David Nakhla 0:00

This is David Knockler with the OPC Committee on Diacon Ministries. We're bringing this to you as part of a series of special episodes of the Reformed Deacon. These episodes consist of the audio of the many plenaries and workshops presented at the fourth OPC National Diaconal Summit held in Wheaton, Illinois in June 2022. It's our desire that deacons who were not able to attend the summit or those who simply miss one of the many wonderful workshops offered will benefit from this practical content. If you find this episode especially invigorating, please consider sharing it with your fellow deacons. If it's an episode that's particularly suited to the work of your diaconate, consider watching the video version of this presentation together with your fellow deacons and discussing it. The videos can be found on opccdm.org. And now I hope you enjoy this episode.

SPEAKER_03 0:59

And one of our ambitions, brothers, for this particular national summit has been to draw on the wisdom and experience of some of the fathers of the OPC family, particularly in these plenary sessions. We've asked some of those men who've served faithfully uh for many years. Now I don't know that they will each think of themselves as fathers. I have no guarantee for you on that. Uh, but some of us are thinking of them that way, and that applies to uh Reverend Bill Shishko, who is speaking to us this evening. Over 40 years uh since Pastor Shishko was ordained, 35 of those years. Uh he has served as pastor of the Franklin Square Orthodox Presbyterian Church in Long Island, New York, uh, now a church planter at the Haven Congregation, also on Long Island. You see from the bio that's there uh the things that our uh father, brother uh Bill has uh contributed uh to uh the ministry of the OPC over the years, and uh these are all things that have drawn our uh eye as we have chosen uh certain men to uh receive invitations to minister to us on this occasion. I will just add that uh I uh consider this man uh my own spiritual father uh in uh that my start in ministry uh some years ago now was under his mentorship there in Long Island. I uh was able to serve for a year and a half there in Franklin Square under Bill's ministry, and it has been a great blessing indeed to me. We've asked Bill to get us launched in our summit this weekend uh with the theme of diaconal leadership today. And I'll just note to you, brothers, that we will have a time of questions following uh his remarks. So as they occur to you, uh jot them down, perhaps even take a moment to refine them as you jot them down, and then there will be an opportunity for you to uh put those questions uh to our speaker. Bill, we're thankful for your prayerful preparations to minister to us, and we're eager.

