A Study of Acts: Matthias is Selected
Acts 1:24-26 - Are you a second Judas? It is worth examining your beliefs to see if you are a fair-weather friend of Jesus!
“And they prayed and said, “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all men, show which one of these two You have chosen to occupy this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.” And they drew lots for them, and the lot fell to Matthias; and he was added to the eleven apostles.”
Acts 1:24-26 NASB1995
The group prayed and asked the Lord, who knows the hearts of all men, to show them which one of the two candidates should occupy this ministry in the place of Judas. The Greek word for “knows the hearts” is a unique combination of two Greek nouns. Strong’s G2589 is only used twice in the New Testament: καρδιογνώστης or kardiognṓstēs combines kardia and ginosko.
Here is what Precept Austin says about God knowing our hearts:
What a great but also frightening truth. He knows our hearts better than we know our hearts. He knows when we just have the germ of a sinful thought, even if we do not follow through. Therefore it behooves us to live in the atmosphere of continual confession, daily beseeching Him to disclose to us our hearts (Ps 139:23,24)!
You cannot keep anything from God. He knows your every thought and the direction that your heart is leaning. Is it leaning towards Him or towards worldly sin and pleasures? Do you think thoughts like this meme or do you turn towards God in humility and desperate prayer?
The disciples continue in their prayer and speak about how Judas turned aside from the ministry and apostleship to go to his own place. I am compelled to share this lengthy excerpt from a sermon by Ray Pritchard that can be found on Precept Austin:
Are You a Second Judas? Many years ago I heard an evangelist preach a sermon with the arresting title: “A Second Judas.” It was aimed at church members who were not truly born again. As I recall, he told the story of Judas and then talked about himself—how he had grown up in the church, attended Sunday School for years, gone to a Christian college—and if my memory serves me correctly—had even become a pastor before he realized that he had never truly been born again. He himself had been a second Judas. It was humbling and painful for him to face the fact of his own self-deception, but when he did, he was wonderfully converted by the Spirit of God.
It can happen to any of us. Judas kissed the door of heaven but went to hell. Jesus picked him as an apostle but he went to hell. He lived with Jesus for three years and still went to hell. He watched Jesus walk on the water and still went to hell. He listened to the Sermon on the Mount and still went to hell. He ate with Jesus, talked with Jesus, walked with Jesus, and listened to Jesus day after day, month after month, year after year. He knew Jesus as well as one has ever known Jesus and still he went to hell. And remember this. None of the disciples suspected him. That’s why he was chosen to be the treasurer. They trusted him to keep their money. Even at the Last Supper, when Jesus identified Judas publicly, they still couldn’t figure it out.
Do you know who is most likely to be a Judas in this church? I am. As the Senior Pastor, I stand in the closest analogy to the place where Judas stood. Someone says, “Surely not you, Pastor.” That’s what they said about Judas. Remember, the shock of Judas’ betrayal was that he looked so good on the outside. If I can tell you this story without searching my own heart, then I have missed the point.
I want you to know that I truly believe in the assurance of salvation through the Word of God and the testimony of the Holy Spirit. I’m not in favor of constant introspection about whether or not you are a Christian. But there is a place for healthy self-examination in the Christian life (cf 2 Corinthians 13:5-+). No one should take for granted his hope of heaven. I wish to say clearly that as I have considered the matter this week, the thought occurs to me that if I am a Christian at all, it is not because I am a pastor, an elder, a church member, a husband, a father, or a doer of good deeds. None of those things matter in the least when it comes to eternal salvation. If I am a Christian at all, it is because I am trusting in Jesus Christ and him alone for the forgiveness of my sins. I’m staking my hope of heaven on the fact that Jesus died for me and rose from the dead. If he can’t take me to heaven, then I’m not going there. Judas does us a favor if his story causes us to rethink our basic commitment to Jesus Christ. You call yourself a Christian. But are you a true follower or are you just going through the motions? Are you a pretender or a true believer? Have you truly turned from your sins and trusted Jesus Christ as Savior? Are you a fair-weather friend of the Savior? [Emphasis from Precept Austin].
These are searching questions that may be easier to ask than to answer. I ask you not to take them lightly. The one main lesson from Judas’ life is lost unless we at least ask ourselves the questions. After all, if one can be an apostle of Christ and still be lost, what about you and what about me? Perhaps we may conclude the matter this way. One apostle was lost, that none should presume. Eleven were saved, that none should despair. In the end, most of us who call ourselves Christians will search our hearts and conclude that Yes, although we fail him in many ways, we do love Jesus and claim him as our Savior. That is as it should be. The story of Judas is in the Bible for many reasons, not the least of which is that before we take anything for granted, we at least ask the question the other apostles asked that fateful night: “Lord, is it I?”
