Acts 6 shows the apostles setting men apart to serve tables. They told the church to choose seven men who were known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom (Acts 6:3). That word known has stayed with me. Known to Be Full of the Holy Spirit is not a title I announce; it is a life people can testify to.
The apostles did not ask for natural credentials. Instead, they looked for supernatural qualifications. They wanted ordinary men with extraordinary spiritual reality.
The passage says the men must be known. This matters because people around them can vouch for their life. So these men did not promote themselves. They did not claim to be something their lives did not prove.
Acts 6:5 calls Stephen a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit. That wording helps me again. He was a man, not an angel. Yet God still chose to work through him.
This should correct every ambition. Serving tables looks like welfare work, not a celebrated office. However, these men surrendered themselves to God for whatever purpose He wanted.
When the kitchen helps the word spread
Acts 6:7 records the fruit of their unreserved submission to God. The word of God spread. The number of disciples increased rapidly, and many priests became obedient to the faith.
This makes the “kitchen” feel important to me. If no one carried that responsibility, the apostles would have struggled to focus on the ministry of the word. As a result, what looked inconsequential could have slowed the spread of God’s word.
Yet these men served faithfully. They did not fight for the pulpit. Instead, they worked diligently where God placed them.
Then the text shows how wide God’s use can become. Acts 6:8 says Stephen, full of grace and power, did great wonders and signs among the people. So a man God used at the tables also became useful in miracles, signs, and wonders.
This gives me a simple desire. I want God to find me available at any time, in any capacity. Known to be full of the Holy Spirit should also mean I do not let ambition hinder my usefulness.
Living It Out
Ask God to form Stephen’s qualifications in you: faith, the Holy Spirit, wisdom, and grace. Then serve where He places you, even when it feels small. God can use a surrendered man in the kitchen and in the open places, all for his glory.