Our Father, we do thank Thee that we belong to the family of God, not because we are worthy, but because Thou hast called us by Thy grace.
Our Father, we do desire that, as Thy children in Thy family, we may know how to behave, that Thou mayest get all the glory and the honor.
O Lord, our one desire is to glorify Thee. So we just commit ourselves to Thee, trusting Thy Holy Spirit to breathe upon Thy Word, make it living, and work it into each of our lives. We want Thee to do the work. We want Thee to bring us to a place that will please Thee, that will glorify Thee. We ask in the name of our Lord Jesus. Amen.
And in these days, when the number of the disciples was multiplying, there arose a murmuring of the Grecian Jews against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration.
And the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not fit that we should forsake the word of God, and serve tables.
Look ye out therefore, brethren, from among you seven men of good report, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.
But we will continue stedfastly in prayer, and in the ministry of the word.
And the saying pleased the whole multitude: 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;
whom they set before the apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands upon them.
And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem exceedingly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.
This morning, we mentioned how, in the early church, they met a problem. It was the problem of a man and his wife trying to lie to the Holy Spirit. But the Holy Spirit was so real in the church that immediately the discipline of the Lord came upon them.
Now, this incident was like a fly in the ointment. But before it could spoil the ointment, it was taken away. So it was not very serious. It was a personal problem; it did not affect the whole church, and it was solved right away because the Holy Spirit was there in the church.
But tonight, you find in Acts 6 that the early church had a real problem. This was the first real corporate problem the church ever faced. In the previous case, it was a problem of a couple, more personal in nature. But here, it was a real problem affecting the church corporately.
I wonder if you can find on earth a church that does not have any problem.
On the one hand, we shall never be satisfied with what we see. We shall always strive for that which will answer to God’s heart. I do not believe that God wants us to sit back and say, “Well, we are human. There will be problems. So what?” Then we close our eyes, sit back, and try to be contented and satisfied.
God wants us to strive for that which will satisfy His heart. If His heart is not satisfied, let us not be satisfied. That is very true.
But, on the other hand, there will always be problems. If you want to look for a perfect church on earth, you can visit the whole world and you will not find it.
You know, I know some people who are perfectionists, and they are trying to look for a perfect church. They go to one place for a little while, then discover some spot, and they move to the next place. At first they think the next place is better, but within a few months they discover something more, and they have to move on. In other words, there is no perfect church on earth.
There will be problems. But in the early church, the early church thrived on problems. Whenever you find that they had a problem, the church seemed to grow because of the problem. Instead of being defeated, instead of going under, you find that problems served as opportunities for the Lord to bring them to a higher level.
Brothers and sisters, this happened to the early church, and today do not think that you can find a perfect church with no problem whatsoever.
If the Lord has really brought you together, the closer you are and the more you are living as members of one body, the more problems you will find. If you just visit once a week for an hour or two, listen to a sermon, shake some hands, and go home, there is no problem. No problem. But you do not call that church life.
If the Lord has really put you together as members of one body, you see one another often. You try to worship God together. You try to serve God together. You try to minister one to another. You will find plenty of problems.
But the thing is, the church according to God thrives on problems. If there is no problem, there will be no growth. If there is no problem, there will be no opportunity for the Lord to bring His people to a higher level.
So, dear brothers and sisters, do not look for a perfect church without problems. But thank God: when there are problems, they are opportunities for God. You find that with the early church, this was the case.
The first real problem that came to the church was a problem created by the Hellenists. In other words, the early church in Jerusalem was composed mainly of Jews. There were no Gentiles—all Jews, though there were some proselytes. The church in Jerusalem was composed of people whose backgrounds were all Jewish, so they had no racial problem. But they had cultural problems.
Why? Because these Jews were of two kinds. Some Jews were born and reared in the land of Judea. They were Hebrew Jews. They were exposed to the strict teaching and practice of Judaism.
But there were other Jews who were born and reared in Gentile cities, scattered throughout the world at that time. They were exposed to Greek culture. They were Jews, but they had received Greek culture. Their outlook and their views were somehow affected by Greek civilization. They were not as strict in keeping the law as the Hebrew Jews. They were more liberal because they had more contact with the world—more intellectual, probably.
