Acts 1:15-26

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• Acts 115-26

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• Next verses to Study
• Acts 115-26
• APOINTMENT OF MATTHIAS

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APPOINTING A SUBSTITUTE FOR JUDAS

• Acts 115-22
• 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."

Judas has just made his bargain to betray Jesus.
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• v16
• HOLY SPIRIT SPOKE by the
• MOUTH of David
• David SPOKE by INSPIRATION
• In the O.T.

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Verbal or Plenary INSPIRATION 2 Sam 232 Jer
19 2 Pet 121 2 Tim 316
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• 2 Peter 121
• for no prophecy has ever yet originated in man's
  will, but men who were led by the Holy Spirit
  spoke from God.

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• Living Bible -2 Timothy 316
• The whole Bible was given to us by inspiration
  from God and is useful to teach us what is true
  and to make us realize what is wrong in our
  lives it straightens us out and helps us do what
  is right.

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v17 Judas had been one of the original Apostles
Lk 613
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• 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.)

Akeldama in Kidron Valley, Jerusalem
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• v18-19
• Luke tells us several things about JUDAS
• Judas purchased a field with the wages of sin
• Judas then died a horrible death
• Field became known as the field of blood

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• v19
• Luke says that the name was given because of the
  horrible way that Judas died
• Matthew said that it was because it was purchased
  with BLOOD money Matt 276-8
• Both statements are correct

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• v18-19
• Again SOME claim that Matthew and Luke contradict
  each other
• Matt 275 Judas HANGED himself?
• Luke that he FELL and his bowels burst?
• REESE
• Judas hung until decay caused his body to fall,
  then it burst open
• NOT contradictory but complimentary gives
  additional information

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• v18-19
• Again SOME claim that Matthew and Luke contradict
  each other
• Matt 275 Judas HANGED himself?
• Luke that he FELL and his bowels burst?
• NOT contradictory but complimentary gives
  additional information
• Matt 2651 John 1810
• One who drew the sword was Peter and the servants
  name was Malchus

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JUDAS LOST HIS POSITION OF LEADERSHIPBECAUSE OF
HIS WICKEDNESS
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• The anti-Christian forces are today attempting to
  rehabilitate Judas. http//www.smh.com.au/news/wor
  ld/lost-gospel-restores-judass-honour/2006/04/07/1
  143916664322.html
• The Bible here and elsewhere says he performed a
  wicked act when he betrayed Jesus into the hands
  of His enemies for money.
• Jesus Himself called Judas a devil (John 670-71).

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• 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.'

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PSALMS quoted by Peter in v20 Also by Jesus Jn
1318 Applied to Judas and the betrayal Psa
419 Yes, my own familiar friend, in whom I
trusted, who ate of my bread, hath lifted up
his heel against me.
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• v20
• Psa 6925 Psa 1098
• Judgement against the Christs betrayer
• Compare also Psa 699 with John 217
• also Psa 6921 with Matt 2734,48

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• v20
• TOP TEN LIST MOST GRUESOME BIBLE DEMISES
• 10. Victims of Noahs flood
• 9. Absolom speared in tree
• 8. Phineas spears the fornicators
• 7. Herod Agrippa I eaten by worms
• 6. Abimelechs head crushed by a stone

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• v20
• TOP TEN LIST MOST GRUESOME BIBLE DEMISES
• 5. Eglon expires in the toilet (Ehud)
• 4. Jehorams bowels fall out
• 3. Judas head pops off and body
• explodes
• 2. Siseras head nailed to the floor
• 1. Jezebel eaten by the dogs

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• 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."

John the Baptizer baptizes Jesus.
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• WHY REPLACE JUDAS?
• Hes dead
• His part of the Mission needs to be completed
• WHY 12?
• The 12 Apostles are symbolic of the 12 Tribes of
  Israel or all Gods people at the time, a
  qualified man had to be appointed to fill up the
  number.

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Discussion Question
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• What requirements did Peter list for someone
  to be an apostle (v 21)?

