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This article is an extract from my short book, Jesus, Disciple, Mission, Church (JDMC). The bite-sized piece below is roughly two percent of the book.
Deacons
Sometimes, in the early years as communities of believers formed, individuals or small teams were given particular tasks, often when there was a specific need. The men and women who were given these tasks were called ‘deacons’ (Greek ‘diakonos’). The word at its root means ‘dust kickers’, people who would run errands. Over time it came to have a more general meaning in everyday Greek, servant’, ‘waiter’ or ‘administrator’. Deacons in the early church were about getting things done.
At their first mention (in Acts 6:1-6) they were responsible for giving out aid to Greek widows who had been previously overlooked, but the task could be anything else that needed regular and reliable attention. For more on deacons see 1 Timothy 3:8-13).
Think it through – Read some of the passages about deacons and consider the
people who were chosen to do the work. Can you identify people doing
some of these things in the church today? (They may or may not be called
‘deacons’.) Do deacons have command authority or knowledge and wisdom
authority?
Pastors
Pastor is an old fashioned English word for ‘shepherd’. Read about the The shepherding gift in the section on The APEST gifts, JDMC page 42. Bear in mind that there are many people today called ‘pastor’ who are administrators, teachers and managers. This is not the same thing as the gift of shepherding.
Priests
Where does this title come from and what does it mean? In the Old Testament we read about priests and, in particular the ‘High Priest’ or ‘Chief Priest’ (2 Chronicles 19:11). The priests were members of a single family, descended from Aaron and his sons (Exodus 29:44). The men of this family were responsible for offering sacrifices on the altar, first in the Tabernacle and later in the Temple. An animal would be slaughtered and offered on behalf of the people when they had transgressed the law in some way. A sin offering was required for forgiveness (Leviticus 4:27-31). The priest acted as a go-between, taking the living animal and offering its life (the blood) in place of the sinner’s life, a substitutionary sacrifice.
Priests today are church leaders who offer the bread and wine on our behalf, a role that the New Testament clearly states is not required. All who believe in and follow Jesus are priests! (1 Peter 2:9) We offer Christ’s substitutionary sacrifice to all who will accept him. We are the go-betweens, and need no-one to bring us into the Presence of the Father, something Jesus has already done once and for all (John 14:9).
Consider – Were the priests helpful towards Jesus or a hindrance? (eg
Matthew 16:21) How do you suppose the church made the mistake of
thinking we still need this role today? Think about the role of Jesus as our
Great High Priest and our role as a Royal Priesthood (Hebrews 4:14).
Bishops, elders, deacons, pastors and priests today
(Bishops and elders were considered in the previous post in this series.) Many denominations use these words in a different sense than the early church. Often they are used for organisational roles. But if we see church as a living organism rather than an organisation we will also need to understand these terms in living ways instead.
Consider – Do we need to identify certain people as bishops, elders and
deacons? Paul identified them, think about how he saw them and why he
regarded them as necessary and useful. Did he see them as functions of
control or of service? How do we see them? And is there a role for pastors
and priests?
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This was extracted from Jesus, Disciple, Mission, Church (JDMC), pages 47 and 48. Download the whole thing or read it online – GetJDMC.scilla.org.uk
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