Deacons and the Qualifications and Résumé of Our King

1 Timothy 3:8-13; Acts 6:1-7
October 24, 2021
Abraham Hong

Sermon Script

Praise be to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. In the past three Sundays, we set our minds on the following heavenly truths.

Jesus is the one who ultimately ministers to his church. He is seated at the right hand of the Father with all authority and exaltation. And in his session, he gives his church deacons. Deacons exist to provide for and to promote the compassion and care and charity of Christ in the church so that none of God’s people are neglected in the joy of our salvation. The gospel of God compels us and the law of God invites us to take care of our brothers and sisters in Christ who are in need. Those who need physical, emotional, or mental help. Those who are poor. Those who are in trouble. Those who are lacking family or friends. Those who need tangible and practical encouragement, support, protection, and love.

Soon and very soon, we will, Lord willing, receive deacons for our church. New English-speaking deacons for the first time ever here at Highland. This is exciting. This is historic.

And this is serious. The session of Christ is royal and holy. The ministry of Christ is righteous and glorious and majestic. The office of deacon is is noble and pure and sacred and heavenly.

We know that this is serious because of the qualifications that our God presents to us for his deacons. We have the power to vote upon and elect men to the office of deacon. But we do not have the power to dictate or regulate what kind of a man can be a deacon. That power belongs to our Lord Jesus Christ who is the king and head of the church. That power is his and his alone. And in his written word, in today’s passage, he has given us his qualifications for his deacons and for his ministry in his church.

This sermon is made of two parts. The first part will be about the qualifications for deacons. And the second part will be about why we should care about this.

Alright, here we go. Part one. The qualifications for deacons.

This is what deacons must be. According to Acts 6, deacons must be men of good repute. This means that they must have reputations of being godly and lawful and upright and honest as they handle people and money. These are the qualifications of our King. Deacons must be men of good repute.

This is what deacons must be. According to Acts 6, deacons must be men who are full of the Spirit. This means that they must exhibit the fruit of the Spirit - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. And this also means that as they address people’s needs under the sun on this old and fading earth they must be skillful in remembering the spirituality of the church. They ought to be heavenly minded. They ought to remember the spiritual realities and blessings we have in Christ that far outweigh things such as money or earthly relief. They ought to remind the people they minister to about the treasures that we will have in the new heavens and new earth when Jesus comes back. These are the qualifications of our King. Deacons must be men who are full of the Spirit.

This is what deacons must be. According to Acts 6, deacons must be men who are full of wisdom. This means that they must have good discernment and good judgment when it comes to interacting with problems. And, perhaps more importantly, they must have good discernment and good judgment when it comes to interacting with people. They are to be slow to speak, quick to listen, and slow to anger with church members. They are to be thoughtful and good at teamwork as they work together as a deacon board and as they work together with the session of their church. They are to know the difference between a church member who needs help and a church member who does not. In 2 Thessalonians 3, we are told that if people are idle and not willing to work, let them not eat. We are not to help such people. Instead, we are to command and encourage them in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living. This requires a lot of wisdom. In 1 Timothy 5, we are advised to enroll older widows to receive help, we are advised to not enroll younger widows who are able to remarry, and we are advised to have all widows first receive help from their own relatives. This requires a tremendous amount of wisdom. These are the qualifications of our King. Deacons must be men who are full of wisdom.

This is what deacons must be. According to 1 Timothy 3, deacons must be men who are dignified. This means that they must be gentlemen who are well mannered and mature and reverent and classy as they represent Christ. They must respect the office of deacon. They must respect the ministry of Christ. And deacons must be men who are not double-tongued. This means that they must not to say one thing but mean another, thereby descending into chaotic unreliability or plunging into destructive speech or gossip or lies about the very people whom they are ministering to. These are the qualifications of our King. Dignified. Not double-tongued.

This is what deacons must be. According to 1 Timothy 3, deacons must be men who are not addicted to much wine. The meaning of this is obvious. How ironic would it be if a deacon tried to help a church member who is struggling with alcohol addiction but in doing do ended up getting drunk together. Not good. Deacons may enjoy wine, but deacons must not be enslaved to wine.  And deacons must be men who are not greedy for dishonest gain. The meaning of this is obvious as well. Asking men who are greedy for dishonest gain to count and record and distribute the money that church members give each Sunday is asking for disaster. Not good. Deacons are to use money, not love money. These are the qualifications of our King. Not addicted to much wine. Not greedy for dishonest gain.

