Please stand then for the call to worship. From 1 Corinthians 15 verses 26 to 28, Paul wrote, The last enemy that will be destroyed is death, for he has put all things under his feet. But when he says all things are put under him, it is evident that he who put all things under him is accepted. Now, when all things are made subject to him, that is to Christ, then the Son himself will also be subject to him who put all things under him, that God may be all in all. Beloved of God, called to be saints, grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. And let us pray together. O Heavenly Father, we thank you for your faithfulness. You are indeed the God of our salvation. There is no other hope for us except in the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the one who has even destroyed death by his perfect righteousness, his obedience, his sacrifice on the cross, and his resurrection from the dead as he has won the victory. Yes, all things are being brought more and more unto his feet, even as sinners are turned to Christ in true conversion. And we pray that we would more and more be your witnesses, O Lord our God. We long for that last day when Christ will come again in his majesty and his glory, and all things will be brought under the ultimate rule of God, and there will be no question about that. But all will have to submit to Christ, whether willingly or unwillingly, but there will be the new heaven and earth where all your people will dwell with you in perfection Oh yes, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, we long for that, and we pray that more and more we would be thankful people serving you in this sin-cursed world. Turn us away from our sins. We acknowledge that we have broken your laws in so many ways, in thought, word, and deed, and yet you are the God of grace and comfort, peace, salvation through Jesus. And so we praise you. Turn us from our sins and lead us in your paths. May you be honored, our God, even in our worship service. May we hear you and respond to your word and in all things seek your glory. Again, forgive our sins and guide us as we pray it all and that our worship would be fitting in your sight as we pray it through Christ our Lord in his name. Amen. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost. as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end. Amen. Amen. And let us again confess the true Christian faith with the words of the Apostles' Creed, saying, I believe in God the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, And in Jesus Christ, his only begotten son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead, and buried. He descended into hell. The third day he rose from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sitteth at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From there he shall come to judge the living and the dead, I believe in the Holy Ghost, the Holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen. You may be seated. Now let's turn to our first hymn, 283, Alleluia, Alleluia. Sing Jesus Christ, the King of Glory, will be risen from the dead. of the holy harvest field. We shall harvest from the harvest at his second coming yield. Then the rumen ears of harvest will bear Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia, alleluia. Of course it will be to the praise of the triune God forever what he has done in the Lord Jesus bringing salvation to his people by his righteousness, his death, and his resurrection. Psalter reading today is number 13, Psalm 13, page 790. Psalm 13, the Psalm of David. How long, O Lord, will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long shall I take counsel of my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? How long will my enemy be exalted over me? Consider and hear me, O Lord, my God. Enlighten my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death. Lest my enemy say, I have prevailed against him. Bless those who trouble me. Rejoice when I am moved. But I have trusted in your mercy. My heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord because he has dealt bountifully with me. David, as you know, had many troubles and enemies and he was persecuted in many ways and he could say, cry out to God as he did for his help. And the Lord did answer him, delivered him from death so many times, even when he was pursued by Saul and so forth. We are always to say we have trusted in God's mercy, and that must be the reality in our lives, in our hearts, so we can rejoice in salvation, even looking to eternal life with God through the grace of Jesus Christ. Now, Belger Confession reading today, Article 10, page 877. Again, Article 9, we went through that, and 8, it talked about God being one in essence, but three in persons. Now, particularly in Article 10, Jesus Christ is true and eternal God. We believe that Jesus Christ, according to his divine nature, is the only begotten Son of God, begotten from eternity, not made nor created, for then he would be a creature. But coessential and coeternal with the Father, the very image of His substance and the effulgence of His glory, equal unto Him in all things. He is the Son of God, not only from the time that He assumed our nature, but from all eternity, as these testimonies, when compared together, teach us. Moses says that God created the world, and St. John says that all things were made by that word which he calls God. The apostle says that God made the world by His