Read a scripture and sing worship songs.

(Optional) Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. He wants all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God and one mediator also between God and man, the man Jesus Christ, who gave himself as a ransom for all. (Philippians 2:11b; 1 Timothy 2:4-6a)

Cast vision for who they can become in Christ or what God can do through them by:

• a scripture that reminds them of the Father’s Heart and of the end vision.
• reflecting on the changes in their life since they started following Christ
• reminding them of what God wants to do through them

Our Vision:  “A church for every village and community, and the gospel for every person.”

Matthias Chosen to Replace Judas

¹² Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day’s walk from the city.¹³ When they arrived, they went upstairs to the room where they were staying. Those present were Peter, John, James and Andrew; Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew; James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James.¹⁴ They all joined together constantly in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.

¹⁵ In those days Peter stood up among the believers (a group numbering about a hundred and twenty)¹⁶ and said, “Brothers and sisters, the Scripture had to be fulfilled in which the Holy Spirit spoke long ago through David concerning Judas, who served as guide for those who arrested Jesus.¹⁷ He was one of our number and shared in our ministry.”

¹⁸ (With the payment he received for his wickedness, Judas bought a field; there he fell headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines spilled out.¹⁹ Everyone in Jerusalem heard about this, so they called that field in their language Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood.)

²⁰ “For,” said Peter, “it is written in the Book of Psalms:

“‘May his place be deserted;
    let there be no one to dwell in it,’

and,

“‘May another take his place of leadership.’

²¹ Therefore it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus was living among us,²² beginning from John’s baptism to the time when Jesus was taken up from us. For one of these must become a witness with us of his resurrection.”

²³ So they nominated two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias.²⁴ Then they prayed, “Lord, you know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two you have chosen²⁵ to take over this apostolic ministry, which Judas left to go where he belongs.”²⁶ Then they cast lots, and the lot fell to Matthias; so he was added to the eleven apostles.

Read More

There were only 120 disciples left together in Jerusalem at this time. Jesus’ mother, brothers and sisters were now included in the list of believers. This story shows that although their names were not listed in the Gospels, there were many others who followed Jesus from the time that He was baptized until He returned to heaven. Jesus selected the initial twelve Apostles from among many possible candidates. The remaining eleven determined that the main criteria of selecting a replacement was the amount of time they had witnessed Jesus’ life and ministry. This is the last time we see the Old Testament way of casting lots being used to make decisions. Jesus never used the casting of lots to discern the Father’s will because He listened to and obeyed the Spirit. After the Spirit is sent, discerning God’s will is done through submitting to and keeping in step with the Spirit.

Practice needed skills or previous topics to help prepare to minister to others:

• Prayer, Care, Share
• Gospel
• Foundational Bible Studies