SPEAKER_00 3:14

You can tell he's younger than I am. He hops up those steps. I hold on to the handrail at my age. Now, my dear son in the Lord, I thought I was supposed to have an hour for this. You cut off some minutes, but we'll I'm from New York. We take what we need to take. In more ways than one. Brothers, let me read uh two texts that I hope will be a framework not only for uh tonight's message, but also for the other messages and for all of our time together. The first is from Luke chapter 22 and verses 24 to 27. And here Jesus contrasts the view of leadership that the world has from what he has. A dispute also arose among them as to which of them was to be regarded as the greatest. And he said to them, The kings of the Gentiles exercise lordship over them, and those in authority over them are called benefactors, but not so with you. Rather let the greatest among you become as the youngest, and the leader as the one who serves. For who is the greater one who reclines at table or one who serves? Is it not the one who reclines at table? And you'll find out tonight in a most remarkable way that our Lord illustrates exactly what he says here. But I am among you as the one who serves. And then Matthew chapter 20 and verse 28. The Son of Man, and remember that's a term for the Messiah, Son of Man referring to the Messiah who would be given dominion and glory and a kingdom so that all nations would serve him. That son of man came not to be literally deaconed to, but to deacon and to give his life a ransom for many. I want to thank, and I think I'm representing all of you in saying this, I want to thank all of those who contributed to planning and carrying out this remarkable event. Just looking at the syllabus that is before us. It reminds me of the old Bill Gothard days and the syllabus people would get. But just seeing the way that's been put together, we should be so thankful and express your thanks to the people who put in so much work for this event so that it's so well organized. And to say the least, it really is an honor to be asked to be the keynote speaker for this address. And I trust that the Committee on Diaconal Ministries will not be too upset by what I say, but we'll find that this sets a tone for all that we're doing this evening. And let me make a little confession as we begin. I I love the work of being a minister. I love the work of being a pastor. But I have to admit, brothers, uh, there's part of me uh that that wishes that I were a deacon. Please do not use the expression, I'm only or I'm just a deacon. Hopefully that will be knocked out of you if you've used it in the past. But I say that not only because there are uh demands uh and pressures that a minister faces that deacons don't face. But the other is this after 35 years pastoring in Franklin Square, and almost for my first year there working on reforming a diaconate that was really not existent, I just came to revel in the work, the variety of the work, the excitement of the work that deacons do. And so I'm right there with you, brothers, as a minister. I love and esteem the work of the deaconate, and I'm hoping that I can bring some of that love and excitement to you this evening. Section five, as Pastor Nathan mentioned, is the material that we'll be referring to. There's some items for you in there. We'll be referring to them in a moment. Let me begin this evening by just dealing with male leadership. Male leadership, and I'm assuming here that deacons are males, but male leadership, if I don't have to convince you of this, is the great void in our day. After I'd been in the ministry for a few years in New York and was trying to figure things out, I had the man who was for many years my mentor in the ministry, and I poured out my heart to him and said, We have so many godly women who want to be married, but we have so few godly men. And that, brothers, was back in the early 1980s, and things have gotten worse since then. His answer was unforgettable. He said, Bill, when you counsel men in our days, you have to have a Bible in one hand and 10 CC's of testosterone in the other. And I found that to be pretty much true. Let's take just a few minutes to deal with why the void in male leadership, because, brothers, these are things we have to address in one way or another. Here are the reasons. I'm calling it the matrix. A matrix is a womb in which something gestates, and there's a womb in which the void in male leadership has been gestating. Number one, the lack of good examples, either absent fathers or the presence of bad examples, the so-called deadbeat dads. Are you aware that Johnny Depp is the father of two children? You talk about bad examples. Or even if we go back a number of decades when the Cosby show was very popular and Bill Cosby was regarded as the model dad, that was not a comedian, folks, is not a model dad. But you see, for decor for decades, we've had this lack of good example and presence of bad examples put before us. The second reason, or the part of the matrix, is incorrect teaching about male leadership. On the one hand, you have an undifferentiated egalitarianism in which there's no more male, no more female, becomes the reference point by which everything else is eviscerated, or you have extreme patriarchalism, and which, as I read it, in some very extreme statements, women are regarded almost like the cave women, to be seen, not to be heard. Those are both incorrect teachings. Number three for the great void in our day, cultural confusion and antagonism, so-called gender dysphoria, people not actually knowing, supposedly, what their gender is. Or all men are regarded as racists and misogynists. It is that kind of cultural smog and pollution and confusion and antagonism that is something, brothers, we must deal with in our own culture. And here I cannot too highly recommend Dr. Carl Truman's book, The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self. If that's too heavy sledding, you can get the reader's digest condensed version, Strange New World. But brothers, that's a book to study to give you the picture of the challenges we face in male leadership, and not just for deacons, but male leadership, period, in the churches. Number four, structural narcissism, a consuming self-absorption that even envelops and sweeps up men in its midst. Narcissism constantly assessing your feelings, your appearance, your desires, as a focus on self, it's like self-magazine. And as we minister in our culture, we are standing against the unholy national trinity of me, myself, and I. And brothers, that kind of narcissism is exactly the opposite of the servant leadership or diaconal leadership that should be the mark of all deacons. Narcissism is the Delilah that shears the locks away from diaconal Samsons. And then the fifth, diversions. A thousand and one little foxes that eat the vines of male leadership. Our culture, brothers, is dying by diversion. You can't even pump gas up north without having to watch a television or check out something at the supermarket without getting the latest recipe. Death by diversion, the cares, the riches, and the pleasures of life, not necessarily bad things, but not necessarily bad things that divert you from the best things. And brothers, servant leadership, diaconal leadership, is the best. Ministers, elders, deacons are all servants together. And as our Lord teaches us, it is the highest calling. Now, scripture, which speaks to everything, scripture speaks to all of this. Corinth of the first century, and prior to that, was remarkably like our culture today. It was the place of the Olympic Games, it was the place of the great orators, it was the media center of southern Greece and of the ancient world, and it was the athletic center. It was a place in which prostitution was available to all, even as electronic prostitution is available to all. And Corinth was known as an area in which male, male, and