Acts 1 Sunday School

Acts 1:12-26

12 Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a sabbath day's journey.

13 And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James.

14 These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.

15 And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,)

16 Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus.

17 For he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry.

18 Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.

19 And it was known unto all the dwellers at Jerusalem; insomuch as that field is called in their proper tongue, Aceldama, that is to say, The field of blood.

20 For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishoprick let another take.

21 Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us,

22 Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection.

23 And they appointed two, Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias.

24 And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen,

25 That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.

26 And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

Again, we are talking about the early church here in the book of Acts. This is how the early church members lived and died. This is the blueprint for how a church should be. We have messed things up a lot in the past 2000 years. As we study this book, we should be asking ourselves how many unnecessary traditions have we added to Gods church? When you take a drive anywhere in the state of Arkansas you see church after church after church. There are so many denominations and so many beliefs about how the church should be today. And even within our own churches we have to take a close look at everything we are doing and determine whether or not the things we are doing match up with Gods word.

And the best place to start such a study is the book of Acts. Because that is where the church age began. So, lets weed out the unbiblical, and unnecessary and even in some cases ungodly traditions of men that have invaded our modern churches.

Ok still in the book of Acts. Remember in Acts 1:8 that Jesus promised power to the members of the early church. Jesus told them to wait for power to wait for the baptism of the Holy Spirit. So, let’s take a look and see if they did that here. BTW the book of Acts is an open-ended book. Meaning everything taught in it applies to the church today. We need to re-emphasize what is missing from the early church through our study.

What a powerful book. People were being changed. Lives were being healed. People were being saved. Why aren’t we seeing that today? In my opinion, we have gotten away from the dynamic of the Holy Spirit. We have gotten into the methodology of man. And have tried to build a church around man’s philosophies and beliefs and by our own power and abandoned the Holy Spirit. We have conventions and seminaries and so-called revivals and how to books. When what we really need is to get on our knees and ask the Lord for the indwelling power of the Holy Spirit to help us share the gospel. Man’s ways are a dead-end road. They will burn you out and leave you depressed. We need Gods power. We need Gods strength, and we need God the Holy Spirit to fall down upon us. We need to get back to basics people.

To be a good husband you need the Holy Spirit. To be a good wife. You need the Holy Spirit. To walk in sobriety and abstinence as single men and women we need the power of the Holy Spirit.

There are about ten days between the ascension of Jesus and the day of Pentecost. So, they are supposed to be Waiting!!! Verse 13. ALL of them. The women and everyone. DEVOTED to prayer. How much fun would it have been to be in that prayer service? You know they had to have a sense of what’s coming. They had been spending time with the resurrected Jesus and they just saw him ascend. They just had a conversation with a couple of Angles. They must have been really expecting a lot. Today we sit around expecting something big bc troops are in the capital. Today we sit around expecting something big bc Trump tells us there was massive voter fraud. And it’s sad that too many of us are distracted by the affairs of this world. When the same Jesus who told his disciples to wait for him and to wait for his promise. Gave us a promise as well. And we should be looking to and longing for the return of our blessed Savior. And here’s a hint for you. His name is NOT Donald Trump. Its Jesus Christ.

So here they are praying. They are still talking to Christ. Think about that. They never stopped talking with Jesus. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 instructs us to pray without ceasing.

Now this touches on another subject here. Who do we pray too? Are we forbidden to pray to Jesus? Absolutely not. Yes, we have the privilege of praying to the Father. We cry to our heavenly father. Abba. Meaning it’s an intimate relationship. God is NOT the big man upstairs. These are demeaning and unintimate ways to talk about God the Father. We are Gods children. We are heirs. He’s papa we are adopted. And our prayers should be intimate as it’s a privilege to talk with God the Father. Or God the Son.

John 15:16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.

There are plenty of passages about asking the Father in the name of Jesus. But that doesn’t mean that we can’t pray directly pray to Jesus. In fact, we have examples of Christians praying directly to Jesus. In Acts 7:59 Stephen did.

And they stoned Stephen, calling upon God, and saying, Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”

Then there is that famous passage in 2 Corinthians verse 12. Let’s go there. Beginging I believe in verse 8.

2 Corinthians 12:8-9 8For this thing I besought the LORD thrice, that it might depart from me. 9And he said unto me, my grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

The Greek word for Lord there is a direct reference to Jesus. Then Jesus even talks back to him. And basically, tells him NO. You see often Gods power is perfected in our weakness. Uncle Kens often wonders to me if my aggressive arthritis is my thorn in the flesh. Maybe its God’s way of keeping me humble. I don’t know. But it’s certainly His will.

Who we pray to is important, We do not pray to Mary. But we can pray to Jesus. Did you notice that the scripture tells us that Mary was there? BTW, did you know that the half-brothers of Christ did not believe in Him during his earthly ministry? It’s an interesting fact. They thought that Jesus was out of his mind. They thought he was crazy. But after his death and His resurrection they quickly became believers. In fact, James became the leader of the church of Jerusalem and wrote the book of James in the Bible. But anyway, Mary was certainly blessed among women as Gabriel said. What an amazing woman she was. And what a gift to have given birth to the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. And I don’t want to offend anyone here. But Mary was praying with the disciples. Mary is not being prayed too. They are not lighting candles to her or asking her for any special blessings. As blessed as she is, Catholicism has lifted her up as a co-mediator. Meaning that they believe that she can communicate to the Father on your behalf. But that goes against the teaching of scripture. Turn with me to 1 Timothy 2:5-6

For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus; 6Who gave himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.

