Acts 1:13 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.
The Solution Prompted by the Scriptures (1:21-26)
Peter continues. In fact, he comes to a biblically reasoned conclusion.
21 So [that is, "therefore." And he begins to list the qualifications for being nominated as an apostle. And there ARE qualifications for apostleship. Now, as we read think about whether or not anyone may meet these qualifications today. We will find here four qualifications. FIRST,] one of the men [So, he must be a man. He must be a man because he must exercise authority as an apostle. And the Bible does not grant women the authority of any office in the church. Listen to Paul in 1 Timothy 2:12, "I do not permit a woman to teach or to exercise authority over a man; rather, she is to remain quiet." Despite what some liberals think about Junia or Mary, they were not apostles. But, he adds a SECOND one] who have accompanied us during all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, [so throughout his earthly ministry] 22 beginning from the baptism of John [by the Jordan] until the day when he was taken up from us [So, his ascension, which just occurred. So, a candidate for apostle must have journeyed with Jesus and the apostles, he must have been a disciple for at least three years, AND must have been there from John's baptism all the way up through until Jesus was taken away to the right hand of God in 1:9. So, the second qualification is being a conscious disciple and present for the whole duration of Jesus ministry.
THAT MEANS, no matter what the charismatic and Pentecostal churches tell you, NO ONE MAY BE AN APOSTLE TODAY. I don't care what "apostle Joe" who ministers down on the beltline tells Mobile. He is not an apostle. Because he does not fit the BIBLICAL criteria. And if there are men and women today still preaching the error that there are apostles today, then they are clearly ignoring God's Word, and should be rejected. They are not "of the Lord." And get this we've only hit the first two qualifications. There are two more. And therefore, if you're tempted to go to a church, or follow people, or listen to sermons from "an apostle" you're being duped and lied to. There are all sorts of people in the world and church today who will just take to themselves offices and functions. Beware! Don't be so easily fooled, even if they are nice. Instead listen to the apostolic authority, and to the apostle Peter, as worked out in our text. Listen to God's holy, inerrant and life-giving Word. There is your sure ground. Not the babblings - at best - or the lies - at worst - of false prophets. In fact, you have all the apostolic authority and content you need in the Scriptures. Everything we needed from the apostles pertaining to revelation you have … in your Bible.
And so Peter lays one more out, THIRD] --one of these men must become with us a witness to his resurrection." [A candidate for apostle had to have been a witness to the resurrected Jesus. Remember, Jesus revealed himself to more than 500 after his resurrection. But not all of them meet those qualification.
Ask the obvious question. Does the man or woman who claims to be an apostle, also claim to have seen the resurrected Jesus!? Not in a dream. In a real manifestation of the glorified, resurrected Christ. IF NOT, then he cannot claim apostleship. He is a liar.
But then. Peter lastly throws in a FOURTH qualification … ] 23 And they [not the apostles. Nomination for apostle, just as nomination for any office, is not from the apostles to a person to be included in their office. No. That's a great way to institute corruption, nepotism, and favoritism. Instead, the "they" here is not the apostles, but its the 120. It's the church; the congregation. They - the 120 disciples (the continuing Israel of God) - put forward ONLY two names. They ran through the qualifications: #1) a man, #2) a disciple from the first and throughout, #3) a witness of the resurrected Jesus, and #4) NOMINATED BY THE CHURCH. Not self-nominated. Not dubbed. Not claimed by one's self. But nominated by the CHURCH. The church they are serving.
If any one of those qualifications are missing, then a man simply cannot be an apostle. So, I will repeat myself. Given the fact that no one today is chosen by the church to be an apostle, AND no one since this time has seen the resurrected Jesus, THEN … NO ONE MAY TAKE THE OFFICE OF APOSTLE, nor function as an apostle, today. There is a four-step succession plan. And no one today meets the criteria. Therefore, the New Apostolic Reformation is kaput; its Dead on Arrival. In fact, of all the 120 they only …] put forward two, … [a man named] Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also called Justus, [whose name we will never see again] and Matthias. [whose name we will also never see again. Those men were set forward by the 120 to the apostles, as candidates for apostle. I'll also say this now. If your church doesn't do elections like this, more than likely you're not in a Biblical church that follows the apostolic practices and steps of ordaining, calling, and installing church officers (elders and deacons). Because, as we will see in chapter 6, they are all done the same way. And our church ought to the exact same format of church nomination. Surprise, surprise. We didn't make up how officers are chosen. Acts 6 follows the same plan for deacons. We set out the qualifications for elder and deacon according to the Bible in 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1. We inform you who is available for nomination. There's no candidating. There's no prom king and queen vote. There's not politicking. You nominate who you think meets those qualifications. And eventually we gather you back together, after training them, and you vote on whose qualified. BUT the apostles didn't vote, here. The CONGREGATION did. But that means one of the first graces Jesus gives to the church for his glory and our good is the crown rights of: discerning and voting on the qualified officers of this church. This is the first congregational meeting, AND the first church vote. WE DIDN'T INVENT THEM. They are biblical practices. And if Jesus were not empowering it because he's ruling above from his throne, blessing his ordinances, it would have been null and void.
Beloved, please, begin to see the nominations and elections of officers as just one of the many wonderful CROWN RIGHTS JESUS GIVES TO YOU. Don't squander it. Don't poopoo it as "another meeting." Rebuke yourself for any thoughts that degrades the apparatus Jesus sets up in his church. Jesus is summoning you to use your kingdom privileges for his glory and the healthy spread of his church.
And if you're in a church where these rights are denied to you: run. If it's not top-down, it's good ole boy - and neither are what's best for the church of the Lord Jesus Christ.
So the church nominates, but it is not the church who calls. It is the Lord himself - the reigning King Jesus - who calls, and whose power is wielded to make a new officer.] 24 And they [the 120 and the apostles] prayed and said, "You, Lord, [they are praying to the Father about the Kingship of Christ; about his fitness to decide and bless.] who know the hearts of all, [those voting, these men, and the apostles] 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." [There's only one spot. Remember, Judas Iscariot murdered himself. He was cursed by God. His lot as an apostle was vacated. But there are two nominations. And again, they use a God-ordered means of making decisions. Proverbs 16:33 "The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the LORD." King Jesus' will was revealed through the casting of lots.] 26 And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias, [Now, that doesn't mean we should still cast lots today for these decisions. But, that was the prescribed method here. And King Jesus, honored by the faith of his apostles and people, swayed his scepter and made effective his will through this means.] and he [that is, Matthias] was numbered with the eleven apostles.
[So, the twelve apostles are twelve again. And the 120 with the apostles are now re-constituted as the continuing church. They are and now function as the New Israel of God. 12 Tribes fade out. And the renewed 12 apostles fade in. The New Jerusalem worshipping the ruling and reigning Christ, are honoring him by his means, praying to him, communing with him, believing Him.
And today your voting in your churches is also important. It is the continuation of the apostolic ministry. Use God's rubric for each office. Elect holy men, not world-gifted men. Elect men who will function as shepherds in your congregation, who will care for your souls, care for sound doctrine, care for the gospel of Jesus Christ to be preached, care to see the Church preserved, and Christ honored. Christ is honored when the Word is followed, and the Spirit gives graces, for biblically qualified men.]
The Solution Prompted by the Sufficient Scriptures