LISTEN
This sermon was preached by Tim McMaster at the CCM Gorton site of Christ Church Manchester on Sunday 15th August 2021.
SERIES
This message was part of the ‘For Such a Time as This’ series, preached at Christ Church Manchester’s church in Gorton in late 2017. The full series included the following sermons:
BIBLE VERSES
This sermon was based on Acts 6:1-7
Seven Chosen to Serve
1Now 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. 2And 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. 3Therefore, 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. 4But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.” 5And 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. 6These they set before the apostles, and they prayed and laid their hands on them.
7And 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.
KEY POINTS
Jesus teaches a pattern of balancing Prayer and Serving
Prayer aligns us with God’s heart and informs us of his will, Serving brings the Kingdom out into the world
Balance is required
All prayer and no action does nothing to glorify God or grow the Kingdom. All service and no prayer leads to burnout and misaligned priorities
No-one can deal with everything themselves. It is important to act according to God’s will fo us and trust that God is calling others to face different challenges.
MORE SERMONS
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