Roles and Relationships of the Diaconate

The point: Embrace God's ordering of delegated responsibility and serve as a ministry of helps to free elders from encumbrances.

The father's responsibility for all aspects of the family, even delegating tasks to a competent wife, is used to illustrate the elders' umbrella responsibility for the church and the delegated nature of deacons' work.

be argued that in the household, the father has responsibility for every aspect of the life of the family. And a wife might want to say, well, there's this area that he's really bad at, and I need to take it over. Well, that's not her prerogative, is it? The prerogative, the responsibility of the father and the husband is to be responsible for all areas. Now, if he's a wise father, he will ask that competent wife for her headship,

13:41 - 14:21 Read in full sermon

Driving home: We're in a monarchy here with Christ as the head of his church ruling through his word.

The American system of checks and balances in civil government is used as a contrast to the church's structure, arguing that this model is defective for elder-deacon relationships, as the church is a monarchy under Christ.

May I speak to three models that I think are defective three models that are defective in this church. In this area of possible relationships between the deacons and the elders. We live in a a country that's been blessed. A country that was men very wisely saw the possibility of tyranny in civil government and they developed under God's guidance a system of government here checks and balances of controls in the central government

21:34 - 22:18 Read in full sermon

Driving home: We're in a monarchy here with Christ as the head of his church ruling through his word.

The role of a company comptroller, who controls the purse strings, is used to illustrate a defective model where deacons act as financial controllers, undermining the elders' ultimate responsibility for all church operations.

There's a second model, which is often very effective, and that's for the deacons to serve as a controller, or I always say comptroller, so I know how to spell it. I looked it up, and they say it's just an erroneous spelling, but many of the companies have a comptroller. He's the man with his finger on the purse strings or on the checkbook, and nothing happens without his signature, and it can become an aspect, well, this is one of the ways that we're going to control what happens around here and make sure everything is in agreement with the way that the deacons see it,

24:24 - 25:05 Read in full sermon

The point: Work with the umbrella concept of the elders' full responsibility and be a 'gracious wife' who helps make them look good.

The analogy of a wife observing her husband's weaknesses (e.g., in finances) but not dividing the household's responsibilities based on them, is used to argue against deacons dividing church responsibilities based on elders' perceived weaknesses.

my pastor doesn't understand finances. He's not good at knowing how we should build a building. Well, there's probably a lot of things that your wife would say about you that you're not particularly good at either. But that doesn't mean that she gets to divide the household into the things that you can do and the things that you can't do. No, we

26:50 - 27:11 Read in full sermon

The point: Work with the umbrella concept of the elders' full responsibility and be a 'gracious wife' who helps make them look good.

The analogy of a gracious wife helping her husband look good (e.g., picking out ties) is used to encourage deacons to bring a gracious spirit to their service, ensuring the whole household of God operates as one unit under the elders' leadership.

need to see there's a uniformity here, a solidarity between the physical and the practical aspects of the church, and that we fight against anything that would start to divide that into two camps and say, well, he's good at that, and I'm good at this, and that's the way we're going to do it. No, we have to work, again, with that umbrella concept of the full responsibility of the elders. And for us to be, if I can say, the gracious wife who helps make him look good, just like your wife tries to make you look good, because I don't know how to pick out ties, that's

27:11 - 27:51 Read in full sermon

The point: Have the eye of a servant or maid, always looking to help where you can.

A personal story of observing a house servant in Pakistan who was constantly attentive to his master's slightest gesture is used to vividly illustrate the desired subordinate relationship of deacons to pastors, characterized by eager readiness to serve.

Here's the picture, again, set in general terms, a servant who looks to the hand of the master, the eyes of the maiden looks to her mistress. I had a very real example of that just a year ago when I was privileged to go over to Pakistan. There was a man there who was a house servant. He had been raised as a house servant in a well-to-do house, and his elderly mistress had died, and the trustee of the estate was there just on like two weeks every once in a while,

31:23 - 32:05 Read in full sermon

The point: Be faithful in your tasks, ensuring they are completed to free elders from distraction.

The frustration of a manager who gives a task and then has to follow up to ensure it's done is used to highlight the value of a deacon's faithfulness in completing assignments, thereby freeing elders from distraction.

Under this, two ideas, two headings, and there's much in the scriptures, to talk about faithfulness, and I just commend it as a key word where it talks about a faithful man. Are you being a faithful man in what you do? Do you see that the tasks really do get completed, that are done? Isn't that one of the most frustrating things if you're in a position of management, that you give a task, and then you have to remember to follow up and see that it really got done the way you wanted it to get done?

34:23 - 34:56 Read in full sermon

The point: Be humble in the tasks you are requested to perform, even if they are distasteful or small.

The example of deacons being called to handle distasteful or small tasks like a nest of yellow jackets is used to illustrate the need for humility in service, turning potential humiliation into an opportunity to serve the Lord.

I'm sure there's things that we all get called in. The plumbing, the other things that are distasteful, small.

37:38 - 37:48 Read in full sermon

The point: Turn potential humiliation from small or distasteful tasks into humility by doing them as unto the Lord.

The example of a painting job in the foyer that went unnoticed is used to illustrate that much of a deacon's work, when done well, will not be seen or appreciated, requiring humility and the understanding that God sees it.

I'm going to turn this, God sees it, and I'm going to turn it to his glory and at least I will be doing it with a heart of service toward him. Like that, when your service, when your service is not seen, when it's not noticed, when it's not appreciated, that's a time when pride is not real happy. Pride likes to be noticed. And probably none of you complimented us on our painting job out in the foyer.

38:16 - 38:48 Read in full sermon

The point: Facilitate the work of the people of God by helping them find arenas and opportunities for service in the church.

The analogy that it sometimes takes more work to get work done (e.g., having kids help wash the car) is used to explain that facilitating others' service requires effort, but is crucial for developing the gifts of the people of God.

And to give ourselves there as far as developing opportunities for service for the people of God. And we, again, sometimes it takes more work to get work done than it does to do work. Does that make sense? Sometimes it's easier to just go wash the car than to have your kids help you.

48:15 - 48:38 Read in full sermon