female-female sexual relations ran rampant. And it is no coincidence at all that to this area the Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 16 and verse 13 be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men. And Dritzis day. And no, that's not just a simple expression. It's a way of saying there is a manliness that is to mark God's people. And in a culture of gender ambivalence and confusion, act like men, and then it continues so beautifully. Be strong. Let all that you do be done in love. And brothers, love is giving yourself for the good of others. And that is exemplified in a particular way among the deacons. So that's what we're facing in our culture. But don't be discouraged. Please don't be discouraged. You're looking too much at your Fox News and CNN and MSNBC if you get discouraged. It is dark in our culture. I don't know that there's ever been a light culture, but this is dark. Light, brothers, shines brightest in the darkness. And that's what gives us such a tremendous opportunity in this day, especially in a day in which people want to see the Christian faith. Well, that is the work of the deacons in many ways, is to show the Christian faith to others. John 1 and verse 5 the light shines in the darkness, and the right translation, and the darkness has not overcome it, and it won't. Okay, so that's just the introduction. Male leadership, the great void in our day, and what we're dealing with, and be encouraged as you deal with it. Now for the second, I want you to turn in section 5 in your syllabus to 21 Indispensable Qualities for Leadership. 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader. This is from John C. Maxwell's book of the same title, The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader, that I have found very useful for myself. It crystallizes a lot of things you think of and says them better than we could. And what I did in this material is I took his 21 indispensable qualities and I modified some of his material. Maxwell is an evangelical Christian, and I added some of my own, if you will, Christianized definitions of the leadership qualities themselves. I'm not going to go over all of them, but I want to highlight a few of them. And brothers, don't be nitpickers about books that are helpful, especially books that are helpful on leadership. Let me paraphrase the way the disciples were sectarians about those that were casting out demons, but not as their group. Let me paraphrase it. We read this book about leadership, but we fault-finded it to death because the author wasn't one of us. Brothers, don't have that attitude. Come on. Like bees with pollen. Good things you take, be discerning in what you read. But you know, the children of this age, Jesus said, are shrewder in their generation. They've got more horse sense in their generation than the children of light. And while you've got to bring every thought captive to the obedience of Christ, learn from these. Okay, let me just highlight a few. Number one is number one, not only alphabetically, but in its meaning, character. Especially given the scandals in churches today, that is most important for all church officers, including deacons, in all things representing the character of God in Christ. 1 Timothy 3 and verse 8, speaking of the deacons. They are to be worthy of respect. They are to have dignity. Character. And brothers, where arrogance or your desire to be alone rather than with others, or where a spirit of adventure seeking or the temptation or giving in to adultery happens, brothers, put it to death by the Spirit of God. It will destroy you and your families and a church. Keep a pure conscience before God and man and ask forgiveness where you must. Don't substitute apologies, brothers. You sin against someone, you ask their forgiveness and ask that it be granted to you. But character, character doesn't mean we're perfect. Jesus was. We're sinners saved by grace. And that means more often, many times, you're going to have to ask forgiveness and be sure that it's granted. So character, let me just mention one thing. I I had never heard of the Billy Graham rule. I'm not saying this because of the remarkable museum over here, but until Mike Pence was vice president. And he was laughed at because he wouldn't be alone, he wouldn't be alone with another woman except with his wife. I wouldn't laugh at that. Brothers, you've got to be very careful when you're alone, not only with women, but with men in our day. Don't do anything that will sully or bring questions upon your character. The next page on communication. Communication is in all things representing the God who communicates supremely in Christ. And I would assume that Dr. Troxel will be dealing with this in your relation to the congregation. But communicating with people, this wonderful quotation, the leader must be able to share knowledge and ideas to transmit a sense of urgency and enthusiasm to others. If a leader can't get a message across clearly and motivate others to act on it, then having a message doesn't even matter. Think of Jesus and the common people heard him gladly. So there's some notes in there about communication, as you will be doing. And again, I assume Dr. Troxel will do more with that. And that little quotation people will follow you if they do not, people will not follow you if they do not know what you want or where you are going. Our culture, beautiful story of what our culture is, an airline pilot. So you can relate to this today from our flights. Bad news, I have no idea where we are. And that's that's very much our culture today. So as you communicate, you're letting people know where you are and where you're going and why. And then on page three, brothers, generosity, generosity is And all things representing the generosity of God in Christ, the God who daily loads us with benefits. And 2 Corinthians 8 and 9 are God's own primer on diaconal work and generosity in it. But please, brothers, don't allow desires for possessions to control you or to control the church on which you, in which you serve. One of the curses that can come to a church is to get a large inheritance very, very quickly. I've seen churches divide and fold over that. So learn what it is to be generous. Learn, as we would put it in Franklin Square, we would do church plants. There's a corporate expression of in losing your life, you save it. Okay? Generosity. The bottom of that page, listening in all things representing the way God in Christ listens to those who call upon him. Let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, and slow to anger. Brothers, that's got to mark you as deacons. Listen to God as He's made known in His Word. Listen to your wife. Your wife, no, is not inerrant. But if you don't listen to the one given to you as a helper suitable to your needs, I say this lovingly. You're a real blockhead. And especially when you're dealing with women, our wives have far more insight into women than we do. So listen to your wife, your fellow officers, your congregation members, women, as well as men. There is something called the general office of the believer. And don't you dare stanch that by throwing around the phrase, women need to keep silent in the churches. That is a worship and a teaching and a ruling context. But the Bible does speak of a Priscilla and Aquilla. And it does speak of a Phoebe, and it does speak of the role of women. And especially is your work is going to involve you increasingly with dealing with women whose lives have been messed up by our promiscuous culture in which women are treated like meat, then, brothers, you better listen to those women and listen to those who work with them, or you'll be of no help to them at all. And then listen to others whom God is using, even when you have differences with them. And I love that. Use your ears. The ears, folks, of a good leader, they are full of the voices of the people