Acts 6:1-7. Problem #2 in the Early Church

In spite of all the euphoria associated with the rapid growth of Christianity there were problems. However, these problems, instead of stunting the growth of Christianity, pushed it forward.

The first problem was when Ananias and Sapphira lied about their monetary gift to God. God chose to kill them for that sin.

The second problem, found in Acts 6, was when Christian widows from a “Grecian” Jew background were discriminated against in favor of Christian widows from a “Hebrew” Jew background. It was a potentially devastating problem. After all the unity of the believers is the primary evidence for the deity of Jesus Christ (John 17). This feeding of these widows on a daily basis was a ministry of the church. The church provided food and serving tables for the food. As a ministry it was no less important than the “ministry of the word” that the Apostles were engaged in. James 1:27, states that “pure religion” was taking care of widows.

Whoever was in charge of this ministry previously had failed but the Apostles chose not to identify them or castigate them for obvious reasons. The Apostles could have taken charge and designated seven men to take on this ministry but chose not to. Instead they let the congregation of believers choose the men and gave qualifications as a basis for the decision. The Apostles leadership method was one of building the team and developing individuals.

The report of the neglect of the widows obviously would have been known by the greater Jerusalem population. So too was the solution and as a result the numbers of new converts grew at a phenomenal rate and included many of the Jewish priests.

Let’s not pretend that problems in the Lord’s church go un-noticed by non-Christians and let’s solve our problems so that God’s name is glorified and the church is made stronger.