What About Deacons?

Unlike a lot of other ecclesiastical terms that strike most people as “high church” or ancient, the word “deacon” is actually quite familiar to many of the lower church traditions of the American scene. It used to be that to be a deacon was a well-respected member of one’s little community. But as little communities and well-respected people have gone, so too have such positions of service. The trouble in many of these same contexts is that there is little biblical sense of who is in charge of what, not to mention who all is qualified for the work. 

So what exactly is a deacon? At the risk of oversimplification, a deacon is a servant. That is what the Greek word διάκονος means. Of course, that really is too simple for our question, because we are speaking of a distinct office. There are many passages where the word is used in one form or another. In these, the context demands that we understand the word in a more general sense.

But whoever would be great among you must be your διάκονος (Mat. 20:26).

For he [the magistrate] is God’s διάκονός for your good (Rom. 13:4).

I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a διάκονον of the church at Cenchreae (Rom. 16:1).

As one can easily see, the word is used for a general principle, for a secular office, and, as I will argue below, a description of servants in the church in general office, as opposed to special office.

The Special Office of Deacon

What then does the Bible say about the specific office that goes by this name?

Many would point to Acts 6:1-7, because even though the word is not mentioned, nevertheless the word diakonos, as it comes to be used, captures what they were doing. These men appointed by the elders were called to serve the physical needs of the church (and some spiritual as well), to free up the elders’ main ministries of prayer and the preaching of the word. I will return to this point in considering the activity of deacons. It is at least instructive that in the Acts 6 passage, the elders of the Jerusalem church saw a necessity in these being certain kinds of men: “Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty” (v. 3). Their character and their evident walk with the Lord was prerequisite even to what seemed like a transitory task.

However, the crucial text comes in Paul’s first epistle to Timothy.

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. Their wives likewise must 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 (1 Tim. 3:8-13).

Some of the requirements here mirror those that must be the case of elders as well. There is one obvious difference. Here there is no requirement to be able to teach. It is not a teaching office. On the other hand, there is one requirement that is related to the teaching of the church. Notice the words, “They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience” (v. 9). Why would this be mentioned if they are not teachers?

Think about it in the context of members taking vows. Such vows make general reference to the doctrine of the Bible, but also of the confessional documents of our church tradition (the Westminster Standards in our case), as well as the form of the church’s government. Must they understand all of the finer points of these? No—not to the same degree that church officers do. They must only do so with a clear conscience.

One reason why such a “clear conscience” vow is appropriate has to do with the peace of the church. A man with his fingers crossed behind his back about words is not the same as a man who simply does not grasp the depths of those words. The latter may earnestly pledge to not to divide the church over them. He may come to grow in his faith in such a way that he no longer believes what his church does. He is free to do so. He is not free to accuse the church leadership, all the way back through history, slandering the tradition, of having pulled one over on him. The clarity of the Confession and Catechism allows him to do no such thing. He may change his own view. He may not rewrite history. Those are the limits of conscience.

Now a deacon differs from a church member in this respect, in that now he has a badge. A secret cabal of deacons carries more weight than a secret cabal of general church members. Deacons are at least viewed as godly men by the church, and if so many as seven deacons unanimously agree to usurp the authority of a smaller number of elders or lone minister, such as rebellion is not so easy to keep hidden or suppressed for the sake of peace.

I will draw attention to one more detail. It says, “let them also be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless” (v. 10). How much time does Paul have in mind? I do not know. He never says. But since this is one of the universal requirements, the fact that no exact time is mentioned tells me that no exact time is required. We must remember not to read into Scripture our own methods of “closing loopholes” for God Himself, which is to dishonor His wisdom. This tells us that time is always required, but that it always varies. In some cases, one may see the qualities of a deacon so clearly from the start, that to wait a year is done more out of courtesy to the body at large. What does his demonstration look like? It looks like an eagerness to serve that is matched by constancy, competency, proper deference, follow-through, and working well with others.

