God's Gift of Deacons

Summary

Ronald Pearce wrote this article for New Horizons, the denominational magazine of the Orthodox Presbyterian Church. From the neglected Greek-speaking widows of Acts 6, he argues that the diaconate was created because mercy ministry mattered too much to be left undone: the office guards a congregation’s unity and joy by making sure no one is overlooked.

Walking through the qualifications of 1 Timothy 3:8-13, he insists that financial or organizational skill cannot substitute for godliness and sound doctrine, since deacons minister at deep levels of human need. The work he describes frees the elders for the Word, validates the church’s message with visible compassion, and accompanies rather than replaces gospel proclamation.

Quoting George C. Fuller, he warns that to denigrate the office of deacon is “practical heresy.”

Excerpt

It was not because the care of widows was unimportant that it was given to deacons. It was because ministry of mercy was so important that a new office was created. In and of itself, it would have been good for the apostles to show Christ’s love by serving tables and getting involved in the nitty-gritty of caring for widows. James, the Lord’s brother, who was in the Jerusalem church at this time, would write some years later, “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world” (Jas. 1:27). Do not think for a minute that the office of deacon is a lesser office. As George C. Fuller puts it, “To denigrate the high office of deacon is practical heresy” (“The High Calling of Deacon,” in Resources for Deacons, by Timothy J. Keller, p. 11).

God's Gift of Deacons

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