This is what deacons must be. According to 1 Timothy 3, deacons must be men who hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience; men who are tested first and proven to be blameless. This simply means that they must truly believe in the gospel of Jesus Christ and walk in a manner worthy of it. While deacons do not need to have the ability or skills to teach members about the gospel of Jesus Christ, deacons do need to have the ability and skills to encourage members about the gospel of Jesus Christ. They need to be good examples of faith, hope, and love for them. These are the qualifications of our King. Hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. Be tested first. Be proven blameless.

This is what deacons must be. According to 1 Timothy 3, a deacon must be the husband of one wife. This simply means that a deacon must exhibit faithfulness in his marriage to his wife. He must reflect Christ and his love for his bride that is the church. A deacon must reflect that in his marriage to his wife. This makes a whole lot of sense. If a deacon does not have the mindset of using his headship in his marriage to serve his wife and love his wife and care for the spiritual well-being of his wife, then how can he use the ministry of the office of deacon to serve God’s people and love God’s people and care for the spiritual well-being of God’s people? These are the qualifications of our King. The husband of one wife.

This is what deacons must be. According to 1 Timothy 3, the wife of a deacon must be dignified, not a slanderer, sober-minded, and faithful in all things. This is interesting. We see here that the wife of a deacon must meet certain qualifications too. And there are parallels here. There is mirroring going on. Like their husbands, the wives of deacons must also be well mannered and mature and reverent and classy as they support the ministry of their husbands and as they may find themselves to be uniquely positioned to assist their husbands when it comes to showing compassion and care and charity toward church members who are female. Like their husbands, the wives of deacons must also be excellent at controlling their tongues and keeping confidentiality and respecting boundaries and not descend into destructive speech or gossip or lies or slander as they will at times be privy to information that their husbands know about church members. Like their husbands, the wives of deacons must also be more mindful of the things of heaven than things such as wine or earthly gain. Like their husbands, the wives of deacons must also be women who walk in a manner worthy of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Quality deacons must have quality wives. These are the qualifications of our King. Dignified. Not a slanderer. Sober-minded. Faithful in all things.

This is what deacons must be. According to 1 Timothy 3, deacons must be men who manage their children and their own households well. This means that they must be fathers who are exercising good biblical leadership over their children. This means that they must be fathers who are exercising good biblical stewardship over their financial and material resources. These are the qualifications of our King. Manage their children well. Manage their own households well.

So that was part one of this sermon.

Dear Highland, I imagine that all of this may feel like a lot to you. But please listen to this simple but profound application. This is part two of this sermon. You should care about all of this. You should have great interest in the qualifications of deacons. And there are two reasons why.

First, dear Highland, you should care about all of this because it affects you. Think about it. All of this directly impacts you. Deacons exist to serve you and minister to you. Deacons exist for you. This is why you should care about today’s passage. This is why you should care about the qualifications for deacons.

Second, dear Highland, you should care about all of this because it is ultimately about Jesus. Think about it. This is about his royal and holy ministry to us. This is about his kingship. This is about his righteous and glorious and majestic glory. This is about his noble heart and pure mind and sacred will for our well-being. This is about his heavenly compassion and care and charity for us so that we are not neglected in his joy - in the joy of his salvation. This is about him.

Perhaps it would help you if you thought about this. Think about the person and work of Christ. Think about his “qualifications,” his résumé, or his CV - his curriculum vitae (“v-tie” or “v-tay” or “vie-tee”) - so to speak. He is perfect in his reputation. He was the perfect and spotless Lamb that was slain. Jesus saved us with his wisdom. Jesus has given us the Holy Spirit. Jesus’ words are pure and absolute truth. Our God does not lie. Jesus laid down his life in order to gain us. He emptied himself by taking the form of a servant. Jesus is perfectly and infinitely faithful to his bride that is the church. Jesus is in everything preeminent. He upholds the universe by the word of his power.

In other words: Jesus is the Deacon of all deacons. And while the ministry of deacons is for us, it is not ultimately about any of us. It is ultimately about Jesus. It is ultimately about our King. This is why you should care about today’s passage. This is why you should care about the qualifications for deacons.

Soon and very soon, we will, Lord willing, receive deacons for our church. New English-speaking deacons for the first time ever here at Highland. This is exciting… for Jesus. This is historic… for him. Praise be to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

May the Lord Jesus Christ give us men who are qualified to be deacons for our church. May the Lord bless today’s congregational vote. May the grace of Christ be upon you all. Amen.

Soli Deo Gloria