Growing Pains

If you have your copy of God’s Word, open to Acts 6, you’ll find that on p. 870 in the pew Bibles. Last week, we found the early church facing a challenge from within as Ananias and Sapphira tried to lie to the Holy Spirit and conflict from the outside as the apostles were arrested, released by an angel, interrogated, beaten and released again. Through all of that we found the church continuing to grow.

Today, as we turn to chapter 6 of the book of Acts, we find the church experiencing what we might call Growing Pains.

Acts 6:1–7 ESV

Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution. And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them. And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.

Before we consider this text, let me address a couple of things:

lengths of texts that are preached

short this week, long last week, long next week

I try to consider the overall argument of what Luke is getting at as he recounts the history of the early church.

I also think about the timeline and how we’ll look at the book over the course of the year. We’ll be in Acts through thanksgiving, take a brief break for Advent/Christmas, and then jump back into Acts through the end of the school year.

context

each week, as we consider the text of the book, we are thrust into the context of this early church. Sometimes we’re able to imagine where the church is what the environment might have looked like. Other times, like today, Luke just tells us the events, but doesn’t help us much with the context or where these things might have taken place.

For example, we know that the church seemed to meet in the Temple - which contained a large courtyard and a big portico. But they also met from house to house. So as we think about this text, we may be tempted to imagine a big structure with a food distribution like what we might do in our Cafe. Instead, it may be better for us to think about the simple facts of the challenge before them rather than trying to imagine or ascertain exactly how or where this might have take place.

So, as we look at this text today, we’ll reflect on the problem, the proposition, and the product of these growing pains.

As the passage does, let’s begin by considering the…

Problem (1)

Luke notes a couple of things right at the outset.

in “these days when the disciples were increasing in number” - As we’ve seen over the last several weeks, this was a time of tremendous growth for the church. Whether this was several months or even a couple of years - this growth was rapid. This church that started as a group just slightly larger than our gathering had grown to thousands.

This was a diverse group. Luke notes the presence of Hellenists and Hebrews.

Hellenists - There is some debate as to who made up this group. They were likely Greek-speaking Jews from what’s known as the diaspora or scattering. These were Jews that lived for many years in other regions. Luke noted back in chapter 2 that there were people living in Jerusalem from “every nation under heaven.” (1). It’s as though these scattered Jews had returned to Jerusalem. When the Spirit was poured out on the Disciples and they began to preach in other languages, people from these other places heard the gospel in their own tongues: Acts 2:9–11 “Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians….””

One of the challenges that faced this group of Jews is that while they were religiously and ethnically Jewish, they had grown up as culturally Greek. They may have looked, acted, and talked more like the people of these different areas, even though their religious identity had been Jewish and was now Christian.

Luke also noted that there was a group in the church referred to as…

Hebrews - These were likely the people who were native to Jerusalem and the surrounding areas. Most, if not all, of the disciples would have fallen into this camp. They would have spoken Hebrew or Aramaic primarily. Culturally, they would have identified more closely with a Jewish culture.

While we may not be able to relate exactly to these distinctions, we can understand the cultural differences that exist in our midst. Whether we’ve come from different countries or even different parts of America, the ways we express our Christianity might look differently. I’ve been in parts of the world where men and women sit on different side of the sanctuary, where shoes are taken off, where some heads are covered and others are not. These distinctions are neither right or wrong, just different. Our worship together will adjust based on whom God calls to be a part of the PBC family, provided all of it is rooted in Scripture. I love that from the earliest days of the church that it was a diverse body. I love that God is calling us together to be a diverse body as well!

But, the Christians in this first church in Jerusalem experienced some growing pains.

experienced

Problems will arise in any congregation. Some, as we saw last week may arise from sin, others may arise simply from our human nature.

