“Choosing Matthias”
[Acts 1:12-26]
June 7, 2009 Second Reformed Church
After the Ascension, the disciples were confronted by two men, who were likely angels, and told to stop staring up into the heavens and to be about the work that Jesus had called them to do. So they all went back to Jerusalem, as Jesus had said, and the one hundred and twenty went to the upper room where they were staying. Among the one hundred and twenty disciples were the eleven remaining apostles – who Luke names anew – the women who followed Jesus, Mary, the mother of Jesus, and Jesus’ biological brothers.
Jesus had told them to go to Jerusalem to wait for the indwelling of the Holy Spirit and the power that they would receive once He had indwelt them. Looking at the history, we know they had ten days to wait. During this time they “devoted themselves to prayer.” What were they praying about – or for?
Well, they would have been praying that Jesus’ Promise would come – that the Holy Spirit would indwell them and give them the power they needed to be the disciples of Christ – His representatives and witnesses to the world. They may have been praying for the Jews and the Romans who would hear them proclaim the Gospel of repentance and forgiveness – that God would cause them to respond favorably to the message He was sending. They may have been praying for Jesus’ Return – that He would come soon and restore the Creation and establish His Kingdom in all its fullness.
We are called to be a people of prayer. We ought to be in prayer for each other, for this church, for this community, for this world – have you prayed this week? Have you prayed that God would give us wisdom? Have you prayed that God would cause this church to grow – in maturity and in numbers? James said, “You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions” (James 4:2b-3, ESV).
God knows what we need, and He will provide us with what we need, but He also desires to hear from us in prayer. If we don’t pray, we should not expect to receive. And if we pray for sinful reasons, we should not expect to receive. But if we pray for those things that God wants for us, our Loving, Heavenly Father will give them to us in His time.
Let us be a people of prayer. Let us pray that God’s Will would be done. Let us pray for this church and each other that we would be worthwhile witnesses to the Gospel.
Once the one hundred and twenty were gathered in the upper room, Peter stood up and began to preach. He told the other disciples that what happened to Judas was prophesied in the writings of the prophet, David.
The money that Judas received was used to buy a field to bury paupers and the unknown. And Judas went to that field and committed suicide: he threw himself down on a spike, tore open his middle, and his bowels gushed out on the ground. This is what was written in the book of Psalms, “May his camp become desolate, and let there be noone to dwell in it.” Judas died in the “Field of Blood,” and there was no one to carry on his family line.
We ought not to rush over Judas’ suicide, because Judas has been ordained to the office of apostle, and he fell to his everlasting ruin. That should give us pause. That should make us desire to “make our calling and election sure” as we will remember from Peter’s letters. Because having a high office, being ordained, being a part of the ministry – does not, itself, guarantee salvation. It looked like Judas had it all – he was one of the apostles of the Savior, Jesus Christ. But Judas left Jesus – denied Him – and Judas reaped what he sowed. Are you and I sure that we really believe? Because if an apostle could fall away, is it not possible that a pastor or elder or deacon or pillar of the church could fall away?
Let’s understand, Judas’ suicide is not teaching us that we can lose our salvation. All those who have been saved by Jesus will be persevered. Everyone who believes in Jesus Alone for salvation will be saved. No. What we are being told is that it is possible to fool others about our beliefs – it is even possible to fool ourselves. Let us make sure we truly believe.
Peter then quotes David as prophesying about Judas, “Let another take his office.” It was part of God’s Plan that Judas would fall and a successor – as the twelfth apostle – would be named. The number twelve, among other things, symbolized the twelve patriarchs – the twelve tribes of Israel – so it was symbolically appropriate for all twelve to be represented when the Holy Spirit indwelt them for the work that Jesus called them to do. It was symbolic of the whole Israel being saved and restored through her Savior.
Now, Peter explained that there were qualifications for being an apostle: first, every apostle has to be an eyewitness to the three-year ministry of Jesus. In order to be an apostle, a person had to be an eyewitness to the things that Jesus said and did while He was on earth. And second, every apostle had to be an eyewitness to the bodily resurrection of Jesus. In order to be an apostle, a person had to have been with Jesus during the forty days He spent on earth after the Resurrection. An apostle was someone who was an eyewitness to Jesus’ Ministry and Resurrection; an apostle did not merely believe that Jesus is the Savior, he was an eyewitness to what Jesus said and did, before and after His Crucifixion.
