DIAKONIA (Service)

WRITTEN BY DREW MATZ

What is the Word?

To be a Christian is to be a servant of all. In following Jesus, we are called to pick up our cross and follow him, laying down our own lives in the service of our God and our neighbor and proclaiming the Gospel to all nations. It is an invitation to embrace the kingdom of God and die to the world. The word we find used to illustrate this idea in the New Testament is diakonia.

“In following Jesus, we are called to pick up our cross and follow him, laying down our own lives in the service of our God and our neighbor”

How does the Bible use this word?

In Church, you may have noticed a group of people that are dedicated to the service of the congregation. They may serve in hospitality functions such as ushers, greeters, or stewards of the Church property. They may also help with charitable outreach and acts of mercy toward their communities. These people are often called deacons, derived from this Greek word diakonia. These deacons are also identified in the New Testament as those who are dedicated to the service of others within the Church community (Acts 6:1-6, 1 Tim 3:8-13).

Where in the Bible?

In his pastoral epistles, Paul gives us some criteria that are to be used when designating deacons to serve the church. In his first letter to Timothy, he gives us some guidelines about the type of character a deacon should possess:

Deacons (Διακόνους) 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 (διακονείτωσαν) as deacons if they prove themselves blameless. Their wives likewise must be dignified, not slanderers, but sober-minded, faithful in all things. Let deacons (Διάκονοι) each be the husband of one wife, managing their children and their own households well. For those who serve well (διακονήσαντες) as deacons gain a good standing for themselves and also great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus.

1 Timothy 3:8-13

This section is saturated with the language of servant/service. Because the deacons are a reflection upon the ministry of the church, it important for deacons to be good ambassadors for Christ and the Gospel, as they are in many ways the hands of the ministry and the most high profile members of the church members.

The word is also often used to denote the act of service in and of itself:

Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village. And a woman named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary, who sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted with much serving (διακονίαν). And she went up to him and said, “Lord, do you not care that my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her then to help me.” But the Lord answered her, “Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her.”

Here we see Luke’s account of Martha being so dedicated to service that she forgot that when push comes to shove, the only thing that is truly necessary is Jesus. This is not to say service is a bad thing, but must always be viewed in light of Christ. Our service is always an outworking of our devotion to him.

Being the Hands of the Church

Through diakonia we are given the wonderful blessing of being the means through which the Holy Spirit ministers to the world and blesses others. However, we must always remember to keep Christ at the center of our ministry, lest we forget that it is in and through him that our service originates. We serve as ambassadors for him, serving his people and becoming the shining light upon the hill.