Tuesday, March 13, 2012

First Timothy 3:8-13 - Those Who Serve


From the New International Version of the Bible,
Deacons, likewise, are to be men worthy of respect, sincere, not indulging in much wine, and not pursuing dishonest gain. They must keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience. They must first be tested; and then if there is nothing against them, let them serve as deacons.
In the same way, their wives are to be women worthy of respect, not malicious talkers, but temperate and trustworthy in everything.
A deacon must be the husband of but one wife and must manage his children and his household well. Those who have served well gain an excellent standing and great assurance in their faith in Christ Jesus.
Commentary

Now Paul turns his attentions to the requirements and qualifications of those that would serve as deacons in the church.You might ask, "what is a deacon?" The word literally means 'one who serves'. In this case it would mean one who serves in the church. At first glance, we might think that everyone is suppose to serve in the church. Service is a major function of the Christian in the church. But Paul had something else in mind here. Deacons are to be officers of the church assigned to specific duties appointed to them by the leadership (elders). There duties should be less centered on the spiritual matters of the church (ministry and teaching) and more concerned with "nuts and bolts" issues of making the church work. This does not mean that they could not teach or preach, but that is not their primary function. And since Paul viewed them as office holders in the local church, he also made sure that a standard was put in place to ensure the quality of these people. Many of the qualifications are the same as those for overseers.

Deacons are to be men of respect, sincere, not given to heavy drinking and not wasting time in pursuit of questionable business deals. Paul also said that they should understand the most important aspects of the faith and that they should have clear consciences. In other words, they need to be spiritual men. He also said they should be tested. What this test consisted in is unknown, but there was probably some kind of background investigation prior to appointment as deacon. Next Paul talks about deacon's wives. They had to be women of good character, respectable, not gossips, even tempered and trustworthy. Apparently Paul expected that they would serve alongside their husbands, hence the qualifications. Whether that makes their wives 'deaconesses' is unknown. There are women named as deaconesses in the New Testament.

Then returning to the deacons, Paul says that, as with overseers, a deacon must be the husband of but one wife and they must be able to manage their families too.

Questions

  1. When Paul says in verse 9 that deacons must hold to the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience, what does he mean?
  2. Does this mean that a church leader who, somewhere in his journey, has doubted or questioned the faith, should step down?
  3. Deacon's wives are not to be gossips or malicious talkers. Why do you think Paul even addresses the conduct of these women?
  4. Do you think women can serve as deaconesses? (Romans 16:1,2 KJV)
  5. If a deacon's son or daughter gets in serious trouble with the law, should he step down from his service? For what reasons? What about the behaviors of a deacon's adult children? Is not their behaviors the result of how they were raised?
  6. Would you consider deacons officers of the church is being a deacon merely a function?
  7. Does your church have deacons? Does anyone know how they are appointed or who they are?