Feeling Overlooked, Priorities, and Jesus
Acts (To Be Continued...) • Sermon • Submitted • Presented
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· 3 viewsJesus guides His church through a potential division.....He keeps guiding today...
Notes
Transcript
Intro:
Please turn to Acts 6. Acts 6:1-7.
(make sure Core Values are ready)
The Book of Acts is all about what Jesus continued to do through the early church by the power of the Spirit.
and I love how what Jesus continued to do then through the Early Church…He continues to do now through the Church today.
Before I read...
I really appreciate that the Book of Acts does not gloss over problems and challenges.
Think of the challenges so far:
One challenge: persecution (chapters 4-5) -
the apostles already had been arrested, flogged, threatened, and next week the first martyr—Stephen.
Two challenge: corruption or hypocrisy
— Ananias and Sapphira (5:1-11)—claim to be more generous than they actually are. and Peter says they were led by Satan not the Spirit and they are struck dead.
so attacks from outside....
and attacks from within...
and now we see another challenge...
please stand as I read:
Acts 6:1–7 (NIV)
1 In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food.
2 So the Twelve (the apostles) gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables.
3 Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them
4 and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”
5 This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism.
6 They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.
7 So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.
and now we actually see 2 new potential challenges and problems:
#3 division (for the whole church)
#4 distraction (distraction from their calling)
let’s think about division....
look at verse 1
1 In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food.
now, this is a great time to be a part of the early church—they are growing. chapter 4 said more than 5,000 men.
this is the first time the word disciple is used in Acts—it means learner or apprentice—someone following the ways of Jesus.
but with growth comes challenges.
we have 2 groups of people here.
The Hellenistic Jews are Jews who became Christians and are from a Greek culture, Greek background, most likely speak Greek. They are Hellenized—of Greek background. probably moved into Jerusalem from another region
and then there are the Hebraic Jews - while they probably know Greek—they Jews who became Christians who spoke Aramaic, and were from Jerusalem.
and the difference between these 2 is not mainly language (both probably knew Greek) most likely culture.
As John Stott said, “The Hellenists not only spoke Greek but thought and behaved like Greeks, while the Hebrews not only spoke Aramaic but were deeply immersed in Hebrew culture.”
and the particular beef they had were those Christians from a Greek background felt like their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food vs. those of a Hebrew background.
you have to understand—at that time—widows (and orphans) were some of the most vulnerable people in that society. Women depended on their dad before they were married to survive, and then once they were married, they depended on their husband. the prospects of a widow getting work was small. and if you were a widow, you depended on your family, or maybe begging.
there was no social security or medicaid or food stamps.
so the church in Jerusalem—they became that social safety net, radically providing for one another’s needs.
and those of Greek background felt that their widows were being overlooked. “You guys are helping the Hebrew Christians—what about the Greek ones?” and so they complained.
that word complained is a strong word.
it’s the same word used of the Israelites in the OT when they complained against Moses and Aaron when they were led out of slavery in Egypt. “You guys brought us out here to die in the desert!”
the word literally means “behind the scenes talk..” and “Murmuring...”
now, I don’t think the early church leadership meant to do this—they overlooked it. and people felt neglected.
and the consequences could be disastrous—it could lead to 2 separate churches…huge division....
I think this problem is easy to happen in any church...
it’s worth asking—what are the groups of people here that could be overlooked by our church....and feel that way...
some ideas that come to mind...
within the church:
if you are not from Berne or Adams County or don’t have a certain last name like Schwartz…then you may feel overlooked.... “why are you guys always helping the Lehmans…or Sprungers…or Yoders...” but not us? the outsiders vs. the insiders.... (Lloyd Sarasin feels that and thus Wired is happening)
if you are poorer on the economic and financial side—you may feel like people of a higher economic class get more attention in our church. so the poor vs. those who have financial means
do we overlook those who experience mental health challenges in our church?
do you have to have it alltogether to be a part of our church?
those are the kinds within our church currently who may feel overlooked—what do you think?
or those outside the church:
what about those in our area who may vote different than us?
what about those in our area who have a rough background or currently are really struggling in areas like sexuality and gender? While we stay firm on the truth of God’s Word, are they welcome and allowed to hear the good news about a Savior who died for them—can we graciously show them Jesus?
it’s easy to see how a problem like this (and problems today) can quickly divide a church…if a group is being neglected or even feels neglected...
so in verse 2—the apostles call the first congregational meeting--
the people propose that 7 men who would be appointed and approved by them all to make sure the ministry of the daily distribution of food would happen....(all Greek names to help the Greek people—leadership from within)
and in vs. 7—amazing results—as the Word of God spreads...
I think we as a church today can learn so much from the early church...
as i think about their problem—it is our problem today too.
for example, if I were to ask you—what should we be doing as a church? What should we be all about? and I took a survey—I think we would find some interesting answers.
just look at our core values—depending on which one you think is most important…makes a difference
Depending on your gifting or passion—how you are wired by God…we need to do _______ more.