Luke notes that as food was distributed (however that may have happened), some people were being overlooked - specifically the widows of the Hellenists. While we can only speculate how this would have happened, we can certainly relate to how people can be overlooked. Imagine, in a congregation of that size, the Hebrew leaders may only have been able to recognize the widows of their group, but may have had little to no idea who the Hellenist widows were, even if their names were written out on a list (1 Tim. 5:9). While our congregation is of a size where everyone could know each other, it’s understandable that not everyone will know each other. Unfortunately, some people can inadvertently be overlooked. I have been so encouraged over the last couple of months at how visitors to our gatherings have felt so welcomed! Thank you for being such a welcoming congregation. May we continue to seek to get to know one another even more, to pray for each other, and fellowship together so that no one is overlooked.

So, here in the church in Acts 6, this problem was not one of preference or theories, it was truly experienced by these women. Notice, too, that this problem was…

expressed

Luke notes that a “complaint” arose. This could be a murmuring or grumbling. What is important is that while this problem or pain was experienced, it was expressed - they let it be known.

Especially as someone who avoids conflict, I will tend to absorb or ignore problems. But for us as a church, we have to remember that in the problems we face, people can’t do anything about it unless it is expressed. As a society, we are inclined to express on social media, or provide anonymous bad reviews rather than taking a problem to someone directly, especially taking it to someone who can do something about it.

If you find that there is an area of concern or pain in our congregation, please let us know, talk to one of the Elders or one of the Deacons. While we mean well, we will make mistakes and will inadvertently overlook things.

So, here in the early church, as the Apostles learned of this problem, they responded with a…

Proposition (2-6)

The solution to their problem came in the creation of the role of deacons or servants. Now, in the passage that we read earlier, we get a little clarity in the character and conduct of deacons (1 Timothy 3). While this passage doesn’t give a clear title to the role, it does help us to understand a few things about the origin deacon ministry.

As the Apostles gathered the whole congregation, they invited them to pick or appoint 7 men. Why that number? I’m not sure. Luke doesn’t reveal that to us. Maybe it was because the size of the task and they felt like 7 would be a sufficient number to serve the needs of this ministry. Now, they didn’t want just any men, they wanted a certain kind of men.

Good reputation - They were likely well thought of by people around them.

Full of the Spirit - While we believe that all Christians are indwelled by the Spirit, it is clear that some are in-tuned with how the Spirit speaks. These men chosen men were to exhibit some submission to the Spirit of God.

Full of Wisdom - In other words, these people were not to be rash in their reactions, but thoughtful and prudent.

Based on that criteria, the congregation liked that proposal and suggested seven men. Interestingly, these men all had Greek names. It’s possibly that these were all from the Hellenist camp. The first two - Stephen and Philip are guys that we’re going to get to know a bit more in the coming weeks. The others are not mentioned again in Scripture.

But, notice the motivation behind this proposition. In verse 2 the Apostles responded - Acts 6:2 “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables.” Then in verse 4 - Acts 6:4 “But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.””

The institution of this deacon ministry allowed the congregation to meet needs while protecting the priorities of the Apostles. This was an important problem that needed to be addressed. That being said, the work that God called the Apostles to was also important.

I’m so grateful for the men and women who serve as deacons here. Tom and Robin, Ned and Peggy, Brian P., Nathan, Buddy, Gabriel. You all do a valuable service to the Lord and to the Congregation. While we are in the midst of adjusting how we do the deacon ministry here, I’m so grateful for you. Your reputation in the community, your sensitivity to the Spirit, and wisdom provide a vital service to the physical needs of our congregation, our facility, and our community. Thank you!

So the problem was solved with the proposition and implementation of deacons, which brings us to the conclusion or the…

Product (5a, 7)

It seemed like there were two big results that came from the way that this problem was address.

The first was within the congregation as the solution “pleased” them. They were pleased with the process (5a).

In any congregation, change is difficult. There are often unexpected bumps and adjustments along the way to resolution.

adjusting the Deacon ministry

moving to Community Groups, maintaining community groups

Kids Connection, and so much more!

While we don’t want to be people pleasers, we also don’t want to cause unnecessary conflict and hiccups needlessly.

