Acts 6:1-15

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.

And Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing great wonders and signs among the people. Then some of those who belonged to the synagogue of the Freedmen (as it was called), and of the Cyrenians, and of the Alexandrians, and of those from Cilicia and Asia, rose up and disputed with Stephen. 10 But they could not withstand the wisdom and the Spirit with which he was speaking. 11 Then they secretly instigated men who said, “We have heard him speak blasphemous words against Moses and God.” 12 And they stirred up the people and the elders and the scribes, and they came upon him and seized him and brought him before the council, 13 and they set up false witnesses who said, “This man never ceases to speak words against this holy place and the law, 14 for we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and will change the customs that Moses delivered to us.” 15 And gazing at him, all who sat in the council saw that his face was like the face of an angel.

(ESV)

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During that time of church growth, a logistical challenge arose. The Hellenists (Greek-speaking Jews) felt that their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of food. The apostles gathered all the believers and set a boundary on their area of ministry. It was not right for them to dilute their focus from preaching the word by putting more attention on distributing food. They did not consider distributing food to be beneath them, just not their primary area of responsibility. They had the church select seven men who were spiritually mature, with wisdom and character that showed them to be full of the Holy Spirit and appoint them to that ministry. The apostles then defined their own ministry, they would dedicate themselves to prayer and the preaching of the word. This proposal pleased everyone. Stephen is highlighted out of the seven as one who was full of faith and of the Holy Spirit. The apostles then prayed over the seven men and officially commissioned them to the ministry by laying their hands on them. With the apostles free to continue their focus on preaching, many more believers joined the church in Jerusalem including a large number of priests.

Luke turns his attention to Stephen, a Greek Jew and a believer who is the first non-apostle to be described as ministering with great wonder and signs. But he was opposed by a group from the synagogue of the Freedmen which was composed of people from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia, and Asia. They began to dispute with Stephen but could not withstand the wisdom he had from the Holy Spirit. So they changed tack and instigated men to falsely accuse him of blasphemy against Moses and against God. Through false accusations, they stirred up a group who took him before the council where these false witnesses claimed he continually spoke against the temple and the law. Like the accusations against Jesus, the false witnesses misrepresented what Stephen had been teaching which would have included Jesus’ own prediction of the destruction of the template (Matt 24:1-2) and the temporary nature of the Mosaic system now replaced by justification by faith and fulfillment in Jesus. As they looked at Stephen as he stood before the council, they saw that his face was like the face of an angel. Stephen’s face should have been a sign to them that he was a messenger from God, but instead, they continued on their course with a characteristic hardness of heart.

Paul taught that the church is like a body comprised of different parts. Each part has a different role (ministry) to play but that none is more important than the other. Are you an active, serving member of the body? Are you avoiding service or ministry because you feel that you are above the things that currently need to be done?


Major Stories of the Bible Reading Plan

Paul’s Humble Example: 1 Corinthians 3-4