Acts 1
Acts 1:1-26
1 I wrote the first narrative, Theophilus, about all that Jesus began to do and teach
2 until the day He was taken up, after He had given orders through the Holy Spirit to the apostles He had chosen.
3 After He had suffered, He also presented Himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them during 40 days and speaking about the kingdom of God.
4 While He was together with them, He commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for the Father’s promise. “This,” He said, “is what you heard from Me;
5 for John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”
6 So when they had come together, they asked Him, “Lord, are You restoring the kingdom to Israel at this time?”
7 He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or periods that the Father has set by His own authority.
8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
9 After He had said this, He was taken up as they were watching, and a cloud took Him out of their sight.
10 While He was going, they were gazing into heaven, and suddenly two men in white clothes stood by them.
11 They said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up into heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come in the same way that you have seen Him going into heaven.”
12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called the Mount of Olives, which is near Jerusalem—a Sabbath day’s journey away.
13 When they arrived, they went to the room upstairs where they were staying: Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James.
14 All these were continually united in prayer, along with the women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, and His brothers.
15 During these days Peter stood up among the brothers—the number of people who were together was about 120—and said:
16 “Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled that the Holy Spirit through the mouth of David spoke in advance about Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus.
17 For he was one of our number and was allotted a share in this ministry.”
18 Now this man acquired a field with his unrighteous wages. He fell headfirst and burst open in the middle, and all his insides spilled out.
19 This became known to all the residents of Jerusalem, so that in their own language that field is called Hakeldama (that is, Field of Blood).
20 “For it is written in the Book of Psalms: Let his dwelling become desolate; let no one live in it; and Let someone else take his position.
21 “Therefore, from among the men who have accompanied us during the whole time the Lord Jesus went in and out among us—
22 beginning from the baptism of John until the day He was taken up from us—from among these, it is necessary that one become a witness with us of His resurrection.”
23 So they proposed two: Joseph, called Barsabbas, who was also known as Justus, and Matthias.
24 Then they prayed, “You, Lord, know the hearts of all; show which of these two You have chosen
25 to take the place in this apostolic service that Judas left to go to his own place.”
26 Then they cast lots for them, and the lot fell to Matthias. So he was numbered with the 11 apostles.
For the church to fulfill its mission given to it by Jesus, it would require more than random individuals “following” what they thought was their own personal “leading.” They first united in prayer continually, drawing from a collective acknowledgment of God in the place Jesus had directed them. There was a felt need to reestablish the leadership as Jesus had initiated, adhering to His authority structure to administer something as important as spreading the gospel and making disciples. What they had learned from Him wasn’t just spiritual power, but He had also imparted the practical wisdom for leadership that would be integral to their survival and triumph as His body. He would be able to occupy them as His temple as they were united in His discipline of honor to each other and their collective cause. Because they were in continual deference to what Jesus had already instructed them, they were positioned to receive the power they would need to do much more than just an organization could accomplish. How necessary it is for us to be drawn humbly into this same heart and passion, to conform to what God already has in place and what His plans are for going forward. Personal notions that only make waves and disrupt rather than fulfill and unite will be abandoned where who He is and what He’s won is reflected in who we are. His mission for us will require our joining together to be that temple where His glory is revealed and demonstrated.