So these were Hellenistic Jews, or Greek Jews. In the early church in Jerusalem, they were all Jews, but some were Hebrew Jews and some were Hellenistic Jews. And God put them together to form one body.
Naturally, the twelve apostles, being Hebrew Jews, knew more of the conditions among the believers with a Hebrew Jewish background. So, in the matter of taking care of the widows among them, it seemed as if the widows of the Hebrew Jewish believers were well taken care of, but the widows belonging to believers with a Hellenistic background were overlooked.
Not intentionally. Certainly, the apostles would not intentionally overlook the Hellenists and take care only of the Hebrews. It was not a matter of intention; it was a matter of circumstance.
I do not know why there were so many widows in the early days. It seemed as if there were lots of widows in the church in Jerusalem. Probably life was very hard in those days.
The church took care of the widows. Not only in the Old Testament did God command His people not to neglect widows, but even when a man was reaping or harvesting, if anything was left behind, he should not go back and try to pick it up. He should leave it behind for the fatherless and for strangers.
God took care of the widows. He was the Father of the fatherless and the Judge of the widows. So, you find that in the early church they always took care of the widows. Even in 1 Timothy, you find that a widow over sixty years old was on the list of the church; that is, the church took care of these widows.
Thank God for that. They were really one big family. But somehow, due to human limitations—not intentionally, but circumstantially—the widows of the Greek Jews were neglected. And because of that, there was murmuring.
Brothers and sisters, this was the first real problem in the church. It was a problem of cultural difference.
You know, there are many natural distinctions in our lives: racial distinctions, such as Greek and Jew; cultural differences, such as those who received Greek culture and those who received Hebrew culture; social differences, such as masters and servants; and educational differences, such as barbarians and Scythians.
Naturally speaking, you find that on this earth there are many, many distinctions. These are natural lines of demarcation. It is natural for the world to be divided along these lines because they are natural lines. It is very easy to be divided.
But in the redemption of Christ, in the work of God, He does something different. He brings in some from the Jews and some from the Gentiles and makes them one. He brings in some freemen and some bondservants and makes them one. He brings in the Scythians and the barbarians and makes them one.
In Christ, all these natural distinctions are eliminated. Therefore, the Bible says there is neither Jew nor Greek.
Before you come into the church, you are a Jew. But something happens when you come into the church: you are no longer a Jew. There is no Jew in the church. Before you come into the church, you are a Gentile. But when you enter into the church, something happens: your Gentile identity is left outside. You become something else. There are no Gentiles in the church.
Before you come into the church, you may be a freeman. You may have a high social position. But when you come into the church, you are no longer a freeman. There is no freeman; we are slaves of Christ. Or you may be a slave with a very low social status, but when you come into the church, you are no longer a slave. You are in Christ.
Brothers and sisters, when we come into the church, God has done something in us. All these natural distinctions are eliminated. The old creation is finished; it is left outside. We are now a new man, a new creation. The body of Christ is Christ.
I always remember that incident with our dear brother Watchman Nee. He had a servant. I knew that servant—a dear brother in the Lord. Oh, he loved Brother Nee, and he cooked for Brother Nee. He loved Brother Nee to such an extent that he used his own salary to buy food for him.
Whenever Brother Nee said, “Well, I like this dish,” he would have that dish every day. That brother loved and served him so faithfully.
But when they came to the church—when they came together to remember the Lord at His table—they were both brothers. This servant would always look to see where Brother Nee sat, and he dared not sit near him. He would try to sit somewhere else behind him.
So one day Brother Nee got hold of him and got him to sit by him. Why? In the church there is no freeman and no bondservant. We are brothers.
You know, in the early church, especially in the church in Rome, most of them were slaves, though some were freemen. But when they came together, there was no distinction between slave and freeman. Oh, God!
Brothers and sisters, in Christ, in the church, all that is natural is left out. We are now in Christ, and Christ is in us. That makes us one body. What a church!
But how subtle is our flesh, and how subtle is the enemy, trying to bring in the old creation. Once you allow that which belongs to the old creation to get into the church, it will split up the church if it is not dealt with.
