Acts 6:1-7

A challenge arose in the young, developing church. In Acts 4, we are told that the church was “of one heart and mind” and “there were no needy persons among them.” However, as the church grew, challenges arose to both of these statements. The apostles needed to find a solution which would be acceptable to the whole group.

This is important. Again, we aren’t looking for compromise. We look for mutually beneficial solutions. We look for ways to meet challenges in front of us by finding solutions which benefit as many people as we can. I was thinking of the current challenge in front of us. As we consider how to relaunch, we look for solutions which are acceptable to everyone. If you are comfortable you have the freedom to do this and if you aren’t comfortable you don’t have to. We err on the side of personal freedom and responsibility. Let’s look at the problem confronting the early church.

1. The Problem (Acts 6:1)

Acts 6:1 CSB

1 In those days, as the disciples were increasing in number, there arose a complaint by the Hellenistic Jews against the Hebraic Jews that their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution.

They had a good problem. They were growing, but their growth led to other problems.

A. A culture difference: Hellenistic Jews and Hebraic Jews

Jewish society had a system to help needy widows. It was common to be widowed in the first century. Women married much older men and life expectancy wasn’t what it is today. Most of the time, relatives would care for widows, but those without relatives would be more vulnerable. The Hellenistic Jews, most of which were immigrants, didn’t have the support network the Hebraic Jews would have had.

B. Language barriers: Greek and Aramaic

The Hellenistic Jews would have spoken Greek, but probably would not have spoken Aramaic. They would have been from regions outside of Palestine. They grew up in places without access to the local language of the Jewish people. The Hebraic Jews would have likely spoken Aramaic, but would not have been as comfortable with Greek. This led to language barriers.

C. Increasing in numbers

You can be sure that the Hellenistic, Greek speaking Jews were not purposefully being overlooked. The main cause of the problem was there were too many people for the apostles to be aware of the needs of everyone. The apostles had other responsibilities and people were slipping through the cracks.

All of these factors contributed to the rise in complains. The church was in danger of splitting along cultural lines. How could the apostles find a mutually beneficial solution?

We are a multicultural church body. We have various cultures, languages, and backgrounds. It is truly a beautiful thing. Some have asked why we don’t have a Spanish worship and a Mandarin worship. The reason is simple. The preserve the unity of the Body of Christ. We are one church who ministers in a multicultural setting. To divide along cultural lines, in my mind, is an offense to the power of the gospel. Our multicultural make-up is a tribute to the power of the gospel to unite us together.

2. The Solution (Acts 6:2-6)

Acts 6:2–6 CSB

2 The Twelve summoned the whole company of the disciples and said, “It would not be right for us to give up preaching the word of God to wait on tables. 3 Brothers and sisters, select from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and wisdom, whom we can appoint to this duty. 4 But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” 5 This proposal pleased the whole company. So they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, and Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a convert from Antioch. 6 They had them stand before the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.

Notice what the apostles did not do. They didn’t focus on the attitude of the people who were complaining. They could have told them to be satisfied with what they have and stop complaining. After all, it wasn’t the apostles fault they were in the situation they were in. They could have told them to focus on their spiritual lives and told them not to worry about having a full belly. They could have told them their lack of provision was because of their lack of faith, as some preachers do these days. There was a problem and they looked for a mutually beneficial solution.

A. They made an executive decision to reorganize the church structure. (Acts 6:2-4)

This is something we can learn from in our day. We are going through changes and because of those changes, some of the things we once did are going to need to change. We will be tempted to long for the good ‘ol days before COVID 19 and be nostalgic. Nostalgia kills momentum. Our methods will change, but our mission and message do not change. We will be faithful to the gospel and will need to adapt our methods to be effective. Movement is life and those who fail to adapt grow stagnant and die.

i. The apostles would devote themselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word of God.

Why would they prioritize these two aspects?

- It is an acknowledgement of God’s leadership.

Church leaders are representing God; therefore, they must make sure they are in alignment with him. Prayer and the study of God’s Word is key to making sure they are aligned. Sometimes we think the answer to spiritual growth is through having the right programs and opportunities. This is unbiblical. Prayer is where the power is. Jesus said so in Mark 9:29

Mark 9:29 CSB

29 And he told them, “This kind can come out by nothing but prayer.”

We must be dedicated to prayer and God’s Word if we are going to see spiritual progress in our lives and in the ministry.

- Leaders have a duty to pray for the people they lead.

1 Samuel 12:23 CSB

23 “As for me, I vow that I will not sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you. I will teach you the good and right way.

Prayer is the most important thing a leader can do. Jesus gave a significant amount of his time to prayer. Moses spent 40 days and 40 nights praying for his people. Paul mentioned praying for people in 10 of his 13 letters. Leaders must pray for their people.

- Leaders pray with those they lead.

There are many times having a spiritual leader pray with you bring comfort. Whether it being a visit or over the phone, having someone pray with you is a source of comfort.

- Leaders lead the community in prayer

Leaders take the initiative to pray and to call people to prayer.

ii. They would not sacrifice the gospel mission to “wait on tables”.

Some commentators have criticized the apostles for their supposed separation of spiritual ministry and physical ministry. They seems to think that the apostles thought that physical ministry was not as important as spiritual ministry. However, this is not the case. They were not forming a spiritual elitism. They were affirming their primary calling and their spiritual gifts. They need to exercise their spiritual gifts and create room for other people to exercise their spiritual gifts.

iii. The church needed to select seven godly men to serve the needs of the church.

This was the task of the entire group. They needed to put forth seven people to oversee the work of the food distribution.

B. The apostles had three qualifications for these men.

i. They needed to have a good reputation.

ii. They needed to be full of the Holy Spirit.

iii. They needed to be full of wisdom.

Once these men were selected the apostles would turn the duties over to them. The group would make the nominations, but the appointment would be made by the apostles.

C. “The proposal pleased the whole company.”

This is important and not to be overlooked. They didn’t look for a compromise. They looked for a mutually beneficial solution. They looked for a way to meet the challenge in such a way that everyone would be happy. Don’t mistake this as being “people-pleasers”. The apostles were not trying to appease the group. They were trying to act wisely and do what would be in the best interests of everyone involved.

D. Seven men were selected, all of which had Greek names.

This is not to say that all of them were Hellenists. Some of them were. Most Jews in the ancient world had a Roman name, a Greek name, and a Jewish name. However, they all appeared to be Hellenists. Nicolas was a convert from Antioch, a Greek speaking region. Stephen was a from a Hellenistic synagogue (Acts 6:9).

E. The apostles ordained them to ministry.

The apostles laid hands on them. This would have been symbolic of a transfer of a particular area of authority. They prayed for them, likely a blessing and commission to the work in front of them.

3. The Outcome (Acts 6:7)

Acts 6:7 CSB

7 So the word of God spread, the disciples in Jerusalem increased greatly in number, and a large group of priests became obedient to the faith.

The administrative change did not reduce the evangelistic mission.

The Word of God spread. They continued to increase in number. Even some priests accepted the gospel message. The message of the Gospel continue to spread and change lives.