“WHY DO WE DO THAT?” – CHURCH OFFICES
1 Timothy 3:1-13
FBCF – 1/29/23
Jon Daniels
INTRO – I took this book out of the glove compartment in my pickup truck. It’s the owner’s manual for my 2014 Toyota Tacoma. Gives me everything I need to know to operate my vehicle safely & effectively – how to start it; how to drive it; what to do if I have problems with it. If I follow these guidelines, I should be able to drive my truck from one place to another, & my truck will fulfill the purpose for which it was made.
Along w/ being a book that contains history, poetry, narrative, prophecy & other genres, the Bible is also God’s owner’s manual for our lives. He’s the owner of our lives And it’s the owner’s manual for the Church, too, b/c He’s the Owner of the Church. If we follow the guidelines for our personal lives, we will be able to live & function the way a follower of Jesus should live & function. And if we follow the guidelines that the Owner of the Church has put in it for His Church, we will be able to function the way that He wants us to function. We will fulfill the purposes for which the Church exists – love God; love others; worship God; proclaim the Gospel; make disciples of all nations.
One thing that God’s Owner’s Manual for the Church tells us is that there are 2 offices in a NT Church: Elder/Pastor & Deacon. Last message in “Why Do We Do That?” series.
EXPLANATION – 1 Timothy 3:1-13
APPLICATION – Pastors & deacons working together bring glory to God & growth to His Church.
A WORD STUDY: 4 words that we need to define:
“Pastor”, “elder”, & “overseer” are used interchangeably in the NT to describe the same office.
- “pastor” – poimenas – shepherd –
o Ephesians 4:11 – “And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds [pastors] and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ.”
o Same word Jesus used in John 10:11 – “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.”
- “elder” – presbyteros – can mean “old man” – Acts 2:17 – “…your old men shall dream dreams…”
o But in ministry of NT church, means “a leader” – Titus 1:5 – “This is why I left you in Crete, so that you might put what remained into order, and appoint elders in every town as I directed you.”
o 1 Timothy 5:17 – “Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching.”
- “overseer” – episcope – office of church leader – sometimes call a bishop –
o 1 Timothy 3:1 – “The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task.”
“Deacon” is the only word that describes the other office in a NT church.
- “deacon” – diakonos – a servant; one entrusted to serve the needs of believers – 1 Timothy 3:8
- Interesting that Jesus came to “serve” – diakoneo (Mark 10:45 – “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve [diakoneo] & to give His life as a ransom of many.”) Romans 15:8 says that “Christ became a servant” – a deacon [diakonos].
- According to Jesus, if we want to be great, then we must be a “deacon” – Mark 10:43 – “…whoever would be great among you must be your servant [diakonos]…”
A WORK STUDY: Now that we’ve defined the words, let’s define the work:
- “pastor”, “elder”, “overseer” – Using the NT definitions of those words, we can readily see that pastors/elders/overseers have the joyful, serious responsibility of shepherding the members of the Church. What does a shepherd do for his flock of sheep?
o Leads them
o Feeds & cares for them
o Protects them predators & thieves
o Fights for them when attacks come
o Corrects them & gets them back on the path
o Sacrificing his life for them, if necessary
o Teaching them the way to go
- “deacon” – an office of joyful, serious servanthood.
o Support the work & the vision of the pastors
o Provide logistical & material support so that the pastors can focus on the Word of God & on prayer.
o Whereas the title of “overseer” makes it clear that the pastors have the responsibility for the general oversight of the spiritual wellbeing of the church body, the title “deacon” indicates a more service-oriented ministry.
o No clear functions delineated in NT for deacons, but based on pattern established in Acts 6, deacons are servants who do whatever is necessary to allow the pastors to accomplish their God-given calling of shepherding & teaching the Church. Lots of flexibility on what the specific duties of deacons can be. But w/ pastors & deacons working together, what a team! Mark Dever – “…the concern of the deacons are the practical details of church life: administration, maintenance, & the care of church members w/ physical needs.”
o Which leads to…
A WHY STUDY: As our sermon series title asks, “Why Do We Do That?”, why do we have these 2 offices.
- It’s biblical – We must function biblically as a church. And the clear teaching of the Bible is that these 2 offices are supposed to be in place, functioning according the principles set forth in the Word.
- It’s structural – It provides the framework for the ongoing work of the Gospel for our church. The Church must have pastors to move the church forward in proclaiming the Gospel to the lost & making disciples. And the Church must have deacons to support that & provide the help needed in many different areas.
- It’s functional – We function properly as a NT Church when these 2 offices are functioning properly. Many churches are DYS-functional b/c they do not function properly. But when a church is functioning the way that God has set it up to function, it will grow spiritually & numerically.
- It’s needful – The members of the Church need the teaching, prayer, & spiritual oversight of their pastors, & they need the servant ministry of the deacons. Deacons need their pastors to help them stay focused on the Lord & on His plans for their lives. Pastors need godly deacons who are strong in their walk w/ the Lord. Many times, a pastor needs the servant ministry of the deacons in his own life. Regularly tell our deacons they’re my “go to guys.” I need them praying for me, listening to me, helping me. And I’m thankful to have them in my life!
“I’m not a pastor or a deacon. So how does this sermon apply to me?” 3 things we all need in our lives:
ASSURANCE OF OUR CALLING – Every Christ-follower has a calling. And 2 Peter 1:10 tells us to make every effort to “make your calling & election sure” (KJV). God calls us to salvation, confirms that calling through the indwelling work of the Holy Spirit, then commands us to live to glorify Him for the rest of our lives. Pastors & deacons are specifically called by God to serve the Church, but all of us are called by God to be saved & to live for Him. Do you have that assurance in your life today?
COMMITMENT TO OUR TASKS – We’ve already seen that pastors & deacons have specific tasks that they are to perform in serving God & His Church. But ALL of us have specific tasks to do as we live for Christ. Two tasks that EVERY Christ-follower should be doing are:
- Witnessing – Acts 1:8
- Discipling – 2 Timothy 2:2
JOY IN OUR LIVES – I love being a pastor & I love being your pastor. The deacons in this church love being deacons & they love being your deacons. But our joy doesn’t come from being a pastor or a deacon – our joy comes from knowing Christ Jesus. During the times when it’s easy to be the pastor & deacons of this church, our joy comes from Christ, not our circumstances. During the times when it’s hard to be the pastor & deacons of this church, our joy doesn’t change b/c it STILL comes from Christ, not our circumstances.
ALL of us have joy in our hearts. It’s part of the fruit of the Spirit. Circumstances don’t take our joy away b/c it is built on the rock-solid truth of who Christ is, what He’s done, & what He is doing & going to do in our lives. Sam Storms: “Joy is not necessarily the absence of suffering, it is the presence of God.”