So the first problem in the church was this: if this thing had continued, the whole church in Jerusalem would have been split along cultural lines. The Hebrew Jews would meet as one circle, and the Hellenistic Jews would meet as another circle. The church would be broken and divided along the lines of culture.
It was a great temptation—a great temptation. It is very easy, you know, to find yourself close to people who have the same cultural background and the same social position.
One day, a brother who was a high official in the Chinese government talked to Brother Nee. He said, “I am thinking of organizing a church where all these high officials can come and worship God. You know, these high officials will not come to any church. You have to organize a church for them.”
So our brother said, “All right, if you want to organize a church for high officials, then I think the rickshaw drivers should have a rickshaw church. Then they will feel very happy, because they are all rickshaw drivers.”
The church is above all these natural distinctions which belong to the old creation. We are one in Christ.
The enemy is subtle. You find here that the enemy used natural distinctions, cultural differences, and tried to put a wedge into the life of the church.
Again, I say that, as far as the apostles were concerned, it was not intentional. It could not have been. It was just circumstantial. But a murmuring began to arise.
You know, God does not like murmuring. If you read the Bible from the Old Testament down to the New Testament, you find that God never likes murmuring. Sometimes, when people began to murmur, God dealt with them very strongly.
Why? Murmuring is the beginning of strife and division. If murmuring is not stopped, it develops into something very huge.
Brothers and sisters, why could they not just talk openly? The Bible says, “Speak the truth in love.” If the widows of the Hellenists were neglected, why did not those Hellenists who knew the situation come to the apostles and tell them?
I believe the apostles would have appreciated it very much. They were human; they were limited. They did not see it. Even though they were very spiritual, the apostles were not perfect.
But instead of coming to the apostles and presenting the problem to them, they murmured behind their backs, and the murmuring began to spread. If this had not come to the ears of the apostles, one day suddenly the break would have come. It was dangerous.
But fortunately, the murmuring began to be heard by the apostles. Then the apostles heard it.
Brothers and sisters, here you find a problem. A problem is not a problem in itself. It depends on the way you handle it. If you handle it rightly, it is not a problem; it is an opportunity. If you handle it wrongly, then it becomes a real problem.
So, when the murmuring came to the ears of the apostles, look at what the apostles did. Instead of getting hurt, they brought it up openly to the whole body.
It is much better for something that concerns the whole church to be brought before the whole body for fellowship than to try to hide something and murmur at the back. Everything was brought into the open.
The apostles were humble enough. They were not so proud as to think there was no problem. They were willing to lay everything before the brothers and sisters.
And they said, “It is not good for us to serve tables.”
You know, actually this problem gave the apostles an opportunity to reconsider their service to the Lord. Probably they had been wondering during those days, “Why is it that we are so busy? We are so busy serving tables that we do not even have time to pray. We do not even have time to minister the Word.”
Probably the apostles were being taxed on every hand. On the one hand, the tables had to be served; these things had to be done; the widows had to be taken care of. You cannot just say, “Well, we will not do anything.” No, you have to do it.
And yet, probably the apostles were wondering why this affected their ministry of the Word and their prayer life. This problem was brought to their attention, and they began to see.
What did they see? They saw one thing: we cannot monopolize all the services of the church.
The church is the body of Christ. There is a place for each member. There are diversities of ministries and services. The apostles are not to monopolize all the spiritual service of the church, and that is what they had done in the beginning.
You know, they did not know anything better. They thought that, being called by God as apostles and being leaders, they should take care of everything. Not because they were ambitious, but because they were unconscious. They were innocent, so they tried to do everything for the church.
They not only prayed and ministered the Word, but they also served the tables. You see, they tried to do everything. They were very humble; they were doing their best. You cannot blame them.
But finally, it did not work. Even though they did their best, they found that there was a problem. They overlooked someone. It was bad—really bad.
They began to see that there are diverse services and ministries in the church. The apostles are not to monopolize all the spiritual services of the church. The apostles are not to be responsible for everything.
Every member of the body has a special service. God calls apostles to pray, to preach, and to minister the Word. God has not called them to serve tables. So when they served tables, they did not serve very well.
