From
Acts to Revelation
Part
3 – The Apostles Re-Established
Pastor Bruce A. Shields
House
of Faith Church | www.PS127.org | www.TruthDigest.org
INTRODUCTION
We are continuing our series this week,
looking at the Book of Acts, and seeing just how the church began.
Today, we will look specifically at Acts
1:12-26, and see the setting in which the Lord moved the Apostles, how
God chose another Apostle and the ministry continued to move forward.
SCRIPTURE READING
Acts 1:12-26
12
Then they returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a
Sabbath day’s walk from the city. 13 When they arrived, they went
upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John,
James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of
Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. 14 They all
joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother
of Jesus, and with his brothers.
15
In those days Peter stood up among the believers (a group numbering
about a hundred and twenty) 16 and said, “Brothers, the Scripture
had to be fulfilled which the Holy Spirit spoke long ago through the mouth of
David concerning Judas, who served as guide for those who arrested Jesus— 17
he was one of our number and shared in this ministry.”
18
(With the reward he got for his wickedness, Judas bought a field; there he fell
headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out. 19
Everyone in Jerusalem heard about this, so they called that field in their
language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.)
20
“For,” said Peter, “it is written in the book of Psalms, “‘May his place
be deserted; let there be no one to dwell in it,’ and, “‘May another take
his place of leadership.’
21
Therefore it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the
whole time the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22 beginning
from John’s baptism to the time when Jesus was taken up from us. For one of
these must become a witness with us of his resurrection.”
23
So they proposed two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and
Matthias. 24 Then they prayed, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart.
Show us which of these two you have chosen 25 to take over this
apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs.” 26
Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the
eleven apostles.
I.
THE SETTING
1.
In verses 12-15 we see that
immediately after Jesus' instruction to the Apostles to wait on the promise of
the Holy Spirit in Jerusalem before taking the Gospel into the entire world,
the Apostles traveled from the Mt. Of Olives back to Jerusalem as they were
instructed.
1.
This trip was approximately a half-mile.
2.
Once in Jerusalem, they all returned to
the upper room where they were staying.
3.
They list some of those present; Peter,
John, James & Andrew, Philip & Thomas, Batholomew & Matthew, James
son of Alphaeus & Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James.
1.
Zealot may have meant Simon was just zealous for
the Lord, or it may have represented the radical group of the day who were
zealous for Jewish Law, and wanted to overthrow the Roman government.
4.
The scriptures tell us they were all
together constantly praying along with the women and Mary, mother of Jesus and
with His brothers.
1.
During this time, Jesus' brothers were with the
disciples, but during Jesus' life, they did not believe He was the messiah. (John
7:5)
2.
But His resurrection must have convinced them.
You would think it would convince anyone who knew Him.
3.
There were approximately 120 followers present
at this time.
5.
We see here, the first church business
meeting.
1.
Their main point of business was to replace a
Disciple, the one who betrayed Jesus.
2.
The meeting begins with prayer and supplication,
or petition to God.
6.
Jesus instructed the Apostles to wait for
the Holy Spirit, but while they waited, they did what they could to carry on.
1.
They prayed, they held meetings, they were now
going to replace a missing member.
7.
We then see Peter stand and address the
group.
II.
ONCE SAVED, ALWAYS SAVED?
1.
Peter points out to the group that
although Jesus was betrayed, that it had to take place to fulfill prophecy.
1.
Peter said that David spoke of Judas in the
scriptures.
2.
Judas was a follower of Jesus, but traded
his future home for earthly wealth.
1.
How can this be? Maybe he was not really a
follower?
2.
Not true, Peter says in the word, verse 17,
“He was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry.”
3.
This statement literally means that Judas was
one of the Apostles, and chosen by the Lord.
3.
How could someone who had been with Jesus
daily betray Him?
1.
Judas received the same calling and teaching as
everyone else, but Judas chose to reject Christ's warnings, as well as His
offers of mercy.
2.
Judas hardened his heart, and chose to betray
Jesus for 30 pieces of silver.
4.
