Date: 03-12-00

Sermon Number: Acts 011

Text: Acts 6:1-8

(Deacons, The Work of Service, Using our Gifts)

This wonderful passage serves well as an introduction to our text in the book of Acts. It does so because it speaks of life in the local church and of the necessary participation of all its members for growth, stability, and preservation. The pastor-teachers or elders are to labor in the word and doctrine with prayer and they are to teach God’s people the truth they discover in the scriptures. The individual Christian is to view this teaching as that which equips him to help another grow in grace and knowledge. This is "the work of service". This work is exactly what its name implies. Each Christian is to serve his brothers and sisters in every way possible. We are to love one another and the essence of love is service. As each Christian serves his fellow Christian the church is built up, unified in faith, knowledge, and she is protected from error. As our beloved apostle puts it, the church is fitted and held together by that which EVERY joint supplies according the proper working of EACH individual part. This CAUSES the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love. And, as I have said many times, when such ministry takes place in the church the evangelism of those outside the church just happens.

This brings us to our text in Acts chapter six. (Acts 6:1-7 NASB) "Now at this time while the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint arose on the part of the Hellenistic Jews against the native Hebrews, because their widows were being overlooked in the daily serving of food. {2} And the twelve summoned the congregation of the disciples and said, "It is not desirable for us to neglect the word of God in order to serve tables. {3} "But select from among you, brethren, seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this task. {4} "But we will devote ourselves to prayer, and to the ministry of the word." {5} And the statement found approval with the whole congregation; and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas and Nicolas, a proselyte from Antioch. {6} And these they brought before the apostles; and after praying, they laid their hands on them. {7} And the word of God kept on spreading; and the number of the disciples continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were becoming obedient to the faith".

The problem described in our passage was directly related to the rapid growth of the first church. Exactly how large the church was is not known. The last account given says there were five thousand men. It was common in that day not to count the women and children involved so, if that is how they arrived at this number, we can assume that the church was made up of as many as twenty-thousand people. Surely you can imagine the problems that came with such explosive growth in the first church.

Up to this point there were only twelve teachers of the Word in the whole church. The apostles, to say the least, were spread thin. In addition to their preparation of lessons and preaching the Word, they were also taking care of the physical needs of the people. To the best of their ability they were making sure that all had food and shelter. Now, they admit to the church they can no longer handle the load of caring for the congregation. They must have help. Caring for the physical needs of the people had begun to interfere with their principal duty and calling, that of teaching the scriptures.

Not that the physical needs of the church are not important, they are. But those things must never take a pastor-teacher away from his most important and primary function, that of laboring in the word and doctrine with prayer so he can teach truth to the people of God. He must do this and they must make it possible for him to do it if the church is to be healthy and well.

I have been the pastor of a small congregation for over twenty years and am, therefore, not surprised that the first challenge to the peace of the early church came in the form of jealousy. I am not surprised because people make up the church and people are sinful creatures. Even after we have come to faith in Christ we are still sinful creatures. Therefore, we must not be surprised when dissention, jealousy, envy, strife, gossip, and other sins show their ugly head in the church. Such things will always be. But if they are not taken care properly the church will not grow or prosper, in fact, it will be destroyed. The question today is whose job is it to take care of the problems that arise in a church? Who must call Christians to account for their behavior? Who must feed the hungry and intervene when jealousy threatens to cause division? The answer has to do the leadership and with the congregation as well. All are and must be involved. For each person is gifted, able, and responsible to contribute as the Lord enables him. In short, it is everyone’s responsibility to preserve the peace of and encourage the health of the church.

The situation we have in our text today reminds me of an experience Moses had. After the exodus from Egypt he was trying to manage Israel all by himself. There were about three million Jews at that time and he was attempting to resolve all their conflicts alone. (Exodus 18:17-26 NASB) And Moses' father-in-law said to him, "The thing that you are doing is not good. {18} "You will surely wear out, both yourself and these people who are with you, for the task is too heavy for you; you cannot do it alone. . . {21} "Furthermore, you shall select out of all the people able men who fear God, men of truth, those who hate dishonest gain; and you shall place these over them, as leaders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties and of tens. {22} "And let them judge the people at all times; and let it be that every major dispute they will bring to you, but every minor dispute they themselves will judge. So it will be easier for you, and they will bear the burden with you. {23} "If you do this thing and God so commands you, then you will be able to endure, and all these people also will go to their place in peace." {24} So Moses listened to his father-in-law, and did all that he had said". The result was that Moses survived and the people’s problems were solved as well. But in order for this to happen a number of people had to come in from the sidelines and get involved.

In the situation before us the twelve leaders of the new church were trying to be all things to about twenty thousand people. This was, of course, an impossible task and if they continued the church would pay a price they could not afford to pay. That price would be shorter and poorer, shallower, sermons year to year. If allowed to continue the apostles would soon be over worked, over tired, and would have no choice but to deliver little toy sermons of little use to anyone. Thank God they saw and dealt with the problem before it became one. They did what the leaders of all churches must do. They drew on a God given resource, the people that made up the congregation. Every Christian in every congregation is a gifted person who needs to and must use their gifts in service of the church. The apostles tapped these God given gifts as found in a few God fearing, willing men. Here is how they went about it.

