REAL DISCIPLES

S1 · Session Four of 6

Next to Him, Next to Her

Introduction

MINISTRY MATTERS

God never intended ministry to be carried by one person.

The church is strongest when different people take responsibility, use their gifts and carry the work together.

You don't have to do everything.

But there is something you can do.

When everyone takes responsibility for their part, people are cared for, leaders are able to focus on what God has called them to do, and the work of God moves forward.

Healthy ministry isn't one person doing everything. It is everyone faithfully carrying their part.

Study objective

Acts 6:1–7

Section 01

THE PASSAGE

Acts 6:1–7 · World English Bible (public domain).

Key scriptures

1

Now in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplying, a complaint arose from the Hellenists against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily service.

2

The twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, "It is not appropriate for us to forsake the word of God and serve tables.

3

Therefore, select from among you, brothers, seven men of good report, full of the Holy Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.

4

But we will continue steadfastly in prayer and in the ministry of the word."

5

These words pleased the whole multitude. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch,

6

whom they set before the apostles. When they had prayed, they laid their hands on them.

7

The word of God increased and the number of the disciples greatly multiplied in Jerusalem. A great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.

Section 02

GROWTH CREATES RESPONSIBILITY

Acts 6 begins with something positive:

"The number of the disciples was multiplying."

The church was growing.

But growth created a problem.

Some of the widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food.

The original word translated neglected carries the idea that this wasn't something that happened once.

They were repeatedly being overlooked.

Nobody necessarily intended to neglect them.

But as the church grew, the old way of doing things was no longer enough.

That's an important lesson for ministry.

People can be overlooked even when everybody has good intentions.

The answer isn't simply to care more.

Sometimes we need more people willing to take responsibility.

Section 03

DIFFERENT RESPONSIBILITIES, SAME MINISTRY

The apostles say:

"It is not appropriate for us to forsake the word of God and serve tables."

At first, that could sound as though preaching was important and serving tables wasn't.

But Luke uses the same family of Greek words for both.

The daily distribution was a service — diakonia.

And in verse 4, the apostles speak about the ministry — diakonia — of the word.

One was serving food.

The other was preaching Scripture.

Both were ministry.

They were different responsibilities, but both mattered to God.

That is important in church.

Preaching is ministry.

Ushering is ministry.

Children's ministry is ministry.

Cleaning is ministry.

Following somebody up is ministry.

Helping somebody find a seat is ministry.

Preparing something before anybody arrives is ministry.

Different responsibilities. Same ministry.

Section 04

THE RIGHT PEOPLE CARRY THE RIGHT THINGS

The apostles didn't try to solve the problem by working harder.

They said:

"Select from among you… seven men… whom we may appoint over this business."

They gave responsibility to other people.

And notice the kind of people they wanted:

"Men of good report, full of the Holy Spirit and of wisdom."

They weren't simply looking for available bodies to fill a rota.

Character mattered.

Spiritual life mattered.

Wisdom mattered.

Reliability mattered.

Even a practical ministry deserved people who would take it seriously.

Sometimes we think spiritual qualifications only matter if someone is preaching or leading publicly.

Acts 6 teaches something different.

How we live matters whatever ministry we carry.

Section 05

EVERYONE HAS A PART OF THE WALL

Nehemiah 3 gives us another picture of shared ministry.

Jerusalem's wall needed rebuilding.

No single person rebuilt the entire wall.

One person repaired one section.

Another family repaired another.

Then the Bible repeatedly uses a simple expression:

"Next to him…"

And then:

"Next to them…"

Person after person worked on the section in front of them.

That is a great picture of church ministry.

You don't have to build the whole wall.

You just have to faithfully build the part God has placed in front of you.

Someone welcomes.

Someone teaches.

Someone follows up.

Someone organises.

Someone cleans.

Someone leads.

Someone prays.

Someone prepares.

Someone encourages.

And next to them, somebody else carries another part.

The work gets done because everybody carries something.

