Thursday
In Acts 6:1 we read about a dispute between two groups of Christians in the early church. The Greek speaking Jewish Christians feel that the Hebrew Christians are treating their widows unfairly. So these Grecian Jews bring their concern to the Apostles, and this is how the Apostles decided to handle it…
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. Brothers, 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 and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word. – Acts 6:2-4
I have to admit that in English it sounds almost like the Apostles are saying that this issue is beneath them, or that they are too important to deal with such an insignificant problem, but this is really not what they are saying at all. In fact, the phrase “wait on tables” is actually an expression from the time pertaining to acts of hospitality and service. The Apostles are faced with a very real dilemma; they cannot ignore their calling to the ministry of the word in order to meet this need, but they also must not ignore this need in order to focus on the ministry of the word. The church has to have both the ministry of the word and the ministry of service and compassion if it is going to have the ripple effect of spiritual influence in the world. We must keep both word and deed continually in balance. There are many churches today that focus on of these areas to the exclusion of the other. There are churches that are theologically sound and doctrinally squared away, but they do not have much in the way of ministry to the poor. On the other hand, there are churches that are very active and innovative in their service and outreach, but they have very little theological depth, and they seem to have lost touch with why they are serving in the first place.
Basically the Apostles recognized the simple fact that as the church continued to grow and the various ministry needs continued to increase, they could no longer “do it all”. The leaders of the early church understood that if they were to keep the ministry of the word in balance with the ministry of service, they were going to have to develop other leaders! This is a reality that many pastors and churches are unwilling or unable to face. The traditional approach to ministry is what might be called the “pastor-focused” church. The pastor-focused church is the church where the pastor does all of the preaching, the teaching, the leading, the praying, the evangelizing, the shepherding, etc. and the people sit around and watch. In the pastor-focused church, the pastor is the professional who does the ministry, and the people are the amateur spectators. The problem with the pastor-focused church is that it is extremely limited and totally unbiblical.
The biblical concept of church is one where all of God’s people are ministers, and the pastor’s role is to teach, lead and equip the people for ministry. This is precisely what is taking place here in Acts 6; new leaders and servants are raised up because of a new need in a growing church. Did you catch that? As the church grows, so do the needs of the people, and so do the opportunities for ministry. I don’t know if you see yourself as a spectator of or a participant in the ministry of the church? There is nothing wrong with someone attending a church and just observing and learning for a while. However, if you truly want to follow Jesus, then there really is no place for spectators.
What would have happened to the early church if the Apostles had insisted on doing it all themselves? What would have happened if the people had insisted on the Apostles doing everything for them? The church would have stopped growing, stagnated and slowly begun to lose its powerful spiritual influence in the world, and we would not be here today to carry on the message and mission of Jesus Christ in the world.
Jeff Frazier
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3 comments:
Thanks for a great picture of the balance between word and deed. It is interesting to me what a great model this is for such much in our world: marriage, family, work, community organizations, etc. God is so great to equip us with all we need!
I have really appreciated this message and how it has been spurring on some discussions within our family.
We have been mulling over some options for a while to the question of FBCG extreme commuters - those (like us) whose travel to church is in the 30-60 min. range. There aren't that many of us, but as the church continues to grow - it is likely that there will be more.
We have wondered if it is wise or godly of us to chose a church so far away, and we have struggled to let go of the falty perception that we are the only ones who feel slightly outside the community. We have met others who have felt this too from Elgin, DeKalb, Aurora, etc.
As I've pondered this and the sermon, I loved how it was the Greek believers who were called to serve their own people.
We are not sure yet what we will be called to do - we love the idea of being out and about with other families within our communities and having goegraphically closer opportunities to invite our friends and neighbors.
Perhaps it would be as simple as being apart of or beginning a c group in our respecitive areas, or maybe it would be less formal invitations to those we meet from our area.
I guess God knows the seeds He is planting in our hearts. We'll keep listening and have an open willing heart to His leading.
I appreciate your honesty in struggling through how to "connect" to a church that is not rooted in your local community. These are important questions, and not always easy to answer. You are right to point out that as the church grows and as it's influence expands, there will likely be more people who experience this tension. Growth brings both challenges and opportunities! If there is anything I can do to help you sort out where it is that God is leading you to put down some spiritual roots, please let me know.
Pastor Jeff
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