While the work of the deacon is one of service to the poor and the widows; while the work of the deacon is one of serving tables and making distributions to those in need (thus, handling the monies of the church), we must never lose sight of the fact before us in Acts 6:3—the deacon is to be “full of the Holy Spirit.” It is not enough that a man be respected by or successful in the world, he must exhibit a deep spirituality if he is to be considered for the office of deacon.
As such, it is perpetual. A man may not take up the work and lay it down of his own volition. God has ordained his life to one of service to the church and only God can dismiss.
So long as elders are consumed with temporal matters, the congregation will be temporally minded. When the diaconate fundions as the temporal agents of the church freeing the elders for their spiritual calling and business, the church will grow in grace and the spiritual aptitude and piety of the congregation will rise to new heights.
Our charity towards the membership should be such that it makes the world outside her walls jealous for the faith, hope, and charity within. Thus, our deeds toward one another should and will promote our missionary enterprise among the lod and dying of the world.
Do not be come discouraged with little or slow results. Continue your labor. Be faithful in small things. Remember that you are not accountable for the timing of the harvest, but for the labor. When tempted to stop short, when uncertain how you can keep your heart and hand open to the needy, hear these words from R. A. Webb: “But when 1 see that the Lord Jesus identifies himself with them, then as long as I have any intered in Him, and any love for Him, they have claims upon my affections for His sake” (Webb, 113).
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