Acts 1:12-26
Matthias Chosen to Replace Judas
Then they returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day’s walk from the city. When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James. They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.
In those days Peter stood up among the believers (a group numbering about a hundred and twenty) 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— he was one of our number and shared in this ministry.”
(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. Everyone in Jerusalem heard about this, so they called that field in their language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.)
“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.’
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, 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.”
So they proposed two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias. Then they prayed, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs.” Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles.
Luke 22:24-30
Also a dispute arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest. Jesus said to them, “The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors. But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves. For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves. You are those who have stood by me in my trials. And I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
The apostles, and we, are to witness simply to what we have seen in Jesus
Judas Iscariot cuts a tragic figure in the gospel narratives. We don’t know much about him, except that his father was called Simon and his surname suggests he probably came from Kerioth, a town down in the far south of Israel, in contrast to Jesus’ other Galilean disciples.
We don’t know how or when Jesus called Judas to follow him; he must have had potential in Jesus’ eyes. But soon it became apparent that there was something lacking in his devotion; he was the group’s treasurer, but John tells us that he would steal from the purse; and he is only ever recorded addressing Jesus as ‘Rabbi’, never ‘Lord’ like his colleagues.
And that lack of devotion turned into treachery, after the incident of the woman pouring expensive perfume over Jesus’ feet - it seems that was the final straw that prompted Judas to betray Jesus.
And let’s remember that was an act of choice - the Scriptures tell us that he was prompted by the Devil, never persuaded nor propelled. It was his choice to turn his back on Jesus and sell him over to the authorities.
Judas’ fate was gruesome - the detail is confused, for in today’s Acts passage by Luke he falls headlong and manages somehow to disembowel himself in a field; in Matthew he goes away and hangs himself.
We can’t explain that variance, but it’s not important, for his work was done - he had betrayed the Lord and sealed his own fate, while unwittingly providing for us and all Creation the path to salvation and forgiveness, to eternal life and to immeasurable blessing.
He was a man who walked with Jesus yet never knew him. His heart was hardened. He was a man who was lost - a son of perdition.
His death left a void in the lives of the disciples. So, let’s think that through for a few minutes. Just two headings this morning - and the first is: vacancy.
1. Vacancy
In those days Peter stood up among the believers (a group numbering about a hundred and twenty) 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—he was one of our number and shared in this ministry.” Acts 1:15-17
It was around 6 weeks or so since the crucifixion. The disciples had lived through the immeasurable emotional turmoil of the loss of their beloved Lord, then discovering he had risen back to life, and then the excitement of being part of his ongoing ministry for 40 days until he ascended back to heaven, as recorded in the first half of Chapter 1 of Acts.
And I detect a real sense of bewilderment and sadness about the fate of Judas in Peter’s words - he was one of our number and shared in this ministry. It’s as if Peter still couldn’t quite believe what Judas did.
The early church - the disciples and their associates - had continued to meet together in prayer to worship the Lord and seek out his will for them. Peter reflects further with the group on the inevitability of the betrayal, taking a reference from Psalm 69, a psalm about King David’s own betrayal by an enemy, linking it with another verse from Psalm 109:
“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’” Acts 1:20
Their prayerful reflection brings Peter to a conclusion: that Judas’ vacated place in the Twelve needs to be filled by another.
There are three good reasons for why this is so:
First, the choice of Twelve as the number of disciples is highly significant, mirroring the 12 founding tribes of Israel, descended from Jacob’s 12 sons. Just as the nation was established through those 12 sons, so the new Israel, the spiritual Israel, was to be founded on these 12 disciples. 12 was the full tally.
Secondly, the 12 are to have a role in the final Day of Judgment, as we heard in our gospel reading. Jesus told the disciples:
I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. Luke 22:29-30
It’s not clear quite what that means, but it is clear that the 12 tribes of Israel will somehow be assigned the 12 disciples as their judges.
Thirdly, there is work to be done: Jesus’ command in Acts 1:8 was that they would receive power when the Holy Spirit came on them; and they would be his witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
They needed the full complement of disciples to proceed with that momentous task.
