In Acts 6 we see that there is some disruption over how the obligations of the church are being handled — namely, some of the Greek widows were being neglected. To rectify this problem, the twelve disciples appointed 7 deacons to handle these things.
It’s easy when we become busy to neglect some things we should handle. We become absorbed in our daily lives and we overlook some things which we have obligations to do.
Let’s step back and look at a broader picture from where they were standing. Pentecost had just occurred. The Holy Ghost had been sent and thousands were being added to the church. Several times in Acts 1-5 it states that the church was united, or in one accord. In spite of all those wonderful events, and the multitude of new believers, some things were not being done. I think we can learn an important lesson here. When we have a new convert in the church, get them started in the ministry right then. Don’t allow them to become pew warmers. Certainly, new believers need to learn Biblical doctrine, but there are things within the ministry that they can handle. In the case of the early New Testament church, that thing was ministering to the widows.
When the disciples appointed 7 deacons to handle this, they set forth some pretty high standards:
These are all interconnected, aren’t they? Someone who is full of wisdom reads and studies the Bible often. Certainly they couldn’t be full of the Holy Ghost if they hadn’t been in God’s Word. Being of honest report is an example of how they had their lives right with God. Certainly a person of dishonest report wouldn’t be full of the Holy Ghost.
The disciples appointed 7 men who met this criteria:
I’ll admit: I’ve heard of the first two, but not the last 5. Who were these men? If you’re going to be mentioned in the Bible just once, this is a great way to have your name in there. These men were plucked from the thousands of new converts and they were the cream of the crop. They weren’t men who simply came to church on Sunday. They worshiped God daily in the way they lived.
A large congregation doesn’t mean you have multitudes who are close to God. You may have a large number of people but oftentimes there are only a few who you can trust to be honest, full of the Holy Ghost and full of wisdom. History records that the disciples made good choices. At least 6 of the 7 died a martyrs death. They were men of God who we can use as an example as we serve God in our daily lives.
To learn more about Acts chapter 6, follow this link.
[...] And in verse 5, we see a certain Christian named Philip (who was one of the deacons — see Acts chapter 6) went to the city of Samaria preaching the name of Jesus Christ. Sometimes God asks us to do things [...]