What is the job of the deacons in the local church? In some churches, the deacons are set up as a ruling body, equivalent to the board of directors in a corporation. The church body delegates all of its decision-making power to the deacon board. In other churches, the deacons are elected to run the church’s day-to-day operations, and they relegate the pastor to “preaching, marrying, and burying.” According to this philosophy, the deacon’s job is to control the pastor and protect the church from him. On the other end of the spectrum, you have those who think that the deacons are to be the pastor’s “yes men.” They provide the rubber stamp of approval for every whim and fancy of the pastor, giving legitimacy to whatever notions he may have about the direction and the decisions of the church.

None of these concepts line up with the Biblical purpose of a deacon. In Acts 6:1-7, we read of the election of the first deacons in the New Testament. According to these verses, we learn what the essential qualifications of a deacon are. We also learn that deacons are a vital part of the church ministry because they assist the pastor and help free him up to focus on doing what only the pastor can do. Godly deacons are a tremendous blessing to the local church.