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Another Disciple is Chosen…

Acts 1:21-26 (ESV)
So one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 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.” And they put forward two, Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also called Justus, and Matthias. And they prayed and said, “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which one of these two you have chosen to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.” And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

Verses 15 through 20 are regarding Peter standing up and talking about Judas and although they were all so upset about what he did, it also needed to be a fulfilling of scripture through the Holy Spirit to David in Psalms (The ones quoted in verse 20 are Psalms 69:25 & 109:8).

Then Peter talks about the requirements of a successor -> 1) They needed to have had participated in Jesus’ earthly ministry; from His baptism by John until His resurrection. 2) He had to have seen the resurrected Christ. Two names were put forward – Joseph (called Barsabbas and also called Justus), and Matthias. The disciples prayed saying “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which of these two You have chosen to take the place in this ministry and apostle ship from which Judas has turned aside to go to his own place.

The next thing they did after prayer was to “cast lots”.

Casting lots was an ancient method of making decisions by what we would today call a form of drawing lots, something similar to rolling dice, pulling marked stones, or drawing straws. In the Bible, it was often used to determine God’s will in situations where people believed the Lord was sovereignly directing the outcome.

The Bible doesn’t give an exact description of the method. Scholars believe it may have involved:

  • Marked stones or pebbles placed in a pouch and drawn out.
  • Sticks or pieces of wood with markings.
  • Something similar to dice.

The key idea wasn’t gambling or chance, but the belief that God controlled the result…and that is exactly what Peter and the disciples did here to see what God’s choice was in terms of either Barsabbas or Matthias. A key verse in the bible pointing to this is Proverbs 16:1&33 “The plans of the heart belong to man, but the answer of the tongue is from the Lord. The lot is cast into the lap, but its very decision is from the Lord.”

As we know from reading, God chose Matthias to replace Judas.

APPLICATION

I don’t see this much different that using a method of ‘lots’ to choose between two indiscernible outcomes or situations where partiality may come into play. That is what I think the case was here with Barsabbas and Matthias. The disciples did not vote, because there might have been human partiality that would have resulted in an earthly outcome versus the Lord’s intended outcome. This is equally as hard to believe because the Lord’s plans will always be accomplished. Thank you Lord for helping me to see the truth and understanding of this practice.

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Stop Gazing into Heaven…Get to Work!!!

9 And when he had said these things [Refer to yesterday's post], as they were looking on, he was lifted up, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10 And while they were gazing into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, 11 and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.”
Acts 1:9-11

The number of things happening in this passage is a lot to pay attention to. Remember that yesterday, Jesus was telling the disciples that they would be His witnesses throughout the land and to the ends of the earth. The spectacle of Jesus ascending into heaven must have been quite a sight but it was not the first time that some of them had witnessed the divinity of Jesus manifested in this way…and it won’t be the last that He will pass through the clouds. Just as Jesus rose into a cloud, taking Him out of sight, He will return through the clouds when He returns.

What the two angels, in the form of men, said is important. I can just imagine the disciples’ mouths gaping open as they watched Jesus rise out of view and these angels with all of the patience of school hall monitor at the end of recess, telling the disciples to get to work.

The message is simple – “Using what Jesus did in His ministry but not merely looking upward waiting for Him to return; we are to live faithfully carrying out His mission until He comes again.”

Don’t just stare upward. Don’t remain frozen in amazement. Put into action the mission Jesus gave us. Our task is not to speculate about heaven but to proclaim the gospel to all who need to hear it.

APPLICATION:

I must always be on mission; seeking to listen to what God is calling me to at every moment and opportunity. The important piece is to ‘Act’ when I hear the Lord calling me to the purposes He has set me on this earth for.

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Unrevealed Timing, Power, and Witness…

6 So when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?”
7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by his own authority.
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
Acts 1:6-8

I am trying to imagine this scene when the disciples were together with the risen Christ. They must still be reeling from the fact that they see their Savior in their presence after they had laid Him to rest in a tomb just 43 days earlier. The question they asked about Jesus (The Messiah) restoring the nation of Israel was because of the prophesy of Ezekiel 36 and Joel 2 which connected the coming of the Kingdom with the outpouring of the Spirit whom Jesus had promised.

Jesus responds to them with the fact that it is not for them to know the times or seasons (eras) that the Father has set for His plans. We know that the earthly Kingdom comes with the return of Jesus, but we don’t know when that is. Then Jesus says that all important word that precedes important info in God’s Word…BUT. Jesus says that the disciples will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon them and that they will be His witnesses in all the surrounding areas and ultimately to the ends of the earth.

“Witnesses” in this context are people who tell the truth about Jesus Christ. The Greek word used means “one who dies for his faith”. The disciples know what the power of the Holy Spirit is like; they received this power when they went on the mission trip Jesus sent them on and other specific times of equipping when God was using them for His purposes. This power came in the form of saving, guiding, teaching, and miracle-working. I believe that the Holy Spirit still pours out these powers at His discretion even to this day.

