A GROWING CHURCH WITH GROWING PAINS
(Part 1)
Acts 6:1-7
There are times when young children complain of pain in their extremities; a common response from parents is, “ah, it is just growing pains”. However, according to the Mayo Clinic and other medical researchers there is no evidence that growth hurts. Experts surmise that these pains may be linked to a lower pain threshold, or in some cases they may be related to certain psychological issues.
I will leave the legitimacy of physical growing pains to the medical experts, but I can say without any doubt that a growing church will experience growing pains. A great example of this reality is found in the first century Church. In Acts 2:47 Luke declares that “the Lord added to the Church daily those who were being saved.” As a result of this rapid and continual growth, there were certain problems within the church that had to be addressed.
The first few verses of Chapter six tell us how the leaders of the Church handled this situation. Let’s examine this passage and consider “A Growing Church With Growing Pains”.
Throughout the years I have been involved in several churches that experienced certain “growing pains”. One church experienced rapid growth and the biggest problem was that there were not enough parking spaces. Another church saw great growth but it stalled (and eventually declined) because the building was not large enough to accommodate the number of people who were attending.
The first church that I was blessed to pastor experienced its own share of growing pains. In 2009 the number of people attending our services surged from less than fifty to around one hundred and fifty. We had plenty of parking spaces and the size of our building was more than sufficient; however, we did not have the people or the processes in place to handle such rapid growth.
This is similar to the problems faced by those in the early church. There was no shortage of people in the church, but there was a segment of the church body that was being neglected. Verse one says, “Now in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplying, there arose a complaint against the Hebrews by the Hellenists, because their widows were neglected in the daily distribution.”
In the first century, daily disbursements were made to the poor widows within the Church. In Jewish culture, women did not receive an inheritance; therefore they depended on their husband other relatives for support. There were many widows among the community of believers and the Church was faithful to care for them.
There was a great spirit of love, compassion and benevolence among those in the early Church. The Saints sold their own possessions and gave money to the Apostles who would then provide food and other daily necessities for those who were in need. It is estimated that at this point in time there were over twenty thousand men, women, and children who were part of Christ’s Church.
By the time of Christ, many of the Jews were living outside of Israel. Throughout Israel’s history, the Jewish people were conquered and sent into exile on several different occasions. There were also many Jews who left Israel for political or economic reasons. When given the opportunity, many of them returned to Israel. However, many others remained in the surrounding Gentile countries, perhaps because the living conditions in those regions were more comfortable and enticing.
Verse one introduces us to two different groups of Jews; the “Hebrews” and the “Hellenists”. “Hebrews” were native Jews who lived in Jerusalem and Judea. They attended local Synagogues that primarily spoke in Aramaic and they used the Hebrew Old Testament. “Hellenists” (or Grecians) refer to Jews who lived outside of Israel; they were raised in Hellenistic culture and they used the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament).
The Hellenists began to complain because their widows were not being provided for in the same way as the Hebrew widows. As we have already mentioned, the Hellenists primarily spoke Greek, while the Hebrews spoke Aramaic. It is possible that this language barrier may have contributed to the neglect of the Hellenists. Regardless of the motivation, it is apparent that there was a growing tension within the body of Believers. When tension and discord in the Church goes unaddressed it can become a major issue that can lead to dissention and destruction.
Satan failed in his attempt to destroy Christ; however, after the Resurrection and ascension of Jesus, Satan did not give up his mission of destruction; rather, he turned his attention to Christ’s Church. He prompted the religious leaders to come against the Apostles and to do all that was within their power to silence the followers of the Lord. They tried to stifle the Apostles, silence the message of the Gospel, and suppress the growth of the Church. Each time the opposite happened; as they persecuted Christ’s followers: they were emboldened, the Gospel spread, and the Church continued to grow.
When Satan cannot destroy a Church from the outside, he will seek to cause trouble from within. We are confident that he will never succeed in destroying the Church (universal), for Jesus said, “I will build my church; and the gates of hades will not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:18). This is true and encouraging; however, Satan has succeeded in destroying many local assemblies by sowing seeds of discord from within. This method is not a new one, in fact it is one that he has used since the earliest days of the Church.
The Hellenists were frustrated and complained to the Apostles who in turn called the entire Church together to address the issue. (v2 Then the twelve summoned the multitude of the disciples and said, "It is not desirable that we should leave the word of God and serve tables.) The Apostles realized that with the rapid growth of the Church, it was necessary for them to implement a process that would ensure that the daily physical needs of the people were met while allowing them to focus on the more important spiritual matters; namely prayer and the ministry of the Word. They said, “it is not desirable that we should leave the word of God and serve tables.”
The conflict surrounding the distribution of food was the main issue that demanded the attention of the Apostles. But their comment concerning “serving tables” was likely a broader reference to all of the financial matters within the assembly of Believers. In those days business transactions took place over tables; in fact, these two responsibilities were intertwined. In order to ensure that widows and children were fed, someone had to purchase the food and someone had to distribute it. In an assembly now numbering in the thousands, there were many other needs that would arise on a daily basis. Furthermore, there was also the responsibility of collecting and managing all of the money that was being given by the Brethren to care for those in need.
Up to this point, the Apostles were praying, preaching and “serving tables”. They were trying to meet the physical and the spiritual needs of a great multitude of people and it was beginning to take a toll on them. They were tired, weary, and overwhelmed and they had reached a point where things had to change. They decided that it would be best if they focused on what was most important and delegated certain responsibilities to capable men within the Church.
