Dealing with Divide" Acts 6: 1 - 7; Pastor Paul Mitchell

Acts 6 opens after a whole lot of action in the early church. Pentecost has come, the Holy Ghost has been given, tongues have been spoken, souls have been saved, lame men have been healed, Peter and John have stood before the Sanhedrin, Barnabas has given with a genuine heart, and Ananias and Sapphira have shown the danger of hypocrisy. The church has not just been adding anymore. The church has multiplied, and “when you multiply people, you multiply people.” Growth is good, but growth also brings problems.

The phrase “in those days” shows that some time has passed, maybe years, and the young church has been blessed with unity and generosity. Satan has already tried to stop the work through hypocrisy, and now Satan tries to stop it through murmuring. The Grecians complain against the Hebrews because their widows are being neglected in the daily ministration. The problem sounds small until mama is the one not being cared for. The Grecians and Hebrews are both saved Jews, but old cultural divisions have followed them into the new church. The Hebrews are more tied to Jerusalem, Hebrew, Aramaic, temple life, and old customs. The Grecians are Hellenistic Jews, shaped by the Greek-speaking world and synagogue life. Christ has united what history had divided, and Satan is attempting to divide what Christ has united.

The apostles do not sweep the problem under the rug or kick it down the road. The apostles gather the whole multitude and keep the priority clear: it is not reason that they should leave the word of God and serve tables. Serving tables is not beneath them, but preaching the word and prayer must not be neglected. The issue calls for delegation, not distraction. The church is told to choose seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom. Character matters, godliness matters, and good decision-making matters.

The choice of seven Grecian men shows real maturity and grace. The Hebrews do not insist on keeping control. The whole church entrusts the ministry to men from the offended side, preferring one another and seeking unity instead of vainglory. The apostles pray, lay hands on them, and publicly set them apart for a serious ministry.

The result is conquest, not through fighting, but through biblical handling of trouble. The word of God increases, the disciples multiply greatly, and even a great company of priests become obedient to the faith. Religious people are reached with the true gospel. Acts 6 shows that problems must be handled spiritually, biblically, humbly, and with the priorities of God kept in first place.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Growth multiplies people and problems The multiplication in Acts 6 is a blessing, but it also exposes pressure points that addition did not reveal. The church does not treat problems as proof that God has stopped working. The text shows that spiritual growth often brings administrative strain, relational strain, and old wounds that need biblical care. [35:11]
• 2. Murmuring attacks Christ-given unity The complaint between Grecians and Hebrews is not just noise in the background. Murmuring becomes a tool Satan uses to drive a wedge into what Christ has joined together. Old prejudices can ride into a new church unless the body names them, humbles itself, and protects unity for the glory of God. [43:21]
• 3. Priorities require faithful delegation The apostles do not despise the widows, and they do not treat practical ministry as unimportant. The apostles refuse to leave prayer and the ministry of the word because God has given that priority to them. Delegation becomes a spiritual act when it keeps first things first and lets the right people carry the right responsibilities. [50:28]
• 4. Humility entrusts wounded people The church’s choice of seven Grecian men is a beautiful act of maturity. The side that had been offended is not pushed aside but trusted with the very ministry where the hurt had happened. Grace does more than apologize; grace makes room for others to serve with real confidence and responsibility. [59:24]
• 5. God’s word must move outward Acts 6 ends with the word of God increasing and disciples multiplying. The word does not increase merely because people hear more information; the word increases as truth takes root, changes lives, and gets shared with somebody else. Devotion that never becomes obedience and witness has not yet done its full work.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [26:42] - Acts 6 and Dealing With Divide
• [30:22] - Action-Packed Growth in Acts
• [33:16] - God Desires Spiritual Unity
• [35:11] - Growth Brings Real Problems
• [37:29] - Grecians and Hebrews Murmuring
• [42:02] - Neglected Widows and Church Tension
• [43:21] - Satan’s Wedge Through Money
• [46:58] - Protecting Prayer and the Word
• [53:03] - Qualified Men for Ministry
• [59:24] - Grecian Deacons and Humble Trust
• [63:21] - Prayer and Laying on Hands
• [65:11] - The Word Increased
• [68:11] - Reaching the Religiously Lost
• [69:54] - Handling Problems Biblically

Bible Reading

Acts 6:1-7
“And in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplied, there arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration. Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables. Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to 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 Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch: Whom they set before the apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them. And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly; and a great company of the priests were obedient to the faith.” [26:42]

Galatians 3:26-28
“For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus. For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.”

Philippians 2:14
“Do all things without murmurings and disputings:”

2 Timothy 4:1-2
“I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine.”

Observation questions

1. In Acts 6:1, what exactly caused the murmuring between the Grecians and the Hebrews, and who was being neglected? [42:02]
2. In Acts 6:2-4, what two priorities did the twelve refuse to leave, and what practical task did they appoint others to oversee? [46:58]
3. In Acts 6:3, what three qualifications were the church told to look for in the seven men? [53:03]
4. In Acts 6:5-7, what happened after the church chose the seven men and the apostles prayed and laid hands on them? [01:05:11]

Interpretation questions

1. Acts 6 begins with multiplication and then immediately shows tension. What does that suggest about the relationship between church growth and church problems? [35:11]
2. Galatians 3:28 says believers are one in Christ, yet Acts 6 shows old divisions still creating trouble. How can both of those realities be true at the same time in a local church? [43:21]
3. The twelve said it was not reason for them to leave the word of God to serve tables. Why was that not a statement of pride, but a statement about God-given priorities? [50:28]
4. The church chose seven men connected to the offended group to handle the neglected ministry. What does that reveal about humility, trust, and protecting unity in the body? [59:24]

Application questions

1. Growth often exposes pressure points instead of hiding them. When pressure rises in church life, is the first response usually patience, prayer, and clarity, or frustration and complaint? What tends to bring that out? [35:11]
2. Murmuring can feel small until it starts weakening trust. What does murmuring usually sound like in everyday church life? How can a person tell the difference between raising a real concern and feeding division? [43:21]
3. Widows were being overlooked in a real, practical need. Who might be easy to overlook in a church family right now—older saints, new people, quiet people, struggling families? What would it look like to notice them on purpose? [37:29]
4. Prayer and the ministry of the word had to stay central. What things most often pull attention away from prayer and Scripture in personal life or church life? What needs to be rearranged so first things stay first? [46:58]
5. The seven men were chosen for character, not just availability. When responsibility is given in the church, why is it important to look for honest report, fullness of the Holy Ghost, and wisdom instead of just talent or willingness? [53:03]
6. Unity is strengthened when people are trusted, not just talked about. Has there been a time when being entrusted with responsibility helped heal hurt or build trust? How might that principle help in relationships now? [59:24]
7. Acts 6 ends with the word of God increasing and disciples multiplying. In what ways is God’s word increasing in life right now—not just being heard, but actually changing conduct and moving outward to others? [01:06:50]