The deacon's calling

The diaconate involves far more than collecting and distributing money. This opening session traces the office from Acts 6 through the early church and asks what a deacon is for in a congregation where few are poor.

Outline

• Acts 6 and the need that gave rise to the office.
• The deacon’s qualifications, and why they so closely resemble the elder’s.
• Mercy as a ministry of the Word, not a substitute for it.
• Need that is not financial: loneliness, illness, old age and family breakdown.

For discussion

1. Who in your congregation is carrying a need that no one has noticed?
2. What would change if the deacons visited as regularly as the elders?