Son. Likewise, that God created all things by Jesus Christ. Therefore, it must needs follow that he who is called God, the Word, the Son, and Jesus Christ did exist at that time when all things were created by him. Therefore, the prophet Micah says, his goings forth are from old, from everlasting. An apostle he hath neither beginning of days nor end of life. He therefore is that true. true, eternal, and almighty God, whom we invoke, worship, and serve. Again, the true faith believes in the Trinity, calls upon Him as the one we know who has created and brought redemption to His people. Christ is eternal God, even though we call Him the Son of God. Obviously, that means yet that He is not created, He is not Does not have a beginning point in time or it would not be God and he has to be God in the flesh to be our Redeemer He shows the very image of God in perfection. Yes of the same essence co-eternal with the Father and Yeah, the Bible is quite clear on it. Really we don't have to give an inch on saying it's not, even in the Old Testament, as well as in the New. The Triune God is proclaimed in so many ways, even as in Micah 5, when it told that Jesus would come, the Messiah would come to Bethlehem. It says, His goings forth are from old, from everlasting. He's the Eternal One. And not having beginning of days or end of life, that is even in the figure of Melchizedek. That's from Hebrews 7, where it speaks of that one. simply because that person in the Old Testament, there was no record of his parentage and so forth, no record of his beginning or end of life. And the writer of Hebrews says that is a picture of an image of pointing forward to the real one, Christ, God in the flesh, the eternal one, who is the Redeemer we must depend upon. And yes, his sacrifice alone can save. And so we invoke, we call upon, we worship, we serve him. in all gratitude. May the Lord so help us to be his witnesses always. Again, because our God is so good and glorious, the triune God, he calls us to worship him and he invites us to do that and calls upon us to pray to him as the chief part of our thankfulness. So let us pray together. Truly, our God, you are the glorious one, one God in three persons, eternal God. You have made all things for your glory, and that is only fitting and right. You made us in your image. How amazing! Even though Christ is the image of God in perfection, yes, we are in a lesser sense to reflect you and to give you honor and praise. We're made even as spiritual beings, and we have a sense of Morality and rationality, and yes, eternity is in our hearts, and certainly that all people will exist for eternity. We pray that we would show our gratitude now as we look unto the Savior, Jesus, as we depend upon him, as we want to be your witnesses and point others to the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the one who was crucified and risen from the dead, who rules in heaven. He does all things well, and so we thank you for such assurance, oh Lord our God. Again, with that confidence in you, we pray that we would show gratitude, we would be turned away from our sins more and more, following your paths of righteousness. Help us to hear your word even this day and help me to proclaim it, that you would be honored in our midst. Certainly we ask that you would be glorified and that you would see fit to build us up in faith and new service to you. Guide us as a congregation, again, as families and individuals. Be with the officers in the congregation, that we would all be faithful to you and seek your will. Guide us even in our meetings, as with the Consistory meeting tomorrow, that we would seek your glory, O Lord, and the good of your people, that you would direct us by your wisdom. Be with the Synod meeting coming up, and a week from tomorrow, you would guide our denomination, certainly. that we would give you honor, O Lord, and submit ourselves to your word and its principles in all things. Again, we thank you for answering prayers in so many ways, and we ask you to continue to do that with Zach and Alicia and Elijah and Matthew, and bless them. We pray that the treatments that would at last be the final for that next week from tomorrow, and may they be effective, the radiation she's to have, that the tumor would be not only diminished, but gone, and that you would direct for the future, leave any pain and discomfort at this time that she has, and that you would direct to Heavenly Father again for your glory and for their good. We do cry out to you for Erin and Paul and children. We ask for your mercies, O Lord. We thank you that there is a medical treatment. We pray that it will be effective. We would not have too much fluid around her lung, causing any difficulty with breathing, and tumors might be shrunk, not enlarging in any way, but I do pray that you would guide and direct, that you would provide for good results in all these things and other treatments ongoing, that you would receive the glory, oh Lord, our God. I do pray for your mercies there. Give wisdom and guidance for all that is done. May they all have your grace and spirit to give the comfort that you can provide and that you do for your people. Again, with Lee Johnson, may he recover from the stroke, with him and his family, and others we think of with health needs. mother that she would trust in you in going to the assisted living. Thank you that it is a good place for her to be and that you'll guide even with the