{2} And the twelve (apostles) summoned the congregation of the disciples (the whole church) and said, "It is not desirable for us to neglect the word of God in order to serve tables. (The phrase, "serve tables" speaks of meeting the physical needs of people. In this case they were concerned with widows.) {3} "But select from among you, brethren, seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this task".

First the church was called together. This must have been a daunting task in itself. Remember the great numbers we are talking about here and the fact that there were no telephones. The next task was to explain the problem. A complaint had arisen. The Hellenistic Jews believed their widows were not being treated as well as the native born Jewish widows. The Hellenists were Jews who had, by birth, or in some other way, come under the influence of the Greeks. They worshiped the true God but in a "Greekish" kind of way, they spoke the Greek language, and studied the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament. These were no doubt the minority in the new church principally composed of natural born Jews speaking Hebrew, Aramaic, or both and worshipping in a more traditional way. The complaint was this. The widows of the Hellenistic Jews were not receiving the same allotment of food as were the widows who were native born. The potential for a church split was very great.

Where did these Hellenists come from? They had been in Jerusalem for Passover and Pentecost and had come to believe that Jesus was the Christ, the Messiah. They had become Christ-tians, Christians. Instead of going back where they came from they decided to remain in Jerusalem under the apostles’ teaching and thus became part of the local church. The older members of their families, some being widows, could not fend for themselves. In fact it was hard for many in the new church to survive. They were away from home and jobs were scarce. This is exactly why the wealthier members of the church were selling their possessions and laying the proceeds at the apostle’s feet. They in turn would distribute the money as the need arose. Well, the saying goes you can please some of the people some of the time but you can never please all of the people all of the time. The Greek speaking Jews were not pleased. This was the problem.

Having explained the problem the apostles confess they must have help. "It is not desirable for us to neglect (leave behind) the word of God in order to serve tables". The word "table" can refer to an eating table but it can also refer to a table for a moneychanger. This, along with the larger context, tells us that the apostles were not just giving up the task of feeding people they also wanted out of the money distribution business. To involve themselves in such ministry took them away from their calling. They must devote themselves to prayer, and to the ministry of the word. Sadly, many in the ministry today are not concerned about this. They get so involved in running the affairs of the church they have little time for prayer and study. Therefore, there is little "equipping of the saints for the work of service, for the building up of the body of Christ". Sermons that come from a distracted man are shallow and often focus on the gospel by itself. The gospel is good and necessary but Christians need the whole counsel of God’s word to grow and survive. They need meat if they are to do the work of service. (Eph. 4:12). The minister’s calling is to mature the saints so they can do the work of the ministry. When he neglects his work, the congregation is doomed to remain in spiritual infancy. The apostles will not have it so, therefore, they instruct the people, " select from among you, brethren, seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we (the apostles) may put in charge of this task".

The congregation was to look among themselves for seven men to take over the ministry to the poor, whether it is the distribution of food or of money. But there were some guidelines they must follow when making their choices.

First, those chosen must be men. Second, They must be chosen from inside the church. Third, they must be men of good reputation. Which is to say they must be men of integrity, above reproach. We see something of what this means by looking at the qualifications for Deacons and Elders. This will help us understand the task that was given to the congregation.

(1 Timothy 3:1-15 NASB) "It is a trustworthy statement: if any man aspires to the office of overseer, it is a fine work he desires to do. {2} An OVERSEER, (Elder, Pastor, Bishop) then, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, {3} not addicted to wine or pugnacious, but gentle, uncontentious, free from the love of money. {4} He must be one who manages his own household well, keeping his children under control with all dignity {5} (but if a man does not know how to manage his own household, how will he take care of the church of God?); {6} and not a new convert, lest he become conceited and fall into the condemnation incurred by the devil. {7} And he must have A GOOD REPUTATION with those outside the church, so that he may not fall into reproach and the snare of the devil. {8} DEACONS likewise (they must meet the same qualifications) must be men of dignity, not double-tongued, or addicted to much wine or fond of sordid gain, {9} but holding to the mystery of the faith with a clear conscience. {10} And let these also first be tested; then let them serve as deacons if they are beyond reproach. {11} Women (the reference is most likely to the proposed Deacon’s wife) must likewise be dignified, not malicious gossips, but temperate, faithful in all things. {12} Let deacons be husbands of only one wife, (monogamous) and good managers of their children and their own households. {13} For those who have served well as deacons obtain for themselves a high standing and great confidence in the faith that is in Christ Jesus. {14} I am writing these things to you, hoping to come to you before long; {15} but in case I am delayed, I write so that you may know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth".

The men being chosen in our text were the first Deacons in the new church. The word deacon simply means servant. A Deacon, like all members of the church is a servant of the church. He is just called to serve in a more formal, representative, specified capacity, than are most. Such a servant may be in charge of financial or material distributions to the poor. Or, the church may ask him to do other things as the needs arise. A Deacon is a servant of the church and the church determines just how he will serve.