The church should do _________. or get involved in this cause or that cause.... all of which can be massively important....
Let me look at some ministry principles we see here on what our priorities should be as a church:
Principle #1: Both the ministry of the Word and the ministry of deeds are important for our church.
the ministry of the Word is what I am defining as preaching and teaching the Word of God in multiple contexts—large gatherings, small, one on one, classes, groups, counseling. and I would put prayer with this.
and the ministry of deeds is a ministry of action—it’s what we see here in providing food for the widows, some call this mercy ministries.
27 Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.
i am sure most of us gravitate towards one or the other more—either ministry of the Word or ministry of action and deeds.
here in the early church—we see that Jesus guides them to affirm BOTH ministries. a healthy church has both ministry of the Word with prayer and ministries of mercy. truth and action. Word and deed.
and i find this encouraging—b/c depending on our gifting---we may be wired towards one more than the other (and that’s ok) b/c we need both in the body of Christ…but we dare not put down one more than the other. both are needed. Both need people called into each, and both need godly individuals. sometimes both sides can talk past each other—but we see the value of both.
Principle #2: Even though both are important, we must be careful that the ministry of deeds does not take away from the ministry of the Word. (this is the danger of distraction)
another way to say it—that the ministry of deeds does not overwhelm us so much that we neglect teaching and proclaiming the Word in all of our ministries.
If I took a poll of the average American and asked, what do you think the church should be doing overall—and I gave them 2 choices:
should we be teaching the Word of God
or doing lots of good for society, like helping people, feeding the poor, helping the homeless.
i am guessing that most would probably say we need the latter....
but it’s surprising to us, especially for us who love action “Let’s do something...”
look at verse 2 again
2 So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables.
and in verse 4 they say this
4 and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”
now, I believe some of this they learned from Jesus himself....Jesus certainly had ministries of both the Word and also ministry of deeds (like healing)
35 Very early in the morning, while it was still dark, Jesus got up, left the house and went off to a solitary place, where he prayed.
36 Simon and his companions went to look for him,
37 and when they found him, they exclaimed: “Everyone is looking for you!”
38 Jesus replied, “Let us go somewhere else—to the nearby villages—so I can preach there also. That is why I have come.”
Jesus felt a lot of pressure I am sure to stay, heal everyone, and do a bunch of good—but one of his main priorities was to preach. to preach God’s Word. God’s kingdom.
the Apostle Paul told Timothy in 2 Tim. 4:1
1 In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge:
2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage—with great patience and careful instruction.
now, this doesn’t mean we neglect the ministry of deeds and mercies—the apostles were so right to make sure this was covered by qualified people.
but I think the temptation in all of our churches and ministries and even lives—is to fill up our schedules with doing so many good things that we neglect soaking in God’s Word, declaring God’s Word, bathing it in prayer...
I know as a church pastor, we often get lots of ideas of ministries we should be supporting, ministries we should be starting, initiatives and projects to take on—and those are good—I hope we keep getting them...
but if I am not careful, my time in the Word of God, and preparing suffers. In fact, if I can be super honest—this is one of the biggest challenges I have personally faced since coming to Berne—the temptation for me to be involved in everything in the life of the church and community—is dangerous for me and for this church....because it can distract me from one of my primary purposes and callings—to know and declare God’s Word. this is one of our elders main jobs for me and us as elders is to make sure we are giving plenty of time and focus to God’s Word.
I think declaring God’s Word is not always a glamorous thing…it’s not always measurable…it takes faith to trust that God can do that…it’s much more measurable to try and go do something practical…
I love accomplishing things—I wake up with a eager desire to get stuff done. I make a list, I check it off. I even add things to my list that I originally did not write just so I can have the satisfaction of checking them off. I am an achiever…and yet....
and yet as we see the book of Acts—one of the primary ways the church advances and grows is through the proclamation and teaching of God’s Word. the Word of God is like a character advancing by the power of the Spirit.
vs. 7
7 So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.
God has a way of building His church through the Word of God....slowly but surely…if we are not careful all the concerns of our world and church can dominate and keep us from feeding on God’s amazing Word...
