An exhaustive list of diaconal duties is not obvious from the texts of Scripture, nor does such a list appear in the Westminster Confession of Faith or Catechisms. While they make a brief appearance in the Form of Presbyterian Church Government (1645), we find that most of our guidance on the work of deacons comes from the PCA Book of Church Order, specifically 9-2.
Yet, when we look at 9-2, we are left without an overarching theme or summation of the work of deacons. If we want to better understand the theme of diaconal ministry, we will need to look through the lens of history and get to the first fruits of the diaconate (Acts 6). In Acts, we will see that the ministry of deacons is not just a list of unrelated administrative tasks, but the humble service-oriented ministry of tables.
Hodgepodge of Duties
Here are the duties of deacons described in the Book of Church Order:
It is the duty of the deacons to minister to those who are in need, to the sick, to the friendless, and to any who may be in distress. It is their duty also to develop the grace of liberality in the members of the church, to devise effective methods of collecting the gifts of the people, and to distribute these gifts among the objects to which they are contributed. They shall have the care of the property of the congregation, both real and personal, and shall keep in proper repair the church edifice and other buildings belonging to the congregation. In matters of special importance affecting the property of the church, they cannot take final action without the approval of the Session and consent of the congregation.
When we look at the duties listed, we have a list of various tasks lacking a cohesive theme.
First, we have groups of people to minister to as it relates to mercy ministries, but the poor are never specifically mentioned.
Second, we have some language around developing, collecting, and distributing the gifts of the people. Are these gifts from the congregation their time, talents, and/or treasures? There’s also some stuff about caring for movable (money) and less movable assets (buildings).
Third, church edifices should be properly repaired, which are imposing buildings for those not born in the 1700s.
Finally, there is a clarifying statement that prevents deacons from doing anything of “special importance” without the session and congregation’s approval and consent. I assume this “special importance” is somewhere in between replacing warm light bulbs with cool white light and getting rid of the 200-year-old antique pews and replacing them with modern chairs from Costco. But, I will leave that to the discretion of individual congregations.
These somewhat disconnected duties have historical backing from John Calvin to Samuel Miller. Calvin said that deacons dealt with the annual revenues of the church. Samuel Rutherford talked about the church’s fabric being kept in good frame by the deacons. David Dickson spoke of the deacons maintaining the salary of the ministers and public goods of the church. John Owen saw to it that deacons not only took care of the poor, but managed all other affairs of the same kind. Lastly, Samuel Miller said that deacons should manage the pecuniary affairs of the church, that is, the financial affairs of the church. From these historic individuals we see that deacons have cared for not only the poor, but also for the money and materials of the church throughout the centuries.
These disconnected tasks have historical warrant, but how do we best sum up these tasks? This is where the phrase temporal affairs gives us a helpful umbrella term.
Temporal Affairs
The PCUS’s BCO was amended in 1923 concerning the duties of deacons, and the wording the amended wording is the exact same phrasing the PCA BCO uses today in 9-2. But, before the amendment was adopted, the phrase “temporal affairs” was used within the chapter to describe the work of deacons. This is where we see the disconnection of duties start to happen.
With this amendment, the BCO lists the temporal affairs of the church does not use the phrase “temporal affairs” itself. Now, 100 years later, it might look like our BCO just has a list of tasks to be done by our deacons, which are the temporal affairs of the church, but without a cohesive, explicit theme.
I’ll admit, the phrase “temporal affairs” seems a like dispassionate legalese. It doesn’t necessarily communicate the love of Christ for his people through the work of deacons. This is where Scripture is our best guide to understanding the thrust behind the duties of diaconal ministry.
Table Fellowship
When we see the proto-deacons appear in Acts 6, there is a phrase that is used by the apostles that gives us our best guide to diaconal ministry: to serve tables. The Greek word here (trapeza) that we translate table means both an eating table (Luke 22:30) and a money table (Luke 19:23). With this phrase, we have the richest phrasing to the theme of diaconal ministry – table service.
Just as elders are seen as shepherds (1 Peter 5:2-3, Acts 20:28), this humble service-oriented labeling of deacons gives us both the purpose and posture of deacons. They are table waiters. Yet, as Cornelius Van Dam puts it in his book “The Deacon,” “the ministry of serving tables was more than just providing the physical necessities of life. It was also meant to include those who may have felt marginalized, giving the necessary reassurance that they truly belong to the communion of saints.”
Yes, deacons fundamentally care about the essentials of this temporal life (food and finances) toward individual sheep, but it’s more than that. When the proto-deacons first appeared, it was because the threat of estrangement in the body of Christ was driving a wedge into the fellowship of believers.
Deacons do their best ministry by bringing people together to “have communion in each other’s gifts and graces,” (WCF 26.1). Dennis Johnson explains in “The Message of Acts” that, “[fellowship] has financial overtones, expressing a willingness to share tangible, material resources with other members of God’s family.” This table service is done by table waiters for table fellowship.
It is why we have the phrase “communion of saints” in BCO 9-1 and “friendless” in 9-2. Ultimately, when you and your friends gather around a table to eat food, you aren’t really there for the food, atmosphere, or service. You are there for the fellowship.
The waiter (aka the deacon) is making sure that nothing is getting in the way of that fellowship with your friends. The drinks are filled, the food is hot, empty plates are taken away, the A/C is turned on (but not too cold), and even the kids have coloring papers. Whatever distracts a family or group of friends from enjoying fellowship with one another, the waiter stands ready to attend to that need.
Table Waiters
Deacons oversee temporal affairs to ensure nothing gets in the way of table fellowship.
- With fellowship, deacons are making sure that no one feels marginalized, individuals are being served, and there is “not a needy person among them” (Acts 4:34).
- With finances, the pastor has a steady paycheck, missionaries are supported not only through prayer but also with funds, the congregation’s mortgage is paid on time, and the gifts of the members are being used to their fullest.
- With facilities, they are making sure that the congregation’s buildings and grounds are attractive and inviting, the church’s ministries can use the rooms for gatherings because the edifice is well maintained, and people have a place to sit for worship service because the 200-year old pews are in working order.
Deacons understand that the solution to our poverty is not just material, but relational. They aren’t just mercy ministers, treasurers, sextons, or the administrative taskmasters of the church. Rather, they use their spiritual gifts of serving, giving, and showing mercy (Romans 12:7-8) to serve others (1 Peter 4:10-11) as table waiters and serve on behalf of our great deacon, Christ.
In sum, deacons care for the facilities and finances, and ultimately represent Christ to his people and make sure that fellow sheep have fellowship with one another in all the temporal affairs of the church.
Patrick Sanders as a deacon in the PCA in Athens, GA. He received his MATS from RTS Atlanta in 2025 and presented The Whole Deacon during one of the seminars at last year’s GA in Chattanooga.