Women Deacons

Yes, it is a biblical idea.  David Platt, a well respected pastor from Birmingham, AL recently took on the question.  Click here to read about it or Here to watch it.

I have long wondered how we miss the word used in Romans 16:1 to describe Phoebe.  Deaconess is the word.  It’s not a translation of the word, it is the word.  (Words matter.)

There are many women who serve in great ways in the church today.  Some churches may not be interested in this, but it is no reason to disassociate with those who embrace this fact.  If we are going to be honest about the Bible… women can be deacons.

Some may naively claim that we must respect the tradition of the church not allow women deacons.  We in the protestant church need to remember here that this is the very heart of the issue we have long had with the Roman Catholic church.  We do not respect church tradition as being equal with or superior to the Bible.

As for the argument that says that deacons often serve as elders and that office is clearly an office reserved for men… It is a weak argument that has nothing to do with whether or not a woman can serve; but rather it teaches us that if the church is utilizing the offices of the church incorrectly, that church needs to surrender themselves and start managing the offices of the church in the way the Bible teaches.

I’d love to tell you this is not a hill on which to die… I’d love to tell you it is a secondary issue… and it some ways it is.  It is secondary to the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the Authority and inerrancy of the Bible for example.  But if the Bible is innerant, then this is just one of many issues we need to be aware of and address as we mature in the faith and grow in our obedience to His word.