meals and all, and certainly with the socialization. And thank you that she has at least a good friend there direct for your glory and her good in that way. But Nath and Rochelle, thank you. They are recovering from COVID symptoms and bless them and certainly with the pregnancy that all would proceed according to your marvelous will. Guide and direct us, we thank you for the rain you provided, and we pray we'll continue to do that, especially in areas that need it most. And in good measure, O Lord, you would show your goodness in that way. We do pray for these Supreme Court justices, even with the leak of the draft against Roe v. Wade, we pray that that would be reality soon. They would come with their final decision, and you would end that scourge upon our land, at least at the federal level. protect them from any, certainly any violence and other evil done by protesters who want to maintain the requirement that there not be any restriction on abortion. We do pray for your mercy, heavenly father, you would guide and protect and provide for the unborn in this land and other nations that we would not be like some of the most evil nations on earth who allow for abortion even up to the moment of birth and even after that the life is not being protected in some places, Colorado law and elsewhere. Just pray and crowd to you for a great return to you, oh Lord, your word would be heard and sinners would not be able to reject it and suppress the truth and unrighteousness and evil of such things. other evil matters in our land, O Lord. We do pray for great repentance and revival, certainly. We do pray for our home and foreign missions with those in Philippines and Africa. Bless them, Heavenly Father. Do be with all our mission works here. Be with established churches, such as Grace Reformed at Yuba City. Be with Reverend Powell, Reverend Sam Powell. May they serve you there, O Lord, our God. Garner and show your goodness to that church also and that class's care for them. Fellow believers certainly in the Ukraine and elsewhere, they suffer. May they look unto you and see your provisions for them as well. May we all stand for you and speak the truth even to persecutors. Many would be turned to Christ. Do pray for the student Amanda in Sri Lanka and ask for your guidance for that country and elsewhere where there are Even shortages now already of food and fuel and so forth, may they depend upon you and again bring great reawakening in those lands. Help us to truly hear your word and rely upon it at all times. Again, help me to proclaim it and that you would build us up, turn us to your ways of righteousness, cleanse us from all our evils, and may we be glad in the Lord and serve you in all things of life. we do pray for your glory through Christ our Lord in his holy name. Amen. So let's turn that to hymn number 342. Christ has made the sure foundation as we'll stand to sing. Christ is made the sure foundation, Christ the head and cornerstone, Chosen of the lowly and precious, Binding all the church in one. Holy Zion's home forever, of the Conference alone. O that dedicated city, dearly loved of God on high, in exultant jubilation pours perpetual melody. God, the One and Three, adoring in glad hymns eternally, to this temple where we call Thee, come, O Lord, of hosts, today. With Thy wanted lovingkindness, Hear Thy people as they pray, And Thy fullest benediction, Shed within its walls away. Here vouchsafe to all thy servants what they ask of thee to gain, what they gain from thee forever with the blessed to retain, and hereafter in thy glory evermore with thee to reign. Lord and honor to the Father, Lord and honor to the Son, Lord and honor to the Spirit, ever free and ever one. Scripture passage for the sermon today is Acts 1 15 to 26. In Acts 1, starting at verse 15. And in those days, Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, altogether the number of names was about 120, and said, 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. For he was numbered with us and obtained a part in this ministry 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 and it became known to all those dwelling in Jerusalem. So that field is called in their own language, a Keldama, that is field of blood. 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. Therefore, of these men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 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. And they proposed to Joseph called Barsabbas, who was surnamed Justice, and Matthias. And they prayed and said, You, O Lord, who know the hearts of all, show which of these two you have chosen to take part in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas, by transgression, fell, that he might go to his own place. And they cast their lots, and the lot fell on Matthias, and he was numbered with the eleven apostles." Now, of course, there are many things that the disciples and apostles learned from Jesus during the three years of ministry that he had with them, yet much they still did not understand. And he said, even as we've seen before on the night in which he was betrayed, that he still had many things to say to them, but they could not bear such with their sorrow at his leaving them. And so Jesus promised the Holy Spirit would guide them into all truth when he had come in fullness. However, Jesus did teach them, in the beginning of this chapter we see, things pertaining to the kingdom of God during the 40 days