The New Israel

Introduction

The last half of the book of Acts is probably not a portion of Scripture many of us have studied very closely. The ESV and NIV translators titled this section “Matthias chosen to replace Judas,” and that’s pretty much what we read here.

Judas was part of the original 12 disciples, but he betrayed Jesus and then ended his own life shortly thereafter… so there was a vacancy. And Matthias was chosen to fill it. Is there really anything profound in this informative-but-seemingly-unimportant passage? I think there is!

In fact, I think this passage is packed with weighty doctrine, and I also think that this passage shines a lot of light on the concept of the “kingdom of God,” which we see ripen over the course of the whole Bible and really bloom in the New Testament.

Why did Jesus choose 12 disciples from all the others in the first place?

What’s the difference between a disciple and an apostle?

Why did Judas have to be replaced?

Why did this have to happen before the arrival of the Holy Spirit?

And what does this mean for Christians today?

We’ll try to answer these questions and others as we dive into Acts 1:12-26.

Let’s look there now and read together.

Scripture Reading

Acts 1:12-26

12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away.

13 And when they had entered, they went up to the upper room, where they were staying, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot and Judas the son of James. 14 All these with one accord were devoting themselves to prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.

15 In those days Peter stood up among the brothers (the company of persons was in all about 120) and said, 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.”

18 (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.)

20 “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.’

21 So one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22 beginning from the baptism of John until the day when he was taken up from us—one of these men must become with us a witness to his resurrection.”

23 And they put forward two, Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also called Justus, and Matthias.

24 And they prayed and said, “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 from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.”

26 And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

Main Point

God sovereignly established His kingdom in the world with Jesus Christ as King, and all those in Christ are citizens of His kingdom by faith.

Message

1) God’s Sovereign Hand

If you forced me to give you only one answer to the question, “What is the most emphatic theme of the book of Acts?” I’d want to beg you to let me give me more than one answer. There’s the inauguration and expansion of God’s kingdom under the rule and reign of Christ… There’s the divine exclamation point on Gentiles (i.e., non-Jews) being included among God’s blessed and favored people in the world… There’s, the reality that the power of God’s kingdom exists not in worldly methods or strength or people or government but in God’s true and effective word.

But, if I could only choose one, I think it might that the Triune God is utterly and completely sovereign, working salvation for His people for His own glory!

The book of Acts explicitly tells us, and repeatedly shows us, that the God of the Bible – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – is the one being who reigns over everything, from kings to prophets, from pagan empires to religious leaders, and from running feet to throwing dice!

God is totally, radically, and meticulously sovereign!

In our passage this morning, we see this on display in at least three ways: (A) God’s sovereignty over Judas the traitor, (B) God’s sovereignty in choosing His apostles, and (C) God’s sovereignty over the seemingly insignificant.

A. First, Judas the traitor. In v16, Peter argues that the Bible predicted Judas’ betrayal… And he says that the “Scripture had to be fulfilled.” There’s more underneath this than we can fully uncover today but let me just move the dirt around a little to show you some of what’s down there.

God is able to predict the future (as Peter says He did here), not merely because God sees what’s going to happen, but because He has already arranged it. God does have foreknowledge – he sees the future – but God’s sovereignty is more than that. God created time; He isn’t bound by the unfolding of history as we are… There’s a real sense in which we might say that the future is precisely known to God because He’s already there.

God is the creator and sustainer of everything – including time. And not one minute passes on the clock that God hasn’t governed every second of.

According to Scripture, God predicted Judas’ betrayal at least 700 years before it happened. But think also about all that God must have arranged in order for that single prediction to turn out as it did!

God had to arrange for Judas to be born around the same time as the Messiah. God had to ensure that Judas didn’t die from some disease or accident, like so many other young boys did in that day. God had to give Judas a good Hebrew upbringing, so that he’d fit-in with a band of disciples who so believed the Messianic prophecies that they left everything to follow Jesus.

God had to bring Judas into the inner circle of disciples, so that he would have the ability to deceive everyone and guide Jesus’ enemies to the specific place and time where He could be arrested without causing a scene. And God had to (in some sense) arrange that Judas would actually go through with the most notorious betrayal of all time – he betrayed the Son of God with a kiss!

The Bible predicted Judas’ betrayal, and that means God is totally sovereign.

