BEHIND THE SCENES
Part 1
Acts 1:15-26
Certain followers of Christ are well known to others. We all know of the great work that God did through Peter, John and the rest of the Apostles. We know the names of great men of God like Paul, Silas, Barnabas, Mark & Luke. We often reference such men as Charles Spurgeon, John Wesley, D.L Moody and others. Even in our generation we have been blessed by the service of men like: Adrian Rogers, Charles Stanley, J. Vernon McGee, Billy Graham and John Macarthur.
We are indebted to many well-known men and women who have served the church throughout its history. However, some of the greatest servants of God are unknown to most of the world. There are many faithful Christians who work behind the scenes whose work is invaluable. I am referring to servants of God who do things that few people (if anyone at all) ever notices. These are people who labor fervently, serve consistently and witness boldly without any fanfare, recognition or attention. Our church is blessed with many people who fit this description, and they are no less important to the kingdom work than the men who pastor mega churches. In fact, some of them may have a greater pile of crowns waiting for them in Heaven than some ministry leaders who are known all over the world.
We know the names of the Lord’s Apostles. We read of their devotion to Christ and they work for the Kingdom of God. Several of them were used of God to pen a Gospel account or write an Epistle. Some of these men were not as well-known as Peter, James John and Andrew but their service is just as important. The Gospels tell of their labor for the Lord and the work that they accomplished in His name. But there were others who traveled with Jesus throughout His earthly ministry who were rarely mentioned, there are others whose names are even not recorded, but they are important nonetheless. Two of those followers are about to step out from the shadows and their testimonies will be featured in our selected text; their names are Justus & Matthias. The Apostles would choose one of these two men to replace Judas Iscariot and become an Apostle of Christ.
At this point the Lord’s Apostles are gathered in the upper room with certain other Christians praying together and waiting for the arrival of the Holy Spirit. This beautiful scene of prayer and unity is the setting for the first church business meeting. This assembly of 120 followers of Christ joined together to seek the will of the Lord. The main point of business was to select someone to replace Judas Iscariot. Judas was not replaced because he had died; he was replaced because he had betrayed the Savior and departed the ministry. As the Apostles spent time in prayer and waiting for the Holy Spirit, they sought the Lord’s guidance and made preparations for the future. This shows us that waiting for God does not mean being idle. As we prepare for a great move of God, there is plenty that we can do, however we must seek God’s face and ensure that we do not get ahead of Him or go in a different direction than He would have us to go.
Peter stood up and addressed this assembly. He referenced the dastardly acts of Judas and using scripture proposed that they select someone to fill the position of Apostle.
v15 And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples (altogether the number of names was about a hundred and twenty), and said, 16 "Men and brethren, this Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke before by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus; 17 for he was numbered with us and obtained a part in this ministry." 18 (Now this man purchased a field with the wages of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his entrails gushed out. 19 And it became known to all those dwelling in Jerusalem; so that field is called in their own language, Akel Dama, that is, Field of Blood.) 20 “For it is written in the book of Psalms: 'Let his dwelling place be desolate, And let no one live in it'; and, 'Let another take his office.'
In this address, Peter reminded the people that the Old Testament predicted that the Messiah would be betrayed. This prophecy was fulfilled when Judas betrayed Christ for 30 Pieces of silver. Judas had been called to be a Disciple; he traveled with Jesus and His followers up until the night before His crucifixion. But a few days earlier, this deceiver sought out the enemies of Christ and agreed to betray Him. After Jesus had prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane, Judas arrived with a band of soldiers and betrayed the Savior with a kiss. Jesus was then seized, arrested, tried and crucified. Judas regretted what he had done, so much so that he attempted to return the blood money that he had received. After this, he went out and hanged himself. The chief priests took the money that Judas tried to return and bought a burial ground with it. Luke declares that Judas “purchased a field with the wages of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his entrails gushed out. And it became known to all those dwelling in Jerusalem; so that field is called in their own language, Akel Dama, that is, Field of Blood.” It is believed that after Judas hung himself, the rope or the branch of the tree broke and Judas fell on the rocks below and his corpse burst open.
Peter explained to the assembly Judas’ betrayal is what David was referring to in Psalm 69:25 when he said “Let his dwelling place be desolate, and let no one live in it.”. He then referenced Psalm 109:8 that says “Let another take his office”. Peter understood this to mean that after Judas’s defection, a replacement must be appointed to fill his office.
