Solid Rock Baptist Church The Stories of the Bible Joe Cassada, Pastor
Matthias Chosen
TEXT: Acts 1:12-26
STORY ELEMENTS:
Setting: circa 31 AD in Jerusalem
Main Characters: God, the Apostles, and other faithful disciples.
Plot: Following the Ascension of Jesus Christ from Mt. Olivet, the disciples return to Jerusalem for 10 days of devotion to prayer.
Key word(s): “one accord”
Climax: Acts 1:24 And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen…
“These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication…”
- (vv 12-14) After Christ’s ascension into heaven, the disciples returned to Jerusalem where they gathered in the upper room – this same room was the site of the Last Supper and the appearance of the resurrected Christ to the disciples. Here they would gather for the original church meetings. They would also meet in the courtyards of the temple grounds. Luke 24:53 And were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God
- The list of church-goers at this time included the remaining eleven apostles, the women (presumably those who went to the tomb on Easter morning), Jesus’ mother Mary, and his brethren. In total, there were upwards of 120 disciples meeting at this time. (v 15)
“…the Scripture must needs have been fulfilled…”
- (vv 15-17) During the intervening 10 days between the Ascension and Pentecost, during one of the early church meetings, Peter stood up and announced the need to fill Judas Iscariot’s vacant spot in the twelve apostolic seats.
- (v 18) Luke says of Judas Iscariot that “this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity” meaning not Judas directly, but his returned blood-money was used to purchase the field. (Matt. 27:7)
- (v 19) Matthew relates that Judas hanged himself (Matt. 27:5); Luke says he fell head-long and “burst asunder,” – both are true. It’s not very difficult to harmonize those details to understand Judas’ gruesome demise. The field became known to the people of Jerusalem as “the field of blood” (Aramaic: Aceldama)
- (v 20) Peter explained to the church that Judas’ fate was a fulfillment of the prophecies in Psalm 69:25 and 109:8 – that Judas would be destroyed and that his vacancy should be filled by another. This was the basis of Peter’s motion to find another 12th apostle.
- (vv 21-22) Peter gave the prerequisites for being an apostle:
- The new apostle must have experienced the earthly ministry of Jesus.
- The new apostle must have been a witness of the resurrected
- (vv 23-26) The church nominated two men: Joseph Justus (also called Barsabas) and Matthias. Over these two nominees lots were cast with this prayer: “Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen.” The lots fell to Mathias, and he became the 12th apostle.
Application
- Some people think that Peter and the church at Jerusalem acted in disobedience in choosing Matthias, believing that Paul should have been the rightful apostle. This is an erroneous opinion. Here’s why:
- The Bible nowhere indicates Matthias’ election was in error.
- Peter said that Judas’ demise and replacement were a fulfillment of prophecy.
- The Church was to be established upon the 12 Apostles (Rev. 21:14). Paul was commissioned as an apostle after the Church’s founding; he even says himself that he was an apostle born out of due time (1 Cor. 15:8).
| NAME: | SOMETIMES REFERRED TO AS: | |
| 1st Group | Peter | Simon, or Simon Bar-jona (Matt. 16:17) |
| Andrew | ||
| James | sons of thunder, sons of Zebedee, Boanerges (Mark 3:17) | |
| John | ||
| 2nd Group | Philip | |
| Bartholomew | Nathanael | |
| Thomas | Didymus | |
| Matthew | the publican (Matt. 10:3), Levi the son of Alphaeus (Mark 2:14) | |
| 3rd Group | James | Son of Alphaeus, James the Less (Mark 15:40) |
| Simon | Zealotes (Luke 6:15), the Canaanite (Matt. 10:4) | |
| Judas | Lebbaeus, Thaddeus (Matt. 10:3), not Iscariot (John 14:22), brother of James (Luke 6:16) | |
| Judas Iscariot | son of perdition (John 17:12), the traitor (Luke 6:16) |
HOW TO USE THIS HAND-OUT
AS A TAKE-HOME BIBLE STUDY:
- Read the Bible passage indicated in the STORY ELEMENTS box.
- Try to fill in the blanks based upon your understanding of the passage.
- Check your answers with the Answer Key and correct any errors
- Understand that some blanks may have more than one correct answer (e.g., synonyms for words in the Answer Key)
- Understand that some answers are a matter of opinion
- Write down your own thoughts and personal applications in the Notes
- Enjoy God’s Word!
ANSWER KEY:
key word(s): “one accord”
- temple
- 120
- apostolic; a) blood-money; b) blood
- prophecies
- a) earthly; b) resurrected
- chosen
- Paul; a) error; b) prophecy; c) founding
Used by permission from Joe Cassada