you're called to serve. A lot of times you don't like the voices, but at least you listen, okay? So listening. And then last but certainly not least, rather obviously last but not least, is on page six. Servanthood. True leaders are servants. Jesus said that. If you'd be first, then let him be last. And all things representing the servanthood of God in Christ. In the text, of course, we've read, don't lord it over people. If you have a lordly view of your office and you won't repent of it, then step down from your office. Jesus said, that's something the Gentiles do, not the Lord's people. Stop lording over people and start listening to them. And start risking for other people's benefit. And don't think about seeking your own way. How can I serve others? If you want to lead, Maxwell says, on the highest level, be willing to serve on the lowest. The late Dr. Ed Clowney, whose book, The Call to the Ministry, influenced many, many of us, had a line in his little book, something like this. He said, the way to exaltation in the kingdom is not the plush steps leading up to the throne, but the iron stairwell leading to the servants' quarters. Well, that's a good way to put it. Okay, so servanthood. So those, I hope you'll use some of those things. I think that they are helpful for you in terms of just thinking about what leadership is. Now, let me deal in the third place, specifically with diaconal leadership. 1 Timothy 3 and verse 12. Let deacons each be a the word brothers is a one-wife husband, not a playboy. It doesn't say the man must be married, but a one-wife husband, managing their children and their own households well. And that's a managing is a leadership term. It's the term that describes a stonewalled Jackson who was before the troops. He was right with them, but he stood before them. He stood before them like a stone wall in his leadership. And that's the word to stand before. So there's the text for diaconal leadership. The grand, overarching, fundamental principle for diaconal leadership is you represent the great deacon servant Jesus Christ. The Son of Man, the Messiah, the one who would be given all authority in heaven and on earth, did not come to be deaconed to, but to deacon and to give his life a ransom for many. Brothers, the church exists to serve, and its leaders exist to serve. First, Christ, and then those in union with him by grace through faith, and those around you. And I strongly urge you to think this way. You are a servant to the servants of God, not first of them. Your will, your guiding principle is not what the people want. It's what Jesus Christ says. But in the King of Kings, in the great deacon, you are a servant to the servants of God. And that's a great example of how the Bible overturns human wisdom. Has not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? The Diaconos was a waiter on tables in the first century. That was the most common usage, a waiter on tables. When we would teach the MTI OPC pastoral theology class in Franklin Square, I think it was the second evening. I said, All right, fellas, we're going to teach you what it is to be a deacon tonight. And we went to what is absolutely the best Italian restaurant, at least in Nassau County, and I am convinced in Suffolk County, and I'll put it over the places in New York City, even that, King Umberto's in Elmont, New York. Oh, they're fried cappini. Oh, it's amazing. But but but uh we used to say that, I used to tell the waiters in there, if my wife ever threw me out of the house, I'd stay there. We got to know them all so well. Well, what we did, we took the men from the uh pastoral theology class, and I said, I want you to watch these waiters. They knew their stuff. When they were talking to you, it was as if there was nobody else in the world. And they got to know, in most cases, they got to know your name. And they did not write down what you ordered. They remembered it and asked you good questions. They not only would bring the food to you, but they made sure when you needed more water or something else that they came. And they were checking regularly to be sure everything was okay. I used to chide them and say, no, it's not okay, it's excellent. But they got to know the people individually each time, and out of their care for them, waited on tables. And then we come back the next day and I'd say, okay, what'd you learn about being a deacon? Okay, so that that's that's the meaning of the deacon, is a waiter on tables. And if you come to Long Island, oh, make it a point to go to King Umberto's. But, okay, so let's look, though, now at Jesus, who is the model for deacons, especially, especially in his estate of humiliation. If anyone is to represent the deacon, if anyone is to represent Christ here, it is the deacon. Philippians 2. So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, any participation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. That's a deacon. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also to the interests of others. That's a deacon. Have this mind among yourselves, which is also in Christ Jesus. Although he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a bond slave. Being born in the likeness of men and being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even the death on a cross. I want you to, in your mind's eye, see Deacon Jesus. He comes to the lepers and he touches them. He hears of a dead daughter, and he goes to her. In the midst of a crowd, there is a blind Bartimaeus calling out to him, and Jesus hears him and calls him. Here is a boy with epilepsy that is being used horribly by the devil himself. And Jesus stops what he's doing and says to the Father, Bring him to me. Here is a poor woman who puts but two small copper coins in the offering. And Jesus so recognizes her that she is canonized in Holy Scripture, is putting in all of her livelihood. A Canaanite woman whose daughter is oppressed by a demon, and Jesus ministers to her. He's at the grave of his friend Lazarus, whom he loved. And that language of the great servant, he was deeply moved in his spirit. He was disturbed. He was indignant at what death brought into the world. And he burst into tears. Brothers, has Jesus liberated your emotional life? Do you know what it is to weep with those who weep? Do you know what it is to be brokenhearted when you deal with someone whose life has been ripped apart as if it was in a train wreck? Brothers, passions that we have, sanctified passions that are good passions, are the only way to cancel out bad ones. And as deacons, don't be cold stones, men. Be warm hearts with others. What's going on in all of this with Jesus? That's his deaconing. And deaconing is doing what you read in Isaiah 40 in this picturesque language. It's the lifting up of valleys that takes time. It's mountains and hills that are made low with a lot of work. It's crooked things that are made straight. And that's not done by lordly masters, it's done by humble servants. And notice that this, of course, leads to Jesus' exaltation. Therefore, God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that the name of Jesus, every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. And brothers, there is a promise of exaltation to you in Christ as well. In 1 Timothy chapter 3, the Apostle Paul says to the deacons, those who serve well as deacons gain a good standing for themselves, and also great boldness in the faith that is in Christ Jesus. Serving, brothers, serving causes you to grow. We are truly, listen to this, helped by helping, taught by teaching, and encouraged by encouraging. There you go. That's one of the great blessings of the many in diaconal ministry. Now let me filter this down to you. Three things. When you think about Jesus as the model of the deacon, study Jesus, the great deacon. Don't just read books, and incidentally, that book on the diaconate that you're given here is really