APPLICATION

I need to live like Jesus could return any moment. I often think about how embarrassing and shameful it would be for the Lord to return through the clouds at the moment of sinful thoughts or actions. Although I don’t know when the Lord will come back, I know that I am indwelt by the Holy Spirit Who comforts me, guides me, and strengthens me to do the will of Jesus. It takes me keeping my nose in His Word, my thoughts in prayer, and an unending worship of the One who gave me eternal life.

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Multitudes and Prophesy Fulfilled…

And while staying with them he ordered them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, he said, “you heard from me; for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.” Acts 1:4-5

One of the things that has always reinforced the historical accuracy of Jesus and what the Bible has to say is the sheer number of people that saw Jesus after he rose from the dead. He appeared many times over 40 days after his resurrection; and here it is stated with him “staying with” his disciples (In a closer translation, it is “eating with”), He instructs them not to leave Jerusalem. I mean think about it, all throughout all the books of history they all support Jesus coming to this earth and many accounts of him and his ministry but you don’t see any books whatsoever from anyone living at the time or shortly after that refutes his presence. If you think about all the people that were in the vicinity of those who saw Jesus after he rose from the dead, you’d think that if it were not true, that there would be so many people who would refute or write counterarguments to what has been written. But that just simply isn’t the case. Multitudes of people saw Jesus, saw his miracles, and saw him after he rose from the dead.

It may sound like in the paragraph above that I am trying to convince somebody that Jesus is real…I simply don’t need to. When you place your faith and trust in the King of Kings, the Holy Spirit that is given to you at the time of salvation reveals God to you in ways that are indescribable. And not only are they indescribable, but they’re numerous and non-coincidental. The longer and longer I go in my sanctification, the more and more I see God’s presence, God’s power, and God’s love.

This is why I only focus on these two verses today, because wrapped up in these two verses is exactly what my title of this post is –> Multitudes of people saw Jesus before His death and after He rose again. Additionally, we know that here in ten days from this date that Jesus said these things in these verses, His and prophecy was fulfilled in that the little church of Acts received the Holy Spirit manifested through tongues of fire.

APPLICATION:

I am so grateful for God’s word. Here I am this morning, just sitting before my Bible, in prayer to the God of the universe, who in His great mercy and grace continues to encourage me, love me, and increase my faith. My life I live, I live dedicated to him alone. I only hope to achieve what He has for me here to do before He calls me home or returns again.

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Starting a Journey Through Acts…

The most recent book of the bible I finished was Galatians, and the last book of the New Testament that I have to cover is Acts. I’ve been hopping around over the last month or so to different passages in God’s word based on ministry needs over that time. But now it’s time for me to really dive in for myself.

I just got back from a trip to Mexico to build a house for a family in need with a bunch (53) of middle school students and amazing leaders (36). And one of the things that we did while we were there was to identify something that we wanted to leave in Mexico and no longer do, to essentially, “Put Off” and then to prayerfully consider something we were going to do differently (“Put On”) when we got back home, that the Lord was putting on our hearts through his Holy Spirit. In my case, the thing I am ‘Putting Off’ is “Skating through life and ministry” and my ‘Put On’ is to “Dive In & Go Deep”.

In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. Acts 1:1-3

Here in the first couple of verses of Acts, we find that this is the second book that the apostle Luke wrote to Theopolis. I think the biggest things that stand out to me in just these first couple of verses as I get started is just Luke’s desire to call out the amazing proof of the resurrection of Jesus. How Jesus spent forty days appearing to several people and confirming his resurrection through walking into a locked room, showing the wounds from his crucifixion, and even eating and drinking to show that he was real in human form and had risen.

Lastly, the thing that he was doing after his resurrection was speaking about the Kingdom of God. Isn’t this exactly what we should be doing after we have been resurrected from our dead old lives? Even in his resurrection, Jesus was modeling for us exactly what he wanted us to do in our lives after receiving the beautiful gift of grace and mercy through his own sacrifice on the cross.

APPLICATION:

Well, hopefully this is s sort of obvious, but my application that I take away from just these first few verses in Acts is that I need to be living a life that is talking about the Kingdom of God in my resurrected life.

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Whatever You Sow, it is What You Will Reap…

Do not be deceived: God is not mocked, for whatever one sows, that will he also reap. For the one who sows to his own flesh will from the flesh reap corruption, but the one who sows to the Spirit will from the Spirit reap eternal life. And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. So then, as we have opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith. Galatians 6:7-10

This morning I was able to finish up Galatians, but this passage within the final verses of this book are so good. This whole set of instructions that Paul gives the Galatians all has to do with the fact that they have been infiltrated by these Judaizers who were constantly trying to get them to focus more on works of the law versus faith in Christ that produces freedom and the spiritual reaping that it has in eternal life.