B. Second, God’s sovereignty is on display in the choosing of the apostles. This point is already obvious from reading the Gospels. For example, Jesus said to His disciples, in no uncertain terms, “You did not choose me, but I chose you” (Jn. 15:16).

But we see the same idea confirmed in our passage. Look at v24 with me.

In Peter’s prayer, he acknowledged that God had not only chosen the original twelve but also that God had already “chosen” who would “take the place… and apostleship” which Judas left open when he “turned aside” (v24-25).

Once again, this is not any sort of haphazard reaction to events as they unfold! It’s not as though God is simply moving pieces on a chessboard, waiting to see what His opponent (time and chance and human activity) will do.

Rather, this passage reveals a God who is comprehensively arranging every piece on the board!

God is radically sovereign… because He even chose Judas’ replacement.

C. Third, God’s sovereignty is on display here in that He even controls the seemingly insignificant. If any of us have been tempted to resist the idea that God is totally and completely sovereign over whatsoever comes to pass… If we’ve been trying to hold out some events, some people, or some things that God doesn’t sovereignly control… then this last one will be a doozy.

Look at v23-26 with me.

We read there that the disciples had to decide between the guy with three names – “Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also called Justus” – and another guy, simply named “Matthias.” Their method was to pray, trusting that God had already chosen the new 12th apostle, and then to “cast lots” (something like throwing dice or flipping a coin). Then v26 says, “the lot fell on Matthias,” and the disciples interpreted this to mean that God was revealing His own decision in how the “lot” landed.

Friends, do we not learn from this that not even the dice are thrown nor are coins flipped apart from God’s sovereignty in their landing?

RC Sproul used to say, “There’s not one rogue molecule in the whole universe.”

The Bible reveals a God that is totally, radically, and meticulously sovereign!

Brothers and sisters, I want to take just a bit more time on this first point of the sermon, because I think Bible-believing Christians can sometimes have a hard time digesting the doctrine of God’s sovereignty. But I really do believe that most of our difficulty arises from a misunderstanding of either or both God’s sovereignty and human responsibility.[1]

You see, the Bible teaches that God is totally sovereign and that humans are truly responsible… and Bible-loving Christians already believe both truths. See what I mean in v16. Peter said, “Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke beforehand by the mouth of David…” (v16).

Do you see what’s being affirmed here?! It’s the doctrine of inspiration!

Who “speaks” in the “Scripture” the words which had to be fulfilled?

Was it David speaking in the Psalms when he wrote, “May his camp become desolate…” (Ps. 69:25) and “Let another take his office” (Ps. 109:8)?

Yes!

Was it God the Holy Spirit “speaking” in these very same verses with the same exact words?

Yes!

Are these Psalms Peter cited David’s words or God’s words? Was/Is God sovereign over the writing of these words, or was/is David responsible for what he wrote?

Both are true! God is totally sovereign, and humans (David in this case) are responsible… and there is no contradiction.

We must rest in the fact that God’s governance and rule over all things in no way allows sinners to excuse their sin nor does it allow saints to boast in their righteousness. If we refuse to let the Bible define our terms – like “sovereignty” and “freedom” – then we’re likely to be frustrated and confused when we come across passages that put God’s sovereignty on glorious display.

But, if we will take the Bible for what it says… if we will submit our minds and hearts to God’s wisdom and revelation, then we will find ourselves responding in the same way the disciples did in our passage this morning.

Two times we’re told that they entrusted themselves to God in prayer. In v14, they were “devoting themselves to prayer,” and in v24-25, they stopped to “prayed” before making a big decision.

Oh, brothers and sisters, it is precisely because we believe in God’s sovereignty that we pray! We believe God is sovereignly able to arrange our circumstances… We believe God is sovereignly able to control the decisions of presidents and governors… We believe God is sovereignly able to open the eyes and change the hearts of our friends and family who don’t love or follow Christ… We believe God is sovereignly able to change our own hearts with regard to the sin and wickedness which still indwells us.

Friends, God’s sovereign hand is above, behind, and in the midst of whatsoever comes to pass… the good, the bad, and everything in between.

May God help all of us to embrace this fact, to believe it with conviction, and to rest in God’s sovereign goodness and wisdom to do all things for our ultimate good and for His ultimate glory.

