Week 07

So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith. Acts 6:7

Up to this point we have seen the church grow, and grow quickly, as a result of miracles, preaching, and the organic life of the church. We see exponential growth again in this passage- but what precedes it? The church dealing with logistical and leadership issues because of inequality in distributing food. It doesn’t seem like those nitty-gritty issues of church life would spark revival and church growth, but we’re told that “the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith” (6:7). And the growth of the church seems to be directly tied to how the church handles conflict earlier in the chapter.

The way that the church handles conflict and cares for one another- especially the most vulnerable among them- matters just as much for the growth of the church and the spread of the gospel as the miracles and preaching. If we are followers of Jesus, we need to remember that how we live in community and how we love one another matters as much for our witness as our words do. After all, Jesus says “by this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another” (John 13:35).

So how do we love one another as the church? In Acts 6 we see concern for the material needs of those around us, especially the vulnerable. Maybe for you that will look like serving in the South Food Bank or bringing a meal to someone you know has a lot on their plate right now. Perhaps it looks like giving your time or talents to serve those who have a need in an area you are skilled in (if this is you, we would love to hear from you at [email protected]). It can look like an encouraging word or a word of prayer. It can look like repentance and apology when you have done wrong- intentionally or unintentionally. Or perhaps you need to receive love and care from your church community today. If there is a way we can pray for you, talk with you, or a way we can assist you with a material need, please let us know. Let the ways we love one another as South Fellowship- both giving care and receiving it- bear witness to the world around us that Jesus Christ is worth following.

By Jessica Rust

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world. James 1:27 NIV

Learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed. Take up the cause of the fatherless; plead the case of the widow. Isaiah 1:17 NIV

The righteous care about justice for the poor, but the wicked have no such concern. Prov. 29:7 NIV

This is what the LORD Almighty said: ‘Administer true justice; show mercy and compassion to one another. Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the foreigner or the poor. Do not plot evil against each other.’ Zechariah 7:9-10 NIV

In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. 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 and sisters, 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 6:1-4 NIV

Kings and judges of Israel in the Old Testament were leaders given many tasks, including military and economic and judging between disputes. But Proverbs 31 gives kings a charge, “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy,” Proverbs 31:8-9. This was the first order of a righteous king, judge or leader in Israel. God desired his people to treat others as He did himself. The Psalmist tells us that God, “…upholds the cause of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry. The LORD sets prisoners free, the LORD gives sight to the blind, the LORD lifts up those who are bowed down, the LORD loves the righteous. The LORD watches over the foreigner and sustains the fatherless and the widow, but he frustrates the ways of the wicked,” Psalm 146:7-9.

Many people were drawn to the early church because of how the community of believers were loving each other, caring for each other and meeting the needs of the poor, the widows, and the disadvantaged among them. This community was living out the type of community God had always desired for his people. It is not surprising that people were drawn to this community, and the church continued to grow.

So how do we take this passage and apply it to ourselves, to our church, to our circumstances? Deuteronomy 10:16-21 says, “Circumcise your hearts, therefore, and do not be stiff-necked any longer. For the LORD your God is God of gods and Lord of lords, the great God, mighty and awesome, who shows no partiality and accepts no bribes. He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the foreigner residing among you, giving them food and clothing. And you are to love those who are foreigners, for you yourselves were foreigners in Egypt. Fear the LORD your God and serve him. Hold fast to him and take your oaths in his name. He is the one you praise; he is your God, who performed for you those great and awesome wonders you saw with your own eyes.” First, give your heart, mind, soul and strength to God. Second, strive to see other people as God does – all are valuable. Third, engage in caring for others. Some ideas are – helping with the Food Bank, becoming a part of an Afghan refugee team, offering to help a widow or single mother in our congregation with childcare, car maintenance, or another need.

By Grace Hunter

“Come, follow me,” Jesus said.  Matthew 4:19

When he had finished washing the disciples’ feet, he put on his clothes and returned to his place.“Do you understand what I have done for you?” he asked them. “You call me ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord’ and rightly so for that is what I am. Now that I, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also should wash one another’s feet. I have set you an example that you should do as I have done for you. Very truly I tell you, no servant is greater than his master nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. Now that you know all these things, you will be blessed if you do them. John 13:12-16

But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peace-makers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness. James 3:17-18

Something I struggle with as I read the Bible is how condensed it is. Time often passes in a verse or two; babies are born and are adults by the next verse. There are many names, particularly in the Older Testament, but there’s no back story or daily life recorded about most of them and there are countless people who stuck it out with God who are unnamed. Psalm 139 is a great comfort to me because I learn in it how intimately God knows and cares for me and each person before, after, and around me.

