Listen to Glisten: Leadership

Introduction:

Jesus went up!

Now what?

Promising steps in the right direction

v.12: “Sabbath Day” Journey: 3/4 mile TO Jerusalem

Group Size:

120: Size to make a synagogue (120 men)

v.14: Came together to pray:

Devoted to prayer

START OFF ON THE RIGHT FOOT!

Peter the Leader

Stands up and takes charge!

16 “Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke beforehand by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus. 17 For he was numbered among us and was allotted his share in this ministry.”

Verse 16: “It was necessary” that Scripture be fulfilled” about Judas being replaced!

King David spoke beforehand about Judas?

Where?

From Psalm 69:25 and Psalm 109:8

For it is written in the Book of Psalms,

“ ‘May his camp become desolate,

and let there be no one to dwell in it’;

and

“ ‘Let another take his office.’

Profound thing Peter is doing:

First thing: Prayer

Second thing: Word

Without the anointing, they go to the Word

Good Theology:

AS THEY WAIT, for the SPIRIT, Peter points to the work of the SPIRIT through David!

Peter brings up King David!

Remember what Jesus was talking to the disciples about before Jesus ascended?

Kingdom!

SO what does King David say about this situation??

They’re putting things together...

12 tribes of Israel

12 men

Good Leadership

Peter was far from perfect.

He actually defected!

First, “Woman, I do not know him!”

Second, You are one of Jesus’ followers, “Man, I am not!”

Third“Man, I do not know what you are talking about.”

Opening the Word, applying the Word, obeying the Word!

And now the Book of Acts we see a transition

Peter’s story give me comfort...

Taking the stand and it’s a preview of his leadership throughout the first few chapters of Acts...

Judas the Juiceless

Jeff Van Gundy: NBA Commentator watching an NBA team lose steam at the end of a game 7:

He was quoting another coach: “If you’re juiceless, you’re useless.”

Judas was juiceless!

Verse 18-20: Parenthetical Story

(Now this man acquired a field with the reward of his wickedness, and falling headlong he burst open in the middle and all his bowels gushed out. 19 And it became known to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, so that the field was called in their own language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.)

Can’t rip that story out, can you??

Uncomfortable reading these verses out loud in front of my own kids!

Fortunately, the picture the kids get to draw is NOT based on verses 18-20

Who was Judas?

Luke 6:15: Introduced as Traitor

Luke 22:3: “Then Satan entered into Judas called Iscariot, who was of the number of the twelve.”

Luke 22:47: “Judas, one of the twelve.”

An APOSTLE! Chosen by Jesus!

He was the first church treasurer, but very different from our Melissa!

John 12:6: “He was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.”

Ascension: JESUS WENT UP

Fallout of Failed Leadership

Embarrassment for the Movement

Mistakes Leaders Make: Quote forward

Like many leaders, I try to share those valuable —and painful—lessons with other leaders in hopes that they’ll avoid the same land mines I’ve stepped on. I’m no doubt that there are future landmines ahead of me.”

Manipulating the system so his book new book would get on the NY Times best-sellers list

Other issues related with finances

Fired, and the mega church imploded.

Hurtful—betrayal: “Pain of Defection” NIVAC

“But I trusted him!”

“Is our marriage still legitimate if he’s the one who officiated at our wedding?”

“Is my baptism legit?”

“I’m never stepping into the church ever again.”

Witness of the Gospel!

Jesus does all this work, he dies, he rises, he walks leads for 40 days before he ascends.

Jesus does all this work, and yet from the get-go the church is faced with credibility and character issues as they seek to witness about Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection!

Judas’ main problem: “He turned aside to go to his own place.”

This movement of Christianity is not about turning aside to go to our own place…

And so in order to avoid this from happening again, Peter announced a vetting process...

Matthias the Pious

First “It was necessary”

- To fulfill scripture

Second: it is necessary: v.21

It is necessary to choose another apostle

Three Main things they did here:

1. Vetting of Individual: One criteria: He faithfully Followed Jesus

Accompanied the 12 throughout Jesus ministry

Team player

witnessed everything

fromJesus baptism up until the Ascension

Only that person can be a witness of his resurrection

Title: Not apostle, “Witness of his resurrection”

Prayer: v. 24

Matthias became one of the 12 after casting lots

Not mentioned again, along with 8 other disciples

“You, Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which one of these two you have chosen 25 to take the place in this ministry and apostleship

Cast Lots

Simple and effective way to say, “Hey Lord, we’ve presented options, but you do the choosing.”

Intentional Process for Leadership to a) be obedient to Scripture and b) be obedient to God’s sovereignty.

And so Matthias’ name gets pulled out of the hat and the church is all primed and ready to go for the arrival of the Holy Spirit!

Conclusion: WITNESSES

Conclude with the criteria Matthias and Joseph: Faithful witness

Matthias: No accolades, not mentioned again in Scripture. Church tradition suggests he remained a faithful witness and some records suggest he died for his faith like Peter and other did.

Witnesses witness, and if there’s anything that the Book of Acts is going to be showing us is how witnesses witness. Story after story, we’re going to hear how witnesses witness. The Apostle modelled that for us in many ways in order for Christ’s ministry to continue through us today...

This leadership process was necessary IN ORDER FOR THE WITNESS TO CONTINUE. To have a leadership that will take the blows of betrayal because, ultimately, the GRACE OF OUR LORD JESUS CHRIST IS GREATER THAN ANY BETRAYAL.

It may lead to hurt and embarrassment, it may even lead to death! BUT the mission of the church is more important so that where there is death, there is death is JESUS NAME!

Robert Quinn (University of Michigan) writes that the origins of the word ‘leader’ is : “go forth and die”

Peter the Leader ended up dying as a witness: Church tradition says he died upside down because Peter felt unworthy to die the same way Jesus did.

Church tradition also records that Matthias was killed as a witness as well...

The word for witness, in verse 22, is in fact the word martyr. Witness=martyr.

Witnessing because so synonymous with dying that they became the same word!

Are you willing to die as a witness? Are you willing to be a leader, to go forth and die as a witness?

The question I asked last week: Witness to 1.

You don’t need to be an apostle to witness. In fact, if we left witnessing to Apostles the mission of the church would have ended 2,000 years ago...

No, the mission of the church to make disciples includes being this witness...

Witness to one. Do you have that one? Did you do anything this past week to reach out to that one?