Very sobering commentary! You can probably say that Judas was stubbornly independent, like so many people are today (“I can do whatever I want!”). Judas was in the company of the Savior, yet he still was unmoved deep down inside. I think Ray Pritchard has some good questions that all believers need to ask themselves. Are you a fair-weather friend of Jesus?
Even after their prayers, the group still drew “lots” to pick the name. Matthias is selected. This was a common OT practice that was used in selecting someone for a task. “Lots” comes from the Greek noun κλῆρος or klēros; Strong’s G2819 is used 11 times in the NT and it has the following usages:
an object used in casting or drawing lots, which was either a pebble, or a potsherd, or a bit of wood
the lots of several persons concerned, inscribed with their names, were thrown together into a vase, which was then shaken, and he whose lot fell out first upon the ground was the one chosen
what is obtained by lot, allotted portion
a portion of the ministry common to the apostles
used of the part which one will have in eternal salvation
of salvation itself
the eternal salvation which God has assigned to the saints
of persons
those whose care and oversight has been assigned to one [allotted charge], used of Christian churches, the administration of which falls to the lot of presbyters
This is the last usage of lots in a decision like this in the NT. The Holy Spirit is nigh! He will guide decisions from this point forward.
Oh, and here’s what is known about Matthias, from Gotquestions.org:
Matthias, short for the name Mattathias, means “gift of Yahweh.” This meaning is fitting, for Matthias became one of the Twelve, replacing Judas after that disciple’s betrayal of Jesus.
…
After praying together, the disciples cast lots to discern who the chosen man would be, and the lot fell to Matthias. Trusting that God’s hand was in these proceedings, the other apostles received Matthias as the replacement for Judas (Acts 1:24–26). Nothing else is known of Matthias; he is not mentioned again in the Bible.
Various traditions have developed to fill in the details of the future ministry of Matthias. One says that Matthias evangelized in Ethiopia, where he was martyred. Another says that Matthias traveled to Damascus and later died in Judea. A third tradition says that Matthias spent most of his time in Jerusalem, where he eventually died. It’s impossible for us to know the truth regarding Matthias’s later ministry, since the Bible does not give us any information about him after his selection to the Twelve.
There’s not a lot of information about several of the original 12 disciples after Jesus ascends, so Matthias is not alone in this respect. Some Biblical critics have said that the decision should have waited until after the Holy Spirit arrived and Paul would have been a likely candidate to be the twelfth disciple. However, I like this commentary from Enduring Word:
And the lot fell on Matthias: Some insist that Matthias was the wrong choice and the use of lots in making the decision was not right. The idea is that God would have eventually chosen Paul if the office had been left vacant. But we must respect the testimony of the Scriptures; God did not want to leave the office vacant. If it were left unfilled, it might be seen as a victory for Satan; as if Jesus chose 12, but one came up short and therefore Satan defeated Jesus’ desire to have 12 apostles.
Even though we read nothing more of Matthias, we should not assume he was a failure as an apostle. Except for Peter and John, none of the original twelve are mentioned again after Acts 1. Matthias was no more of a failure than Matthew or Andrew or Thomas or any of the others.
As for Paul, he clearly considered himself an apostle, but one born out of due time (1 Corinthians 15:8). It doesn’t seem that he objected to the selection of Matthias.
Revelation 21:14 brings up an interesting question. It tells us that each of the twelve foundations of the New Jerusalem has the name of one of the twelve apostles of the Lamb. When we get to heaven, it will be interesting to see if the twelfth apostle of the Lamb is Paul or Matthias.
These verses end the first chapter of Acts. My next devotional will examine Acts 2:1-4 - Filled with the Holy Spirit!
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord - I humbly beseech You to look on this miserable sinner with Your Grace and clean my hearts and thoughts! Amen!
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
The Blue Letter Bible was accessed on 7/18/2024 to review the Greek lexicon for knows the hearts and lots.
Precept Austin was accessed on 7/18/2024 to review commentary for Acts 1:24-26.
Gotquestions.org was accessed on 7/18/2024 to answer the question, “Who was Matthias?”
Commentary from Enduring Word by David Guzik is used with written permission.