after his resurrection. Now, we don't have indication of all that Jesus declared to them. Still, they learned at that time through those days, and the Holy Spirit was leading in ways even before Pentecost, certainly. That is evident in our passage. For Peter spoke of the plan of God, even that Judas Iscariot was the betrayer foretold in scripture, and he must be replaced among the apostles. Clearly, the apostles in the early church were learning more of God's will. And with all the learning of different subjects in this world, this is the most important of all, clearly, that is they were learning further as we must, you and I must, in knowing the way of salvation and how we must follow our Lord, trusting in Him. And so, dear ones, here we can learn more as to why there had to be 12 apostles. Secondly, the warning against sin and apostasy. And third, the necessary witness to Christ. Indeed, the occasion here was during the 10 days between our Lord's Ascension and Pentecost, and Peter stood up to make this motion. As one said, he did not just sit there as one giving a law or having supremacy over others. No, he stood to speak, and the motion was to replace Judas Iscariot. For there had to be 12 apostles again. Why? Simply because Jesus sent them to Israel. Yes, as for the first apostles, they were sent to the lost sheep of Israel, not to the Gentiles. Jesus said that when he sent them out, not at that time during his ministry on earth. And the Lord said to them in Luke 22, 29 and 30, I bestow upon you a kingdom, just as my father bestowed one upon me, that you may sit on thrones judging the 12 tribes of Israel. Well, that was the promise to the group of the apostles and yet Judas had deserted his position. But I said the return of having 12 of them would show that witness to Jesus as the Messiah for the Jews was to continue after his resurrection. And so certainly the correspondence between the Lord's 12 ambassadors and to have them go to the 12 tribes is what Christ had in mind. And I think he probably gave direction about that, plainly, about this replacement of Judas during the 40 days. Though Jesus was rejected by most of the Jews, salvation would still go to Israel according to God's grace, according to his plan of salvation. Yes, the good news would go to them as a people. And those who would believe on Jesus were true Israelites. Also, beloved, remember that before Christ lived on earth, clearly numerous Old Testament passages were already recognized by the Jews as pointing to the Messiah. For example, Psalm 2 and Psalm 110, they were seen that way, going beyond King David as the Christ was the Lord's only begotten Son and the Lord to sit at God's right hand. And here Peter knew the Psalms that he quotes in verse 20 were ultimately of Christ's enemies, not merely David's, though David was the author speaking of his enemies first in his time. Truly scripture foretold and had to be fulfilled regarding Judas because he belonged to the 12 and he had part in the ministry of apostleship, which Jesus had instituted. Again, you see there had to be 12 of them at this beginning as they were sent to Israel. And so Peter spoke for that in the midst of the disciples. By the way, that's the word that we have in our text from the Greek word for learner as we find it here. However, the more common Greek text has the word for brothers, brothers, normally for men. And it just could be the men counting them for the 120 in number. Of course, one said in their laws that is said to be the minimum of Jewish men needed to form a separate community with their own council of leaders. In any case, the church was called together, obviously, when they had an important matter to deal with as here. Along with that, it is the same in the various Greek texts in verse 16, as our translation has it, that Peter addressed men and brethren, literally, two words for that, andres and adelphoi, men and brethren. And those words being only males, only males, literally. For they would choose a possible successor to Judas. And that is one of the places where most Archdiocese ministers and elders recognize biblical guidance for men voting in the congregation, as for church officers. The women, no doubt, were also there, as they were in verse 14, just before this, but the men were to make that decision in view. And so they were addressed by Peter in that way. Anyway, we clearly learned here why there had to be 12 apostles as with the 12 tribes. And that was also required for apostasy made a vacancy. Now it could have certainly distressed the believers very much to have one chosen to the high position of apostle to fall so terribly in a brief period of time. And with Judas doing that, By his sin of betraying the Lord, his share had to be taken over by another according to God's plan, as the scriptures indicated. For again, verses 20 of one's place being desolate and another taking his position, that speaks of apostasy and the enemy utterly falling away from the truth and right living. That only happened with Judas. you know, out of all the apostles. And so it made a vacancy among them. It was not the same as when, you know, a mere death of an apostle. Therefore, when James was wrongly executed in chapter 12, there was no thought of replacing him. Yet the Old Testament prophecies confirmed this action regarding Judas. Still again, the basic reason for it was to have 12 apostles as witnesses to the 12 tribes or remainder of the Jews