Verse 13
For they that have served well as deacons gain to themselves a good standing, and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus.
As Lipscomb remarked, "Through service of the deaconship a man grows into the qualifications and fitness for the work of an elder."[33]
ELDERS AND DEACONS
Probably the greatest class of men on earth today are the elders and deacons of churches of our Lord throughout the world. Their work is that of constant service and study, not in some ivory tower, but in the boiling crucible of daily life, where the word of God and its application to pressing human problems are their constant daily concern. The hours of toil, unrequited by any human emoluments, the ceaseless care of the churches, the countless meetings, the unending solicitation on their part of cooperation from the membership, with no means of enforcing it except by the sheer weight of their spiritual and moral authority - these qualities of their service, together with the marvelous success which crowns their efforts, give evidence of the genuine greatness which marks the character and conduct of elders and deacons of the Lord's church.
This commentator has had the honor of knowing literally hundreds of elderships and deaconships throughout the United States, and the quality of character and ability exhibited by all of them is the most truly amazing phenomenon ever observed by this writer. Surely such men are the servants of the Most High.
This verse concludes the Pauline instructions for the appointment of elders and deacons.
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