The physician Luke wrote, “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”, and in chapter six and verse two of the book of Acts Luke shared how the disciples said, “It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables” where we read:
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.
The verse begins, “Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, ...” Luke began with the words, “then the twelve” which means “at that time Jesus' twelve disciples” “called the multitude of the disciples unto them” or “summoned and beckoned the large number of people or crowd of students, pupils and attendants to themselves”, “and said” which means “and uttered, declared and proclaimed” the following words. Luke shared how Jesus' original “twelve disciples” “summoned” the rest of the “crowd of believers and followers of Jesus” and spoke the following words.
The verse continues, “... It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables.” Luke added the words, “it is not reason” which means “it is not pleasing or agreeable” “that we should leave the word of God” or “that we disciples depart from the sayings, decrees, mandates and orders belonging to the Godhead bodily and trinity which is comprised of God the Father, Christ the Son and the Holy Spirit”, “and serve tables” which means “and attend to and wait upon tables on which food is placed”. Luke shared how the “twelve disciples” told the “crowd of other disciples” it was displeasing for them to depart from “God's word” to wait upon or serve “tables” of food.
When we think through Luke's words in this verse, we begin to see how the “twelve disciples” of Jesus rendered a solution to the neglect of the “Grecian widows”. They knew and understood their attention should be upon the “word of God”. Though they were “servants” of Jesus and ministers to people, their “service” was to be reading, learning and paying attention to God' word and the administering of it. We shall see how they solve this problem in our next verse, and for now we understand God was building His church, and many people were to be used to carry out the ministries within it. Those who are wise will yield themselves to Jesus and make themselves available to whatever service He has in mind.
Next time Luke shares how the disciples say, “look you out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".
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