1 Timothy 3:10

And let these also first be proved; then let them use the office of a deacon, being found blameless. 'And moreover' [ kai (G2532) ... de (G1161)] be proved-not by a period of probation, but by searching inquiry by Timothy, the ordaining president (1 Timothy 5:22), then when found 'unaccused' ( anengkleetoi (G410): but anepileemptos (G423), 'unexceptionable,'1 Timothy 3:2: cf. note), 'let them act as deacons.'...

10_And let those be first tried _He wishes that they who are chosen should not be unknown, but that their integrity should be ascertained, like that of the bishops. And hence it is evident, that they are called _blameless _who are not stained by any marked vice. Besides, this trial is not for a single hour, but consists in long experience. In a word, when deacons are to be ordained, the choice must not fall at random, and without selection, on any that come to hand, but those men are to be chosen who are approved by their past life in such a manner that, after what may be called full inquiry, they are ascertained to be well qualified....

8-13 The deacons were at first appointed to distribute the charity of the church, and to manage its concerns, yet pastors and evangelists were among them. The deacons had a great trust reposed in them. They must be grave, serious, prudent men. It is not fit that public trusts should be lodged in the hands of any, till they are found fit for the business with which they are to be trusted. All who are related to ministers, must take great care to walk as becomes the gospel of Christ....

Verse 10. _LET THESE - BE PROVED_] Let them not be _young_ _converts_, or persons lately brought to the knowledge of the truth. This is the same in spirit with what is required of the bishops, 1 Timothy 3:6. Let no man be put into an office in the Church till he has given full proof of his sincerity and steadiness, by having been for a considerable time a consistent private member of the Church. _BEING_ FOUND _BLAMELESS._] ανεγκλητοι οντες. Being irreproachable; persons against whom no evil can be proved. The same as in 1 Timothy 3:2, though a different word is used. See the note there....

AND LET THESE ALSO FIRST BE PROVED - That is, tried or tested in regard to the things which were the proper qualifications for the office. This does not mean that they were to be employed as “preachers,” but that they were to undergo a proper trial in regard to their fitness for the office which they were to fill. They were not to be put into it without any opportunity of knowing what they were. It should be ascertained that they were grave, serious, temperate, trustworthy men; men who were sound in the faith, and who would not dishonor the office. It is not said here that there should be a “formal” trial, as if they were candidates for this office; but the meaning is, that they should have had an opportunity of making their character known, and should have gained such respect for their piety, and their other qualifications, that there would be reason to believe that they would perform t...

EXPOSITION 1 TIMOTHY 3:1 _Faithful is the saying _for _this is a true saying_,_ _A.V.; _seeketh _for _desire_,_ _A.V. FAITHFUL IS THE SAYING (see above, 1 Timothy 1:15, note). This manifestly refers to what follows, not, as Chrysostom and others, and margin of the R.V., to the saying which precedes, in 1 Timothy 2:15. SEEKETH (ὀρέγεται); literally, _stretches out his hands after_._ It _is peculiar in the New Testament to the pastoral Epistles and the Epistle to the Hebrews, though common in classical Greek (see...

AND LET THESE ALSO FIRST BE PROVED,.... Not that they should be tried in any part of the deacon's office, to see how capable they are of performing it; but their internal and external characters are to be looked into and examined, and if they appear, to be right, then they are to be approved of, chosen and called unto, and invested with the office: THEN LET THEM USE THE OFFICE OF A DEACON; let them be employed and minister in the several parts and branches of that office: BEING FOUND BLAMELESS; not without sin, but free from any gross and enormous one; not before God, but in the sight of men; 1 Timothy 3:2....

III. CONCERNING THE HOUSE OF GOD CHAPTER 3 _ 1. The overseer (1 Timothy 3:1)_ 2. The deacon (1 Timothy 3:8) 3. The house of God and the mystery of Godliness (1 Timothy 3:14) 1 Timothy 3:1 As stated before, the Church is viewed in these pastoral Epistles as the house of God. The holiness which becomes this house is to be maintained and expressed in a practical way. The different directions given as to overseers and deacons demonstrate what God esteems highly, and what He expects of those who are saved by grace, and who constitute His House. Paul wrote these instructions to his son Timot

DEACONS AND DEACONESSES. Certain moral qualities, likewise, are required in deacons. They must be serious, sincere in speech, free from love of wine and (since they administer church funds) from love of money, holding with a pure conscience the truth revealed in the faith. They, too, must be appointed only when, tested by their general conduct in the community, they are found without accusation. (Deaconesses must satisfy similar requirements.) The domestic conditions demanded for bishops apply to deacons also. These varied qualifications are needful because fidelity in their office wins them, among their fellows, both a position of honour and boldness in their faith. 1 TIMOTHY 3:9. MYSTERY: _ i.e._ truth which man could not find for himself, but which, once hidden, is now made known through revelation....

THE LEADERS OF THE CHURCH (1 Timothy 3:1-7)...