2) Establishing the Apostles

This portion of the Acts narrative is clearly telling the reader that God’s been working His sovereign plans to establish His kingdom in the world for a long time, but that might not be immediately obvious to us if we read the book of Acts in a disconnected way from the rest of Scripture.

Let’s not do that… Instead, let’s remember all that God has been doing in human history before the Messiah came into the world. And let’s remember that the Messiah didn’t only come to offer a sacrifice for sin. He certainly did that, but He did and is doing much, much more.

As I’ve pointed out many times before, Jesus came to reconcile sinners and all of creation with the God who once declared a curse upon everything. Jesus came to roll back the curse of Genesis 3 and to reunite heaven and earth in peace and holiness… in justice and righteousness… where man (male and female) dwells again with the God who made him for His own glory.

One of the ways Acts tells us this bigger story is by highlighting the continuation of Jesus’s work in the world by the power of His Spirit and through the people we come to know as “apostles.”

Let’s talk for a bit about who these “apostles” were and what made them “apostles.” The first thing to note is that not all disciples were/are apostles, and the second is that apostles are a special/unique bunch in the Bible.

In v13, we’re told that at least eleven of Jesus’ disciples were in “the upper [or “upstairs”] room.” This is an interesting phrase, which some commentators believe refers to the same room where they had all joined Jesus for the last Passover meal… that time and place where Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper and told them that He Himself was the true Passover Lamb, the “Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world” (Jn. 1:29).

I don’t think the evidence is sufficient to say for certain, but they were gathered together in an upstairs room in Jerusalem, just like they had been on the night before Jesus was betrayed and just like they had been when Jesus appeared to them in His resurrected body (Lk. 24;33-36; Jn. 20:19, 24-29).

What is certain in v13 is that eleven disciples are specifically named as distinct from many others… And we see the original group listed, minus Judas.

There was “Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot and Judas the son of James [not “Judas Iscariot, [the] traitor” (Lk. 6:16)]” (v13).

But v15 tells us that the whole “company of persons” – or the whole group of “the brothers,” which included both men and women – was “about 120.”

The term “brothers” is a common way the New Testament refers to Christians.

Now, throughout the book of Acts and occasionally in some of the other NT books, “brothers” refers to those who were fellow Jews, descendants of Abraham. For example, when Peter preached to the crowd of Jews on Pentecost, he referred to them as “brothers” because they were his countrymen (2:29). So too, when Stephen was arrested and brought before the Jewish leaders, he addressed them as “Brothers and fathers” (7:2).

As time went on, and especially when Jewish Christians became aware that Gentiles (i.e., non-Jews) could be Christians too, the term “brothers” became commonly used among Christians… but their familial bond wasn’t ethnic or biological, it was much deeper. Christians – then and now – share a brotherhood with the Lord Jesus Himself, who lived and died and conquered death so that God the Father might be both His Father and “ours” (Jn. 20:17).

The term “disciple” is a bit narrower than “brothers” in New Testament. The word simply means follower or student. And in connection to Jesus, the term disciple is synonymous with “believer” or, later, “Christian.” And there were many more “disciples” than 11 or 12.

John (the Gospel-writer) tells us that “Jesus was making… more disciples than John [the Baptist]” (Jn. 4:1). In fact, Jesus had so many “disciples” that “many” of them at one point walked away from Him after He taught them one of His “hard sayings,” and yet Jesus had others still following (Jn. 6:60-66).

So, “disciple,” “brother,” “saint,” and “Christian” are all terms the New Testament uses for anyone who is a believer in and follower of Christ.

But “apostle” is a special designation for some particular disciples or Christians who were commissioned by Christ to be His authoritative representatives in the world during that generation right after His ascension.

Peter even listed two qualifications for an “apostle” in v21-22. Among the larger group of “brothers” or disciples, Peter called for someone to come forward who had, first, “accompanied us [the eleven] during all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us” (v21). In other words, someone who had been with Jesus and His disciples throughout His earthly ministry.

Second, Peter wanted someone who had also been present “until the day when he [Jesus] was taken up from us” (v22). In other words, someone who had personally witnessed the resurrected Christ and watched Him ascend in glory.