That this is a distinct office in the same way that the elder office is, may also be seen from the opening address of Paul to the Philippians: “To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are at Philippi, with the overseers and deacons” (1:1). Paul had already addressed “the saints” in general, so that the two words that follow—ἐπισκόποις and διακόνοις. But, it may be objected, that he even uses the word “servants” of himself and Timothy. Indeed, yet there the other word, δοῦλοι, is used. So we have two marks in the same verse that this is being conceived as a distinct office.

Activity of the Diaconate

Another difficulty we face today is that the origins of the office, considered as a group in each church, called a diaconate, have to do with helping the poor. This was a significant burden of the early church. That the poor believers would be cared for was of utmost concern to the Jerusalem apostles as they sent out Paul and Barnabas: “Only, they asked us to remember the poor, the very thing I was eager to do” (Gal. 2:10). For such reasons, the ministry of the deacons and what is often called “mercy ministries” are treated synonymously. However, it is not the socio-economic status of the recipients of their action that is the fundamental point. It is the physical, or we might say, temporal needs of church members. Poverty and permanent disorder are the extremes here. Even those with more can lose all. Even those who are generally healthy may get sick. A woman may be abandoned and children may be neglected. Other material necessities—usually out of sight and out of mind—without which the church cannot function at full capacity, may fall into other kinds of disrepair.

A church that does this with excellence is hardly a novelty. The Pastoral Letters make that plain. Simply observe the excellence that is called for in order to care for every member in the body, and to ensure that no one falls through the cracks. An extended passage from Paul to Timothy is perhaps the ultimate case in point:

Honor widows who are truly widows. But if a widow has children or grandchildren, let them first learn to show godliness to their own household and to make some return to their parents, for this is pleasing in the sight of God. She who is truly a widow, left all alone, has set her hope on God and continues in supplications and prayers night and day, but she who is self-indulgent is dead even while she lives. Command these things as well, so that they may be without reproach. But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever. Let a widow be enrolled if she is not less than sixty years of age, having been the wife of one husband, and having a reputation for good works: if she has brought up children, has shown hospitality, has washed the feet of the saints, has cared for the afflicted, and has devoted herself to every good work. But refuse to enroll younger widows, for when their passions draw them away from Christ, they desire to marry and so incur condemnation for having abandoned their former faith. Besides that, they learn to be idlers, going about from house to house, and not only idlers, but also gossips and busybodies, saying what they should not. So I would have younger widows marry, bear children, manage their households, and give the adversary no occasion for slander. For some have already strayed after Satan. If any believing woman has relatives who are widows, let her care for them. Let the church not be burdened, so that it may care for those who are truly widows (1 Tim. 5:3-16)

It would take a separate study to examine what exactly constitutes true “charity,” as we call it in the modern world. Suffice it to say, the Apostle Paul did not separate material beneficence from the care of souls. That included discipleship which was demographic-specific and aimed at enabling the person to make the contribution to church and society that God had designed for them.

Conversely it ruled out the subsidizing of poverty and laziness that our society calls charity today.1 It also rules out a use of money that is not conceived as a stewardship of scarce resources. Thus the concern to find family members who can care for these first (vv. 3-4, 8, 16). All of that said, take notice of the great administrative care Paul commends to Timothy. Enrollment requires a roll—written lists, regular inventory—and character examination of those who are recipients.

The diaconate may be divided by assignment of each man to a certain number of members in the church body, or they may be divided by skill set, seeing how the needs of the local church range from physical needs of individuals to the more logistical kinds of material needs of running a church. The crucial point often missed about the Acts 6 “precursor passage” is that it concludes with office having been a success. Once the elders were freed up to their own unique task, it ends with this:

And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith (v. 7).

This teaches us that all hands on deck are always required. When a church begins, the man on the mission must do it all in a sense. Once elders are selected, they must often do the work of deacons. But as soon as possible, deacons begin to free the elders up to push the walls of the church outward by the same word that creates and nourishes the church. By this same rationale, a deacon may eventually become an elder if God has so designed the man. Those with gifts of teaching and oversight may come into their own later on. Such may be evident in them from the beginning, and yet, because they are young, some reasonable degree of trust must be gained with the congregation. In summary, while one need not be a deacon first in order to be an elder, one may have their elder qualifications proved out in that deacon office for a season.

