What Is A Deacon?
The Office vs. The Function
In one sense, every Christian is a deacon:
- “If anyone serves (diákonos) me, he must follow me; and where I am, there will my servant be also. If anyone serves (diákonos) me, the Father will honor him” (John 12:26)”
- “If you put these things before the brothers, you will be a good servant (diákonos) of Christ Jesus, being trained in the words of the faith and of the good doctrine that you have followed” (1 Timothy 4:6).
- “He sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant (diákonos) of all” (Mark 9:35).
All Christians are called to be agents of Jesus, our higher authority, and, as couriers/carriers of the gospel, be servants to all.In another sense, the Apostle Paul envisions a formal office in parallel with the office of Elder/Overseer called “Deacon” and outlines the sense of the role in 1 Timothy 3:8-13:
Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for dishonest gain. They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. And let them also be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless. Wives/Women (1) likewise are to be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things. Let deacons each be the husband of one wife, managing their children and their own households well. For those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.
There is a lot of overlap with the Deacon and Elder office; the majority of the qualifications for both roles is character, but there is one skill they have in common: ability to manage their household. The Elder role has one additional skill: able to teach. Thus, the deacon office is not a teaching role. Another key difference for the deacon role is that the office is available to women.
The Purpose of the Office
In Acts 6 the verbal form of deacon appears as “distribution.” A problem (or need) arises and men appointed to solve the problem. The problem was largely a “lack of administrative organization” (2) and had to do with properly serving tables in an increasingly complex environment. The origin of the office indicates much of it’s purpose: administrate. Similarly, the origin of Elders indicates it’s purpose: oversee the doctrine. From the Acts 6 example, it seems that Deacons are administrators, coordinators, directors, leaders or organizers. This fits with the only skill required of the Deacon in 1 Timothy 3:8ff — to be able to manage (3).