Acts 6
McGeeCHAPTER 6THEME: The appointment of deacons; witness of Stephen, a deaconIn this chapter we see the further result of the defection that was in the church. We first saw that defection in the case of Ananias and Sapphira. They were believers who were saved, but they could not remain in the early church with that lie in their lives. Now the defection we see in this chapter led to the selection of deacons. The chapter continues with the account of one of those deacons, Stephen. He was framed, arrested, and tried.
Acts 6:1
THE APPOINTMENT OF DEACONSWe need to recognize that this took place early in the history of the church. They had attempted a form of communal living and, actually, it succeeded for a short while. Then carnality entered the church. We saw how Ananias and Sapphira misrepresented their situation. Now we find that there is a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews. This is not a clash between two races. This is not a demonstration of anti-Semitism. The word Grecians here means “Hellenists,” Greek-speaking Jews. They had a background of Greek culture while the Hebrews in Jerusalem closely followed the Mosaic Law. Naturally, a misunderstanding developed. It has been estimated that the number in the church at this time may have been around twenty-five thousand. And we see that this early church was not perfect. We hear people say, “We need to get back to the early church. The early church was power-conscious, and we today are problem-conscious.” That is only a half-truth. The early church did have power, but the early church had problems also. The high plane to which the Spirit had brought the church was interrupted by the intrusion of satanic division and confusion. The sharing of material substance, which first characterized the church, gave way to the selfishness of the old nature. Carnality had come in. The Grecians, who evidently were a minority group, felt neglected and demanded that their widows be given equal consideration with the Hebrews. This communal form of living wasn’t working as well as they would have liked. This was brought to the attention of the apostles.
Acts 6:2
The apostles felt that they should not give up the study of the Word of God. They felt it was important for them to continue with that. If they gave up the study of the Word of God and served tables, that would be the undoing of them. They should spend their time in prayer and in the study of the Word of God. It is important for every church to recognize that the minister should have time to study the Word of God and should have time for prayer. Unfortunately, the average church today is looking for a pastor who is an organizer and a promoter, a sort of vice-president to run the church, a manager of some sort. That is unfortunate. As a result the church is suffering today. When I was a pastor in downtown Los Angeles, I had to move my study to my home. I built a special room over the garage for my study. I found out that all I had in the church was an office, not a study. They didn’t intend for me to study there. They didn’t want me to study there.
Acts 6:3
The seven men were to be appointed because a crisis had arisen. The apostles felt it was important that they should not have the burden of this detail so that they could give themselves to prayer and the ministry of the Word. Now I want you to notice the qualifications of these seven men who are to assume the burden of handling the material substance of the church. I’m afraid this is something which is neglected in the average church today when the deacons are chosen. In fact, I’ve heard men say they didn’t want to be appointed to the spiritual office of an elder but would like to be a deacon to handle the material things. May I say to you, the office of deacon requires more spirituality and wisdom and prayer than any other office. Now notice the qualifications: These men had to be men of honest report. Their honesty was to be unquestionable. It is really a tragic thing for a church to have a deacon whose honesty is in question so that othersincluding the pastorcannot trust him. Such a man should not be in the office of deacon. The second qualification was “full of the Holy Ghost.” They were not to be filled with wine but were to be “filled with the [Holy] Spirit” (Eph_5:18).
Thirdly, they were to be men of wisdom. They were to be spiritual men who would be able to make an application of spiritual truth. That was very important. You see, the fact that they were handling material matters was apt to give them a lopsided view of things. So it is most important that deacons should be men who look at things from the spiritual point of view. We shall see that Stephen was a man who met these qualifications. He had wisdom"they were not able to resist the wisdom and the spirit by which he spake" (v. Act_6:10). He had real conviction. Also he was “full of faith.” Not only did he have saving faith but also serving faithwitnessing faith. It wasn’t the amount of his faith but the object of his faith that was important. We learn from this same verse that he was full of power. Such were the kind of men chosen as deacons.
Acts 6:4
That was the duty of the apostles.
Acts 6:5
I can’t tell you anything more about the last five men. The first two, Stephen and Philip, will be mentioned again as we go along in the Book of Acts. They were outstanding men in the early church. Although they were to “serve tables,” the record of them is that they were spiritual men.
Acts 6:6
Now, friends, there is a great deal of hocus-pocus and abracadabra connected with this matter of laying on of hands. A great many people think that some spiritual power is connected to it. They think that putting on the hands communicates something to a person. Frankly, the only thing you can communicate to someone else by the laying on of hands is disease germs. You can pass them on, but you cannot pass on any kind of power. What is the meaning of the laying on of hands? As we saw in Leviticus, when we were studying the Old Testament sacrifices, the sinner would put his hand on the head of the animal to be sacrificed, which signified that the animal to be offered was taking his place. The offering was identified with the sinner. When the apostles put their hands on the heads of the deacons, it meant that now the deacons would be partners with them. They were together in this service. It designated that these men were set aside for this office, denoting their fellowship in the things of Christ and their position as representatives for the corporate body of believers. Notice that this was a social service in which these men were engaged. The early church took care of its own. I think that should still be true today. The early church had a poverty program, and it included only the members of the church. The church today should also take care of its own.
Acts 6:7
It is still important in our day for the Word of God to be increasing. Certainly this is the purpose of my radio program. It is my sincere desire that the Word of God may be increased. Don’t miss the fact that many of the priests turned to the Lord. Some of them must have been serving in the temple when the veil was rent in two at the death of Christ. Many of them must have turned to Christ after that experience.
Acts 6:8
WITNESS OF STEPHEN, A DEACONOur attention is now drawn to Stephen. He is one of the great men in the early church. Apparently these deacons are one with the apostles in having the sign gifts. They have been brought into a unique position. Because Stephen is a strong witness to the gospel, he incurs the hatred of the Sadducees. False witnesses are brought before the council to accuse Stephen.
Acts 6:9
Stephen is brought before the Sanhedrin, and false witnesses are brought in. The false witnesses tell a half-truth, of course. The Lord Jesus did say that they would destroy this temple and He would raise it up again, but He was speaking of the temple of His body. At His trial, the false witnesses misunderstood that and misrepresented it. So here, they misunderstand Stephen when he says that the temple in Jerusalem will be left desolate. Actually, it was desolate without Christ anyway. And they twist what he is saying about the customs of Moses. Of course men are not saved by the Law but by grace. But salvation in Moses’ day was by grace even as it is today. Their accusation is based on only a partial truth. They see something marvelous in the face of Stephen. This man came closer to being an angel than any man who has ever lived.