Although the Lord had predicted this in
scripture, it was still Judas' choice.
1.
Knowing what was going to happen in no way
removes the free-will choice of someones action.
2.
God knows all the moves we are going to make,
and makes provisions around our failings so that His will is done.
3.
God's will for the Apostles was to establish His
church on earth, empowering His followers with the Holy Spirit, regardless of
any mortals choice.
5.
We see the same story in Jude 6 where
some of the angels who had been with God, gave up their abode in heaven, and
took their lot with Satan, and were cast down in chains of everlasting
darkness.
1.
Just because someone sees God's hand, or
witnesses the truth of the Lord in their lives, does not necessarily mean they
will make the Lord their Lord.
2.
Pharaoh witnessed the power of God, yet never
surrendered his heart to the Lord.
3.
Sometimes, people will harden their own hearts
to the truth and power of God, and never submit and make Jesus their Lord,
others will submit for a while, until it's not easy any more, or they love
something more than God, such as the case with Judas, who loved his money.
6.
Submission to the Lord is not something
you do once and its “finished.”
1.
Then he
said to them all: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take
up his cross daily and follow me. - Luke 9:23
2.
And anyone
who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple. - Luke 14:27
3.
Judas carried his cross day after day and
followed the lord, until the day came when, instead of picking up that cross,
he chose to pick up a bag of silver.
7.
The choice to follower Jesus, and make
Him your Lord and savior, must take place daily, because if you deny His power
as Pharaoh, reject His rule as 1/3 of heaven did, or trade your cross on earth
for anything other than Christ, you are walking away from your future abode.
III. THE
MININSTRY OF THE LORD CONTINUES
1.
God will for the establishment of His
church on earth will not be stopped by anyone, even those who fail Him. God
knows all, and always has a plan which takes over when and where we fail,
because He already knew that time was coming.
2.
God's word not only prophesied of the
betrayal of Jesus, but even gave the specific amount of silver He would be
betrayed for. God knew.
1.
The ministry Jesus began, which would soon be
the church when the Holy Spirit came, was going to continue, and nothing could
stop it.
3.
So another had to be chosen to take the
place of Judas, one who had been there, Peter said, from the Baptism of Jesus
to the time Jesus ascended to heaven.
1.
The requirements to be a disciple of Jesus is to
follow Him and His teaching.
2.
The requirements to be an Apostle is to be
witness to Jesus' resurrection.
4.
They proposed two men, but were not sure
which God wanted them to chose.
1.
So they prayed, and they drew lots.
2.
Drawing lots takes man out of the equation, and
allows the Spirit of God to control the choice in a situation such as this.
3.
The drawing of lots revealed Jonah was the
reason the storms were destroying the ship at sea, even though Jonah already
knew that.
5.
They prayed, “Lord, you know everyone's
heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen to take over this apostolic
ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs.
1.
They cast the lots, and in this way, Matthias
became an Apostle with the other eleven.
CLOSING
Although the Apostles were
waiting on the Holy Spirit to come, they were still at work for the ministry.
With prayer and supplication at the first church meeting, they allowed God to
divinely choose a replacement for Judas.
We see that although one may
follow the Lord, one may also leave that path as well.
James
5:19-20 “My brothers, if one of you
should wander from the truth and someone should bring him back, remember this: Whoever turns a sinner from the error
of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.”
If a
brother should wander...vs 19 says, and in vs 20,
that brother is referred to as a sinner who's soul is in danger of death.
Last
week, we saw how the scripture tells us to continue with the Gospel message
until the Lord returns. We need the Holy Spirit dwelling in us to accomplish
this.
ALTAR
CALL
Perhaps
you have not been picking up your cross as you should, daily, to follow the
Lord.
Perhaps
you have wandered from the truth, for whatever reason.
The
Lord is waiting for you to return to Him, and His will for you in your life.
Come
forward for prayer, and re-commit yourself to the Lord and His ministry. Pick
up that reservation for your future abode that you threw aside for the treasures
of this earth.
Make
the choice today, and each morning when you first wake, to make Jesus the Lord
of your life.