What About Deaconesses? 

This is often framed as a debatable matter, though most in the Reformed tradition have understood it to be a male-only office. Some Presbyterians take the position of liberty among the individual churches, whereas most would not do the same with the elder office. The ARP would be in this group. Other groups, such as the PCA, would not officially take this position, and yet place women in all manner of leadership positions that fit a hybrid description of elders and deacons, simply using different titles in order to avoid controversy. The “debatable” status is owing to fact our 1 Timothy 3:8-13 is the central text, and it contains a difficulty in verse 11:

‘Γυναῖκας likewise must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things.

There are a few things to consider on both sides. The word gynaikas is rendered “wives” by the ESV and KJV, and “women” by the NASB and NIV. The word can mean either. The appearance of the word “likewise” here, just as in the heading with the deacons, is difficult to use on either side. If these are female deacons, it begs the question as to why they are treated separately, rather than some qualification inclusive of male and female, at the heading. Why also does Paul circle back to men in saying, “Let deacons each be the husband of one wife” (v. 12). Here again, it would be the natural place for Paul to eliminate any ambiguity by giving the mirror qualification to female deacons. Yet he does not offer explanation in either place.

How much can we lean on context deciding, and how big of a circle of context gets to count? The passage regarding Phoebe does not give us enough information to decide on general versus special office, so that it must ultimately lean back on interpretation of 1 Timothy 3:11.

This only draws out the wider debate of female leadership and the nature of Paul’s words in places like 1 Timothy 2:12. In other words, it raises the question of whether a woman in this office is indeed exercising authority over men in the way Paul meant. She would not be on the grounds of teaching, since it is not a teaching office. On the other hand, Paul’s words in that text distinguishes between teaching authority as opposed to any authority—both being excluded for a woman over men. It may then be argued that a female deacon may hold an office that is specifically designed to coordinate service activity for women only.

Richard Barcellos makes the point that there are actually four options for Paul’s meaning here:

This verse has at least four options as intended meaning goes: 1. the women are part of the deaconate; 2. “they are ‘deaconesses’ distinguished from but comparable with the διακόνοι [diakonoi; deacons]” (Knight, Pastoral Epistles, 171); 3. “they are female assistants to the διακόνοι [diakonoi; deacons]” (Knight, PE, 171); 4. they are the wives of the διακόνοι [diakonoi; deacons]” (Knight, PE, 171).2

One last question arises from the pro-deaconess side. Why would the deacons’ wives have qualifications, but not elders’ wives? One reason that many have given for this is that the very nature of the deacon’s service involves things that women can do with respect to hospitality and ministering to the physical needs of women, or even when there are spiritual needs for which a sister in Christ is still better suited. Of course that reasoning could lend itself to either position.

The wife may also accompany her husband who is a deacon in cases where visitation to a single woman would be seen as inappropriate. There are aspects like gossip, as one example, that would be crucial in her specific station that is only generally focused on with texts on women in general (e.g. 1 Tim. 5:13). At any rate, there is nothing that women could be called on to do here that requires her to have the title as a male office holder. That raises the practical question about the very nature of being a servant. Of all offices bearing names, there is some irony in holding honor hostage to women on the demand that one will not serve unless it is accompanied by greater external honor. Besides that, where things do not rise to the level of certainty, it is best to aspire to honor the Lord whose church and whose word it is.

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1. cf. Marvin Olasky, The Tragedy of American Compassion (New York: Regnery, 1992); Brian Fikkert and Steve Corbett, When Helping Hurts: Alleviating Poverty Without Hurting the Poor and Yourself (Chicago: Moody, 2009).

2.  Richard Barcellos, “1st TIMOTHY 3:11– ‘women’ or ‘wives’”