In addition to these two qualifications, Christians have historically also said that an apostle is one who must have been commissioned directly by the Lord Jesus Himself. Peter doesn’t list such a qualifier here, but it does hold true in every case of a biblical apostle… They all were personally commissioned by Jesus.

Something else that’s not in our text this morning, but will become evident as we read through the book of Acts, is that the apostles were validated or authenticated by God with the same use of signs that Jesus Himself performed during His earthly ministry.

The apostles did “many wonders and signs” (2:43), such as healing the lame (3:2-8), having special insight or revelation into peoples’ thoughts (5:1-11), casting out evil spirits (5:16), raising the dead (9:36-41), and they even served as a sort of conduit or means by which God granted the Holy Spirit to new Christians (8:14-17).

Such signs not only authenticated the apostles but also showed that Christ – the glorious Savior who came to bring ultimate restoration and renewal – was still at work in the cursed world… only now, His kingdom was on display in and through His “apostles.”

I don’t want to stray off track this morning, but it does seem worth a little of our time for me to say something about those who claim to be apostles today. The short of it is, there simply are no apostles other than the ones we read about in the Bible.

These original 12 apostles fit specific requirements and were commissioned especially by Christ for a particular time and task.

Now, some astute Bible-readers here this morning might be thinking at this point… “What about the Apostle Paul?”

It’s true, Paul also healed the sick (14:8-10), cast out demonic spirits (16:16-18), and raised the dead (Acts 20:7-12). More than all of this, Paul wrote more of the New Testament than any other biblical author. There is no doubt that Saul of Tarsus, who became the Apostle Paul, was in fact a true and genuine apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ.

But Luke went to great lengths to explain exactly how and why this came to be… how and why this “untimely” apostle was among the small fraternity.

We’ll study this more deeply in Acts 9, so I won’t go into detail here… but let me just say that anyone who has authentic confirmation that the risen Lord Jesus appeared to him/her and audibly commissioned him/her to be yet another miracle-performing and divinely inspired apostle, like the Apostle Paul, then-and-only-then will I call him/her an apostle.

But if you don’t have divine validation, I think using the title “apostle” for anyone after the 1st century AD obscures the significance of the biblical office.

Every Christian is a disciple… every Christian is a witness for Christ in the world… but NOT every Christian was meant to participate in that pivotal moment of redemptive history… when Christ ascended to the right hand of the Father to be named as the King of glory, and continued His kingdom-building and expansion project through these particular apostolic spokesmen.

There is something gigantic going on in the book of Acts, and when we yank the term “apostle” into our own day… or when we naively expect to see the exact experiences of the earliest Christians in our own day… then I think we are very likely missing the significance of what we’re reading about in Acts.

God did something incredible 2,000 years ago! And we all may participate today in what God is still doing in Christ by the power of His Spirit!

But we are not living in that transitional period, when the Old Covenant was giving way to the New… when God was showing the watching world that His kingdom was never meant to be a spot on the map where ethnic descendants of Abraham dwelt at peace in the midst of their enemies.

No, we are not living in apostolic period of the middle and late 1st century… But because of what happened in that day, we have good reason to rejoice! And we have good reason to value what God is doing in our day even more.

3) God’s Kingdom as a New Israel

Chapter 1 of the book of Acts ends with these words, look at v26, “And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.”

This is the end of Luke’s introduction, and then he begins in chapter 2 to tell about that climactic moment in redemptive history when God did indeed pour out His Spirit on all His people.

But what did Luke include in his record before that day? What did Luke want his reader to know about the events leading up to that day?

First, Luke wanted his reader to know that the resurrected Jesus ascended in glory… Second, he wanted to highlight Jesus’ reiteration of His promise to send the Holy Spirit so that His followers would be empowered to carry out the task of being His witnesses in all the world (beginning in Jerusalem)… Third, Luke wanted to show that the original circle of 12 apostles under Jesus was re-established, with Matthias taking Judas’ place.

All of this sets the stage for what happened in Acts to be a continuation of the fulfillment of what God had promised a very long time ago.

The Messiah of old was not only predicted to suffer in the place of those He came to save (Is. 53)… He was also to be the conquering king, who ruled from the “throne of David” over a kingdom without end (Is. 9:6-7)… He was also to be the ultimate “seed” or “offspring” of Abraham, the one through whom the whole world would enjoy God’s blessing and favor (Gen. 12:1-3; cf. 17:1-8).