The second product of the resolution of this problem was continued growth of the congregation. Look at your copy of God’s word in verse 7.

Acts 6:7 ESV

And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.

The people who were tasked with the ministry or service of the Word were able to continue to proclaim the Word and people responded. The growing pains had been mitigated and the Word was able to go forth even more.

I find it interesting that even priests were beginning to come to faith. It’s unclear what led them to become “obedient to the faith,” maybe it was the persistence of the Apostles, or the radical change in the lives of people in and around Jerusalem, or the miracles - whatever it was, even the priests - a great many of them - came to faith.

I can imagine that for these priests to come to faith would have been a big step. Likely, they would have had to leave their positions - as they came to the understanding that Jesus had fulfilled all of the sacrifices that they were facilitating.

But, for any of us to come to faith, we experience that same sort of shift. The very things that we thought would bring us life - knowledge, good works, religious activism - were not making an eternal difference. Just like these priests, when any of us come to faith, we have to turn away from our old way of thinking and turn to trust in Christ as Savior. That is the message the Apostles proclaimed. That is the message that we seek to proclaim.

Oh friend, if you’ve not yet trusted in Jesus as your Savior, repent, believe, and be baptized. Cora shared how God moved in her life and how she responded to the Word and the Gospel.

Closing thoughts

The Apostles seemed to be people who served for a time in the early church. When that generation died out, there were no more Apostles. But as we’ll see over the next several months and as we read in the letters of the NT, the Spirit led these Apostles to appoint Elders or Pastors in churches. I believe that part of the work of Elders and pastors is similar to that of the Apostles - prayer for the congregation and ministry of the Word. It’s easy to for me to get distracted into non-Word and prayer actions. I’m grateful for you who are deacons and those who will become deacons some day for your good, needed work in our church. I’m grateful for all of you (whether deacons or not) who volunteer your time and energy

greeting,

fixing,

weeding,

tellering,

filling the baptistry,

preparing meals for those in need,

distributing food to those who can use it,

singing,

playing musical instruments,

pushing buttons,

pouring coffee,

facilitating community groups,

Preparing the Lords supper,

and so much more!

You are a blessing to this church and you honor God in your service. To borrow a phrase from the book of Nehemiah - “you’re doing a great work, don’t come down.” (Neh. 6:3).

Let’s pray.

Jesus, thank you for the way that you organized your church. Thank you for the blessing of those who do so many tangible things. May we all, like these first deacons be men and women of good repute, filled with your Spirit, and wisdom. Amen.

Benediction

Acts 2:38 ESV

And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

Questions for reflection and discussion

Read: Acts 6:1-7

1. What complaint did the Grecian Jews make? (6:1)

2. What did the apostles—the Twelve—do in response to criticism? (6:2–4)

3. Why did the Twelve choose prayer and teaching over caring for the poor? (6:2–4)

4. How did the group respond to the apostles’ proposal? (6:5)

5. Who was selected to serve the widows?  Who chose them?(6:5)

6. What was the effect of the appointment of certain people to serve the widows? (6:7)

7. What different ethnic or cultural groups are there in your church?

8. How can differences among believers cause friction?

9. Where are there challenges in our church that need to be addressed? Who do you think are people of “good repute, full of the spirit, and wisdom” who could address those needs?

Sources:

Bruce, F.F. The Book of Acts, Revised Edition. The New International Commentary on the New Testament. Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1988

Fernando, Ajith. Acts. The NIV Application Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1998.

Keener, Craig S. Acts: An exegetical commentary, Volume 2. Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2012

Keener, Craig S. The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1993.

Lightfoot, J.B. The Acts of the Apostles: A newly discovered commentary. Downers Grove, IL: Intervarsity Press, 2014

Peterson, David G. The Acts of the Apostles. The Pillar New Testament Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI; Nottingham, England: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2009.

Toussaint, Stanley D. “Acts.” In The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures, edited by J. F. Walvoord and R. B. Zuck. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985.