after the Old Testament times of exile. And for that witness, well, it was to be seen at the beginning of the New Testament church, pointed to true Israel as followers of Jesus. Well, you may not have heard it, but some have claimed the early church was wrong. Wrong to pick another here. And they should have waited for God's choice of Paul as the 12th apostle. But Paul had not spent the years described with Jesus in verses 21 and 22. But some of those people also say, well, those two men, Joseph and Matthias, were not heard of again. And that should show the wrongness of the church here. And yet, truth is, only Peter, James, and John are spoken of again in Acts, besides Paul, as apostles. Only them. There's others, Philip and Stephen as deacons, they were. In any case, I think it's, you know, it's really a silly argument that the church was not led to do this. to fill the vacancy as linked to the Jews. And Luke clearly, certainly presents it as rightly done. Rightly done. Also, beloved, remember how Paul was unique as an apostle. He said it in 1 Corinthians 15, 8, that he saw Christ resurrected as one born out of due time, as he saw Jesus even from heaven. And so as from a commentator, Paul would have dismissed as preposterous that he was rightfully the 12th apostle in the way that the 11 were. For he was the apostle to the Gentiles by Christ's command. Well, Matthias was numbered or enrolled with the other 11 at this time after God's choice was perfectly clear, declared to them with the lot And so I said, the church cannot be said to have elected him. It was God's choice, plainly made. And yes, beloved, we are to learn with the early church. Clearly we are. We're to learn that there are, as here, decisions for us to make in all of life. Of course there are. And yet we cannot decide to do anything contrary to God's will as we find it in His Word. We're not free to do that. Of course not. His Word is truth. And anything opposing it is not to be done by us or anyone. So we're to learn as with them. Let us also further learn with the warning against sin and apostasy. Again, Peter mentioned that scripture had to be fulfilled, verse 16, but the passages are not in our text immediately. For verses 18 and 19 are a parenthesis, as we have it in our text, a parenthesis by Luke. They're not part of Peter's speech, but explain what happened with Judas, explaining it to Gentiles, not of Jerusalem. For verse 19, when he says, it became known to all those dwelling in Jerusalem, That would not fit as with the hearers at this time. They would all know how Judas had died, and in their own language would not be used with the Jews present, as it was their language. They knew what akeldama meant. But as for the warning, let us each consider it from what Judas did. Yes, in verse 18 we read that he purchased a field with the wages of iniquity. But as Calvin said, Judas really sold his apostle ship for the 30 pieces of silver he received. Matthew 16, 15 tells of that. And in Matthew 26 and 27, we find the record of how Judas received that money from the chief priests of Israel. Perhaps that traitor was disappointed that he had not gotten more money through his theft of the group's funds As he was accustomed to do that deal Or disappointed that Jesus was not appearing as a revolutionary against Rome Or he just saw that Christ was opposed by the Jewish leaders, and he feared to be one of his Followers anymore, and he would get what he could out of it At any rate, his sin, whatever motivated him, led Judas on to fall away from Christ completely, to apostatize. That's the warning, the warning against apostasy that the scriptures give to us, to all those professing faith. They warn you and me, all confessing Christ, to turn away from such. Never turn away from Jesus Christ, whatever happens to you. Well, though he apostatized in betraying the Lord, Matthew 27, 3 records that Judas saw Jesus was condemned by the Sanhedrin, and then he was remorseful. He felt bad. He felt terrible. Of course, that was worldly sorrow, even shame, but it was not repentance. He didn't truly turn away from his sins and cry out to God for mercy. Rather, he threw the silver coins into the temple and he went out and hung himself. There in Matthew, we also read how the chief priest said, well, that money, it's not lawful to put that back into the temple treasury, where they got it from, evidently. They said it was the price of blood. And it was indeed used for betrayal of innocent blood, Christ's blood, which they did not face as he's the innocent one. Instead, they bought a potter's field outside of Jerusalem in which to bury strangers. And for that reason, Matthew says, it was called the field of blood with such burials there. And yet that apostle also declares that their actions fulfilled Zechariah 11, Jeremiah 19 regarding 30 pieces of silver thrown to the potter in Zechariah and a field for burial south of Jerusalem in Jeremiah. Why? Because of the wickedness of the elders and the priests even then who rejected God and were killing innocent people. Well, likewise, it was centuries later when the leaders rejected Jesus, obviously, and when they crucified him. Indeed, it was the money of Judas as they saw it. And so this field was bought in his name, as it were, though he did not purchase it directly. And here Luke's description that Judas fell headlong is certainly not clear. It can seem different from Matthew, as he is plainly said to have