It’s no coincidence that Abraham had a son, named Isaac, who also had a son, named Jacob. It’s no coincidence that God gave Jacob 12 sons and a new name, Israel. And it’s no coincidence that Israel’s 12 sons became the heads of the 12 tribes of the people who became a nation.

It’s also no coincidence that Jesus’s life and ministry paralleled important aspects of Israel’s past experiences: Jesus came up out of Egypt (Matt. 2:13-15), Jesus passed through the waters of cleansing (Matt. 3:13-17), and then immediately after He was tested in the wilderness for 40 days (Matt. 4:1-2).

This resembles Israel, who was rescued from Egypt, who passed through the waters of judgment and salvation, and then spent 40 years in the wilderness.

Jesus was and is the fulfillment of everything God promised to and through Israel… Jesus is the true Passover Lamb… He’s the everlasting bread from heaven… He’s the living water, which never runs dry… He’s the timeless tabernacle of God among His people… and He’s the true Israel, the Son of God with 12 “sons” of His own… 12 apostles, which form the foundation of God’s new Israel… which is a kingdom without a temple, because the whole kingdom is itself God’s temple… “being build together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit” (Eph. 2:19-22).

If all this is true, then what should we do this morning?

Let me list four things:

First, we should rejoice that participation in the blessed people of God has nothing to do with someone’s ethnicity or geography. None of Jesus’ apostles were His sons by birth, and most of the Christians who were the original recipients of the New Testament letters were not even Jewish. Citizens of God’s kingdom, those who are brothers and sisters in Christ, are so by faith or belief in Jesus… not by birth or ethnicity.

Second, we shouldn’t worry too much about a little piece of land just East of the Mediterranean Sea. Since the 1940s, American Christians have focused a lot of attention on the modern state of Israel, but God’s kingdom is far more glorious and expansive than any of the world’s governments or nations.

Geopolitical turmoil is certainly not good, but the rise or fall of any nation (including modern Israel) is absolutely no hindrance to God’s kingdom advancement.

Third, we should celebrate Christian unity even across many different churches and denominations. Ours is an apostolic unity, not because we can draw a straight line of succession from the original apostles to our pastors or leaders today, but because we hold fast to the same gospel those apostles preached… We aim to submit ourselves to the doctrines and practices taught by Christ and by those He personally commissioned to speak for Him.

Everywhere there are churches who make it their purpose to rejoice in and submit to the Scriptures – that written record of the prophets and the apostles, that canon or rule for all faith and practice – we may be glad that we too (FBC Diana) are united with them in Christian brotherhood.

Fourth, we should eagerly seek to persuade others to give their allegiance over to King Jesus, the one who reigns now and the one who will one day bring both judgment and blessing upon those under His rule.

Friends, it’s true that Jesus is the Savior of sinners, but He saves sinners from the very judgment and wrath that He will Himself one day distribute as King.

We are either citizens of His sovereignly established kingdom or we are trespassers and traitors to the crown.

May God grant us grace, that we might see Jesus Christ as both Savior and Lord, and that we might be faithful and hope-filled citizens of His glorious kingdom.

Endnotes

[1] Some people object to the doctrine of God’s total, radical, and complete sovereignty because they think it somehow makes God responsible for evil or sin. But the Bible should keep us from thinking this way! Right here in our passage, the Bible explicitly affirms God’s total sovereignty AND the Bible places the blame for evil or sin on the person who did the evil thing. Look at v25… “Judas turned aside [or “transgressed” or “left”] to go to his own place.” Who, for a time, included Judas among the “number” of the disciples (v17)? God the Son… Jesus chose him and even brought him to the table at the last supper! Who predicted the Judas would betray the Messiah? God the Holy Spirit! Who determined that Judas would carry out his diabolic part in the grand redemptive plan of human history? God, “who works all things according to the counsel of his will” (Eph. 1:11)! And yet, who is to be blamed for Judas “turning aside” (v25)? Judas! Friends, if your understanding of sovereignty places blame upon God then you don’t understand what the Bible teaches about sovereignty. So too, if you imagine that God’s sovereignty is limited in some way by the evil actions of men, then you don’t understand what the Bible means when it tells us that God is sovereign.