Acts 1
v.4-5
On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
v.8
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.
v.11
“Men of Galilee,” they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”
v.14
They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.
Jesus’ promise and encounter with them stirred their community to devote themselves to prayer. Their first response was prayer; it was not spreading the excitement that they had seen their risen Lord from the dead. Fresh on their minds, they knew immediately that the only method to which they could maintain a sweet fellowship with their now invisible Lord was in the place of prayer.
The disciples were men of urgency, mission, excitement, and wonder, yet I believe the Lord provided them a mother to care for them and ensure they were looked after in the hectic sequence of events that just happened.
v.18
(With the reward he got for his wickedness, Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out.
v.24-25
Then they prayed, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen 25to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs.”
Research Lord, you know everyone’s heart.
The Eleven certainly had a legitimate concern. Jesus had promised that the Twelve would “sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel” (Lk 22:30). The situation that confronts them in Acts 1:26 is that now, as they await the inauguration of the mission to the world (Luke explains Pentecost more as empowering for mission than as the beginning of the church), there is a vacant spot. The issue was not that Judas had died. James son of Zebedee would also die, but he would not be replaced (Acts 12:2). The apostles believed in the resurrection of the dead, so in their eyes James was still available to take his place on his throne. Instead, the issue with Judas was that by betraying Jesus he had forfeited his place.
v.26
Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles.
Why casting lots is biblical:
Throughout the Old Testament the lot was the normal means of discerning the divine will when a prophet was not available. It was the means of decision on the Day of Atonement (Lev 16:8) and was how the land had been divided (Josh 18:10. Centuries later, when the returning exiles wanted to know God’s mind, they still used it (Neh 10:34; 11:1). More important than the historical examples are the instructions of Proverbs, which were understood as divine teaching. How could harmony be preserved when there were two contenders? “Casting the lot settles disputes and keeps strong opponents apart” (Prov 18:18). Could the dice really give God’s answer? “The lot is cast into the lap, but its every decision is from the Lord” (Prov 16:33). In other words, since the decision in Acts was not automatic (two men were fully qualified), those gathered in the upper room had every reason in terms of both biblical precedent and biblical teaching to believe that God would make his will known through the lot. There was nothing incorrect in their procedure.
Why we don’t cast lots anymore:
Why, then, is this the last time that we read about the early church using dice? In the next chapter, with the gathering fully organized (all twelve apostles in place), the Holy Spirit falls. The Spirit was also the Spirit of prophecy, whose departure from Israel had left them with only dice as a means through which God might communicate his will. But now in the wake of the coming of Jesus the Spirit is back, not resting only on a few prophets, but on the whole people of God. Many of them received the gift of prophecy. From this point on Acts records prophetic words that explain decisions (for example, “the Spirit told me,” Acts 11:12), indicate people chosen for special roles (Acts 13:2) and apparently lead to consensus (Acts 15:28). In the church empowered by the Spirit, God speaks through that Spirit. It is therefore no wonder that in such a context the lot and similar indirect means of discerning the divine will (such as seeking omens from God like Gideon’s fleece) were relegated to history. We who live in a church still filled with that Spirit can continue to be thankful that due to our direct connection with God we no longer have to copy the means that were necessary for the first ten days of the church after Jesus left.