Micro-Church: Week 28
Micro-Church – Week 28
Acts 6:1–7 (ESV)
1 Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution. 2 And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables. 3 Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty. 4 But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” 5 And what they said pleased the whole gathering, and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch. 6 These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them. 7 And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.
We made mention of this passage in Sunday's message saying that early church leaders were so committed to the ministry of the Word. One of the aspects of our "Church culture" that we are trying to facilitate is a commitment to what we believe. This commitment will reveal itself in our actions, and how we respond to the needs around us.
Take a moment to discuss the needs that you are noticing in your everyday life.
What are some ways that you, your micro-church, or Hub City Church could respond to those needs?
(We are doing more brainstorming here than formulating an actionable plan)
From our passage today, what do you notice about how the early church interacted with needs?
What qualities do you see in those who were working in ministry?
The current culture oftentimes crowns individualism, and can sometimes create a "it doesn't matter what anyone thinks about me" mentality. While we are not striving to please people, this passage makes it clear that disciples were chosen based on having a reputation of being people of integrity.
In today's culture, do you think it is important to build a reputation of being people of faith? If so, how do you apply that to your life?
Let's dream:
We want to be disciples that make disciples. If this passage presents a clear Biblical pattern for healthy church growth, then verse 7 is the template:
(ESV) 7 And the word of God continued to increase, and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests became obedient to the faith.
(NLT) 7 So God’s message continued to spread. The number of believers greatly increased in Jerusalem, and many of the Jewish priests were converted, too.
Developing disciples who are mature in the Word is the obvious way to reach a city.
As a micro-church, what are your thoughts on how we can systematically make disciples who better understand and apply God's Word to their lives.
Assign someone as a scribe for your Micro-church during this time. As we explore ideas of how we can be disciples who makes disciples, encourage your group to be creative as we discuss becoming better at building disciples. Our city is at stake!
