A Few Good Men

Acts 6:3

Therefore, brethren, seek out from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.

"Where have all the good men gone?" How many times have we haerd this lament from sisters? It seems to be the mantra of the 21st century as over 2 million men are in prison. According to a Justice Department report released in July 2003, the U.S. prison population surpassed 2 million for the first time—2,166,260 people were incarcerated in prisons or jails at the end of 2002 (the latest statistics available). Since 1990, the U.S. prison population, already the world's largest, has almost doubled.


About 10.4% of the entire African-American male population in the United States aged 25 to 29 was incarcerated, by far the largest racial or ethnic group—by comparison, 2.4% of Hispanic men and 1.2% of white men in that same age group were incarcerated. According to a report by the Justice Policy Institute in 2002, the number of black men in prison has grown to five times the rate it was twenty years ago. Today, more African-American men are in jail than in college. In 2000, there were 791,600 black men in prison and 603,032 enrolled in college. In 1980, there were 143,000 black men in prison and 463,700 enrolled in college.

Many sisters find it hard to find suitable mates becasue many men are married, gay, or incarcerated. There are some good men still left but we must seek them out in the assembly of the righteouss.

There was a problem with the new church in Jerusalem. The needs of a group of women was being overlooked. The Grecian widows were being overlooked in the distribution of bread. Even the early church had problems. There is no such thing as a "problem free" church. If you find a church make sure you are part of the solution and not part of the problem. Or as Stokley Carmichael said, "If you are not part of the solution you are the problem."

The women who were overlooked complained to the apostles. The apostles said, "we are teaching the word everyday, we don't have the time to stop teaching and wait on tables. Therefore brothers seek out brothers from among you.

Two things here. Pastors/Leaders need help. If we are going to continue to feed the people spiritual food we need other brothers to help us feed the people physical food. Behind every great pastor/leader are other great men.

The second thing is that I never saw this next point in this scripture before. The apostles said Brothers seek out brothers. Women shouldn't have to find good men. Men know a good man when he sees one. When a man recognizes a man of integrity, he will say, "Yeah, he a good Dude!" It's time for brothers in church to start seeking each other out. We need to recruit and mentor each other. Find a brother who has potential and is not active and invite that brother to join the team and help serve the people. Here's the qualifications according to the scripture and highlighted by leadership guru John Maxwell:

1. Known from their sphere of influence. "seek out from among you. There are some good brothers right around you. Stop right now and see their faces. When you see them you say, "that's a good dude. He's good with people. Hard worker, doesn't keep up any mess." They are closer than you think.

2. People who could serve on a team. "Seven men." You don't need a whole army, just a team.

3. Trusted among the people. "of good reputation." It is so important to have a good name. If you want to be a good man have a good name.

4. Empowered for the task. Full of the Holy Spirit. These men can't be carnal. They must have a relationship with God and be under the leadership of the Holy Spirit. Read Galatians 6 for the fruits of the Spirit. If they don't have the fruit, then they don't have the root of being connected to the Holy Spirit.

5. Competent and intelligent--"full of wisdom." These men are knowledge seekers and they have common sense. Whether they graduated from Morehouse or studied at "their house." They are intelligent.

6. Responsible-"whom we may appoint over this business. These brothers have to be men of integrity. You feel safe with them watching over the cash register. You feel safe with them wathcing your kids. They are self starters and take intiative. They are Response Able, able to respond when there is a need without being told to do so.

Dear God help me to seek out good men that can help serve your Kingdom agenda. Open my eyes to see there are some good men of all races who love you and can help meet the needs of those being overlooked. Thank you that you saw enough good in my "flawedness" that you gave me a chance to serve you in your Kingdom. Thank you Lord!

In Jesus Name,

Amen.