Deacons

Servant • Sermon • Submitted 7 years ago

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The purpose of this sermon is to display the Godly characteristics of God's special servants and how we all should emulate them.

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Be the person you needed someone to be…

1 Timothy 3:8–13 ESV

Deacons likewise must be dignified, not double-tongued, not addicted to much wine, not greedy for dishonest gain. They must hold the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. And let them also be tested first; then let them serve as deacons if they prove themselves blameless. Their wives likewise must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things. Let deacons each be the husband of one wife, managing their children and their own households well. 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.

Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations 3103 The Ten Most-Wanted Men

The Ten Most-Wanted Men

1. The man who puts God’s business above any other business.

2. The man who brings his children to church rather than sends them.

3. The man who is willing to be the right example to every boy he meets.

4. The man who thinks more of his Sunday School class than he does his Sunday Sleep.

5. The man who measures his giving by what he has left rather than by the amount he gives.

6. The man who goes to church for Christ’s sake rather than for himself or someone else.

7. The man who has passion to help rather than to be helped.

8. The man who can see his own faults before he sees the faults of others.

9. The man who stands firm in his convictions, based on the Word of God, i.e. a “backbone” Christian.

10. The man who is more concerned about winning souls for Christ than he is about winning honor.

—Western Messenger

When we think of the office of deacons, we remember that it is not one to be taken lightly. Instead we remember this office was likely first held by great men such as Stephen and Philip. Great preachers and a great martyr. These men were great deacons.

Be a Servant

Deacon

The word appears 37 times in the N.T. and most often in Jesus’s parables

God’s greatest people have been described as servants:

Moses—.

James—.

Peter—.

Jude—.

John—.

Difference between “a slave” and “a servant”

Servant “has the special quality of indicating very personally the service rendered to another” (Beyer 81)…. The δουλ- words express a relationship of dependence and the subordination of the δοῦλος to the κύριος. Διακονέω and its cognates, on the other hand, express much more strongly the idea of service on behalf of someone.

Horst Robert Balz and Gerhard Schneider, (Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1990), 302.

Make me a Servant

, “Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ”

Character of God’s Servants—1 Timothy 3:8-12

Grave (ASV; KJV) dignified (ESV); men of dignity (NASB). “Worthy of respect/honor, noble, dignified, serious” “semnotes—behavior above the ordinary and therefore worthy of respect” (BDAG)

Traits you won’t find in them.

Not “double tongued” or “insincere”

Insincerity can present itself in faith, worship, and relationships.

Be real

Illustrations for Biblical Preaching Hypocrisy

In any great forest you will find many huge trees. They tower above other trees and appear to be the very picture of strength and maturity. However, loggers will sometimes not even bother to cut down these huge trees. At first one wonders, “Why leave them? After all, a tree that big must contain twice or thrice the amount of lumber as a smaller tree.”

The reason is simple. Huge trees are often rotten on the inside. They are the hollow trees that children’s picture books show raccoons living in. And they are the trees that are often blown over in a strong windstorm because, while they appear to be the picture of strength, in fact their hollowness makes them weak.

This is the essence of hypocrisy—appearing strong on the outside but hollow and rotten on the inside.

Not given to much wine

Not greedy for dishonest gain

Traits you will find in them.

Holding the faith with a clear conscience

Proven to be good stewards

Good husbands with good wives

Good fathers with good children

Reward of God’s Servants—

Those who serve well

gain a good standing

gain a great confidence in the faith

Application

We need great men.

Encyclopedia of 7700 Illustrations 875 Wanted: Hundred Men

John Wesley said, “Give me a hundred men who fear nothing but sin, and desire nothing but God, and I will shake the world. I care not a straw whether they be clergymen or laymen; and such alone will overthrow the kingdom of Satan and build up the Kingdom of God on earth.”

A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 3rd ed. σεμνός