outstanding. But don't just read books about the diaconate. Study the great deacon, the Lord Jesus. I was so encouraged that Crossways, which does its publishing work not far from here, has republished in a small version Benjamin Warfield's The Emotional Life of Our Lord. That's a that every minister should read that. Deacon should as well to give you a window on the heart of the Lord Jesus Christ, the great deacon, the emotional life of our Lord by Benjamin Warfield. Two by one of my favorite writers, Octavius Winslow, a 19th-century writer. He was the one that Charles Spurgeon wanted to preach first in the Metropolitan Tabernacle. Octavius Winslow's volume, The Glories of the Redeemer. And not dealing specifically with Jesus as a deacon, but just all that he is as the humbled and exalted Redeemer. And then very close to the diaconal work, Octavius Winslow's book, The Sympathy of Christ, a little, rich volume that again brings you into the heart of the great deacon. William Blakey, who was a Scottish Presbyterian. William Blakey's book, The Public Ministry of Christ. Excellent, excellent help for ministers and elders and deacons as well. William Blakey, The Public Ministry of Christ. And Dane Ortland's recent book, I Wish It Had Been in Print when I went out in the ministry over 40 years ago. Gentle and Lowly by Dane Ortland. And quite frankly, brothers, nickpicking. Well, Orthodox Presbyterians, we can pick at that book and not like the illustrations. That book opens up the heart of God in Christ. And with whatever faults or flaws are in it, it's written by an imperfect man. That book is what we need to escape the trap of legalism and really get a hold of what John Owen said was the hardest thing for even the most sanctified believer to understand the depths of the love of God for him or her. Anyway, Dane Ortlands, gentle and lowly. Number two, be filled, brothers, with the Spirit of Christ. I will not leave you as orphans, I will come to you. And being filled with the Spirit of Christ is being filled with Christ Himself. And if you're going to represent the great deacon, you've got to be filled with the spirit of the great deacon, regularly asking that the Lord fill you, that the Lord that you meditate on his word, sing his word, read his word, and be formed by it as it's focused on Christ. And then number three, serve in Christ as his representative. You brother, listen to this. You are Christ's visible expression of his office as a deacon. That's what you are. That's what the church is. It is the visible representation of the church. It's even called the glory of Christ in the scriptures. You might ask the question when you minister to people, have they seen Jesus? No, that's not pietistic. That's biblical. And I would add to this before we get to the last part, you're also serving Jesus when you serve his people. Mark, Matthew 25, in verses 34 through 40. Fascinating text. I was hungry and you fed me. I was naked and you clothed me. I was sick and you visited me. I was, I love this one because we minister to inmates. I was in prison and you visited me. When you minister to the Lord's people, you are ministering to Christ. I love to twit my Orthodox Presbyterian brothers, and I say to them, you know, I get a phone call from Jesus every Wednesday night and every Friday morning. And of course, they're already ready to bring charges against me. I said, no, I'm serious. Wednesday night, one of our inmates from Eastern New York Correctional Facility calls me, and on Friday morning, not tomorrow, but another week or so, normally on Friday, another from the Eastern uh from the Fishkill Correctional Facility. They're genuine believers in Christ, they're not phonies. And fellas, I've learned more about the grace of God and Christ from those two men than I have from any books of divinity. So your ministry to Christ, that'll transform the way you minister to others. Now, I am sensitive to the time. I'm not going to be done on time, but I didn't start on time. So let me give you a little lanyap. I love the word lanyap. You can tell I'm a food-oriented guy. Lanyap. Lanyap is a term they use down in New Orleans area, and lanyap means a little something extra, a little more than what you uh what you ordered. So let me give you some lanyap as we wrap things up tonight. Number one, and this is in your outline, make sure that your local church understands the diaconate. This doesn't come programmed into people when they're regenerated. They have to be taught part of the whole council of God, which is the work of the deacons. Now, in your packet, there's what I call the deacon's catechism. And even if I do say so, this is a really good little document. But it's a handy way to put before people when you're training deacons, when you ordain deacons, or you're installing deacons, it summarizes what the deacons do. And it's based on Acts 6 and verses 1 through 7. You have the deaconing of the word and you have the deaconing of tables that are in here. And please, fellas, if you don't believe the diaconate began in Acts 6, where did it begin? You have to hide, you have to hang 1 Timothy 3 on a sky hook if there's no origin of the deaconate in the scripture. So to me, that's very honest. And very interesting. Include verse 7 in Acts chapter 6 and verse 1 and following. As the deacons did their work, which was not only ministry of Mercy, but assisting, so that the then the apostles could be given to prayer and the ministry of the word, and the word of God continued to increase, and the number of disciples multiplied greatly. Brothers, dig out and chop up and burn any statement like this, our deacons don't do anything. Really? I heard that one earlier. There's been a tremendous reformation in understanding of the work of the deacons in the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, and I praise the Lord for it. But early on, I used to hear at points, our deacons don't do anything. You go back to the directions and Acts chapter 6 and verses 1 through 6, and you will be busier than you ever imagined. Believe me, I've seen it and it happens. Do your work, and it does include assistance to the elders, as you'll see in a moment. And God will bless their labors, and you'll have more diaconal work. And this is one of the things I've reflected on in my age. That's why I use a lot of notes, otherwise, I'm all over the place. But you know, brothers, James is in the Bible. And yes, justification by faith alone, in Christ alone, by grace alone. Absolutely, may we not move a quarter of an inch from that? Can you ask someone if they're being justified by their works? James does. Are you demonstrating your faith by your works? And it's increasingly impressed upon me that the pastor and the elders, in so many ways, their focus very much on the gospel, which has as its heart justification by faith alone and Christ alone, by grace alone, bringing union with Christ. Deacons have their focus on what James speaks about doing it. Not just talking the talk, but walking the walk, okay. Number two, have a good program in place for diaconal training. And ah, you have one in section five. I would love to be able to take that material and actually uh teach it myself, just haven't had the time to do it. But it's in your packet, and I commend it to you for this reason. It's the only program I know that takes men through the Westminster Confession of Faith and related catechetical materials and channels it through that with a view of how does this apply to diaconal work? So it's not that we hold the commitment to the Reformed faith on the one side and diaconal work on the other, but diaconal work flows out of that commitment. And in that material, especially the qualifications for the deacons in 1 Timothy chapter 3, including let them first be proved, and then let them serve as deacons. But we cover all of that. And brothers, if the church of which you're a part doesn't have a program for training deacons, don't look down your nose at it. Many churches didn't. But take the material, perhaps go over it with your pastor, with your elders, and suggest that at least something like this be incorporated into the church practice. Number three, be in regular communication with your session. Be in regular communication with your session. There is a connection, fellas. And in Acts chapter 6, you have the men called out as deacons, and certainly they're working alongside of then the apostles, now ministers and elders. 