Deacon: Divine Encouragements to Deacons

In this part of the sermon: The first encouragement is that the office and function of a godly deacon is a special manifestation of the glory of Christ, as seen in 2 Corinthians 8:23 where the messengers of…

The outshining of the perfections of the Lord is compared to the rays of the sun being the outshining of the sun's essence, making its rays its glory.

Now here at this point, with reference to many of the details, of the ongoing endeavor of connecting this benevolence, the apostle says that this grace, this gift, this offering, as the NIV translates it, is ministered by us to the glory of the Lord. Now the glory of the Lord is the outshining of the perfections of the Lord. As the rays of the sun are the outshining of the essence of the sun, and in that sense, its rays are its glory. So the glory of the Lord is the outshining of the perfections inherent in the Lord Himself. And here, the benevolence offering itself, called a grace, describes ...

13:04 - 14:33 Read in full sermon

The point: See how significant your ministry is in preserving and promoting the priorities of prayer and preaching by freeing elders from table-serving tasks.

The effect of Peter's preaching on Pentecost is likened to a dagger stabbing hearts, emphasizing that preaching, not external phenomena, brought conviction.

of Pentecost with men speaking in languages they had not acquired in the natural way the sound of a rushing mighty wind the tongues and flames of fire over the head they were all but attention getters and when the crowd was gathered what did God do he raised up a preacher began to preach when were people cut to the heart not when they heard the rushing mighty wind not when they heard every man these men speaking in their own dialects the mighty works of God there's no record that they were cut to the heart no record they were cut to the heart by the sight of the flaming tongues over the head o...

28:54 - 30:23 Read in full sermon

The point: Give yourself to jealous concerns that the man of God who ministers the word need never fear embarrassment due to the physical state of the meeting place.

Martin describes how a church's physical environment (cleanliness, order) impacts visitors' first impressions, either distracting from or positively disposing them to the preaching of the Word.

with gum wrappers on the floor and windows that have been washed and cobwebs on the chandeliers and fingerprints on the communion table no no he ought to be able to come into a place where everything reflects the decency and the order of the god in whose name and in whose presence you meet and where people are greeted and brought in and made to feel comfortable and ushers are doing their work quietly and unobtrusively where everything bespeaks both dignity and warmth welcome and earnestness well you see any man of god who is sensitive to the fact that the first impression often made when a vis...

39:16 - 40:44 Read in full sermon

The point: Be encouraged that your office and function are a great means to preserve and promote the priorities of prayer and preaching.

A hypothetical scenario where a true man of God would rather clean dirty walls himself than have visitors prejudiced against the preaching, highlighting the importance of deacons' work.

ten or fifteen barriers raised against being favorably disposed to the man of God when he preaches but when deacons do their work everything from sweet smelling toilets and urinals to clean sparkling glass and to freshly painted walls everything is such that no mind is distracted but is positively disposed to receive the message of the man of God because the context has reflected the God of decency and the God of order and if it's a true man of God if he has to come over and scrub the walls himself if the deacons won't beak and the people won't see the dirty walls and just come over uninvited ...

40:44 - 42:14 Read in full sermon

The point: Your very office shuts you up to a concentrated involvement in the very acts and deeds which will receive a concentrated commendation from Christ in the last day.

The quiet, often unseen nature of a deacon's service (visiting the sick, imprisoned) is contrasted with the elder's higher public profile, suggesting it's less prone to prideful motives.

the very nature of the eldership being a ruling office having a higher profile publicly how much easier it is for residual sin to be stirred up and for motives other than pure motives to be mingled with our higher public profile office and functions but there's the deacon quietly visiting the lonely christian in prison going by the sick bed his visit known only to the sick one his wife or husband and to the lord and to the deacon's wife you see there is something that is far more in keeping with the spirit that jesus said when you do an act of benevolence don't let your left hand know what you...

51:05 - 52:34 Read in full sermon

The point: Take comfort in the knowledge that your office and function has a special word of encouragement and promise from Christ, and pray for its full fulfillment.

Martin shares his personal practice of praying for the fulfillment of biblical promises he doesn't fully understand, trusting God to reveal their meaning through experience.

degrees of agreement but this much is clear every deacon sitting here should take comfort in the knowledge that the office and the function of a godly deacon has a special place in the office of a godly deacon has a special place has a special place has a special place has a special word of encouragement and promise from Christ and I find when there's a promise that I don't understand I say Lord you gave it you understand what it meant and whatever it means give it to me in full measure I've done that with more than one promise I've read it and prayed over it and used all the tools I knew to t...

62:57 - 64:25 Read in full sermon

The point: Take comfort in the knowledge that your office and function has a special word of encouragement and promise from Christ, and pray for its full fulfillment.

The deacon's role in benevolence is likened to a new covenant priest presenting spiritual sacrifices that are a 'sweet smell acceptable to God,' drawing from Philippians 4:18.

the promise meant thank you Lord you fulfilled that promise beyond my understanding of it even when I pleaded its fulfillment on my behalf well you say what are some of the other things you'd hope to develop well I'd sow the seed you look at Ephesians 4 Philippians 4 18 where Epaphroditus' benevolence gift to Paul is called a spiritual sacrifice an odor of a sweet smell acceptable to God think of your role as a deacon as being one of those new covenant priests who is uniquely privileged to be exercised in the presenting of spiritual sacrifices that smell sweet in the nostrils of God Paul says ...

64:25 - 65:53 Read in full sermon