“"CAN A DIVORCED
MAN SERVE
IN THE KINGDOM?"
By Dr. Hoyt W. Allen, Jr.
Concerning the
question about
divorced men serving
as an elder or
deacon in light of
the qualification of
the "Husband Of One
Wife" (I Timothy
3:2,12), I would
like to expound.
This has been chewed
over ever since the
beginning of the
church. I have
studied the subject
with people from
several schools of
thought, and have
prayed endlessly
about the subject.
My conclusion is:
1) Divorce is not
the unforgivable
sin. Many church
folk want to condemn
a person for
eternity for this
sin. Some churches
will not permit a
divorced person to
teach, sing, play an
instrument, usher,
be married in the
church building, or
even permit their
minister to perform
weddings for a
divorced person in
their own living
room, etc.; (even if
the divorce was for
a Scriptural reason
- See Matthew 19:9).
Some seemingly
believe they are
being a hero by
taking this bold
stand. However, the
same judgmental
individuals will
permit the marriage
of a believer & an
unbeliever, or will
okay a church
wedding of a six
month pregnant girl.
This is the height
of inconsistency.
2) God is more
interested in where
a man is today
spiritually, than
where he has come
from. The apostle
Paul was responsible
for the persecution
of many Christians &
yet after he was
"saved" he became a
great warrior for
Christ --- God did
not say to him, "Due
to your past, you
can not serve the
church as an apostle
or an evangelist". I
contend that many
good solid potential
deacons, elders, and
"Pulpit Ministers"
have been
sidestepped and the
church has been
cheated out of
servants in these
capacities, due to
the
misinterpretation of
the stated
qualification. May
we ask ourselves the
question, "Does not
our Lord say that
one can be "Born
Again" (John 3:5;
Acts 2:38; I John
1:9), and start
afresh, with the
slate of sin wiped
clean?
3) A divorced man
needs time to get
back to "normal"
before he is
suitable for the
deaconship or
eldership. Divorce
is upsetting
emotionally,
physically, and
spiritually to say
the least. It
(Continued)
(Continued)
usually takes
several years to
recuperate from
divorce. It would
call for him to be
remarried & that his
wife be a Christian,
as well as his
children (if of
age). The other
qualifications need
to be met as well as
this one. He must
demonstrate his love
for Christ & His
Church by his daily
walk.
4) The stated
Scripture is saying
that a man is to be
a "One Woman Man".
He is not to be
single, but to have
the experience of
raising a family (I
served as an elder
at age 28, which was
too young). This
grants to him the
supervisory
experience needed in
over-seeing a
congregation. He is
to have one wife at
a time. His wife may
die - does that mean
he is to run to the
church office &
immediately resign?
If his wife & he
divorce, that is a
"mark" which will
take a long time to
heal, thus his
resignation is in
order. When the
stated qualification
was written,
polygamy was common
(Yet God's plan was
one man for one
woman - Genesis
1:27; 2:20-24). God
was attempting to
say that he wanted
his church workers
to be normal & not
as the polygamists
or as the "Gays" of
Sodom or of our
society.
5) I am not one for
being too quick to
put a man into the
office of elder or
deacon. Many men
have problems
accepting a
servant's heart & if
given a position of
authority before
they are ready for
it, it can cause
great trouble for a
congregation. When a
man accepts the
nomination for a
deacon or elder, I
am convinced that he
should understand
that he is
accountable and has
some responsibility
to the congregation
to fulfill this
office in a serious
manner or he should
resign. Therefore, I
promote a periodic
confidence vote be
taken to keep one on
target.
Plainly, don’t get
short changed by
dealing with the
past. Do the work of
God and be ready to
meet Him. The Bible
teaches that to
avoid hell and gain
heaven - one must:
1) Believe In Jesus
As Savior (Acts
16:31) 2) Repent Of
Sins (Acts 17:30) 3)
Confess Christ
Audibly (Acts 8:37)
4) Be Baptized In
Water (Acts 2:38)
5) Live A Christian
Life (Acts 14:22) 6)
Stay Active In The
Church (Acts 2:47)
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