In Acts 1, as they were gathered together all the apostles are listed by name as was Mary the mother of Jesus. But other than Phillip, the only ones mentioned later are Peter and John. And then, in Acts 6 and 7, we learn about Stephen.

I like to think of him as one of the unnamed disciples in the upper room when the Holy Spirit, as tongues of flame, separated and rested on each person in there. Stephen was chosen as one of the men, “full of the Spirit and wisdom,” to have responsibility for the fair distribution of food to the widows who had joined the growing community. He is described in Acts 6:8 as a man, who, “full of God’s grace and power performed great wonders and signs among the people.”

Then, when some Jews argued with Stephen they “could not stand up against the wisdom the Spirit gave him as he spoke (Acts 6:10). When he is interrogated by the Sanhedrin, Stephen gives a condensed history of the ancestry and doings of God’s people including prophecy and the final indictment of their complicity in the crucifixion of Jesus. The men listening could not bear the truth, so they stoned Stephen. His last two sentences: “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”, and “Lord, do not hold this sin against them” (Acts 7:60).

What are the implications of this story for us in our life and time? How can we relate to a person like Stephen in our relationships, responsibilities and daily routines? The scriptures above give some answers: We are called by Jesus to follow him, to serve each other as he did, and to grow in the Holy Spirit-given wisdom from above. This week take some time and ask Jesus how he would have you follow him in your relationships, responsibilities and routines as a witness of him in your life.

By Carolyn Schmitt

Every day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts, praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved. (Acts 2:46-47)

In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. 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 and sisters, 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.”…So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith. (Acts 6:1-4 &7)There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit distributes them. There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. There are different kinds of working, but in all of them and in everyone it is the same God at work. (I Cor 12:4-6)

Most of us who follow Jesus long for explosive church growth and caring community paralleling the pattern displayed in the first few chapters of Acts. It can appear that the Church’s early phase was organic and joyful, needing no formal structure. But Acts 6:1-4 shows the everyday issue of food distribution threatened to slow the growth of the Kingdom of God. Thankfully the Apostles entrusted elements of their authority to other gifted and qualified disciples. This administrative and organizational move seems to have been the catalyst for continued Kingdom growth.

Unlike Church life some of us have experienced, the early Church gathered daily and interacted around daily basics like food preparation and consumption. This alone created a sense of community. Jesus had entrusted Kingdom leadership to the Apostles. Delegation of that leadership became necessary for advancement of the Gospel message.

If we desire Kingdom expansion, it could be helpful to contrast these two early elements of Kingdom community life with our culture’s promotion of individualism and self sufficiency. We have no doubt been further alienated from tangible community life by substituting personal interaction with online technology.

The growth of the Church has always been marked by thriving communities established in local settings. No less important are Church leaders who regularly recognize and ordain gifts of faithful members of Christ’s body to unleash the full impact of Jesus’ Kingdom in a way that pleases Him.

Those committed to church community life and enfolding others into the Kingdom actively seek to identify and develop spiritual gifts. If you are new to these ideas or have neglected them for a while, please consider contacting South Fellowship’s leaders to start a spiritual gifts evaluation and make connections that will involve you with our community of faith.

By Kathleen Petersen

In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. 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 and sisters, 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 ‭6:1-4‬ ‭

I have a confession. I often get frustrated with how God does things in the world. I’m not proud of that, but it is true. This text reminds me of a pattern I see throughout the scriptures, which is both beautiful and frustrating. God loves to use the weak to confound the wise (1 Cor. 1:28). God tends to work through unexpected people and unexpected means.

In this passage, we find something that looks precarious from a human perspective. The church is growing fast, and the logistical bandwidth of the leadership becomes overly taxed. How will this young church deal with this challenge, especially with how quickly these issues are coming to the surface? From another perspective, the task of leadership is far too large for the growth of the church. It is overwhelming for the apostles, yet they can’t simply ignore the new challenge. They have been assigned a task that is too big for them. If I were God, I would have wanted a better strategic plan to scale the church’s growth. I would have liked a leadership development model, a mentorship program. That isn’t always how God does things. Instead, it is as if God’s Spirit thrives amid human limitations. This test is a prime example of that.

As much as we want to understand everything that God is doing and have a plan to participate, that isn’t the way God does his best work. What does that mean for us? It can be pretty comforting if we can shift our perspective a little bit. Perhaps, our feelings of insufficiency or exhaustion are fertile soil for God’s power. If you have ever felt insignificant or under-resourced, maybe you are in a prime position to participate in what God is doing.

Take a moment to write down all the skills, energy, and resources that you feel like you lack. Focus on the things that you feel are hindering your ability to more fully participate in God’s kingdom. Now ask the Lord to do what he has done so many times in the past, use your limitations to expand his work in the world. Ask him to help you to see your weakness as strength.

By Aaron Bjorklund