I really like this whole point that Paul makes in terms of not being deceived and that God is not mocked. He doesn’t say God **will not be** mocked or anything like that. He says God **is not** mocked. There is no challenging the Lord in this aspect of sowing and reaping. Whatever you do here on earth, the intentions of your heart will produce exactly what they sow. If you are looking for comfort, peace, love, satisfaction, earthly wealth, or anything of the like, that is what you will receive…and that will be your reward.

Paul then goes on to describe the fact that one who sows **to** the Spirit will **from** the Spirit, reap eternal life. This is such a key distinction. The Spirit leads, and when we respond in obedience to what the Spirit reveals, then we are aligning ourselves with what God’s intent is for us and what His influence, through us, will be on this world.

Do Not Grow Weary of Doing Good…

Wow, this whole aspect of not growing weary of doing good is a big deal! Where this comes right to mind is on my daughter Bella who is down with her grandmother taking care of her after just having back surgery. Bella is weary and has a lot of other life pressing matters on her mind…but, if she does not give up, she will reap in due season. I love that the Lord put this in my path today. Talking to her last night, this is exactly what she needs to hear!

QUESTION–> When should we do good to others??…ANSWER–> Whenever we have the opportunity to. Especially to those who are brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus.

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TODAY: Bearing One Another’s Burdens…

Bear one another's burdens,and so fulfill the law of Christ. Galatians 6:2

I titled my post this morning starting with the word TODAY because as I was praying before my quiet time, the posture in which I prayed was humbly asking the Lord for the things I need today. All too often I get wrapped in a bigger picture, but when I do that, I have a tendency to take on more self-sufficiency than I should. This year I’ve not spent as much time writing here on the site as I’d like.

My reading was in Galatians 6:1-5. Paul gives us a lot of really great instruction here and I’ve actually had to reference it several times over the last six months. There are three behaviors and two heart conditions Paul gives us as we look at what it means to bear one another’s burdens.

ATTEND to One Another: Paul says, “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression.” This is not an overanalyzing of a brother or sister in Christ, nor is it analyzing the speck in another person’s eye when we haven’t taken care of the log in our own. No, it is really about being close relationally with one another so that we can observe the earthly lived life of a follower in Christ…that we might help prepare them see the face of their King on the Day of Judgement

ACT: The second behavior is to actually respond in our relationships with one another. Here Paul is not only saying we should be attentive to one another, but when we see ways we can encourage or exhort one another, we should do it. WARNING: There is, however, a warning. Paul tells us to be careful; that in our plight to restore a brother or sister in Christ, we have to be careful not to become tempted and sin ourselves.

SERVE: Paul then tells us to bear one another’s burdens. Burdens in this sense are considered “an extra heavy load”. Essentially, coming alongside one another to help with the difficulties and problems they’re dealing with.

WITH Humility and Obedience: The last three verses here cover the heart posture that we should have when we have the mindset of coming alongside our brothers and sisters in Christ. Paul tells us to not to think too highly of ourselves and if we do, we’re actually deceiving ourselves…when we transparently look at our lives and the work of the Lord in it, we will find is that it isn’t us who does anything it is the Lord through us.

The last piece of this is verse 5 which says, “for each will have to bear his own load”. What this tells me is that we are responsible for ourselves and need to be very careful to look at our own response…this is what we are responsible for before the Lord.

APPLICATION:

We are all very good at analyzing other people and we can easily see the faults in others especially when it comes to what we believe. We are all on our own walks of sanctification. God in his great mercy has given us his Son as the ultimate sacrifice for our sin. It is so important for me to preach the Gospel to myself every morning so that I have a daily reminder of the great sins I have sinned against the Lord and yet have been forgiven of all of it… and now have an eternal hope in glory. When I look at that, it is really hard to see one little thing in anyone else being even a fraction of the horrible ways I have treated my God and Father before he redeemed me.

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By Faith Alone…

Galatians 2:3-5 (ESV)
But even Titus, who was with me, was not forced to be circumcised, though he was a Greek. Yet because of false brothers secretly brought in—who slipped in to spy out our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, so that they might bring us into slavery— to them we did not yield in submission even for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel might be preserved for you.

Today my reading was Galatians 2:1-10 where Paul talks to the Galatian church about his journey to Jerusalem for the goal of affirming his ministry with the Pillars of the church (Peter, James, and John). One of the things that jumped out at me and is consistent with the whole of the letter to the Galatian church, is that the Gospel is foremost and central aspect of the Gospel is Justification by Faith Alone.

The Judaizers felt that the Mosaic instruction of circumcision was still required for salvation but that is a departure from the justification by faith alone concept central to the Gospel. Paul, Peter, James, and John refused this teaching and even Titus who was with Paul and a student of his was uncircumcised and an example of God’s redemption power for the Gentiles as well as the Jews. Anything that substitutes faith alone, through Christ alone, by grace alone, is not the Gospel, but a false-gospel that should be refused.

