The second event recorded in Acts 1 after the ascension of Jesus and before Pentecost was the replacing of Judas among the Apostles. Before getting to that, I want to mention who were in the upper room where they stayed, and what they did.
The 11 remaining Apostles were there, but they were not alone. Significantly, they were joined by the women who followed Jesus, and the family of Jesus. Luke has already told us that women financially supported Jesus; sat at His feet as disciples, just as the men did; unlike His male disciples, these women stood by Him at the cross; cared for His body; and were the first witnesses of His resurrection. They were now in that upper room as full participants.
The mother of Jesus was there. The agonizing grief she experienced as she watched her Son, being tortured through crucifixion, was replaced by the joy of His resurrection and ascension. I can imagine that she told those in that room stories about His birth and childhood, as I believe she later did to Luke. Also present were the brothers of Jesus. Not only had they not believed in their Brother, they also thought He was out of His mind, and they even tried to take Him home by force (Mark 3:20-21). In 1 Corinthians 15:7, Paul said that the risen Jesus appeared to His brother James. In that upper room, they were changed men! James and Jude would write letters that became part of our New Testament.
“They all joined together constantly in prayer.” These prayers must have been filled with joy and awe. They were key witnesses to the highest point in history, where the promises of God, made through previous centuries, had been fulfilled! Yet, as those commissioned, they must have prayed with a sense of inadequacy for the task ahead, and a longing for the power of the Holy Spirit to soon come upon them. Constant prayer should still be what Jesus followers do, for the same reasons.
Simon, who had very recently denied Jesus at that critical time of Jesus’ trial, stepped up as the rock Jesus called him to be. Peter felt it necessary to replace Judas. Judas was the one who had fulfilled Scripture (Psalm 41:9), by betraying Jesus for money. After Judas committed suicide, Peter deemed it necessary to replace Judas. Why did he determine that, and why did Luke tell us about it?
I once had an elder who was convinced that Peter made a mistake in doing this. He was sure that if Peter had just waited until the Holy Spirit came at Pentecost, he would have known that place was intended for Paul. If Luke, for whom Paul was a hero and companion, believed Peter made a mistake here, he kept it to himself. Something else was going on here, and it’s important.
Peter said that it was to fulfill Scripture (Psalm 109:8). For us, 11 is a very nice number, unless we paid for a dozen eggs and found only 11 in the carton. However, in the Bible, 12 is highly symbolic! It is the number of Israel. Even with no tribe of Joseph, his children, Ephraim and Manasseh, were counted as half tribes, giving a total of 12. Jesus chose 12 apostles, and that’s significant. His movement was to renew Israel and that was to soon include Gentiles. In Galatians 3:7, Paul said that all who believe are children of Abraham, and in 6:16, are seen as “the Israel of God.”
Luke knew that the mission to the Gentiles would begin with Peter at the home of a Roman centurion, named Cornelius. It would not be the start of a second church, but an expansion of the one people of God to include all peoples. Twelve symbolizes that one people and the replacement of Judas foreshadowed the true Israel who would follow. When we come to Revelation, multiples of twelve are found throughout. The new Jerusalem would be inhabited by true and complete Israel.
Jesus is our Messiah (Christ), because we are God’s Israel. All God’s promises come to us. In Christ, there is neither Jew nor Gentile, only Israel. In Jesus, the wall that once excluded us has been demolished and all the Temple is now open for all.
How those in the upper room came to appoint Matthais was an interesting combination of prayerful deliberation and directly seeking the will of God. Neither of these approaches should be eliminated. Casting lots (throwing dice) may seem as strange as anointing with oil, but neither are magic. In faith, they can be avenues for God’s will to be made known. There have been times when I wished we had more diligently sought God’s will directly, rather than simply vote for new elders. We might have been spared tragic and painful results.
Renewed Israel soon would gather, and the Holy Spirit would fill them and empower them for the mission that now includes us. May God be praised!
Tim Kelley