Acts (2)

Be sure to view the video introducing our study of Acts by clicking here.

Read and meditate on Acts 1.24-26.
Here’s a second facet of the waiting which the disciples engaged in for ten days: They took care of the business immediately at hand, as the Word of God directed. There’s always something to do in seeking the Kingdom, even if it’s some mundane detail like “officer elections.” We must not despise the details of obedience. Whatever the Lord shows us to do, we must do it at once, and with excellence.

For reflection
1.  Casting lots here may have been something like raising your hands. A lot was just a share or portion, and it seems everybody present had one. So they cast theirs, maybe into the hat marked “Joseph” or the one marked “Matthias.” How does such a mundane activity fit into the work Jesus is doing at the Father’s right hand?

2.  Only two men met the qualifications for apostleship which all the other apostles shared in common. Matthias wins, and that’s the last we’ll hear of him. But this action mattered. The Church has to be “in order” to do its work (Titus 1.5), and that order must follow the prescriptions of the apostles, as they followed the Scriptures and the Lord. How confident are you that your church is “in order” like this?

3.  This bit of preparation of the leaders of the people of God nicely parallels what we see in Joshua 1.10-18, where Joshua preps Israel’s officers and tribal heads for their entry into the land of promise. I’m struck by how many times Luke does this, creating a kind of “remake” of the conquest of the land in the record of the initial unfolding of the Kingdom of God. Can it be helpful to think of our own lives and callings in such a light? Explain?

4.  How attentive are you to the “everyday details” of ordering every aspect of your life for the Kingdom of God? Seeking the Kingdom of God is not the first priority of our lives among many. It’s the first priority in everything. Explain

5.  What “little things” are facing you today? How do these have potential for displaying and advancing the Kingdom of God? Will you wait on the Lord for His Kingdom to come in and through you today?

Summary
The Kingdom of God comes through daily obedience, even – indeed, especially – in areas of our lives that aren’t particularly “flashy” or spectacular. The Kingdom comes like light, salt, and leaven. How will it come in and through you today?

Closing Prayer
I will wash my hands in innocence;
So I will go about Your altar, O LORD,
That I may proclaim with the voice of thanksgiving,
And tell of all Your wondrous works.
LORD, I have loved the habitation of Your house,
And the place where Your glory dwells.
Do not gather my soul with sinners,
Nor my life with bloodthirsty men,
In whose hands is a sinister scheme,
And whose right hand is full of bribes.
But as for me, I will walk in my integrity;
Redeem me and be merciful to me.
My foot stands in an even place;
In the congregations I will bless the LORD.

Psalm 26.6-12

T. M. Moore

Each week’s studies in Acts are bound together into a free PDF that you can download for personal or group use (click here). Each week also features a video related to the studies of the week, which you may find helpful as you work through our studies Acts.

Acts is the record of Christ’s ongoing work as King and Lord. For more insight to His work in our here and now, order the book, The Kingship of Jesus, from our online store by clicking here.

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