The Bible doesn’t give a detailed organizational chart for the church, but it does give clear principles. In Acts 6:1-7, a complaint that Greek-speaking widows were being overlooked leads the apostles to share the work. They focus on prayer and teaching, and the church chooses seven men of good character, full of the Spirit and wisdom, to oversee the food distribution. The New Testament later describes two church offices, overseers and deacons, but the goal of any structure is the same: to protect and spread the gospel.
Setting the Scene in Acts 6:1-7
In the previous passage, the apostles were arrested, freed by an angel, defended by Gamaliel, and flogged, yet they kept teaching about Jesus every day (Acts 5:12-42). The church had faced pressure from the outside and a serious sin on the inside. Now it faced a third kind of challenge: growing pains.
Christians have debated church structure for centuries. Some churches are led by bishops, some by elders, and some by congregational vote. Some use the titles elder, pastor, and deacon in very different ways. Acts 6 doesn’t settle every question, but it gives us a valuable window into how the first church solved a real problem.
Growing Pains
As the church grew, tension grew with it.
Acts 6:1-2 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. 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.”
The two groups Luke mentions were both Jewish believers. The Hellenistic Jews were Greek-speaking Jews, many of whom had grown up in cities around the Mediterranean and later settled in Jerusalem. The Hebraic Jews were locals who spoke Aramaic and were more rooted in the culture of Judea. Some devout Jews moved to Jerusalem late in life to die near the temple, which may explain why there were so many widows among the Greek speakers.
Widows in the ancient world often had no means of support. The Old Testament repeatedly commands God’s people to care for them (Deuteronomy 14:29; 24:19). The church had a daily distribution of food, and the Greek-speaking widows were being overlooked. Whether it was intentional or not, it threatened the unity Luke had described just a few chapters earlier, when the believers were one in heart and mind (Acts 4:32). Cliques and us-versus-them thinking have always been a danger to the church.
A Division of Labor
The apostles didn’t ignore the complaint, but they didn’t try to fix it all themselves either.
Acts 6:3-4 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 and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.
This wasn’t because waiting on tables was beneath them. Luke uses the same Greek word, diakonia, for both the daily “distribution” of food in verse 1 and the “ministry” of the word in verse 4. Both were service. But the apostles had a unique calling. They had walked with Jesus and heard his teaching firsthand, and in an age before the New Testament was written, they were the church’s living link to what Jesus had said and done. That responsibility couldn’t be handed to someone else.
The qualifications for the seven are striking. The apostles didn’t ask for wealthy, talented, or charismatic people. They asked for men known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. Character mattered more than ability. And notice the apostles’ priority on prayer. They made deliberate room in their schedules for it. Every leader knows how easily prayer gets crowded out by urgent demands.
Seven Chosen Servants
The proposal pleased the whole group, which may be the biggest miracle in the book.
Acts 6:5-6 This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism. They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.
All seven names are Greek, which suggests the church chose men from the very group that had been overlooked. Nicolas is identified as a convert to Judaism from Antioch, a Gentile who had become a Jew before following Jesus. Stephen is singled out as a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, and Philip will later carry the gospel to Samaria and to an Ethiopian official (Acts 8). These weren’t just behind-the-scenes managers. Two of them became powerful preachers.
The process also matters. The congregation chose the men, and the apostles prayed and laid their hands on them, a sign of blessing and commissioning that goes back to Moses commissioning Joshua (Numbers 27:18-23).
Two Offices in the Church
Acts 6 is often called the origin of the office of deacon, but interestingly, Luke never calls these seven men “deacons.” The noun diakonos means “servant” and is used in many general ways in the New Testament. Christ is called a servant (Romans 15:8), Paul and Apollos are servants (1 Corinthians 3:5), and even Satan has servants (2 Corinthians 11:15). Only a few passages clearly refer to deacons as a church office (Philippians 1:1; 1 Timothy 3:8-13). Romans 16:1 calls Phoebe a diakonos, and Christians debate whether that refers to an office or to her service in general.
From the rest of the New Testament, we can say a few things confidently. There are two kinds of leaders in the local church: overseers and deacons. Overseers, also called elders or pastors, shepherd and teach the church (Acts 14:23; Titus 1:5-9). Paul uses the terms elder and overseer interchangeably in Titus 1. Deacons serve in practical ministry. Churches differ on who may serve in these roles. Many churches hold that the office of overseer is for qualified men while deacon roles may be open to women as well, often pointing to Phoebe. Others restrict both, and still others open both to women. Faithful Christians land in different places, and humility is appropriate.
What everyone agrees on is that both roles require mature, wholehearted followers of Jesus.
1 Timothy 3:8-10 In the same way, deacons are to be worthy of respect, sincere, not indulging in much wine, and not pursuing dishonest gain. They must keep hold of the deep truths of the faith with a clear conscience. They must first be tested; and then if there is nothing against them, let them serve as deacons.
Stephen, the first man on the list in Acts 6, would soon die for his faith. Watching that day was a young man named Saul, the same Paul who later wrote these qualifications to Timothy.
The Fruit of Healthy Structure
Luke closes this passage with one of his regular progress reports.
Acts 6:7 So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.
The word of God spread, the number of disciples increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith. That last detail is astonishing. Thousands of priests served in the temple by rotation, and the leading priestly families had been the chief opponents of Jesus and the apostles. Many of the priests who weren’t part of the ruling elite were humble men, and now many of them were following Jesus.
What This Means for Us
There may not be one prescribed structure for every church, but structure matters. When the church is organized well, problems get solved, needs get met, and more people get involved in ministry. Paul wrote that pastors and teachers exist to equip God’s people for works of service (Ephesians 4:11-12). Ministry is a team effort.
However a church is organized, its purpose is to proclaim and protect the gospel. Acts 6 also reminds us not to give up on anyone. The priests who seemed like the least likely converts came to faith. Keep praying for the people you’ve written off.
The Takeaway
Is there a right way to organize a church? Scripture doesn’t give a detailed chart, but it gives clear principles. In Acts 6, the apostles shared the work, kept prayer and teaching central, and chose Spirit-filled people of good character to serve. The New Testament names overseers and deacons, and every structure should help the gospel spread.
