Title: The lot cast / Acts 1: 15-26
Contents There are two types of God's grace. One is common grace and the other is special grace. When you are sick, going to the hospital to receive treatment is to seek God's general grace, and to pray while seeking God's power is to seek special grace. However, it was not that they did not believe that they were healed at the hospital, nor did they disregard God's grace. It's just using the common grace method.
But to be healed through prayer belongs to God's special grace. Those who seek God's special grace have better faith, but this is not the case. Because both of these are God's ways, they are all subject to God's will. But be careful, even if you go to the hospital, you must not forget to pray, and you must not forget that God uses this method.
Then, if you ask if God heals all of you when you pray, it is not so. In some cases, it is faster and better to use common grace than to use special grace. God works almost all of His work through common grace. Eating when marketed, sleeping when tired, and breathing out for 24 hours are all common graces. To put it simply, almost 100% of our physical life is a common grace.
So, are all our spiritual lives a special grace? Nor is it. God has given us the Word, not through direct revelation, but through human writings. Then, it is not a special grace, but a common grace to awaken and study the text in order to read and understand the Word of God. Even giving these words is using the means of common grace.
So, how do you expand his kingdom and save people's souls? He also uses the method of human grace more than the method of special grace. In other words, God establishes and expands his kingdom through the zealous service, service, and evangelism of our saints, his people, and calls out his chosen people.
So when do special graces appear best? It is the process of preaching the gospel, and when God's choice comes and the deadline comes, and even though he calls and gestures in various ways, he does not give up his hardened heart and when he refuses, he grants a special hand of grace. That touch is sometimes scary and sometimes painful.
So, when I see people who testify, there are often times when they talk about what God did when they were called. But to those who answer and obey the call in peace, there is no reason for God's special grace to work.
God uses people.
It is very important to say that God uses common grace to expand his kingdom. In other words, it means that God calls and saves unbelievers through believers. That is why the Lord requested evangelism.
In the Bible, we can see numerous examples of God working through people. He chose Moses to save Israel, Joshua to conquer Canaan, Jonah to repent of Nineveh, and Nathan the prophet to repent David. Such God first called, chose, and sent you to save your family and your friends. Believe it!
However, there is one thing to keep in mind. It is the fact that God works through people, but He is not the one who cannot work because there are no people. When Eli was corrupt, he appointed young Samuel to work. When King Saul was disobedient, he appointed young David to be the king of Israel. God can make Abraham's descendants out of stones.
So, what we need to listen to is Esther's confession.
When the people of Judah, captive to Babylon, hated the Babylonian prime minister, Haman, and the nation's future was like a wind chime, Mordecai learned of this and said to his adopted daughter Esther, the queen, "If you are to rescue Igurael, you If not, Israel will find salvation and freedom through others, and you and your father's household will perish (Esther 4:14). I hope that I will be able to fulfill my mission well when I have the opportunity.
calling
The text we read today is also the word of this calling and establishment.
When Jesus was on earth, He selected 12 disciples to thoroughly educate and train them. But one of them betrayed and sold Jesus to make money. Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus, said it was very tragic. The text says that he fell headlong and his boat burst out and died.
Acts 01:18 (This man bought a field with the wages of unrighteousness, and afterward he collapsed, his stomach ruptured, and all his intestines came out.
Judas Iscariot
The reason why he had such a tragic end is that he could not give up his greed for money. He loved money more than Jesus. So I exchanged money with Jesus. Second, he liked the voice of the devil more than the voice of God.
John 13:2 "The devil had already put in the heart of Judas Iscariot the son of Simon the idea to sell Jesus." He could not shake off the evil thoughts the devil gave him, and he stopped accepting them. So he became a traitor.
The devil still tempts us like this. "Money is the best. You have to make money even by using Jesus. It's tiring to follow Jesus and live righteously and righteously! But it is easier and more convenient to use the name of Jesus to earn money and become rich and receive blessings. That's it," he whispers. So many people are making money by selling the name of Jesus.
This society has become a world where people do not trust each other because of evil, but people who still believe will trust each other somehow. So, there are many people who lie and do unclean things with the excuse of believing in Jesus. This is the same behavior as Judas Iscariot, who makes money and rises in the name of Jesus. These people are not disciples of Jesus, but disciples of Judas Iscariot. With your mouth, Lord, Lord, you have already betrayed God. This is something you have to be careful about.
Such Judas Iscariot eventually left the side of Jesus, and even now, those who have such human desires are falling into the world.
Who do you choose?
So, the disciples set out to fill the position of Judas Iscariot. So the lot was cast. Swallowing was common in the Old Testament, but this was the last time in the New Testament. After that, they cast lots and never worked. The principle of casting lots is in Proverbs. Proverbs 16:33 "People cast lots, but it is with the LORD to decide what to do."
Then, what criteria did the disciples choose?
First, he said that we must choose the person who has always been with us.
Acts 01:21-21 "For this reason, from the baptism of John until the day he was taken up from us, when the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, we set up one of those who always accompanied us, so that we may also bear witness to the resurrection of Jesus. I must do it.??So why choose someone who has always been with us?
First, the preaching of the gospel, which the apostles must do from now on, is the role of witnesses of Jesus. A witness cannot be a witness without first-hand experience. That's why I chose someone who looked closely and knew.
Second, Christianity is not a religion of theory. Nor is it idealism. It is based on the atoning act of Jesus Christ coming to this world and carrying the cross. Christianity is the religion that leads to salvation by believing in the atonement of Jesus. Christianity is never about hearing the teachings of Jesus and putting them into practice to receive salvation. That's what other religions in the world do. So, in the religions of the world, precepts are important and practice to live by them is important. But for Christianity, the life of Jesus is more important.
We need to know how the Son Jesus came to this world and took up the cross. To do that, we need to know how he came, how he lived, how he died, and how he was resurrected. And we must know exactly why He came, why He died, and why He was resurrected. The gospel is based on these historical events. So he said that we should choose who was with us.
Dear saints,
God is asking us to do the same now. God requires us to know his personality, to know the meaning of his life, to know and believe in his historical events, and to accept him as Amen. That is why he asks for salvation. And then I am going to tell you the way of salvation that I have received. It is to preach that I have received and experienced peace in Jesus. This is the witness's job.
Second, it is said that they are chosen to preach the resurrection of Jesus. What does it mean to preach the resurrection?
Calvin said, "The resurrection is the gospel." Bengel said, "To preach the resurrection is to believe and preach all the events until the resurrection." So, Christianity is the religion of resurrection, and the saints are witnesses of the resurrection. That is why we, too, must believe and preach the resurrection. However, the event of the Resurrection is by no means an event alone, and there is one mystery, which has the power to change those who believe in it. In other words, those who believe in the resurrection will have the experience of the death of the old person and the resurrection of the new person within. Resurrection faith is neither theory nor knowledge. It is an experience that accompanies inner change. And what we deliver is to continue these changes. I hope that you will have such an amazing event as well, and I hope you will be able to tell it again.
Election of Matthias
Two were nominated, and lots were cast, and Matthias was elected.
Acts 01:23 "They despised two of them: Joseph, who was called Barsaba and his nickname Justus, and Matthias."
Acts 01:26 "They were cast by lot to obtain Matthias, who joined the number of the eleven apostles."
Matthias is named here for a short time, and his name is not mentioned again. Scholars who studied the disciples say that he was martyred in Ethiopia or that he was stoned to death while preaching to the Jews, but there is no exact truth. However, one important fact is that the kingdom of God is taught not only by famous people like Peter and Paul, but also by less famous people like Matthias.