What Is The Difference Between Elders and Deacons?

What are the major differences between church elders and church deacons?

Differences and Similarities

There are both differences and similarities between elders and deacons. For one thing, both men need to live lives above reproach and have a good reputation in the community in which they live. Also, both a deacon and an elder are not to be drunkards (1st Tim 3:3, 8), be the husband of one wife (1st Tim 3:2, 12), live a life of dignity (1st Tim 3:4, 11) and must be managing their homes well (1st Tim 3:5, 12), so we can see that there are many similarities and both are part of the church leadership but there are vast differences too, particularly in their duties and not just in offices, but both are most certainly necessary in the church today as we shall see.

The Deacon

The word “deacon” comes from the Greek word “diakonos” and means “a table servant” and from which the word’s use comes from in Acts 6:2-3 where the Hellenists accused the Jews of neglecting the Greek widows (which was true) and so “the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty” in order that the apostles, as they said, could “devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch” (Acts 6:4-5). This was a point in time and history when the office of deacon did not exist and then necessity created the need for the office, and today, the office of deacon is one of the most critical components of the local church.

The Elder

The office of elder is different from that of a deacon in many ways but they still serve the church and as you read in the first paragraph, they must be a man of integrity and be above reproach (1st Tim 3:2). Every elder should be able to teach, which was not mentioned for the deacon, so a deacon is not a preaching or teaching office in the church but rather, an office or positon of servanthood. The deacon is to make sure the needs of the individual members are met, particularly those who are widows and unable to care for themselves financially. Every pastor is an elder but not every elder is a pastor so while we should seek this in deacons as well, it is a necessity for elders due to the nature of the role and function of elders as shepherds of the church to be able to teach the Word of God. The elder needs to focus on feeding the flock but the deacon focuses on the needs of the flock (or the church).

Deaconess

Not every denomination has a deaconess. A deaconess is just the female version of the deacon and functions in much the same way as a deacon would. They visit the sick, the help the poorest of the congregation, and they serve as a deacon does in similar capacities. The only difference between a deacon and a deaconess is one of authority where the deaconess cannot be over any men but can still serve. Just as long as they don’t hold authority over men in the church they are still doing what a deacon would do in the church and so a deaconess is also a very important part of the local church.

Conclusion

The church must decide who among the men and women in the church would make good elders, deacons, and deaconess but remember that “God shows no partiality” (Acts 10:35) and since “God shows no partiality” (Rom 2:11), neither should we since “God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose” (1st Cor 12:18) and not us.

Article by Jack Wellman

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren Church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Teaching Children the Gospel available on Amazon.