Waiting on Tables

The invitation, then, is for us to discern in our own life, in our own church, where good news needs to be proclaimed, and where tables need to be served. We’re called to listen for that fearful word: neglect, neglect. If you’re not hearing it yet, you will someday. Someone, somewhere, is being overlooked. I wish that were not the case, but such is the reality of our world. Pay attention to it. The temptation to ignore that word is overcome by the invitation Christ extends to us: Give yourself to those who are hurting, to the downcast, to the broken-hearted. Look for the ones who have strayed away, who stand on the edges, whose backs are against the wall. What you will find there is not to be feared. What you will find there is Christ himself. Far more can be mended than we know.

When the body of Christ grows, the needs of the body also grow. More widows to care for, more sick people to heal, more tables to wait on. In such moments, we need a prayerful posture of discernment to see what exactly we are being called to. What the apostles recognize is true—in our limitations, we cannot do it all on our own. But the testimony of the book of Acts, and the witness of the whole church throughout time and in all places declares to us this morning that there is no lack of grace. The bread of forgiveness never runs out. The cup of mercy never runs dry. Some people will preach. Some people will serve tables. But in the end, the ministry of the word and the ministry of the table are not in competition. In the end, they are one and the same. In the end, they are one and the same.

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From a sermon on Acts 6:1–7.