The Apostles selected two men who had been with them throughout the ministry of Jesus. They had seen Him after His resurrection and were present for His ascension. After this, they prayed and asked God to reveal who He would have to serve as an Apostle. Though there were two men who essentially became “finalists” for this position, it appears that there were several who met the required qualifications. This means that there were people behind the scenes who were faithful to Jesus throughout His ministry that we know nothing about.
The same is true today; God has many servants who are faithfully serving Him with little to no recognition. You may be one of those people, if so, let me remind you that God sees and will reward every deed done in His name. I would like to look at the stories of Justus and Matthias and see what we can learn about those servants of God who work “Behind The Scenes”
- The first thing that we will see is that:
I. THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE BEHIND THE SCENES
WHO WALK WITH JESUS
v21 “Therefore, of these men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us,
The man who would be chosen to be an Apostle had to have accompanied the Disciples from the very beginning of Christ’s ministry. This man had to have seen what the rest of the Apostles had seen and heard what they had heard. He had to be someone who was an eyewitness to the miracles of Jesus, one who heard the teachings of Jesus, one who had seen the evidence of His resurrection and who had been present at His ascension.
Like the original 12, Justus and Matthias had surrendered all and followed Jesus. They were men who possessed a personal relationship with the Savior. They had walked with Him, talked with Him and learned from Him. The people who serve behind the scenes in the church today have a similar testimony. They are born again believers who have repented and surrendered their life to Christ. They walk with Him, learn from Him and live for Him.
- As we move further we will see that:
II. THERE ARE SOME PEOPLE BEHIND THE SCENES
WHO ARE WITNESSES OF JESUS
v21 “Therefore, of these men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22 beginning from the baptism of John to that day when He was taken up from us, one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection."
Matthias and Justus had participated in Jesus’ earthly ministry. They were witnesses of His life and they were witnesses of His resurrection. It was important that they had seen Christ post-resurrection because they would travel the earth sharing the good news that Jesus is alive. Peter said “one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection." Notice that:
A. WITNESSES OF JESUS HAVE HEARD HIS WORDS
When Jesus preached the Sermon on the Mount, Matthias was there; when He delivered the Olivet Discourse, Matthias was in attendance. He was present on many of those occasions when Jesus confronted the Pharisees and Sadducees. He was also privy to the intimate conversations that Jesus had with His followers when the multitudes were not present.
The people who serve behind the scenes in the church today know the Word of God. They spend time in the scriptures and they learn from the words of the Savior. These people may not be well known to the rest of the world or even to others within the church, but they walk with Jesus, and they know His Word.
- We also see that:
B. WITNESSES OF JESUS HAVE SEEN HIS WORKS
Matthias was privileged to see the many miracles of Jesus. He saw things that we can only read about. He witnessed Him give the blind their sight; make the deaf to hear, the mute to speak and the lame to walk. He saw Jesus cleanse lepers, cast out demons and it is likely that he ate of the bread and fish that Jesus multiplied as He fed the multitudes.
Those who serve behind the scenes in the church today have seen the miracle working power of God. They have seen answered prayers and they may have even experienced miracles in their own lives. Because of what they have seen and heard from Jesus, they are able to witness to others about His wonder working power. Those who work behind the scenes are people who walk with Jesus, they are witnesses of Jesus and they are people who work for Jesus.
Matthias was just as involved in the Great Commission as Peter, James and John. In fact, history tells us that this man served Jesus to the point of martyrdom.
Like Matthias and the rest of the Apostles, there are people in the church who have spent considerable time with Jesus and they consistently share Him with others. This should be the case for every born again believer. We should all abide in Christ and we should tell the world about Him. Those servants who walk with Jesus and work for Jesus will one day be rewarded by Jesus.
Eventually, it was Matthias who was chosen to replace Judas and to serve the Lord as an Apostle. He spent the rest of his life serving Jesus and sharing the good news of the Resurrected Christ. One day, Matthias will receive eternal rewards for his faithful service. That is true for all genuine servants of Christ. Whether you serve out front or behind the scenes, whether you are in the spotlight or in the shadows, God sees and will reward every deed that is done in His name. Let me encourage you to remember who you serve and why you do what you do. In the end He will reward your faithfulness!
Sometimes, the area of service that God has chosen for us is one that is “behind the scenes”. There is much that we can learn from these men who served behind the scenes. Like Mathias and Justus We must walk with Jesus, we must be witnesses of Jesus, we must labor for Jesus, and one day we will be rewarded by Jesus. The church is indebted to those who are faithful to serve “Behind The Scenes”
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