Notice, that means that the office of apostle no long exists. There is no one on the earth today that was an eyewitness to Jesus’ Ministry and Resurrection. So, there is no one on the earth today who is called to the office of apostle. There are people in the ministry that use the title “apostle,” but they really shouldn’t, given what the Bible tells us about who is qualified to be an apostle.
The disciples came up with two names from among them: Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also called Justus, and Matthias. And they did two things to confirm a choice of one of them: first they prayed and asked that the God Who knew the hearts of every person would make it clear to them which of the two God had chosen to replace Judas. Second, they cast lots.
The first thing the disciples did was to acknowledge that God is Sovereign in the knowing of humans’ hearts and in putting persons in power. As Paul would later write, “Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God” (Romans 13:1, ESV). And as Daniel said, “[God] changes times and seasons; he removes kings and sets up kings; he gives wisdom to the wise and knowledge to those who have understanding” (Daniel 2:21, ESV). Everyone who holds a position of authority was put there by God.
And then they cast lots: they wrote the two names on stones and drew one out, or they threw dice, to pick one of the names. Does that strike anyone as strange? They pray. They acknowledge that God is Sovereign. And then they throw dice to pick the replacement apostle.
Let’s notice first what we’re taught in Proverbs: “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord” (Proverbs 16:33, ESV). In other words, even if someone casts lots to get an answer, God is Sovereignly in control of the lots and the decision they give. Nothing is outside of God’s Sovereign Control. And, the commentator, the Venerable Bede wrote, “Matthias was chosen by lot so that the choice of apostle would not be out of harmony with the command of the old laws, where it was ordered that the high priest be sought, as was said of Zechariah, ‘according to the custom of the priest’s office, it came about by lot that he offered incense” (Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture, New Testament V: Acts, 18).
God had told Israel to choose the high priest each year by casting lots. Why? We’re not told. Perhaps it was to impress upon Israel that the decision was out of their hands – God is the One Who chooses the high priest and all who serve in office. However, we do well to notice that the choice of the replacement apostle is the last recorded time that lots were cast. By the witness of the Scripture, once the disciples received the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, casting lots was no longer an approved method of discerning God’s Decision.
Remember what Jesus said, “I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them right now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you in all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. He will glorify me, for he will take what is mine and declare it to you. All that the Father has is mine; therefore I said that he will take what is mine and declare it to you” (John 16:12-15, ESV).
Once the Holy Spirit indwelt the disciples, they had God living in them to teach them, remind them, and guide them in the things of God. We, Christians, now have God the Holy Spirit living in us, too. And with the Holy Spirit living in us, He guides us through God’s Word, and we no longer need or have the use of lots or other such devices.
And the lot fell on Matthias, “and he was numbered with the eleven apostles” – there were now twelve apostles again. All things were ready for the Day of Pentecost: the disciples were in prayer, Judas was dead, and it was understood that he fulfilled his place in prophecy, and they had reconstituted the twelve apostles with the choosing of Matthias.
God is still Sovereign over all things, and we, Christians, have God the Holy Spirit indwelling us – teaching and reminding us of everything that Jesus said and all that is written in the Scriptures. And we are called to be a people of prayer – not to rely on lots or other devices – even though they were approved in times past, but to rely on God and wait on Him for His Answer. Let us turn to God in prayer often, asking that His Will would be done, praying for those things we understand to be His Will, and we will see them come to pass, to His Glory.
Let us pray:
Almighty God, we thank You for choosing us to be Your people and for giving us the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Help us to know what Your Will is, and cause us to pray that Your Will would come to pass. We know it is Your Will that we join together in receiving the Lord’s Supper, and we ask as we receive these elements that You would minister to us and give us the grace we need to be Your people and to accomplish your Will. Keep us from fear, but strengthen our faith and trust in You and in all You have called us to be and do. For it is in Jesus’ Name we pray, Amen.
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