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• An apostle of Christ had to be a witness of
  everything Jesus did throughout His entire
  ministry.
• From Baptism of John till the ascension of Christ
  into heaven John 1526-27 with him from
  beginning
• Jesus ministry began at His baptism by John.
• This man also had to have been a witness of the
  resurrection of Jesus.
• This means he had to have seen and recognized Him
  after His resurrection as the same person he had
  known before His resurrection.

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• He also had to have been present at every
  appearance of Jesus after His resurrection during
  the forty days after His resurrection.
• He was also required to have been a witness of
  Jesus ascension.
• He must have personally seen and be willing and
  able to tell others
• Im sure there were other qualifications such as
  good character and a record of ethical behavior,
  but these were taken for granted so were not
  mentioned by Peter.

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• Why so important
• Had to prove that the Christ Jesus
• was truly the long awaited MESSIAH
• John 141 Lk 2444
• ALL THINGS MUST BE FULLFILLED

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• Why so important
• They had to PROVE that the Christ SUFFERED and
  ROSE
• Rom 14 declared to be Son of God with power
  through the resurrection
• ONLY the Apostles served as
• EYE WITNESSES
• 232 315 529-32 1039-41 1330-31 433

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• Force of the testimony
• 12 in Number (not just one or two)
• UNITED in testimony
• FEARLESS in testimony
• (even to the point of death)
• Resurrection of Jesus from the dead is the
  FOUNDATION of the Christians faith. As seen in 1
  Cor 1517 John 1720 2028-20

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• OUR RESPONSIBILITY
• NONE of us can WITNESS in the same way as the
  Apostles could because NONE of us can FULFILL the
  qualifications of these first witnesses

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• OUR RESPONSIBILITY
• We must TEACH what the eye witnesses of Jesus
  THROUGH the Holy Spirit have RECORDED for us to
  teach in the word of God
• 2 Tim 42 Mark 1615 Matt 2828

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Discussion Question
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• Luke 2453
• What changed the apostles for them to become so
  fearless?

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• The Apostles were
• v2 Personally chosen by Deity
• v8 Witnesses of Christ
• v22 Having been with Jesus from Johns baptism
  until Christs ascension
• v22 To have PERSONALLY witnessed the
  resurrection.
• To receive miraculous power through the Holy
  Spirit to do several things

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• The POWER was to enable them to
• Have BROUGHT to their remembrance without error
  ALL that Jesus had PERSONALLY taught them. John
  1426
• To RECORD without error ALL of the TRUTH. John
  1613 1 Cor 1437

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• The POWER was to enable them to
• CONFIRM the MESSAGE was FROM GOD by the MIGHTY
  MIRACLES that they were able to work.
• 2 Cor 1212 Heb 24

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• v23
• Only TWO MEN met the strict qualifications
• The APOSTLES pray to GOD
• Heb 727

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ONLY TWO WERE QUALIFIED

• Acts 123-26
• 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.

Casting lots was something like drawing a name
from a hat.
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• v24
• The Apostles recognised that only God could make
  the choice.
• Jesus CHOSE the 12 now God would CHOSE the
  replacement
• The REPLACEMENT of an APOSTLE is NOT something
  for MEN to do

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• v24-25
• Both men met the strict qualifications
• But ONLY God would know the hearts of these men
  and make the proper choice.
• 1 Chron 289 the Lord searches all hearts
• Psa 1391-4 understand my thoughts

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• v24-25
• Both men met the strict qualifications
• But ONLY God would know the hearts of these men
  and make the proper choice.
• Heb 412-13 discerner of the intent of the heart

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• v24-25
• Both men met the strict qualifications
• and ONLY God knows OUR hearts what CAN we do.
• Prov 423 protect our hearts from evil.
• 2 Cor 105 Keep our thoughts under control

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• v24-25
• Both men met the strict qualifications
• and ONLY God knows OUR hearts what CAN we do.
• Prov 423 protect our hearts from evil.
• 2 Cor 71 cleanse our flesh strive for HOLINESS

