The Deacon in Today's Church

The office of deacon is a unique and divine calling within the church. Although you were chosen by members of your church, you have been called and appointed by God himself to this role. The Christian Reformed Church regards the office of deacon as being of equal standing with the offices of elder and pastor. Although serving as a deacon has often wrongly been viewed as a stepping-stone to becoming an elder, each office has its own set of special leadership roles and responsibilities and requires specific gifts.

 

As Tamminga explains, there is a parallel between Christ’s three-fold office and that of the three special offices in the church. The ministerial office focuses on the prophetic exposition of God’s will in Christ for our salvation. The office of deacon focuses in a priestly way on blessing those in need. The office of elder represents Christ’s royal authority in ruling and caring for the church. Bear in mind that the three offices of prophet, priest, and king were not meant to be continued in the New Testament church. The traditional three-fold New Testament offices became more and more integrated into one unified ministry of the Word. The New Testament church proclaims the Word of salvation, is governed by the Word, and does the work of mercy as an expression of the Word in deed.

 

Article 25c of the Church Order further defines the deacons’ work of mercy:

 

The deacons shall represent and administer the mercy of Christ to all people, especially to those who belong to the community of believers, and shall stimulate the members of Christ’s church to faithful, obedient stewardship of their resources on behalf of the needy—all with words of biblical encouragement and testimony which assure the unity of word and deed.

 

In the form for Ordination of Elders and Deacons, the charge to deacons outlines very specific tasks involved in the ministry of mercy. When you were installed, you accepted responsibility “to inspire faithful stewardship in this congregation” as you

 

 

Together, realizing “that benevolence is a quality of our life in Christ and not merely a matter of financial assistance,” you will lead your congregation to

 

 

The action verbs in the list above emphasize your responsibility to inspire and lead the congregation, not to handle all the problems yourself. This requires proactive listening, networking with the larger community, and recognizing needs even before requests come to the diaconate.

 

Diaconal Ministries Canada (www.diaconalministries.com) describes the task of a deacon in four main areas:

 

You probably expect that your job will involve compassion and stewardship, and you likely understand that community ministry will be an important component. But you may not have realized that working for justice will also be a part of your calling: “What does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God” (Micah 6:8). As you carry out these defined tasks in your role as deacon, you will fulfill the final words of the charge you were ordained with: “Let your lives be above reproach; live as examples of Christ Jesus; look to the interests of others.”