A Conversation about Deacons · S4E6

10:48 with what Brandon said. I didn't grow up in a church, so I didn't have that baggage experientially, but I've experienced it in dealing with people who have come out of that background. So I think That's a major misunderstanding, unbiblical perspective, right? So we got to be clear that that is an unbiblical perspective, and it's not healthy for the functioning of the church, right? That's a great point. I think, and that's part of educating our folks who have come out of those kinds of backgrounds to understand that the distinction and the design of those different roles by Christ, the head of the church. That's not us defining that. That's Christ defining it, right? And the other thing is, as you referenced, I think a lot of people don't even know, you know, what are the deacons?

11:48 Right. And I think a critical part of what Brandon said to kind of expand on one of his points is the idea that, and you brought this out in previous broadcasts, but the idea that, A, we're all servants. That's right. Right? That's part of our idea. Without doubt. Let He who's greatest among you be servant of all, right? That's right. As we're being conformed to the image of Christ, we're all servants. But we want our deacons to be examples, right, to be exemplary, and not only to do the work of serving, but to do the service in the church of mobilizing the body and being able to help the body, enlist the body to use their gifts. So we're all growing and using our gifts, and the body is being built up by the benefit that each individual person brings to the body. And so when we're having our membership interviews and talking with people and talking about our vision for every member ministry, we want them to be blessed by having a context where they can exercise those gifts for the common good, but then also be the recipients of the body exercising their gifts for their personal flourishing.

13:19 Yes, there's so much that I love what you said, but one piece that kind of keeps coming out in the dialogue is that when we start thinking about the ministry of the deacons, the end goal is the health of the church. So we want the church to be healthy. So when we say things like, some church traditions have practiced this different than the Bible, it's not just a fight about like right and wrong. So it's not us being like, we're right and those guys are wrong. We're saying, we believe the Bible says this, and this is what God designed for us to be healthy and flourishing. And our desire is for all churches to be healthy and flourishing and like Christ. And to have biblical fidelity.

13:57 It's not a matter of like, hey, well, we think that expression looks best this way or this. No, I mean, it came from the Lord, right? It's ordained. And so it's the best way to do. We should follow it. And to your point, Christ is the head of the church, right? We acknowledge that the Bible's clear on that. It's his church. That's right. And he exercises his headship by his spirit through his word. Right. And then that's worked out with the oversight of the elders and in the context of the body. So, of course, that's going to be the place of flourishing. And that's what we want. I love that. When we encourage people to serve, we do need people to serve. but it's not only or even maybe primarily that we want that for their flourishing and for the flourishing of the body.

14:50 I love that. So here at the summit, we're like mission obsessed in a good way. Like it's one of the reasons I'm so committed to stay here is because everything we're doing is driven towards disciple making disciples. You and us both. Come on. We're in it together. That's right. But I think sometimes when people think about the ministry of the deacons, it can be difficult for them to recognize how deacons are connected to mission. So as you guys think about the ministry of the deacons, what makes that ministry strategic for the mission of God in the world? I think everything that we said, really, I think that their role is critical because they are really focused. There's a couple of reasons. I mean, as we referenced in Acts chapter six, That was the birth of the New Testament church.

15:44 100%. They're exploding. Yes. The gospel's going forward. People are being converted, gathering into the 3,000 souls are gathering. And there were physical needs, tangible, temporal, material needs that needed to be met. Yes. And so the deacons, and when they said, it's not right for us to neglect what Christ has prioritized for us. but they need to be addressed. And so choose from among you men who are full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom. That's good. And that's a point we need to emphasize as well. These are spiritual offices, right? Their focus may not be specifically on ministering the word of God in a formal sense or leading the body in prayer in a formal sense, but they do that.

16:43 Of course. So our deacons speak the word of God to people they minister to. They pray with people that they minister to. It's always a spiritual focus and dynamic. And so it's absolutely critical for the mission, right? And we always talk about from a benevolent or deacon standpoint, we're not just looking to stroke a check and meet somebody's temporal need. We're looking to meet those needs, but then also to build relationships so that we could walk with people for the long haul and influence them with the truth and the gospel of Christ. So walking with them, loving them, right? And caring for their needs is a tangible way to express the love of Christ and the transforming power of the grace of Christ through the gospel.