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• v24-25
• Both men met the strict qualifications
• and ONLY God knows OUR hearts what CAN we do.
• Matt 58 blessed are the PURE in heart.
• Phil 48 think on that which is true pure noble
  honest etc

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• v24-25
• Both men met the strict qualifications
• and ONLY God knows OUR hearts what CAN we do.
• AS WE THINK IN OUR HEARTS SO WE WILL ACT

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• v25
• Strong words used about Judas
• v17 In every way an Apostle
• YET
• v16 Guided those who arrested
  JESUS
• v25 He lost his position as an Apostle

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• v25
• Strong words used about Judas
• v25 Fell by sinning. 1 John 34
• v18 came to a HORRIBLE end Matt 275
• v19 His memorial the field of blood
• Luke 616 described as a traitor
• Jn 126 described as a thief

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• v25
• Strong words used about Judas
• Jn 1712 Jesus called him Son of PERDITION
• Act 126 went to his own place
• Take care lest we also fall
• Gal 54 1 Cor 927 2 Pet 220-22

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Casting Lots

• The words lottery and lot, in the sense of
  real property, were derived from the original
  word.
• It seems that marked or colored stones were most
  often used in ancient times.
• To read an online article that gives a fuller
  discussion of this topic, go here
• http//www.jameslindlibrary.org/essays/casting_of_
  lots/casting.html

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• v26
• CASTING LOTS
• some biblical examples
• 1 Chron 245 David divided the priests
• Num 2655 Josh ch 15-17 Land of Canaan divided
• Josh 716-18 Achan SIN discovered this way

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• v26
• CASTING LOTS
• In casting lots the Jews were appealing to God
  not as part of a voting process or election
• This is seen clearly in Prov 1633
• The lot is cast God chooses

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• v26
• CASTING LOTS
• This is the last time lots are recorded in the
  N.T.
• The Apostles were in a period of transition
  between the ascension of Christ and the coming of
  the Holy Spirit

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• v26
• CASTING LOTS
• It was a unique situation where they could not
  ask Jesus and they had not the inspired guidance
  of the Holy Spirit
• We NOW have access to all that the Spirit
  revealed to the apostles in our New Testament
  today
• 2Pet 13-4 2Tim 315-17 Phil 25

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v26The Lot fell to MATTHIAS
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• They cast lots (similar to our drawing straws
  or picking a name from a hat) to pick the
  replacement. But with a far different intent They
  were not trusting to luck or fate but to the
  guidance of God
• Should we make religious decisions in such a
  manner today?

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• There were two men who met all the
  qualifications. Both could have been appointed if
  the number twelve were not significant.
• But there were to be twelve and no more than
  twelve, at least for the first day of the
  Kingdom, when the gospel was to be presented to
  the Jews.
• The two men who were equally qualified were
  Joseph, called Barsabbas or Justus, and Matthias.

Joseph and Matthias From a Medieval Wall Painting
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V26The Lot fell to MATTHIAS
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• In making our decisions in matter of religion
  today
• We need to SEARCH the WORD of GOD
• Consider the CONTEXT
• THEN PRAYERFULLY make the application

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• The disciples prayed to God and asked Him to make
  the choice between the two men. After their
  prayer they cast lots, and the lot fell to
  Matthias. He then became the twelfth apostle.
• Now everything is ready for the great day of
  Pentecost, the coming of the Power from on High,
  the first gospel sermon and the beginning of the
  promised Kingdom, also called the Church.
• It started small and grew to fill the civilized
  world of the time.

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• Acts 1
• NOW WHAT?
• THE MISSION HAS BEENASSIGNED
• THE MISSIONARIES HAVE BEEN SELECTED
• THE POWER HAS NOT YET COME

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Judas Iscariot
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by Ellis Jones He had it all and lost it. The
best job ever had. Jesus Himself chose him. Why
did he turn so bad?
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To know the Son of God, In Person and up
close, And then to sell Him out? - The reason no
one knows.
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He was a full partner In everything Christ
did. Nothing Jesus ever said, From Judas ears
was hid.
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One of lifes great mystries Is Satan, how he
is. Another one is Judas And that unholy kiss.