“The Power to Serve"
Acts 6:1-5
Veteran’s Day
A sermon for 11/12/23 by Pastor John Bright
Acts 6:1-4 “In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Hellenistic Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. 2 So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. 3 Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them 4 and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.””
Pause right there. Has God called you beyond where you are right now? It’s not about your ability – nope! It’s all about your AVAILIBILITY!!!!! God called to Samuel who was a child… in the night… by name. Is God calling you? Only you can answer.
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God bless our troops! The young men and women serving in the military around the world deserve our thanks and deserve our prayers for their protection. They fight to preserve what the veterans here and so many others fought to win in the past.
It’s different today. You folks here probably come along in the days of the draft. For the young people here – that is not the NFL or NBA draft. 😊 The military draft sent men into military service during times of war. Back in the 1700s, local militias were formed and each man brought his own weapon. They would march to meet up with a larger group to form an army.
Today, it’s an all-volunteer military, but they still have some minimum standards:
Height – Army men: 5 foot to 6 foot 8 inches, women: 4 foot 10 inches to 6 foot 8 inches
Weight – Navy for women: 5 foot – 141 lbs maximum, men: 6 foot 201 lbs maximum
Age limits – max age to join:
Air Force & Space Force & Navy: 39
Army: 35
Coast Guard: 31
Marine Corps: 28
Education requirements:
You must have a high school or general equivalency diploma (GED) to enlist in the military.
Physical fitness – the Army starts with a timed 2 mile run and it goes up from there.
If it takes all that to get in, makes you wonder why some struggle with the decision to re-enlist every few years. Here are some reasons I found on-line:
1 - How would I live in a world without acronyms?
2 – Here I get to live as an adult that has somebody inspecting me everyday to make sure I put my clothes on properly, and put my shoes on the right feet.
3 – I would miss waking up every morning and going to "staff meeting" where a piece of paper is read to me even though it is posted on the wall and on the internet, both of which I am able to read.
4 – Hey, where else can you pay taxes to fund your own paycheck? 😊
While we honor our veterans this morning, I also want to point you to the similarities between those who serve in the military and those who serve Jesus Christ in the world.
First – both choose to serve:
Joshua 24:15 “But if serving the Lord seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. But as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.”
Joshua is a book of military conquests that is hard for some modern-day folks to read. It was written to send a clear message: “Our God is greater and mightier than all other gods.” Back then, there were competing allegiances. Today, our military is dealing with people who have adopted the ideology of the enemy. For them and us – it’s a daily choice. We make lots of decisions every day. I have read estimates that we make over 200 decisions every day. You decided what to wear today and what to eat for breakfast. Most of our daily decisions are like that. Some decisions are conscious and others are unconscious.
Some of these determine who or what you serve. Which god are you serving? What cause will you support?
Have you chosen to serve Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior? No? Why? Are you still using the same, worn-out excuses? I’m pleading with you today – DON’T WAIT ANOTHER DAY!
2 Corinthians 6:2 “I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.”
Maybe you are not sure about being saved… talk to me and let’s settle this matter for everyone in this congregation.
Second, both sign-up to serve:
Acts 6:3 “Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them.”
In Acts 6 we read the story of the first conflict in the Jerusalem Church – they need folks to serve the widows during the distribution of food. The language in verse 3 may sound like a draft, but these men were all willing to serve. And, yes, they still had to meet minimum requirements!
In the last 10 years, there have been multiple law suits filled against churches and Christian schools because they require employees to be a Believer. That’s crazy! Can you imagine the US Military being forced to let North Vietnamese or Taliban or Hamas into their ranks? NO WAY!
In Acts they list God’s requirements: “they are known” & “they are full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom.”
We are struggling in today’s church with wisdom because it’s the opposite of feelings. Too many Believers today are being led by their feelings and those feelings are valid just because they are felt. That’s not much of way to measure anything.
Wisdom has a measure – the Bible, God’s Holy Word. In 1 Timothy we read the guidelines for leaders in the local congregation. 1 Timothy 3:2-7 “2 Now the overseer is to be above reproach, faithful to his wife, temperate, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, 3 not given to drunkenness, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. 4 He must manage his own family well and see that his children obey him, and he must do so in a manner worthy of full respect. 5 (If anyone does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church?) 6 He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil. 7 He must also have a good reputation with outsiders, so that he will not fall into disgrace and into the devil’s trap.”