So, you see Mary cannot mediate. Neither can what many refer to as Saints. We do not pray to the saints bc we ARE the Saints. If you are in Christ today you are a Saint. We are looked at through the blood of Jesus Christ. We are set apart because of the blood of Jesus Christ. And we do not pray to other saints bc there is only ONE mediator. I’m not trying to offend anyone here. But we have added things over the years that just aren’t there. And those things need to be removed. Some Catholics even believe that Mary is involved in redemption!! And that’s a problem. BC Jesus said on the cross it is finished. Meaning done. He doesn’t need our help or Mary’s help or our works or our baptism. God never gave anyone permission to add to the work on the cross or to the His word.

Many people wear pendants and have statues and refer to certain believers as their patron Saint. That is not something that is taught in the scripture. And I’m not just picking on Catholics here. All of us are guilty of trying to add things. I remember a church that was just consumed by parliamentary procedure. If the Pastor wasn’t perfectly versed in Rogers rules, then they simply wouldn’t accept him as a leader. Book chapter and verse please. Sure, organization is very important, and we should all meet and make decisions as a body walking together in our mission to share the gospel. But being obsessed with something as unimportant and insignificant as Roberts rules is the product of man’s religion and isn’t found in scripture.

Moving on to verse 15. So, they have swelled in their numbers. As people have come and they are joining this prayer service while waiting for the Holy Spirit to fall. And so, Peter decides here in verse 16 that he wants to add to the proceedings. Peter is explaining that bc of Judas there is a hole in their numbers. Or a missing person that needs to be replaced. I have to wonder if that is what God wanted at the time. They were told to wait. But that’s Peter for you. He tends to jump ahead of God. We remember him cutting off the ear of the Roman soldier. And Jesus teaching, if you live by the sword you die by the sword. Of course, Peter never lacked for zeal. And it should be pointed out that He was the only disciple who walked on water. So, while we know that they who wait upon the Lord are blessed. There certainly is a special blessing for those who are zealous to serve the Lord.

Now in verse 21 Peter is making a suggestion about the qualifications. He just set a guideline. He has got to be someone who was with us during the time of Johns baptism and is someone who was still around and a witness to the resurrection. Of 120 people only two qualified under those terms. Joseph and Mathias. And so, they prayed for Gods guidance. And how did they decide? Verse 26. They cast lots. Which is much like rolling dice.

This was an Old Testament way of doing things. And this was the last time in the Bible that casting lots was mentioned. This would be like a church today choosing a Pastor based on rolling dice. Can you see it? Assigning each preacher, a number 1-6. Then rolling the dice and picking the one whose number matched the one that was rolled. I’m not sure that’s the best idea Peter. But such was his nature.

Something amazing is about to happen in Acts 2. And the new dynamic in the church will be listening to the guiding of the Holy Spirit. And not rolling dice. Another reason why I believe that Peter may have made a mistake here is later on. I believe anyway. That God chose Paul just for that purpose. And Paul described his calling in Galatians.

Galatians 1:1 1Paul, an apostle, (not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the Father, who raised him from the dead;)

So, God picked Paul. Not men. And certainly not men rolling dice.

Paul was a nightmare to the early church. He would have been the last person that we would pick. Paul made a practice our of killing Christians. The point here is, forget about man’s choice, forget about mans qualifications. And let God be God. You know there are churches today where you absolutely cannot preach if you don’t have a degree? They have their list, much like Peter did. Here are our qualifications. Well, the only qualification required to preach the Gospel is to be called by God. But that’s just another example of how man has gotten away from the scripture. We have to pray and let God select our leaders based on His qualifications and not ours. Can you imagine our faith without the writings of Paul as inspired by the Holy Spirit? It wouldn’t be good folks.

Who is going to be the new apostle? Maybe we should ask God. How are we going to fix the church? Maybe we should give it to God. How are we going to grow the church? Maybe we should give it to God. But what about our air conditioners. Give it to God. But what about our finances? Give it to God.

Let’s look at Acts 13 and verse one.

Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.

2 As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.

3 And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.

So how did God speak? No dice here. Prophets. God uses prophets. They were praying and worshiping and fasting. They were in a church service. Then they ordained people. We do not ordain people. The Holy Spirit does it through the church. We tend to think that we are so special. We ordained this guy or that guy. NO.

Many colleges believe that they have the power to license a minister after he has had so many college hours. That is not Gods way people. God uses the Holy Spirit and the church. College isn’t part of the equation. That’s man’s system. God chooses his men. God chooses prophets and teachers. Not men. By the way what happened to fasting and praying. Are we fasting and praying for our church? Are we fasting and praying for Gods leadership? Trust me if this church started fasting and praying and waiting on God He would give us a revival. Or fasting and praying for God to use us. God would bless us so much that we would stand in awe of His power.

Or we can keep doing it mans way. Trust and obey for there’s no other way. We don’t need man’s plans. We don’t need man’s ideas.

In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He will direct thy path.

Are you serving a moving dynamic God? Are we denying the power thereof?