1 Timothy 3, there's obviously the connection with elders and deacons, so there should be regular communication with your session. Now, for example, if you're giving financial assistance to someone, your elders should know things and will know things about their particular self-discipline and habits that you should be aware of so that you're not, in the words of the Corbett Fickert book, when helping hurts, so that you're not hurting by your helping. There's an example. And in situations which are increasingly common, and fellas, don't stick your heads in the sand over this, domestic abuse, it's not just the Southern Baptist Convention, folks. It's Reformed churches, it's Orthodox Presbyterian churches. And so, brothers, when you're dealing with domestic abuse, if there's any area in which elders and deacons must work together, it is here. You have a woman who has to get out of her house because her life or her children's lives are in danger. Deacons kick it. What do you do as a place? It's a safe haven for them, helping out financially, knowing lawyers. I mean, there's a lot of things in this, fellas. Okay, that's just examples. So be in regular communication with your session. I suggest, suggestion, quarterly meetings where your elders or deacons meet with the elders for an hour just to go over any matters of common concern. What we would do in Franklin Square along with that is either I or one of my fellow elders would meet with the deacons for an hour at each meeting. And we didn't cover all the things the elders did, but anything that bore on the work of the deacons that they needed help with or that we needed help with, and that's a great question. Deacons, ask your elders, how can we be of help to you? Okay? Then number four, don't be afraid to suggest things. Be proactive, be strategic. Short-term mission projects. You read about these things, we're rightly informed of them, you have gifts within the church that can be used. Suggest something. Work with the elders on it, talk with your deacons about it. Don't hit people with too many things, but be but be proactive and be strategic in suggesting things that can be done. But brothers, we've got to combat the emotionally dulling effects of media. Nineteen children and two teachers killed in Uvaldi, Texas, and you're hit with this. And now a word from our sponsor, Crest Toothpaste. You know what that does after a while? It ends up neutering all of your emotions. And so thank God we now have a committee on diaconal ministries and its leadership, especially our dear brother David Knocklaw, and they let us know. There's a war in Ukraine, and you don't have to wait six months to find out what the OPC is doing. There's some suggestions for practically how to help communicate that. Again, I'm sure Dr. Troxel will deal with that, but don't be afraid to suggest things. And number five, think presbyterially. Acts, did you realize Acts 6? Our old Westminster form of church government. Scriptures hold out a presbytery in a church. You didn't get 5,000 people in Jerusalem into a building like the one in which Joel Osteen speaks. They were smaller churches, and but they were bound as a presbytery. Do you think presbyterally about the diaconate? Do you have a presbytery board of deacons? So that when a local here you have a fledgling mission church, and they have needs, especially if they're reaching out to really needy people, and they can't meet those needs. To be able to say, we have a presbytery board of deacons that you refer the matter to. We actually have boards of deacons from our various churches and they alternate every two years. However, you do it. You refer to them, and they have mechanisms for helping with funds or whatever for that. And if they can't do that, then referring to the Committee on Diaconal Ministries. But think presbyterially. So, brothers, have I given you enough to stir up some dust as servant leaders? As things to think about in here, a couple of the things that I've used in the ministry over the years that have helped me. Number one is you can't move without producing friction. And so, brothers, just chalk it up. You want to do something, you will create friction. And then, second, there really aren't problems in church life. There's only opportunities. And you will have them in the diaconate to show the great ministry of Christ. Now, let me just depart from the notes that you have regarding the conclusion, because as I reflected on this, I realized that there's an awful lot that overwhelms you. There's an awful lot that discourages you in our day. And so I want to give you, instead of reflections on Psalm 11, what I call two grand, amazing encouragements in your work. The first one is in John chapter 12, well, of course, Jesus shows himself as the model of a deacon and washing the feet of his disciples. And Jesus says in John 12 and verse 26, this is why I love the office of deacon. If anyone literally deacons me, he must follow me. Not the latest trends about church life, but Jesus. And where I am, there will my deacon be also. And if that's not enough. Never, ever, ever say, I'm just a deacon. I have the honor of serving, representing Christ. And the other is what I am convinced is the most astounding verse in the New Testament. And my fellow ministers here are all gonna say, which one do you think it is? Because we all have the ones we think are the most astounding. If I were a gambler, which I'm not, I would put this one up above any other. It's in John chapter 12 or Luke chapter 12 and verse 37. Jesus talking about being ready for action, for work, and being ready for his coming. Most remarkable, amazing, astounding verse in the New Testament. Blessed are those bond servants, including deacons, whom the master finds awake when he comes. And that master is Jesus. Ready? Hold your seat, fellas. Truly I say to you, he, the master, Jesus, will dress himself for service. And have them servants, including you brothers, recline at table, and he will come. And deacon then, this Savior, who took upon himself our sins and our guilt and our misery, and endured the cross and the shame, and then was set down at the right hand of God the Father. He still serves, he's still a servant in the sanctuary, the writer of Hebrews says. But his love and his grace is that amazing that when we are before him in glory, with every one of his chosen ones redeemed and glorified, our Lord will continue to be a deacon and he'll serve you at his own marriage supper. Well, you want you want a statement of how the Christian faith is totally unlike any other religion in the world. You don't get a snail's pace away from square one in religion for this. That's the glory of the gospel. So, brothers, I thank the Lord for you, and I look forward to getting to know more of you. I've gotten to know some of you when I've been here, and now that this responsibility is pretty well past me, and I look forward to serving you in the days ahead when I'm here. And I want to encourage you, you serve well, not just as a deacon, you serve well as a deacon. And the promise of the great deacon and the great king, in whom all of the promises of God are yes, is you will attain a good standing and great boldness in the faith that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. May God grant it for all of you. Amen. I could have taken an hour, but I didn't.