There is a church ‘Leadership’ learning here that I will talk more about tomorrow as I cover Paul’s rebuking of the Apostle Peter. I want to do more study on this one first so that, as Paul would say, that I am not running or have run too fast before a takeaway here.

APPLICATION

The Gospel is the Power of God. The saving truth of Jesus’ sacrifice covering all sin for the repentant sinner is huge. This does not excuse or endorse sinning…no one can sit at the foot of the cross understanding their depravity, and that the Lord has saved them anyway, and walk away from that realization without a humble and godly fear of living the rest of the life dedicated to honoring and pleasing the Lord Jesus who saved them.

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Your Calling…

Galatians 1:13-17 (ESV)
For you have heard of my former life in Judaism, how I persecuted the church of God violently and tried to destroy it. And I was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my own age among my people, so extremely zealous was I for the traditions of my fathers. But when he who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with anyone; nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me, but I went away into Arabia, and returned again to Damascus.

Today it struck me how Paul’s life and his recounting of what the Lord had done in him, is so much like what the Lord has done in my own life. Don’t get me wrong, I am not comparing my life to the amazing life of the apostle Paul, who saw Jesus, in the flesh, on the road to Damascus. What I am saying, is that the pattern of being set apart, being called on by the Lord to salvation, and then God‘s work on our life is very similar to what the Lord did in the pattern of Paul’s life (Romans 8:29-30).

As I sit here, looking at all of my life in a single picture and thinking about where the Lord has brought me to at this point in time, I can’t help but see how the Lord has worked in my life just as he did in Paul’s. The place that I am in my heart, how I see the Lord, my love for him, and my desire to only serve and please him, has only come through his teaching to me by directly reading his word and applying it to my life… Just like I am doing here today. The Lord has had to get a hold of my life in such a way that I can then be used by him. If you look at the passage above and see how the Lord worked in Paul’s life, it is similar.

So,, to reiterate, I am not comparing myself to Paul… I am only acknowledging that God has set me apart before time (as He says in his word – Psalms 139:16, Jeremiah 1:5, Ephesians 1:4-5, and Romans 9:10-13), He has saved me from death I deserved because of my sin, He has grown me in the knowledge of His word, His son, and Himself, so that I can have my heart, mind, soul, and strength centered on the wisdom and direction of the Holy Spirit to be able to serve him.

APPLICATION

I have come such a small way relative to where I think I should be. I am constantly looking at what else the Lord may teach me while I am in “Arabia“ (Where Paul was for 3 years before starting his ministry in Jerusalem). All this way someone might say I have come…has only shown me how much I need Him. This earthly body and mind is no match for the yuck of the world and the evil one who has run of it; thank the Lord that He not only secured victory on the cross and resurrection, but He has given me the gift of His Holy Spirit and His word (through scripture) to help me navigate this small time that I sojourn as an alien in this land.

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Kill Your Inner False Teacher…

Galatians 1:6-9 (ESV)
I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed. As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.

I’ve started Galatians with the amazing young man I am discipling. We finished Roman’s a couple of weeks back and so I’m going to start diving in and giving my thoughts on Galatians as I read through. He and I intend to trade notes and share with one another how the Lord is speaking to us through our quiet times in this book.

Today my focus was Galatians 1:1 – 10. This book starts out a little bit different than most of Paul’s letters. Paul is a lot more impersonal and direct in this opening than his other letters, which include commendations and courtesies. In this case, he is speaking directly at not only the false teachers that had risen up within the Galatian church, but also those in the church body who had started to listen to them. There was a contingent of teachers who just couldn’t wrap their brains around the gift of salvation through Grace alone, by faith alone, through Christ alone. So they interwove into their teaching legalism and salvation by works of merit, rather than by the truth… the gift of Grace.

Paul calls this approach an entirely different gospel. He even goes as far as to say that anyone who comes along, even if it is him or an angel from heaven, and speaks of a gospel other than the gospel he had told them previously, those teachers are destined for destruction.

Just this little part of this passage today, really reinforces in me how important it is to stay true to what God has to say. Even in my sphere of influence right now and things I am having to deal with, I am having to confront people who have twisted God‘s word to say something different… Something that fits this world rather than the truth that is clear through the arc of scripture.

APPLICATION

I need to remember that I can be my own false teacher… I live in this fleshly carcass that even though I am redeemed, I still must crucify my sin every day. The places that the Lord has brought me from, are so easily able to be slipped back into if I am not consistently vigilant and quick to strike down my own internal dialog of false gospel. Lord God, give me the strength, the clarity, and the wisdom of your Holy Spirit as I continue to live a life devoted to You.