Question: "What are the responsibilities of
deacons in the church?"
Answer: In the New Testament, the word usually
translated "serve" is the Greek word diakoneo ,
which literally means "through the dirt." It
refers to an attendant, a waiter, or one who
ministers to another. From this word we get the
English word “deacon.” We first see the word
"deacon" used this way in the book of Acts.
“And the twelve summoned the full number of
the disciples and said, "It is not right that we
should give up preaching the word of God to
serve tables” ( Acts 6:2 ). The men who were
giving themselves to feeding the flock by
preaching and teaching realized that it wasn’t
right for them to leave those activities to wait
tables, so they found some other men who were
willing to serve, and put them in place to
minister to the church’s physical needs while
the elders or pastors ministered to their spiritual
needs. It was a better use of the resources they
were given, and a better use of everyone’s gifts.
It also got more people involved in serving and
helping one another.
Today, for the biblical church, these roles are
essentially the same. Elders and pastors are to
“preach the word…reprove, rebuke, and exhort,
with complete patience and teaching” ( 2
Timothy 4:2 ), and deacons are to be appointed
to take care of everything else. In a modern
church, this might include taking on
administrative or organizational tasks, ushering,
being responsible for building maintenance, or
volunteering to be the church treasurer. It
depends on the need and the gifts of the
available men.
The responsibilities of a deacon are not clearly
listed or outlined; they are assumed to be
everything that does not include the duties of
an elder or pastor, which is to preach, teach,
and exhort. But qualifications for a deacon’s
character are clearly outlined in Scripture. They
are to be blameless, the husband of one wife, a
good household manager, respectable, honest,
not addicted to alcohol and not greedy ( 1
Timothy 3:8-12 ). According to the Word, the
office of deacon is an honor and a blessing.
“For those who serve well as deacons gain a
good standing for themselves and also great
confidence in the faith that is in Christ
Jesus” ( 1 Timothy 3:13 ).