We may think that if the apostles are serving tables, certainly that is the best service, no? No. When they ministered the Word, yes. But when they tried to serve tables, they found that it was very bad because they served one and missed another.
They began to discover their limitations. They began to discover that it takes other members of the body to complete the service.
Brothers and sisters, problems are opportunities. If there had been no such problem in the early church, the apostles would have continued serving tables. The result would have been that they would have been so involved in social work that they had no time for preaching and prayer.
So thank God for the problem. It awakened them. It woke them up. They began to see, “It is not good. It is not good. This is not God’s way.”
God’s way in His church is that different members have different ministries, and thus coordinate with one another. So they suggested that seven men be chosen—men of good report, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom—and let them serve.
When the church heard about it, they were pleased. They responded. You know, that is the way to do things.
Anything that affects the whole body is not decided by a few leaders. They should try to discern the feeling of the body. They should put it to the body and see how the body responds to it, because it affects the whole church.
Brothers and sisters, is serving tables a lower ministry than ministering the Word? In our human understanding, we may think that giving ourselves to prayer and the ministry of the Word is spiritual service, while serving tables is merely human work—secular work—with nothing to do with spiritual work.
But, dear brothers and sisters, the Word of God does not say so. It is not a matter of whether you are ministering the Word or serving tables. It is a matter of what you are called to do.
If you are called to minister the Word, then as you minister the Word you serve the Lord; it is spiritual. But if you are called to serve tables, and you serve according to your calling, you are serving God; it is spiritual. There is no difference in the eyes of God.
It is not that because you minister the Word of God, you have to be full of the Holy Spirit, but when you serve tables you do not need to be full of the Holy Spirit. “What is the use of being full of the Holy Spirit to serve tables? Anybody can do that.” No.
In a restaurant, yes, you can serve tables without being full of the Holy Spirit. But in the church, when you are serving tables, you have to be full of the Holy Spirit. Why? Because in the church, serving tables is a holy work. You are serving God. You are serving the church. You need to be full of the Holy Spirit in order to do it.
In the church, so far as service and ministry are concerned, it is not merely a matter of having something done. Usually, we say, “Well, we can do it. That is all that matters.” But in the church, it is more than a matter of having a thing done. It is a matter of how you do it.
How do you do it? Do you do it with the Spirit of Christ, or do you do it because it is simply something to be done?
If you preach because it is something to be done, it is worse than serving tables with the Spirit of Christ. So here you find there is no sense of inferior or superior service. No. The thing is serving the Lord.
Some are called to serve in one way; some are called to serve in another way. All are spiritual if they are done with the right spirit.
As the apostles acknowledged their limitations and were willing to open up the services of the church to the other members of the body, the result was that those seven men who were chosen, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, served the tables so well that there was no more murmuring. They did better than the apostles.
Because they did so well, the apostles were free to preach the gospel. So you find that the Word of God multiplied.
Through the cooperation and coordination of the different members of the body, each fulfilling its ministry, the result is that the body grows. Brothers and sisters, that problem became an opportunity because it was handled in the right way and in the right spirit.
What is the church? What is the body? You read the New Testament and find the teaching in the Epistles. Here in Acts you find a demonstration. There was not yet any teaching; it was just a demonstration. Later on, in the Epistles, you find the teaching.
In the body there are many members, and each member has a function to fulfill. The Holy Spirit gives gifts according to the purpose for which each one is called to minister. There are not merely a few big members monopolizing everything and doing everything for the church.
If they do that, the church will not grow, and they will not be able to do things well. They try to do too many things, and nothing is done rightly.
According to the Word of God, God in His wisdom has put everyone in the body. We are all priests unto God. There is a place, a service, a ministry, for each one of us in the body.
It is God’s will that all these members should learn to function according to the grace and the gift that God has given to each one—not only to function, but to function coordinately. Not everyone doing the same thing, but everyone doing something, and yet together as members of one body.
This is Ephesians 4. You find Ephesians 4 practiced in Acts 6 before the teaching comes.