And so they nominated two men, Joseph Barsabbas and Matthias; and they prayed and cast lots for God to show them his choice. We may raise an eyebrow over the casting of lots; but there was a long Old Testament biblical tradition of casting pebbles or sticks to find God’s will.
But interestingly this is the last time in the scriptures that such casting of lots is ever mentioned - the reason being of course that within a few days the Holy Spirit was to be given universally to the early Church, and to all those ever since who have yielded their heart to Jesus.
From now on, such external mechanisms are no longer needed, for God speaks by his Spirit to our hearts and guides us in his will and his ways. As the book of Hebrews reminds us:
No longer will a man teach his neighbor, or a man his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest. Hebrews 8:11
So the choice was made - and Matthias was appointed. The group was once more complete, in readiness for the Holy Spirit to be poured out on them at Pentecost.
But we need to go back just a little and ask, why these two men? What was their qualification to become the missing member of the Twelve?
2. Qualification
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, 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.” Acts 1:21-22
It needed to be someone who had been part of the movement from the very beginning - someone who had witnessed the baptism of Jesus three years previously, been with him throughout his ministry up to his death; and then was still part of the band who saw first-hand the risen Jesus.
It’s likely both of these men were part of the larger group of followers known as the seventy two that Jesus sent out in twos to go ahead of him to every town and place on his route (Luke 10).
They were both men who knew the Lord first hand; who had experienced the miracles, heard the teaching and finally saw the resurrected Jesus for themselves.
So they were well-qualified for this new role, which Jesus commanded in Acts 1:8, as we have already heard:
‘.. you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
The 12 Disciples - the word means one who follows - had become the 12 Apostles - the word means one who is sent.
And this qualification is important, not just for those twelve men, but also for us in our time. Because their primary qualification to be Apostles was simply that they knew Jesus.
These were not theologians, they were not rabbis, they were not intellectuals or philosophers or mystics - they were just men who had been with Jesus.
In a few weeks’ time I have the dubious privilege of doing Jury Service. I have two weeks set aside when I may be sitting in Oxford Crown Court hearing the testimony of witnesses. (Or, more likely, sitting around in a waiting room while they decide whether or not they need me!)
But the point is, the people standing in the box giving evidence will be simply there to tell the story of what they saw and heard. It’s not for them to decide whether the accused is guilty or not. They just tell what they know.
And it’s just the same with Christian witness. You and I are probably not called to be theologians, philosophers, experts in religion or mystics - we are called, just like those apostles, simply to tell what we know, what we have seen and heard.
It is not our job to convert people or persuade people - that’s the Holy Spirit’s job. He does the converting. We simply tell what we know - what we have seen and heard.
And for the Christian that story of course will be about Jesus - about the Lord who has won our heart. About the Lord who died and rose again for us, who forgave our many sins, who gives peace in our hearts, who gives us hope for the future.
The Lord whom sometimes we doubt, who often we fail, the Lord for whom our hearts are often lukewarm.
Our witness must be honest, with all its uncertainties. We don’t invent things we don’t feel, for anyone hearing our testimony may see straight through us if we lie about what we know.
But let’s begin at least where we are. As the man said in Mark’s gospel, Lord, I believe: help me in my unbelief. And the more time we spend with Jesus - in worship, through communion, by opening our scriptures, and in prayer - so the more we will get to know him. And the more it will be evident to those with eyes to see, that we have been with Jesus.
I trust the knowledge of Jesus in your heart is something you treasure, something that is important to you. I trust that you enjoy being with him. If so, it is something also that you must be ready to share with others.
We may be asked any sort of question - these days it’s mostly likely to be something along the lines of - Why do you go to church? Isn’t religion just a load of nonsense? Isn’t it irrelevant?
To which our answer is not an intellectual justification of faith - but simply an account of what we know, what we have seen and heard through being with Jesus.
And that’s all he expects of us.
Do you find that daunting? Take heart from the man born blind in John 9:24. The Pharisees challenged him about Jesus. We read this:-
A second time they summoned the man who had been blind. “Give glory to God,” they said. “We know this man Jesus is a sinner.”
He replied, “Whether he is a sinner or not, I don’t know. One thing I do know. I was blind but now I see! “