Section 06

DON'T CARRY EVERYTHING YOURSELF

There is another side to this lesson.

Sometimes the problem isn't that people won't serve.

Sometimes the problem is that one person won't let anybody else serve.

In Exodus 18, Moses was trying to deal personally with every problem among the people.

His father-in-law Jethro watched him and said:

"The thing that you do is not good."

Moses wasn't doing something sinful.

He was doing something necessary.

He was simply doing too much of it himself.

Jethro warned him that he would wear himself out.

The Hebrew expression is very strong. It gives the picture of something withering away through exhaustion.

The answer was to share responsibility.

There are things we should carry.

There are also things we should allow other people to carry with us.

Healthy ministry requires both.

Be willing to take responsibility—and be willing to share responsibility.

Section 07

WHEN PEOPLE CARRY THE WORK, THE CHURCH MOVES FORWARD

Look at what happens at the end of Acts 6:

"The word of God increased and the number of the disciples greatly multiplied."

The problem was dealt with.

People who had been overlooked were cared for.

New people were given responsibility.

The apostles continued their responsibility.

And the church continued growing.

That's the goal of healthy ministry.

Not simply:

"Did my job get done?"

But:

"Did my part help the whole church fulfil its purpose?"

Every ministry connects to something bigger.

When each person faithfully carries their part, the whole church becomes stronger.

Section 08

TALK IT THROUGH

Five questions

Discussion questions

  1. 01The widows in Acts 6 were repeatedly being overlooked. Who or what can easily get overlooked when church becomes busy?
  2. 02Acts 6 describes serving tables and preaching the Word as ministry. Why do we sometimes treat certain ministries as more important than others?
  3. 03Think about Nehemiah's wall: everyone had a section to build. What do you believe is your part of the wall right now?
  4. 04Moses wasn't doing something wrong—he was simply carrying too much himself. Is there anything you are carrying that somebody else could begin carrying with you?
  5. 05The seven were given real responsibility. What makes it difficult sometimes to trust other people with responsibility?

Section 09

BETWEEN NOW AND NEXT TIME

Five short readings

Take about five minutes each day. Read the passage and think about the question underneath it.

Key scriptures

ONE — Acts 6:1–7

Read the story again. What changed when responsibility was shared with more people?

TWO — Nehemiah 3

Notice how often one person works "next to" another. What does this chapter teach you about teamwork?

THREE — Nehemiah 4:6–23

The people faced opposition but continued building together. What can make people stop faithfully carrying their part?

FOUR — Exodus 18:13–27

Jethro tells Moses to share responsibility. Is there something you need to stop carrying alone?

FIVE — 1 Corinthians 12:12–27

Paul describes the church as one body with many different parts. Why does your part matter even when somebody else's role seems more visible?

This week's application

TAKE IT HOME

  • 01This week, ask yourself two questions:
  • 02What am I responsible for?
  • 03And:
  • 04Who could I help carry responsibility?
  • 05Then choose one practical action.
  • 06Put it into this sentence:
  • 07When __________ happens, I will __________.
  • 08For example:
  • 09"When I see something being overlooked, I will take responsibility rather than assume somebody else will do it."
  • 10Or:
  • 11"Before Sunday, I will show someone else how to help me with something I normally do alone."
  • 12Remember:
  • 13You don't have to build the whole wall.
  • 14But you do need to build your part.
  • 15ONE THING TO WATCH FOR
  • 16This week, pay attention to the people serving next to you.
  • 17Ask one person:
  • 18"Is there anything you're carrying at the moment that I could help you with?"
  • 19Then listen.
  • 20You may discover something you never knew they were carrying.
  • 21Ministry becomes stronger when we stop thinking only about our responsibility and begin noticing what the people beside us are carrying too.
  • 22Nobody builds the whole wall.
  • 23We build it together.

Next steps

Serving Like Christ · Series One · Session 4 of 6

Next: Session 5 — Your Father Who Sees in Secret · 2 Corinthians 4:7–10, 16–18

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