Why would we have requirements to serve in the Church? Well, it’s common sense and it’s a Biblical standard.
Third, both sacrifice to serve:
We send our military folks to the most God-forsaken places on the planet. They go with the prospect of being injured or killed. Those early Christians also faced death.
Romans 12:1 “Therefore, I urge you, brothers and sisters, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God—this is your true and proper worship.”
Acts 7:59-60 “59 While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” 60 Then he fell on his knees and cried out, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them.” When he had said this, he fell asleep.”
Just so we are clear – when a person was stoned, it was not little pebbles being thrown. They used large rocks – the size of a baseball, softball, basketball. How could Stephen pray like that at a moment of agony?
What is the state of Christian persecution today? In the last year, across the world, 5,621
Christians were murdered, 2,110 Churches were attacked and 4,542 Christians were detained or imprisoned. https://www.opendoors.org/en-US/persecution/countries/
Any body here know where the church is growing the fastest? The answer – where ever there is the most persecuted. So, where is the church in the greatest decline? You already know – where ever people have the most freedom to worship. It’s there that we have to make our own sacrifices and take up the cross because we want to – not because we have to.
Fourth, both use the tools provided to serve:
In every war there are stories of courage, bravery, and acts of heroism that go beyond all human limitations. Do you know the name Desmond Doss? He was a soldier in WW2 that came from Lynchburg, Virginia. Because of his faith tradition that prevented him from carrying a weapon, he enlisted as a medic. Doss and his company were sent to Okinawa in 1945 where they had to climb a steep cliff to meet the enemy above. As the battle raged, Desmond Doss crawled on his belly to find wounded men. Over the course of 12 hours, he pulled 75 men from the battlefield and lowered them down with a rope. All the while he prayed, “Lord, please help me get one more.” This miracle was made into the movie, “Hacksaw Ridge.”
One of the men they chose to serve in Acts 6 is Stephen – the first Christian martyr. Listen to how Luke described him – Acts 6:8 “8 Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people.” The Greek word for power in this verse is “dunamis.” Do you know what word we get from it? DYNAMITE. Stephen had what he needed to serve – Holy Spirit Power. Stephen had what he needed to die for Christ - Holy Spirit Power. They could even see the Holy Spirit Power – Acts 6:15 “All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel.”
Did he have a different Holy Spirit Power than you and me? Of course not. I have told you before – we each have the same Holy Spirit that was in Jesus Christ. There is NO Junior Holy Spirit for us! So, we have everything we need to God in this world if we have the Holy Spirit! Amen!
TEACHING SHEET
November 12, 2023
Veteran’s Day
Acts 6:1-4
The Power to Serve
Each Branch of the Military Has Minimum Standards
Height
Weight – BMI
Age
Education
Physical Fitness
Just like those in the military, we must choose to serve, sign-up to serve, sacrifice to serve, and use the tools provided to serve.
Choose to Serve:
Joshua 24:15 “…choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.”
WE ALL MAKE CHOICES EVERY DAY –
CONSCIOUS AND UNCONSCIOUS
-WHOM OR WHAT WE SERVE
Have you chosen Christ as your Lord and Savior? Why not?
2 Corinthians 6:2 “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”
Sign-up to serve:
Acts 6:3 “…seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business…”
Today, we have an all-volunteer military. Gone are the days of the draft. This is where “minimum standards” come in – you have to qualify to join.
The same is true for serving in the Church – you need to meet some requirements –
? Believer
? Of good reputation
? Wisdom
1 Timothy 3:2-7 “A bishop then must be blameless, … not violent, not greedy for money, but gentle, not quarrelsome, not covetous; …Moreover he must have a good testimony among those who are outside, lest he fall into reproach and the snare of the devil.”
Sacrifice to Serve:
The women and men in the Military make sacrifices for us every day!
Romans 12:1 “I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service..”
Acts 7:59-60 “And they stoned Stephen as he was calling on God and saying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.” Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, do not charge them with this sin.” And when he had said this, he fell asleep.”
We are called to take up the cross each and every day – making our lives about more than “me and mine”… are we willing to sacrifice for the cause of Christ today?
Use the Tools Provided to Serve:
Acts 6 “8 And Stephen, full of faith and power, did great wonders and signs among the people.”
“15 And all who sat in the council, looking steadfastly at him, saw his face as the face of an angel.”
The US Government provides tools for the Military
God Almighty provides tools for His Servants
Who has the MOST and the BEST to give?