SPEAKER_03 58:44

As my brother was talking about the dearth of male leadership, Bill, you said uh very upset, and I will assume uh that deacons are male. But I'll do. And so I'm gonna ask the question in two parts. Why do you assume, especially in one of 1 Timothy 3 qualifications of the women in 1 Timothy 3, why do you assume that deacons are men? And if they are, how may the women of the church uh be involved in diacon ministry?

SPEAKER_00 59:16

Yeah, that's all you expect them to have time for questions after you give me this one. Okay, three three answers regarding uh deacons as men. If you assume, as I hope you do, that Acts chapter six is the inception of the diaconate, the term there is is is specifically not the general uh anthropos, it's the term andros, it's for males. So that's that's number one. Number two, um despite what our culture says today in 1 Timothy 3, I think it's very, very difficult for a woman to be a one-wife husband. So so that's given in there. Uh and then the third connected with it is that their wives are mentioned in there. I I personally believe that as I think Van Damme does in the book that that uh the the it's the wife of a deacon. So those would be the three I would give. And let me, uh Lanya, I gotta throw another one since you mention this to me, because we get this in New York all the time, you know. The Orthodox Presbyterian, now this deals with elders in particular. But can I throw this in? Is that a little extreme? Why doesn't the Orthodox Presbyterian Church ordain women elders and ministers? This is the New York in me. I say the Lord loves women too much to permit them to be ordained and installed to that office. And I'm not joking. I said, you take seriously the work of an elder or a minister and working with broken marriages, broken homes, drug addiction, alcoholism, all forms of mental instability, you give that to a woman who has the responsibility of children and grandchildren and her husband, and you you think that's a loving thing to do, that usually stops them. And you can say the same thing with the deacon. All right, so that that's a little extra. The role of women in the church, um I I I'm not sure I'm convinced of it, but there is quite a history of the the widow at age 60 being enrolled. Okay. I I personally think that has to do with financial support because there was no social security back then. But there is a hallowed tradition of saying they're enrolled in some form of service in the church. And that makes sense because you have older women that have been through it, and especially, brothers, you talk about gender dysphoria when it comes to men. Women don't don't know what womanhood is. And so an older woman who has that beauty of godliness, uh, who can take younger women under their wings and help, that's a huge ministry. I I do personally think that the 1 Timothy 3 reference to the to the wives, to the women, I do think is to the wives of the deacons. And uh they are going to do things. I mean, fellas, uh if you've got you've got to minister to a gal who's been a prostitute. Don't you dare go to minister to them alone. You have your wife with you or some other woman to deal with them. What we did is, uh you would have been there at that time. We we trained women in in how to minister to other women for Titus chapter 2. Uh we had, you know, my illustration, we had years ago, fellas, this is the real world. We had a gal years ago, she had been pimped out by her father in Brooklyn. And she was a mess. And so I said, we've got to have a gospel saturated woman to help deal with this gal who was really fouled up. And it was my wife, I'll never forget after she spent an hour with her, my wife's skin color was about the color of your white part of your shirt. Uh, but but you fellas, you don't deal with those things. Have women who know how to deal with those. So anyway, that that's just something of an answer.

SPEAKER_03 1:03:16

Do do the deacons uh I I hear uh in the question of a proactive uh effort by the deacons to use the gifts of the women, of the women of the church in ministry. Is that your question?

SPEAKER_00 1:03:35

Well, brother, I d I don't know. I mean, I'm not I'm in a lot of Orthodox Presbyterian churches, although I've spoken in a lot of them, but rarely on that level. My guess would probably be no. I I think that that a couple things are operative. One is I think we focus, tend to focus more on what women are not to do in church life, and that that might tend to erase some of the things a woman is to do. And I think, second, your word, proactive. I don't think we've been proactive with that. But Titus chapter two, the older women are to teach the younger women to be uh lovers of their husbands and keepers of the home. Those are diaconal things. Uh 1 Timothy 3. So I think my guess, brother, if I had to guess, my answer is no. And we really need to do a whole lot more making use of the gifts God has given godly women to help out others. And God is driving that to us in our culture because of a whole generation that doesn't even know what womanhood is.

SPEAKER_07 1:04:35

What would be the extent of deacon's teaching? For example, what about deacon teaching Sunday school, uh leading public prayer, leading public singing, leading public Bible reading during worship? Um what do you what would you think about that?

unknown 1:04:50

I think everyone heard that.

SPEAKER_00 1:04:52

Thank you for not asking me how I feel about it. I can't stand that. My feelings change. I tell people I don't even feel like a Christian sometimes that I've had a cup of coffee in the morning, so thank you for not asking me that. I I think I think teaching is is a separate thing. Um you having a having a deacon that assists working with young people, I don't I don't see a problem with that, because I think that's really an outworking of the deacon's role as if he's a father working with his children. Worship is different. I I really I strongly believe the minister, and I'm not, believe me, I'm not a hyper three office kind of guy, but but the minister is set apart as Christ's representative leading the congregation in what really is a dialogue in worship. So he the he is he there's the salutation, he's the one that calls the people, gives the benediction. And I don't believe that should be taken up by the deacons. Nothing against the deacons. Uh and I I do believe that ruling elders are wise to assist in leading in prayer at points, because They're part of that, others differ. However, um, again, in the history of the church, there has been a pretty hallowed place for the deacons overseeing, not overseeing, but setting up the Lord's Supper, making sure the elements are there because it's a visible expression of their waiting on tables. So we would, I think you'll see this in your in your deacon training program. Um, we talked about, what was it, we talked about the deacons waiting on the table of the pastor. Uh so our deacons would, we had a deacon and an elder that would meet with my wife and me every year to be sure our our finances, that we were able to pay our bills, we were being compensated properly. Um, the the table of the Lord's Supper, uh, the table of the church budget. Our deacons would always work on the church budget together with the elders, and then the table of the needs of the people. So I think, brother, you really probably want to put the focus on those things. And that is important. Deacons are showing themselves in those ways to be the servants that they're called to be.

SPEAKER_07 1:07:06

Are you going to um speak to deacons in evangelism and deacons in regards to the mission appeal?

SPEAKER_00 1:07:14

Oh, that's a that's a great question. I always get in trouble with these things. I but brother, I have absolutely zero sympathy, zero, with the view that the only one who presents the gospel is the minister. That I won't use the word I used at Presbytery, but that's baloney. New Yorker, I use a stronger expression. In Acts chapter 8 and verse 4, the apostles remain in Jerusalem. They were the ministers at the time. All the others went out. They didn't preach, but they went out good newsing it to people. And deacons in particular need to be skilled in doing that. Deacons going to a hospital and you're ministering to someone who's dying, God forbid you should be cauterized in thinking that you shouldn't be presenting the gospel to that person, only the minister does. Baloney. You attain good standing in the faith that is in Christ Jesus. And so, as far as evangelism goes, absolutely, and there are a lot of opportunities for that. You get people that walk in on the Lord's Day, and you know, they we would always say, no, you got to sit for the worship service, then our deacons would meet with them. So, yeah, absolutely. Mission field, great, great question. Um, thank the Lord for the opportunity for mission works overseas where you can help out with building projects and hospitals and so on. And I think theirs where deacons, working with your elders, can promote projects. We had a one of our deacons who ended up becoming an elder um had particular skills in carpentry. And so when in Uganda they needed the building of what was it, the John Knox School or something, uh, he went over. And that's that's a good, that's a great statement to the congregation because you are Christ himself through that congregation is ministering in specific ways. So you really want to encourage those kinds of things. Brothers, I may be wrong, but at least you know where I stand on things.