Those chosen must be men of integrity and, fourth, they must be filled with the Holy Spirit. What this means is caught up in the text we just looked at in First Timothy. A man who is filled with the Holy Spirit is governed by God’s instructions as to what to believe and how to behave. Therefore, he is a man of good reputation both in and out of the church. The relationship between he and his wife is a godly one and reveals the work of the Holy Spirit in his life. His children may not be saved, they will certainly not be perfect, but they will not be continually disruptive of the household. A man filled with the Spirit will not allow it to be so. He will not be a drunkard, or a gossip, or a man easily provoked. Money will not be his God. Such a man is filled with the Spirit. He is given over to the will of God for his life and it shows. This is why the apostles could tell the congregation to look around them, for such men can be visibly identified.

The final requirement was that they all possess wisdom. They must have biblical and knowledge. But that, by itself is not enough they must have the wisdom to apply their knowledge to the situations they were being called on to solve. Lots of people have their heads full of information but few know what to do with it. The men chosen to serve as Deacons must be men full of the Holy Spirit, knowledge of the word of God, and they must have the wisdom necessary to apply that knowledge to life situations. James speaks to us about wisdom in James 3:13-18.

"Who among you is wise and understanding? Let him show by his good behavior his deeds in the gentleness of wisdom. (The wise are visible to the human eye.) {14} But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your heart, do not be arrogant and so lie against the truth. {15} This wisdom is not that which comes down from above, (from God) but is earthly, natural, DEMONIC. (Jealousy and selfish ambition are often admired in our society. Often those driven by such carnal passions are considered wise. But as James says such wisdom comes from the devil.) {16} For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there is disorder and every evil thing. {17} But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, (at peace within and bent on promoting peace among others) gentle, (The truly wise person does not blunder ahead like a bull in a china closet.) reasonable, (peacemakers must be flexible negotiators) full of mercy and good fruits, unwavering, without hypocrisy. {18} And the seed whose fruit is righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace". Such wise men were chosen by the congregation and presented to the Apostles for approval and installation.

Acts 6:5 "And the statement found approval with the whole congregation; and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas and Nicolas, a proselyte from Antioch. {6} And these they brought before the apostles; and after praying, they laid their hands on them".

I wont say much about the men chosen except they obviously met the requirements or the apostles would have rejected them. The laying on of hands was not to communicate gifts or power. These men had been chosen for the gifts they already had. Rather, the ceremony of ordination was exactly that, an official commissioning of the Deacons by the church and the apostles to the office and task assigned them.

Now the apostles could continue their work without interruption. For part of the body of Christ had taken over some of the work. (Acts 6:4 NASB) "But we will devote ourselves to prayer, and to the ministry of the word". That is exactly what they did and that is exactly why we have the great wealth and treasure we find in the Bible. The apostles men were only part of the body, they were not the body. They were not the church and if they had tried to be the whole church it would have failed miserably. They must do what God had gifted them to do and the rest of he body must do what God had gifted them to do. The apostles must teach and equip the people of God and then they must go forward doing the "work of service". This is what happened and the result was predictable, (Acts 6:7 NASB) "And the word of God kept on spreading; and the number of the disciples continued to increase greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were becoming obedient to the faith". Again I say, when all the members of the body of Christ do their part the church remains healthy and the surrounding community is evangelized.

I offer you one last text, which takes us beyond the small group of men called the apostles. It takes us beyond all official offices such as that of deacon. The text encompasses every member of the body of Christ each of whom must do his or her part. Here the word of the Lord as found in Romans 12:6. "And since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let each exercise them accordingly: (These words tell us that every believer in Jesus is gifted by God as He sees fit. No one is left out. Some examples follow.) if prophecy, (one must exercise this gift ) according to the proportion of his faith; 7 if service, in his serving; ( That is, one whose gift is serving others must get on with the task of serving others.) or he who teaches, in his teaching; (If you can teach then serve others by teaching them truth.) 8 or he who exhorts, in his exhortation; (I have a friend who identifies himself as an encourager. He often calls for no other reason but to prod me along, to exhort, or beg me to keep on keeping on. I am always blessed and encouraged when he calls.) he who gives, (do so) with liberality; he who leads, (do so) with diligence; he who shows mercy, (do so) with cheerfulness". God has gifted all His children in some way and the apostle is saying get to work using the gifts God has given you.

And how do we find our particular gift? How do we find our place of service in the church? My advice is this. Start serving the brethren where you see a need. Meet those needs to the best of your ability. Somewhere along the way you will find what you are good at and what you enjoy. When you come to that place you will have found your gift. But even if you can never identify your gift by name keep on serving. If you spend your life in the work of service to the church of Jesus Christ you will end your days having used your God given gifts in the best way possible. It is not necessary that you name your gift it is only necessary that you do the work of service that you have been called to perform. This is the will of God for you.