Articles
Serving With the Zeal of a Deacon
In Christianity, deacons are servants of God who are living examples of Christ’s teachings. Deacons are given duties to help their church function daily. They take care of handling church taxes, changing lightbulbs, scheduling tasks for Sunday worship, etc. 1 Timothy 3:8-13 lists some of the qualifications a deacon should have such as: being sober, non-hypocritical, ungreedy, and dignified. Regardless of their position, every member of God’s church should strive to achieve the righteous qualities of a deacon.
Acts 6:1-7 tells a story of the early church where certain widows were being ignored during the daily distribution of food. Since the apostles had their own duties within the church, they picked seven men among the disciples to handle the matter on their behalf. Acts 6:3 describes these men as, “men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom.” These seven men weren’t labeled as deacons and probably didn’t have the same duties as them. However, they were picked by the apostles because they spiritually could be trusted. Like deacons, these men knew God’s truth and had a conscionable faith. (1 Timothy 3:9)
If children of God desire to serve Him with the devotion of a deacon, then they should be assessing their actions with His teachings. God tells His children in Isaiah 43:4, that we are precious, as well as honored in His sight, and that He loves us. God’s love for us is so great that He sacrificed His perfect son as an atonement for our sins. Jesus was the perfect servant of God because He remained fully obedient to Him, even on the cross. Proverbs 21:3 says, “To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the Lord than sacrifice.” Therefore, the task of every child of God is to demonstrate Jesus’ teachings. 1 Corinthians 3:17 says, “And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”
No matter your race, gender, ethnicity, or title, you have the ability to act like a deacon and bring glory to your Heavenly Father every day. God created you. He loves you. As His child, He asks that you show your love for Him by willingly and lovingly obeying His teachings. 2 Peter 1:5-11 says, “Make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. For if these qualities are yours and are increasing, they keep you from being ineffective or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ…Therefore, brothers, be all the more diligent to confirm your calling and election, for if you practice these qualities you will never fall. For in this way there will be richly provided for you an entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”
