The reason that the word “mystery” is used here with regard to the faith of a deacon or any true Christian, is because everything of truth that they hold to, everything of obedience that they are committed to, is a matter of God’s revelation to them; that is, the revelation of God’s Person, and the revelation of His will. A deacon may not be able to teach, or be apt to teach, but it is essential that he hold to the mystery of the faith. Paul is stating here, that in order to help others he should be able to share what has been revealed to him about God’s grace, and the salvation which has become his, by faith. He should be able to convey to the needy person who he is seeking to minister to, and to the watching world, the truth that there is grace enough in Christ to save from all sins, to sustain in the greatest trials, and to strengthen every needy person to do the will of God. He should be able to communicate, by his words and his deeds, that there is truth and grace sufficient for those who need the help of God. So what I want to do this afternoon is to draw out the meaning of this phrase, “holding the mystery of the faith”. I want to set forth both the objective truth and the subjective application to men who would be deacons, and to the rest of us here as well. |