The Apostles did not see meeting the physical needs of the people as being unimportant, but they knew that they had been called to something even more important. This is not to minimize the service of those who would soon to be “appointed over this business”. The seven men who were chosen by the Church to serve allowed the Apostles to pray and spread the Gospel. They were not inferior servants; they were men with a different calling. They were co-laborers in the Gospel ministry and their faithful service was vital to the success of the early Church.
Jesus called the Apostles for a specific purpose; He did not commission them to go and feed the world physically; He called them to be His witnesses throughout the earth. They had been called to perform a spiritual work among the people and it was necessary for them to spend time in prayer and to focus on spreading the Gospel of Christ. They could not do this successfully if they continued to serve tables on a daily basis. Their solution was for the Church to select certain men who could carry out this ministry. Over the next couple of weeks, I would like for us to consider some facts concerning growing pains within the church.
- First of all, this passage shows us that:
WE SHOULD EXPECT GROWING PAINS IN THE CHURCH
When a church experiences growth, (especially rapid growth) certain problems will arise. If a church is blessed with an influx of new Believers, processes and procedures must be put in place to teach and train those “babes in Christ”.
In the Great Commission Jesus said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." Amen (Matthew 28:19-20). When we quote this passage we often put the focus on evangelism and there is no question that sharing the Gospel is of supreme importance. But it is important for us to remember that Jesus did not just command us to make converts (in fact that is a work that only He can do). It is vital for us to follow up our sharing of the Gospel by “teaching” new Believers “all the things that Christ has commanded us”.
The writer of Hebrews exhorts us to “consider one another in order to stir up love and good works,” (Hebrews 10:24). In an effort to encourage people to attend church we often quote Hebrews 10:25 where we are told not to forsake “the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some”. The problem is that we fail to heed the remainder of that verse where we are told to “exhort (encourage) one another, and so much the more as we see the Day approaching.
Though some neglect their responsibility to assemble together, many of those who do assemble together neglect their responsibility to encourage, strengthen, teach, and invest in others who gather on a regular basis. This results in a major problem within the local church. Concerning this problem, the writer of Hebrews says: “For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. But solid food belongs to those who are of full age…” (Hebrews 5:12-14). When a church has a group of new believers, and others who have yet to move from “milk” to “solid food” growing pains are inevitable.
It is not only an influx of new believers that brings growing pains; sometimes church growth involves the addition of spiritually mature and devoted followers of Christ. When this happens it is necessary to assimilate those Christians into the local assembly. It is important to assist them in using their spiritual gifts to benefit the local church and to advance the Kingdom of Christ.
Sometimes this may require others to let go of certain responsibilities and positons that they have held for many years; this is not always an easy process! It is in these times that we must remember what Paul said in Philippians 2:2-4, “fulfill my joy by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind. Let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind let each esteem others better than himself. Let each of you look out not only for his own interests, but also for the interests of others.” For us to prevent or to address growing pains within the church, humility is essential!
Rapid growth is not the only kind of growth that causes pain within a church. Sometimes, a handful of people or even one single person can change the entire dynamic of an assembly. Sometimes people will seek to join the church but after careful examination it becomes apparent that they are not genuine Christians. In these instances we must seize the opportunity to teach them the scriptures and point them to true saving faith in Jesus Christ.
While growth is exciting, it is imperative to ensure that those who are given the “right hand of Christian fellowship” are actually born again. I believe that a great percentage of problems within the church can be traced back to the fact that many who are involved in the local church are not actually part of the universal Church.
There is also a great danger in one (or more) individuals seeking to join the local church who hold to incorrect and sometimes damnable doctrinal beliefs.
Peter said “there were also false prophets among the people, even as there will be false teachers among you, who will secretly bring in destructive heresies, even denying the Lord who bought them, and bring on themselves swift destruction. 2 And many will follow their destructive ways, because of whom the way of truth will be blasphemed” (2 Peter 2:1-2). Paul said “If anyone teaches otherwise and does not consent to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which accords with godliness, 4 he is proud, knowing nothing, but is obsessed with disputes and arguments over words, from which come envy, strife, reviling, evil suspicions, 5 useless wranglings of men of corrupt minds and destitute of the truth, who suppose that godliness is a means of gain. From such withdraw yourself” (1 Timothy 6:3). John said “Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world” (1 John 4:1).The Lord Jesus said “false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand” (Matthew 24:24-25).
Typically when reading these warnings about false prophets we automatically think about those who stand behind the pulpit and speak to the people. Obviously this is a great danger; but there is a great danger in allowing anyone to have any kind of influence in the church if they hold to doctrines that contradict the truth of the Holy Scriptures. Paul said in Galatians 1:8-9 “if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again, if anyone preaches any other gospel to you than what you have received, let him be accursed.”It is imperative that we know the scriptures ourselves and guard against anyone who would come into this assembly and deny or contradict the truths set forth in God’s Word.
This passage teaches us that growth can cause growing pains withing the church. When these “pains” come, we must address them. When we do address them, it must be done promptly, compassionately. prayerfully, and scripturally. As we continue our study of this passage, we will see that this is how the Apostles handled the growing pains that they experienced in the early days of Christ’s church.
I would like to point out the great truth that we can and should rejoice when we experience growing pains. Such pains come as a result of church and Kingdom growth and that is a good thing!
Like those in the first century church, we can trust that “the Lord (will add) unto the church daily those who are being saved”. The Lord continues to add to the Church universal and He is adding to our local assembly on a regular basis. We should expect a measure of growing pains and when we do, thankfully, we have the Holy Scriptures to tell us how to properly address them. Pains are just that, a pain! With that being said, I would much rather be involved in growing church with growing pains than in a stagnant church with no problems whatsoever.
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