Those who are more gifted have the temptation to monopolize everything in the church. Those who are less gifted tend to bury their talents in the earth. But according to the wisdom of God, everyone has a place.
We need to be living, functioning members—functioning together coordinately, directed by the Head, the Holy Spirit. The result is that the Word of God increases greatly, and many come to the Lord.
Notice that when the apostles brought this matter to the whole church and suggested that seven men be chosen, they made clear that in serving the Lord, in whatever capacity it may be—even serving tables—you need to be full of the Holy Spirit.
You are not doing it according to your own thoughts, by your own strength, or depending on your past experience. If you were a waiter or waitress in a restaurant, do not think that you can therefore serve tables in the church. Not at all.
If you were an executive in a big company, do not think that you can therefore be an elder in the church. Not at all. You have to be full of the Holy Spirit, under the control of the Holy Spirit, in order to serve.
Anything in the church has to be under the control of the Holy Spirit. When men and women are under the control of the Holy Spirit, then you find that everything is coordinated.
So this matter was brought to the whole church. They chose seven men. And do you know, as you read their names, all of them were Hellenistic Jews. None of them was Hebrew.
The Hebrew Jews were in the majority; the Hellenistic Jews were in the minority. Yet when they chose the seven men, all of them were Hellenistic Jews.
Is there not something in that? In the whole creation, the Hebrew Jews might have said, “Oh, we need seven men. We are the majority. We will choose some of our own so our widows will still be taken care of.”
But no. These brothers with a Hebrew background saw the problem. They loved their brothers so much that, in order to comfort them, they chose every one from the other side—if we may use that expression. They were not an opposite camp, but they were Hellenistic Jews.
The widows had been neglected, so they said, “Let us choose their men. They will know their situation better, so their widows will be taken care of.” They never thought that now the tables would be turned and the Hebrew widows would be neglected. No, they were not thinking of that.
Brothers and sisters, you find how love overcame all the natural fears within them. They chose every one of the seven from the Hellenists. By doing that, they kept the unity of the Spirit.
The church at that time was faced with a real, serious problem. If that problem had been handled wrongly, it would have split the church right down the line. It was serious.
To keep the unity and the oneness of the body, these brothers had such love that they forgot themselves. They thought of what would happen to those who had already been offended. They went the second mile.
Because they did that, the unity of the church was preserved.
So, brothers and sisters, do not be afraid of problems. When a problem arises, this is the time that we should go to the Lord and seek His face.
Probably the Lord has something to teach us. Probably, out of the problem, we may be raised to a higher level. Probably, out of the problem, we will be brought nearer to the original purpose of God concerning the church.
If we have that kind of spirit within us, and if we are really open to one another, if we really love one another, if we really strive to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace, and if we are really willing to forget ourselves and think of our brothers and sisters, then you will find that, by the grace of God, the church will be lifted to a higher level.
That is what happened in the early church. So, dear brothers and sisters, this is my burden tonight.
As the Lord brings His people together, be prepared to have problems. We are still human; we are limited. But our limitation is God’s opportunity, that we may learn how we need one another.
Otherwise, we may think, “Well, we can do it. We can do it.” Then we learn to need one another and really learn to work together with humility, with meekness, with forbearance, and with love.
If you do that, you will find that the body—the church—grows and is built up. If not, there will be division.
Our heavenly Father, how we praise and thank Thee because Thou art working toward the completion of Thy body.
We do praise and thank Thee that Thou dost allow problems sometimes to come among Thy people, that we may be given opportunities to learn something more of Thee.
O Lord, we do ask Thee that Thou wilt lead us on. Thou wilt open our eyes that we may see how we need to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace; how we need to bear and forbear one another; and how we need our brothers and sisters.
We cannot do everything ourselves. But, Lord, teach us how to be functioning members of the body according to that to which we are called, that we may serve Thee with humility and faithfulness.
O Lord, we do pray that the body may be built up in love. We pray that it may soon be matured unto the fullness of the stature of Christ, that He may come back to claim His body as His bride.
So we pray that these lessons may be deeply impressed upon us, and we pray that they will be worked in and worked out among us. We worship Thee together in the name of our Lord Jesus. Amen.