Paul wrote about “liars whose consciences are seared” (1 Tim. 4:2 ESV). What did he mean? What is a seared conscience? For that matter, what is the conscience? Our conscience is our inner voice that inflicts us with feelings of guilt when we have sinned (Rom 2:15). The interesting thing about the conscience is that it can be wrong and can even completely fail to work!
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Ever since I was a child, I’ve heard Christians say things such as, “Times are really bad. We are surely living in the last days.” Indeed, things are getting really bad in our world. Society is becoming godless and secular. Gross immorality is put on display in TV shows, movies, and music. Many churches have compromised and allowed the surrounding culture to influence them more than the Bible. Is this what Paul meant when he wrote 1 Timothy 4:1?
Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons, (1 Tim. 4:1 ESV)
Are we living in the later times Paul spoke of? Yes, we can be absolutely certain that we are living in the last days. How can we be so certain we are living in the later times? We can be sure because the later times began over 2,000 years ago with the establishment of the New Covenant.
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Can women serve as deacons? Does the Bible have anything to say about women deacons? As a matter of fact, the New Testament does mention a woman who was a deacon:
I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a deacon of the church in Cenchreae. (Rom. 16:1 NIV)
At first glance, one might conclude from this verse that the Bible authorizes women deacons. However, we’d be irresponsible Bible students if we were to jump to that conclusion just from reading this verse.
Most English translations do not use the word deacon in Romans 16:1. Instead, they use servant which is what the word deacon actually means. If English Bibles were consistent in translation, we’d never see the word deacon in the Bible; we’d only see servant. So, was Phoebe a servant in the same sense that all Christians are servants of God? Or, was Phoebe specifically appointed to be a designated servant in the church (like in Acts 6)?
Continue reading →Deacons are servants in the church. While the primary focus of deacons is not spiritual, deacons must be spiritually minded. Just because someone is dedicated to the church and is a dependable, hard working person, this alone does not qualify a person to serve as a deacon. The Bible does not allow just anyone to be a pastor. Likewise, it does not allow just anyone to be a deacon.
1 Timothy 3:8 begins listing the requirements of deacons. The word “likewise” in v. 8 connects the biblical requirements of deacons with the previous list of requirements for overseers. Several of the same concepts and character traits the Bible requires of overseers are equally applicable to deacons. Just as overseers must be dignified and worthy of respect, so it is to be for deacons. In addition, God expects them to have self control in the areas of speech, alcohol, and money.
Continue reading →Deacons are servants. The word deacon is a transliteration of the New Testament Greek word diakonos. A transliterated word isn’t the same as a translated word. Translators “borrow” transliterated words from the source language and spell them with roughly equivalent letters in the target language. When the word diakonos appears in the New Testament it is usually, but not always, translated as servant.
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