawrence J. Peter. The theory is that the selection of a
candidate for a position is based on the candidate's performance in their current
role, rather than on abilities relevant to the intended role. Thus, employees
only stop being promoted once they can no longer perform effectively, and
"managers rise to the level of their incompetence."[i]
I
wouldn’t say that the apostles were incompetent, but they were gifted and
called to a specific purpose, and they knew it. They gathered the whole church
together and admitted/confessed/ shared “It
is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables”
(6:2). Luke does not suggest that the apostles were above waiting on tables or
social work; it was a matter of calling and giftedness.
Pastors
are not above acts of service. When I can, I help with dishes or stack chairs
after a funeral or event. Sometimes people want to talk to me, so I will stop
what I’m doing to visit (people ministry takes priority over chairs). Sometimes
I rush from the SS class to my office between SS and church, not because I’m
being antisocial but because my priority is being ready for the service and the
preaching of the Word.
In the
same way, the apostles knew their priorities and wisely delegated this
important work to others. They said, “…pick
out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and wisdom,
whom we will appoint to this duty…” (6:3). The community of believers was
being threatened by division. A physical, not a spiritual problem, was becoming
a wedge in the life of the church. To resolve this issue they made a proposal
that could alleviate the conflict.
A
proposal was set forth, but the decision to act on it was left to the
congregation of believers. That is how KEMC is supposed to work in principle.
We have membership meetings quarterly to discuss issues and appoint servants.
We work together, pastors and congregants, to guide the body.
The
apostles made some stipulations regarding their selection of the Seven. They
must be well-thought of and regarded highly by the believers; they must be
evidently people of the Holy Spirit; and they must be practical in their
wisdom.
Nowhere does
it say that they would be called “deacons,” but the verb for service is used.
They would serve the body of believers in tangible and physical ways. “Deacon”
means “servant” and so it does fit the context to a degree.
What happened when the Trouble was Resolved
The apostles’ proposal was pleasing to the congregation.
They agreed that the priority of the apostles was to preach and to pray. And to
assist them in that priority they agreed to elect seven men to the ministry of
tables (ministry means service).
Stephen
tops the list and is given special mention as being particularly a man of faith
and of the Holy Spirit (we’ll talk about him next week). But the seven as a
whole are distinguished by a common feature: they all have Greek names. In
order to balance the ministry of physical needs, I suppose, seven Hellenists
were chosen to leadership. Men from the offended group were called to serve,
not to pacify wounded feelings, but to affirm the importance of this group to
the body. You matter to us, they said in effect.
This was
such an important addition to the overall ministry of the young church that
they had a special ceremony for the Seven. “These
they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them”
(6:6). Call it ordination; call it commissioning – it doesn’t matter. They were
set aside and everyone recognized the role they were taking on – that’s what
was important.
As a
result of this resolution of conflict an amazing thing happened. 1)The Word of
God was preached (the apostles were able to do what they were good at), 2)the
number of disciples multiplied (people saw that followers of Christ truly cared
for their own and wanted to join them), and 3) “a great many priests became obedient to the faith” (6:7c).
This
last one about the priests is subtle but really very significant. The priests
knew that the duty of their position was to care for the poor according to
Deuteronomy 15. When they saw that the church was excelling at caring for the
poor, they saw the fulfillment of Scripture in the community of
Christ-followers. They saw that Christ had infected these commoners with a love
for the least.
Implications for our Church
I have purposely focused on the narrative of our text to
let it answer our question “Why do we need deacons?” What happened in the NT
church, the very first church, is mainly descriptive – Luke tells us what
happened, but he doesn’t necessarily mean for us to do everything the Acts
church did. That does not mean we can’t learn from their experience. So what are
the implications of this text for KEMC (our church)?
Know what you are
called to do in the church. You have a gift; everyone does. “To each is given the manifestation of the
Spirit for the common good” (1 Cor. 12:7). The purpose of this spiritual
gift you possess is to serve the body of Christ. Whatever gift you have been
given you are a deacon (a servant) of that gift, whether it be hospitality or
encouragement.
No one possesses
all the gifts. Therefore, you are not expected to serve in every capacity
of the church. One writer said it this way, “Leaders in the church are not
obliged to personally do all that for which they are responsible.” As a leader,
I do a disservice to you the church if I try to fill all the roles and leave
you with no opportunity to use your gift. And I would fail to do what you can
do better according to your gift.
Gospel
proclamation is the top priority of the church. The apostles quickly
surmised that proclaiming Jesus as the Christ was their main task, but that it
was suffering under the pressure to do other tasks. Their priority as the
preachers of the new church was to preach and to pray. Delegation of projects
and service opportunities was essential to the ministry of the Word and to the
health of the body.
Caring for others
is the task of the church. The overall care of the congregation is the
responsibility of the leaders, but the call to care for the congregation
belongs to you. Pastors simply cannot be everywhere and do everything. Caring
is a mutual service of every member of the local church.
In a
very real sense, you are all ordained. When you believe in Jesus Christ as your
Savior and Lord, you are ordained – you are set aside for his special purposes.
You are all “deacons” or servants of the body.
We can solve
problems better together. When faced with the crisis of alms or food
distribution, the apostles did not huddle in a private circle and try to work
out a solution. They did recommend an idea to whole body of believers and
sought their affirmation. The congregational model works well in a church our
size; the larger the church the more difficult it may be. But the Acts church
was 6000 strong, and they did it. We are better together than on our own.
When problems are
dealt with adequately the world is impressed. Let’s face it, the most attractive
quality of the church is how we care for each other. If the unchurched see that
we love each other, Jesus said they will know we are his disciples (John
13:35).
Deacons are models
of service in the congregation. We set aside individuals in the church to
set the pattern for the rest of the church. They are to exemplify or model to
the rest of the church what it means to serve. Deacons take on tasks that
pastors are not gifted for or not priority. They help to carry the burden of
responsibility for the congregation while spurring others on to service. In our
church, deacons assist in promoting fellowship, coordinating Bible Studies,
making newcomers feel at home, and attending to concerns.
So this
morning we have set apart Vik and Martha for this sacred office of deacon. And
I urge you to pray for them, to encourage them in their service to you (that
is, to let them know when you have been blessed by their efforts – for it is a
lonely task at times), and to follow their lead in caring for the church.
And may
we be together a church that models the love and compassion of Christ to one
another – for His glory.
AMEN
“As each has
received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied
grace: whoever speaks, as one who speaks oracles of God; whoever serves, as one
who serves by the strength that God supplies – in order that in everything God
may be glorified through Jesus Christ. To him be glory and dominion forever and
ever. Amen” (1 Peter 4:10-11).
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