Scripture

• 1 Here is a trustworthy saying: If anyone sets his heart on being an overseer, he desires a noble task.
• 2 Now the overseer must be above reproach, the husband of but one wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,
• 3 not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money.
• 4 He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him with proper respect.
• 5 (If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God's church?)
• 6 He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil.
• 7 He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil's trap.
• 8 Deacons, likewise, are to be men worthy of respect, sincere, not indulging in much wine, and not pursuing dishonest gain.
• 9 They must keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience.
• 10 They must first be tested; and then if there is nothing against them, let them serve as deacons.
• 11 In the same way, their wives are to be women worthy of respect, not malicious talkers but temperate and trustworthy in everything.
• 12 A deacon must be the husband of but one wife and must manage his children and his household well.
• 13 Those who have served well gain an excellent standing and great assurance in their faith in Christ Jesus.

What does it mean to be an elder or a deacon in the Church of Jesus Christ?

I. It's a noble task. It's a high honor. It's a great privilege.

Consider those whom we look up to: The President of the United States. The Chairman of the Board of a major corporation. The Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. We look up to those people. We admire them. We want to be like them. We envy them. We honor them. That's how we should think of the office of elder or deacon in the Church of Jesus Christ.

Why? Because it is just THAT, the Church of Jesus Christ, that He purchased and redeemed with His own blood. Ephesians 5:25-27 says....

• 25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her
• 26 to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word,
• 27 and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.

Jesus is King of Kings and Lord of Lords. The Church is His most beloved bride, the apple of His eye. What a high position, and a high honor, to be an officer in Christ's Church.

II. It's a personally challenging position. It requires great integrity and outstanding moral character.

The list of qualities presented here in I Timothy chapter three is an ideal that must be pursued diligently, but can never be fully reached in this life.

No man is above reproach. No man is always temperate, always self-controlled, always hospitable, always gentle, always humble, always generous, always a good father, always a good husband and always in control of his children.

I'm not that good, and I don't know any other pastors, deacons or elders who are that good. But this is an ideal that all elders and deacons acknowledge, and desire to attain to. We want to be like that. We strive to be like that. When we fail and fall, we pick ourselves up and keep on trying, like a runner in a foot race, or a driver in NASCAR. When we blow a tire, we get it fixed, and get back in the race. When we choose elders and deacons we are not looking for perfect men, but we are looking for men who WANT to be perfect. They want to be like Jesus.

Paul the Apostle expressed our feelings when he wrote in Romans 7:18-25...

• 18 I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.
• 19 For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do this I keep on doing.
• 20 Now if I do what I do not want to do, it is no longer I who do it, but it is sin living in me that does it.
• 21 So I find this law at work: When I want to do good, evil is right there with me.
• 22 For in my inner being I delight in God’s law;
• 23 but I see another law at work in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin at work within my members.
• 24 What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?
• 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!

III. It's a position of usefulness and service to the Church.

Church officers are "servant leaders." We are not lords over the Church. We are merely stewards. We are not here to fleece the flock, but to encourage the flock to bear more fleece for the Good Shepherd.

I Timothy 3:5 says it is the job of the elder, and the deacon, to take care of the Church. The Greek word is epimeleisetai, which can also be translated: to meet needs. Luke uses it this way in Acts 27:3...

• 3 The next day we landed at Sidon; and Julius, in kindness to Paul, allowed him to go to his friends so they might provide for his needs.

• the need of the Church for Bible teaching
• the need of the Church for confronting sin, and encouraging purity
• the need of the Church for food and clothing and housing
• the need of the Church for love and compassion
• the need of the Church for guidance and direction
• the need of the Church for standing in the community
• the need of the Church for organization
• the need of the Church for vision and purpose

Every ship needs a captain. Jesus is our captain. The Bible is our compass. But we also need officers to give direction to the crew and to the ship. And please remember, it is not the job of the ships officers to crew the ship. It is the job of the crew to run the engines, to paint what needs painting, to raise the sails, to fight the enemy. The Church is not a passenger ship, the Church is a war ship, and all the people in it are sailors, soldiers and marines. All chiefs and no indians won't work!

IV. It's a position with benefits (I Timothy 3:13).

Everyone wants a good job with good benefits: a retirement plan, stock options, health insurance, a company car, etc.

• 13 Those who have served well gain an excellent standing and great assurance in their faith in Christ Jesus.

If you serve well, you will be looked up to in the Church. People will praise you and admire you. People will speak well of you. You will "gain an excellent standing." This is nice. This is pleasurable. But this is also why Paul says to watch out for pride. Beware of conceit. Beware of thinking that you are better than you really are. God has a way of keeping His servants humble. And an elder or deacon who won't learn to be humble, pride goeth before a fall.

Great assurance in the Faith. Consider the end result of a lifetime of serving God and His Church. Do you remember the old proverb about habits?

Sow a thought and you reap an action;
sow an act and you reap a habit;
sow a habit and you reap a character;
sow a character and you reap a destiny.

The benefits of being a church officer are both temporal (in this life already) and eternal. If you are a deacon or elder trying hard to do well for the Church, and for Christ, you will be sowing good thoughts. You will be reaping good actions. You will be creating good habits. You will be developing a sterling character. You will be gaining great standing and rewards in your eternal destiny. Hebrews 11:6 says that God rewards those who seek and serve Him...

• 6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

Summary: We learn these four things about being a deacon or an elder:

• 1. It's a noble task to be a Church officer.
• 2. It's personally challenging to strive for such ideals.
• 3. It's a position of usefulness and service to the Church.
• 4. It's a position with accompanying benefits.

Return to Wayside Presbyterian Church home page...