Deacons at PBC


The church of Jesus Christ began in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost 33 AD, with the arrival of the promised Holy Spirit (Acts 2). Over the following few years, the apostles and the new Christians shared with the whole known world the good news that their risen Lord was offering salvation to all who would place their faith in Him (Acts 1:8). Small house churches began to spring up and it soon became apparent during those formative years, that our Lord's people were called to a variety of functions within the new "body of Christ" using their "spiritual gifts." It also became apparent that the church needed two different leadership ministries. In Acts 6:1-5, we can see the emergence of the leadership ministry of elders and deacons. In giving out food to the needy in the new church, the apostles realized that the Greek widows had been overlooked. So, "...the twelve summoned the congregation of the disciples and said, 'It is not desirable for us to neglect the word of God in order to serve tables [diakonia]. But select from among you, brethren, seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this task. But we will devote ourselves to prayer, and to the ministry of the word.'"

The Characteristics of Deacons

Our risen Lord has given each new believer within the "body of Christ" certain spiritual gifts in order to serve Him within our local church as well as our local community. There are two categories of spiritual gifts: speaking gifts and serving gifts (I Peter 4:10-11). Then, from among the men and women gifted with "serving gifts" (administration, helps, service, giving, vision, leadership, and mercy, etc.), our risen Lord calls out certain "tested" deacons as servant leaders to minister among us as well as lead the rest of us into ministry.

A list of the characteristics for deacons can be found in I Timothy 3:8-13. As is true of the ministry of elders, the ministry of deacons also appears to demonstrate that God is more concerned about the character of a man or woman than he is about the task they have been called to.

"Deacons likewise must be men of dignity, not double-tongued, or addicted to much wine or fond of sordid gain, but holding to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. And let these also first be tested; then let them serve as deacons if they are beyond reproach. Women must likewise be dignified, not malicious gossips, but temperate, faithful in all things. Let deacons be husbands of only one wife, and good managers of their children and their own households. For those who have served well as deacons obtain for themselves a high standing and great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus."

As our deacon ministry grows, we as your elders would encourage you to bring to our attention any man or woman you see serving in our body whom you believe is spiritually qualified ("tested") as outlined in 1 Timothy 3:8-13 to serve as a deacon in this leadership ministry. We also appreciate your prayers for the men and women who have been appointed for leadership in this newly recognized ministry at PBC.

The Responsibilities of Deacons

The word "deacon" indicates servant and service. The elders will encourage the deacons to continue to use their service gifts among us and within our communities and to lead and encourage many of us with the same gifts to join them in their ministries. Some of those ministries will fall in line with our Lord's word in Matthew 25:35-36: "For I was hungry, and you gave Me something to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me drink; I was a stranger, and you invited Me in; naked, and you clothed Me; I was sick, and you visited Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me."

See Honored Servants, by Steve Zeisler, Discovery Paper #8155

Current Deacons at PBC

Community Deacons

Dave Beggs, Los Altos Area

Jerry and Elene Cook, Los Altos Area

Paul and Sue Cross, Palo Alto Area

Gordon and Rosie Hall, Sunnyvale Area

Rafael and Carolyn Sedillo, Sunnyvale Area

Ray and Sheri Luevano, Palo Alto Area

Tom Means, Mountain View Area

Kip and Patti Farmer, Mountain View Area,

Mark and Laura Ledwith, Mountain View Area

Don and Carolyn Miller, Los Altos Area

Charles and Jeanette Roberson, Palo Alto Area

Bob and Muriel Thompson, Sunnyvale Area

Chris Tucker, Palo Alto Area

Jim and Dorothy Wolfe, Palo Alto Area

Task Deacons

Jerri Rudnick, Women

Milton Borg, Facilities

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Revised May 29, 1996.