Serving Dinner, Sharing God's Word

 

The 7 First Deacons of the Church

Scripture

Acts 6:1-15

¹Now during those days, when the disciples were increasing in number, the Hellenists complained against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of food. ²And the twelve called together the whole community of the disciples and said, "It is not right that we should neglect the word of God in order to wait on tables. ³Therefore, friends, select from among yourselves seven men of good standing, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint to this task, ⁴while we, for our part, will devote ourselves to prayer and to serving the word." ⁵What they said pleased the whole community, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, together with Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. ⁶They had these men stand before the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.

⁷The word of God continued to spread; the number of the disciples increased greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith. 

 

Devotion

 Acts 6 gives us a realistic glimpse into some of the nitty gritty details of life of the early Church.  The 12 apostles (the 11 remaining disciples plus Matthias) were having a lot of success in getting new converts, but all this success had created a logistical nightmare.  You see, the early Church functioned acted like a large commune.  Converts sold what they had and donated the proceeds to the Church, which then distributed food, money, where it was needed..   Now, though, culturally Greek converts were saying that the most vulnerable among them (their widows) were being left out of the daily food distributions; Hebrew widows were evidently still being fed.  This oversight has led the Greeks to accuse the Hebrews of acting in bad faith. 

To say that the disciples weren't amused would be an understatement.  They were already overwhelmed with a all the other work that went in to building Christ's Church.   And they rightly say that they don't have time to both "wait on tables" and spread the word of God through preaching, teaching, and prayer.  Therefore, they ask the converts to choose seven people that they trust to do faithfully oversee the food distribution.  That way, everyone can be physically fed, and the disciples can focus on other areas of ministry. Once the seven are chosen, the apostles "commissioned" them to this work by laying hands on them and praying.

This story problem solving in the Early Church demonstrates that the more things change, the more they also stay the same.  Life in the Church has a lot of moving parts.  There is worship to plan and execute, Bible studies to run, mutual care to give, mission work to do, a building to take care of, and many other tasks to accomplish.  When everything is running smoothly, its easy to forget just how complex church life is...but when something goes wrong or a mistake is made, people can get hurt or offended pretty quickly.  Ministers, Christian educators, and other leaders can quickly become overwhelmed and exhausted by trying to juggle so many responsibilities at once.  Like the 12 disciples, they can begin to resent the tasks that take time and attention away from the work they are called to do.

The answer to this conundrum is simple: share the load.  When churches empower members to use their particular gifts in order to take on different responsibilities, then congregations can truly be the Church.  Those who felt overwhelmed by too many responsibilities can stop burning their candles at both ends and instead devote a healthy amount of time and attention to the tasks they are called to complete.  Meanwhile, those whose gifts and talents have been overlooked discover that they are important members of the Body of Christ--that they are seen and valued and have a role that they are meant to fill.  When everyone works together and does their part, congregations become happier, healthier, and more functional.  Churches come into their own, and the Good News spreads throughout the land.

Acts 6 also shows us the importance of what some would probably write off as mundane tasks.  The seven elected to manage the daily food distribution were literally responsible for ensuring the early Church's most vulnerable people received the care they needed.    Among those seven were Stephen and Philip, whose first act of leadership within the church would inspire them to grow in faith and feed Christ's sheep in new ways.  They will spend the rest of their lives using their gifts and talents to share the Good News with others.  Today, we name Stephen and Philip--men who go their start in making sure that everyone their fair share of food--as heroes of the Church.

We all have gifts to give.  Some can preach.  Some can teach.  Some are great at caring for the building or the finances.  Some know just what to say in a card or which flowers to send when a member needs a pick-me-up.   Some know how to care for the vulnerable people in our communities.  Some make beautiful art.  Some are prophets called to offer a vision of who and what our society should become.  Some are even particularly good at organizing things.  Each of these ministries is vital to the continued life and witness of Christ's Church in the world.  And because we are all ministers of faith together, I guarantee that the Holy Spirit will give each of us a way to share the Gospel with others.  This is why churches have committees, elected leaders, and volunteers.  This is why we still lay hands on one another and pray for those who take up the mantle of leadership.

If you feel overwhelmed by everything are doing for Christ's Church, I invite you to focus on what God has given you a passion for and as what responsibilities seem to take time away from what Christ calls you to do.  On the other side of the equation, if you feel overlooked by or disconnected from the Church, why not ask how you might use your gifts and talents to help build up the Body of Christ in a way that is meaningful to you.  And if you recognize the potential for leadership or a certain form of ministry within someone else, it would be wonderful to let them and others know what you see in them and encourage them to pursue those gifts. 

 When we take these steps, we become like those long-ago Christians who not only recognized a problem but also selected people fit to lead the early Church in ways that the disciples were not prepared to handle.  It is when we all do what we are called to do and empower others to take care of the rest that we truly live in to what it means to be the Body of Christ at work in the world.  And together, we build the Church of tomorrow.

 

Prayer

 Holy Spirit, you have blessed each one of us with unique gifts suitable for building up your Church. Help us recognize those gifts in ourselves and one another so that we may share the responsibility for spreading the Good News throughout the world.  May we each grow into the ministry you have made us capable of doing.  Amen.