It’s like God constantly has to remind me— “Rick or Richard, allow the Word of God to do the work of God....”
so as we step back for a second...
we see a church that is both preaching/teaching the Word of God, declaring the Gospel---and living it out by taking care of the needy in their flock, by loving one another practically that is a dynamic church.
this is an over-generalization—but as you look at churches in our culture....often churches that are better at teaching and preaching God’s Word but not so good at the ministries of deeds/mercies—are often more theologically conservative churches.
and churches that tend to be better at helping the poor, feeding the homeless, are the more theologically liberal churches but they struggle with the ministry of the Word.
the third principle: the ministry of the Word must include prayer. (vs. 4)
4 and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.”
one of my pastor friends who planted a church in Detroit…said this
I have heard it said from one of my pastor friends--if all we do is study and teach the Word but don’t pray--it’s like stacking the wood for a fire, but not lighting it. In other words--prayer is the ignition that lights the fire. I can be guilty of this, too--I love studying and learning and reading books.
those of you who regularly teach or lead a group of some kind in the Word—do you pray?
prayer, like the ministry of the Word, sometimes feels like you are doing nothing. it may be the hardest thing we do everyday.
seriously.
but are we giving our attention to prayer?
sometimes I have thought in ministry if I just help this person—in a practical way this will change their life…whatever it is. and then their life will change because I helped them so much.
that doesn’t always happen...
but when I have stopped to pray—I mean really pray…it makes a huge difference. I have noticed more life change....
the 4th principle: all types of ministries require godly leaders (vs. 3)
3 Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them
look at how vs. 5 describes Stephen:
5 This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism.
godly people are needed for all kinds of ministries
godly people are called to all kinds of ministries
and it’s not as if these 7 only did this food distribution...
we read in chapter 6-7, that Stephen will be declaring God’s Word before He does
chapter 8 - Philip will be declaring and spreading God’s Word in Samaria
whatever ministry you find yourself doing or God has called you to—allow Him to use you. allow your character to grow.
you could have the most unglamorous ministry in the history of ministries…and btw—if you are a stay at home parent—that’s you. very unglamorous—but maybe the most important as you pour into your kids and raise them in the ways of the Lord.
sometimes, I think we could have gift envy if we are not careful. I wonder if the 7 here had gift envy of the apostles, or the apostles had gift envy of each other. or the average person wished they did that.
we can have that, too.
“I wished I played music like Gabe Bailey, or could sing like Brian Habeggar”
I wish I could run the sound board like Dave Heckard or Brian Lehman
I wish I could teach kids like the Conrad sisters
I wish I could have mad decorating skills like Lana Sprunger
I wish I could _____________
there are no 2nd class ministries! all are needed
5th principle: The Word of God flourishes when ministry is shared (vs. 2-7)
I find it instructive…that the decision was brought to the entire congregation
still led by the apostles—they had a proposal...
and then delegated to others.
many biblical scholars have noted that we see here in infancy some of the early officers of the church.
the apostles are like elders or overseers that show up in 1 Timothy 3—overseeing the church, shepherding and teaching, and the 7 men are the pattern for the first deacons or deaconnesess (simply means servant—male and female)
in the church officers in 1 Timothy 3—we see a lot of similarities between elders vs. deacons/deaconnesses.
both require lots of godly character—ordinary godly character—fruits of the spirit
but the one difference for elders is the ability to teach God’s Word.
and so many have noted here in Acts 6—we see a pattern for what church structure should look like.
that every church should have godly elders—overseeing the church—making sure the Word and prayer are happening.
and also deacons/deaconnesses doing the nuts and bolts of the church ministry who are doing all sorts of practical things like taking care of the building (like our trustees on the board), overseeing the finances (like our church treasurer), making sure practical needs are met within our church.
and with all of this the congregation is involved in this decision-making, and approving of its leaders.
I think churches can be structured in many different ways—but it seems like churches thrive best when the...
it is led by godly leaders who are affirmed by the congregation
congregation is involved in major decisions
delegation and sharing of ministry happens.
all of this under the lordship of Jesus Christ.
conclusion:
as we get ready to wrap up our time....there are many application points:
what groups are overlooked in our church and community that need help?
how are we doing as individuals and churches in making sure the ministry of the Word and deed both happen?
are we trusting Jesus that whatever challenges come are way—whether persecution, hypocrisy, or division and distraction....that Jesus is going to lead us through it? the Gospel seems to advance even in spite of conflict—because Jesus is so powerful.
i want to call up our leaders—if you are currently on the church board or staff … come up here...
Let’s pray.
Board members:
Elders:
Brad Abnet
Jerry Amstutz
Chris Hawbaker
Luke Liechty
Lloyd Sarasin
Larry McMullen
Deaconesses:
Myra Moore
Kelli Moore
Carolyn Fudge
Trustees (building)
Jud Myers
Gary Liechty
Eric Hirschy
Church Treasurer:
Joni Lehman
Church Secretary
Michelle LeFever
Staff:
Myself
Mike Wilson
Brenda Heckard - Executive Secretary
Michelle McIntosh - Communications
Logan Dettmer and Gabe Bailey - youth
Kate Uebersax and Bethany Busche - children
Penny Haines - Financial Secretary
Baer - Connections Pastor
Dathen - Care and Visitation and Senior Life
Doug Schwartz - Head Custodian,
Matt Smith and Jan Balsiger - Part-time Custodians (Radar Smith)
we could use your help - tearing down…and eating…opportunity to do some ministry of deeds and eat....