SPEAKER_06 1:09:22

Well, I just want to compliment you on your little assumption extra. Because I went to the Judge, I can't find that.

SPEAKER_00 1:09:32

You gotta come to New York for that. Yeah, yeah. You still gotta come to New York for that.

SPEAKER_06 1:09:45

But but anyway, I was reading through your uh your little uh statements there, and I appreciate the fact that I got put into a situation after serving 30 plus years in New Jersey and southern Virginia Beach, now in a church plant that's playing another church.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:06

Good. Praise the Lord.

SPEAKER_06 1:10:09

I kind of never went through that.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 1:10:12

A little bit of a trouble is trying to do some of the things that we said to help people understand what you have to do. There's a lot of people with a lot of ideas trying to find each other, trying to wait for one thing.

SPEAKER_00 1:10:33

Okay.

SPEAKER_06 1:10:34

But anyway, I think if uh looking at this list, especially uh communication, especially things to talk to each other. And I think as I look at that, I think that's overly important because we're just problems with facts from which so much going on in the diaconate, it's uh it's hard to be where will the first one.

SPEAKER_00 1:11:09

Yeah, I I think, brother, first of all, thank the Lord you're part of mission churches, and don't put off teaching the diaconate uh later on. I mean, your your your abroad, your normal, if I put it that way, healthy church is Philippians 1-1. Paul writes to the saints together with the bishops and the deacons. And so that ought to be part of healthy church life right from the beginning. I I think I think, brother, I'd use the cat the deacon's catechism as kind of your your basic way to get the points across to people.

SPEAKER_05 1:11:46

Our church has um for many years a certain allotted number of deacons and elders that we have to have according to our bylaws, and so they they rotate on and off every two or three years. What's your thought on having to have a set number versus being more open as to how many maybe the Lord may call?

SPEAKER_00 1:12:06

I already use the word baloney. If God has given you a half a dozen or eight really qualified deacons, praise the Lord. And if they're doing what they ought to do, the elders and the minister are doing what they ought to do, they will be busy. But God forbid you impale yourself on bylaws that say you have to have three or six or whatever. If you don't have the qualified men, then quite frankly, scrap your bylaws. Because the scriptures say it is necessary that elders be, and it's implied that deacons be. That's the same word Jesus uses when he says you must be born again. And if we said, well, you know, it's optional. Really, it's just really optional. You don't have to be born again. Forget it. So, no, don't don't never revise the bylaws in the proper way, but don't put your bylaws on par with the Lordship of Christ and His Word, period.

SPEAKER_02 1:13:10

Amen.

SPEAKER_00 1:13:11

Yes.

SPEAKER_02 1:13:12

Yeah, I I have a question in terms of fellowship. Um what do you see as the deacon's responsibility in terms of encouraging fellowship in the church? And if it's not the deacon's responsibility, because this is one thing I guess a common criticism is your OPC people don't ever have any fellowship.

SPEAKER_00 1:13:32

Now do they really have they ever met Orthodox Presbyterians?

SPEAKER_02 1:13:38

And I know that we have fellowship in service, and that's uh that's how we see it, but then what I'm talking about is outside of service, I mean, is there a responsibility of any sort to provide fellowship outside of that for the church?

SPEAKER_00 1:13:54

Well, brother, I mean that's a great question. I I'm I'm one of the ones who believes that fellowship is a means of grace. In Acts 2 and verse 42, the the disciples were given, they devoted themselves to the apostles' doctrine, the breaking of bread, the fellow the fellowship and the prayers. And I believe that that poorly uh what's the word I want to make, I would say retarded fellowship in churches really is an impediment to the growth and grace of people. But I still believe that that really the elders have a particular responsibility to promote that. So what I would say is the deacons sense this need, and they again you're you're listening to people, you hear it, that bring it up when you meet with the elders and say, could we consider whatever the thing would be? And then waiting on tables, deacons should set the example of making sure there's proper provisions made, uh, as they've done so well here, um, proper provisions made for the food and for everything else. Lead the way in making those cut that kind of fellowship useful. And incidentally, meals uh at the Haven, we uh even during even during the pandemic, we got criticized. We were careful, you know, we use the you know the well, not mask when you're eating, but we refuse to give up our fellowship meals, period. Because that's a means of grace to people. So yeah, that needs to, however, it's done, it needs to be encouraged.

SPEAKER_03 1:15:17

Okay, gentlemen, we are at the hour. Uh I'm just gonna throw the final question at our speaker. Uh the expression, very common, very popular, servant leadership. Yeah. Seems to be very much what you've been presenting to us. What should we mean if we use that expression? Are there any liabilities to that expression?

SPEAKER_00 1:15:39

And we'll let that be the last. Not if you define it biblically. I I think what I said before that you're a servant, you're not a servant of the people. You're a servant to the people. And I think that can be a liability because there are a lot of people that think that the officers exist to do what they want in church life, and you don't want to be harmed on that one. I think s and I think so long as servant is defined by the great servant, the Lord Jesus, we're we're fine. And remembering that service is love and giving yourself to the good of others. I I I'm not I'm not sure I can go wrong with that one. Joe, we can express our appreciation to our brother for his case.

David Nakhla 1:16:30

Thanks for joining us. Go to our website, thereformdeacon.org. There you will find all our episodes, program notes, and other helpful resources. And please make plans to join us again for another episode of the Reform Deacon podcast.