A Question of Priority
A Sermon on Acts 6:1-2
Originally preached June 5, 1966
Scripture
1And 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. 2Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not …
Sermon Description
What is the first task of the local church? While some may say that serving the world is the first task of the church, Dr. Martyn Lloyd Jones shows us something different from the Bible. In this sermon titled “A Question of Priority,” Dr. Lloyd-Jones argues in this sermon on Acts 6:1–2 that the priority of the church is not philanthropy but it instead must be preaching. It is clear that the early apostles chose to preach rather than to “do good in the world” because they saw the greatest and primary need in the world was not lack of help but lack of repentance. Acts 6:1–2 becomes a model for current Christians and churches to follow. The first and primary task of the church should reflect the fundamental need of humanity, which is hearing God’s Word. While the church should not neglect in doing good and serving others, it also should also not forget the role of preaching as only God’s word has the power to change people for their greatest benefit.
Sermon Breakdown
- The sermon begins by introducing the scripture passage from Acts 6:1-2 which deals with the dispute between the Grecians and the Hebrews over the daily distribution to widows.
- Dr. Lloyd-Jones then provides context on why they are studying the book of Acts - to understand what Christianity really is and what the Christian church is meant to be. There is confusion in the world and even in the church about these matters.
- Dr. Lloyd-Jones notes that the early church went from strength to strength despite difficulties. This passage also provides insight into the early organization of the church.
- Dr. Lloyd-Jones introduces the three propositions to consider: 1) What is the primary task of the Christian church? 2) Why is preaching the word the primary task? 3) Why is it wrong to put other things before preaching the word?
- Dr. Lloyd-Jones argues that the primary task of the church is to preach the word of God. This is evident from the Lord's commission to the apostles and the fact that only the word of God addresses mankind's fundamental need by showing the source of our troubles.
- Dr. Lloyd-Jones argues that it is wrong to put men before God. The problems of the world exist because men have forgotten God. God must come before men.
- Dr. Lloyd-Jones argues that it is wrong to put the body before the soul. The world only considers man to be a physical body but man is a living soul. The soul is bigger than the whole world.
- Dr. Lloyd-Jones argues that it is wrong to put time before eternity. Though we must attend to physical needs, there is an eternity that lies ahead of us after death. The world lives for the temporal but forgets the eternal.
- Dr. Lloyd-Jones concludes by asking if we have our priorities right - do we put God before men, the soul before the body, and eternity before time? The word of God alone can put us right on these things.
Sermon Q&A
What Did Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones Mean by "Leave the Word of God and Serve Tables"?
In this sermon, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones examines Acts 6:1-2, particularly the apostles' statement: "It is not reason that we should leave the word of God and serve tables." This passage reveals critical insights about the church's priorities and mission.
What was the historical context of Acts 6:1-2?
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, this passage describes:
- A moment when the early church was experiencing growth - "When the number of the disciples was multiplied"
- A dispute had arisen between the Grecians (Greek-speaking Jews) and Hebrews (Hebrew-speaking Jews) over the care of widows
- The Grecians complained their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of food and resources
- This created a crisis point where the apostles had to make a decision about their priorities
Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains: "This was a kind of crisis in the life of the church. If she'd gone wrong at this point probably we wouldn't be here this evening. Here we see the wisdom of God given to these men by the spirit. It was a crisis, a turning point."
Why did the apostles prioritize preaching over serving tables?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones identifies several reasons:
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The Lord's direct commission to them: "The Lord had called them and had sent them to preach... 'Ye shall receive power after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you and you shall be witnesses unto me.'"
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Preaching addresses humanity's fundamental need: "It is this word alone that deals with our fundamental need." While physical needs are important, our deeper problem is spiritual.
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It maintains proper priorities:
- God must come before man: "It is wrong to put serving tables before the preaching of the word, because it is always wrong to put men before God."
- The soul must come before the body: "It is wrong to put the body before the soul."
- Eternity must come before time: "Isn't it the height of folly and indeed tragedy to put time before eternity?"
Lloyd-Jones emphasizes: "The primary task of the church is to hold up and to hold forth the truth. Hold it up on a pillar, put it on a placard, placard it, declare it, hold it, perform in the pillar and ground of the truth."
Does this mean Christians shouldn't engage in humanitarian work?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones clarifies: "I am not saying that it is no part of the christian message to teach people to be kind and helpful and philanthropic. Quite the reverse. All I'm concerned about is the question of your priorities."
He argues that:
- Humanitarian work should follow from preaching, not replace it
- Christianity has historically been the source of humanitarian efforts: "All the benevolence and the philanthropy of which the world talks so much about tonight really was started by the christian church."
- The apostles' solution wasn't to abandon care for widows but to appoint qualified deacons to handle this vital ministry
Lloyd-Jones states: "Serving tables is right, but we mustn't put it before the other. We mustn't allow it to usurp the position of the other. The other is first. This is always secondary."
What does Dr. Lloyd-Jones identify as the danger of "religionless Christianity"?
Lloyd-Jones warns against the trend of "religionless Christianity" that was becoming popular in his day:
- It diminishes or eliminates preaching in favor of discussion or social action
- It focuses exclusively on addressing physical and social needs
- It risks turning Christianity into mere philanthropy without its spiritual foundation
He argues this approach "gets down to the real source of the troubles, the fundamental needs of the human race. And it's here to tell us that man's whole view of life is wrong and that his world is as it is because of that wrong view."
The danger is that when the church abandons its primary role of preaching truth, society is left only with material benefits but spiritual emptiness: "With all our benefits, with all our concentration on the secondary things and our forgetting of the priorities, this is what we produced. A nation which has lost its vision. And it's perishing."
The Book of Acts
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.