hanged himself there. By the way, there's a tradition that Judas swelled up probably after death. But in any case, it could be that his hanged body was decomposing and fell on the field they bought when the rope broke. Again, it could be considered his field. And so it was a field of blood because of his fall there. And as purchased with the price of Christ's blood, the one who went to the cross to save sinners. What happens in all of this explanation, there is no real contradiction between Acts and Matthew, of course. The important thing is that what Judas did and the priest did is an awful warning against sin and the worst sin of apostasy, rejecting Jesus Christ. Therefore, let us each heed the warnings of scripture in every form. That is, let each one turn quickly away from our sins whenever you and I commit them. May no one be hardened in heart against the only Savior, Jesus. Let us instead repent continually and trust and serve Him gladly. Yes, that warning is also most clear from the foretold result. It was the Valley of Hinnom, south of Jerusalem, foretold for burial because of the killing of innocent ones in Jeremiah 19. And as it said there, that included the burning of their sons for offerings to Baal. And I say it's undeniable that the abortion of many children in our own land and others is a parallel to that, sacrificing their children. And so, yes, may Roe v. Wade be overturned at last. For you know that decision has been a most horrid shame to our land for 49 years plus. Well, here the term for a Keldama or field of blood was an ongoing shame to Judas and the priests of Israel as purchased with the price of Christ's innocent blood. And also, well, the two quotations in verse 20 regard judgment on wicked people who hate a godly person without a cause. Of course, Jesus said that was him. Those wicked people in that contemporary setting were wicked ones against King David. And yet the godly man so persecuted was, quote, seen by Jesus and the early church as typifying the Messiah, rightly said. And the first verse, quoted in Psalm 69, 25, and it said originally, let their dwelling place be desolate. Yet it does fit with the individual Judas, for no one would live in the field of blood. As for the office taken by another, that's from Psalm 1098. And in the Greek translation of the Old Testament, the word episkopos is used there. And that is also the word for bishop or overseer who is an elder in 1 Timothy 3 and elsewhere. And so it was certainly fitting, speaking of the church office of Judas, to be taken by another. That was further punishment and disgrace to remove the memory of that one, that evil betrayer. So again, brothers and sisters, with such a fall to destruction, we must be warned against our own sins. Beware lest we fall into great evil or apostasy. You know that can happen and does happen so many times, even with some professing the true faith rightly as far as their doctrine. And being like Judas, numbered, being numbered or thought among believers will help no one if not having the actual new life of a Christian. Indeed, those deserting Jesus permanently will go to their own place also, verse 25. And that word You know, it simply means the ultimate destiny where one belongs, whether heaven or hell. It was the latter for Judas, as he was even called the son of perdition. Judas said that in John 17. Well, clearly the Bible says that God renders to every man according to his works. And praise be to our God for the gospel of grace, that with faith In Jesus, our evil works are all forgiven, and his righteousness is put to our account. And so let us each learn more to trust and honor Christ our Lord, as with the early church. And let us learn, lastly, the necessary witness to Christ. Again, as for the replacement of Judas, it had to be a man who had gone about with the apostles all the time Jesus preached until his ascension. And so the men put forward were likely, I think, of the 70 or one group that he sent out as in Luke 10. And another was needed for the necessary witness to the Lord as to his saving work. Of course, being in verse 22, a witness of Christ's resurrection to the Jews also would include proclaiming his atoning death, obviously. As in 1 Corinthians 15, 3 and 4, Paul said, Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures, and that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures. That is the necessary witness. And he said in verse 17 there, if Christ is not risen, your faith is futile. You are still in your sins. The bodily resurrection of our Lord had to be proclaimed. And the apostle warned that you and I must trust in Christ's death and resurrection. Obviously, of course. So again, as Peter said here, the apostles had to have seen the risen Jesus with their own eyes and be witnesses of it. Paul saw the Lord. He was chosen by Christ, as recorded in Acts 9. And so obviously the apostles were the chief witnesses of our Lord's resurrection, but they were not the only ones as over 500 saw him at once. First Corinthians 15 assures. Well, with that basic qualification of being an eyewitness in verse 23, they, meaning the men gathered, proposed or put forward two men, Joseph called Barsabbas and Matthias. Those two, met the qualification they seemed most fitting. And it's interesting that Joseph, having two surnames, one meaning just or justice, may have been thought most highly of in the early church, and he's listed first. And still is said, you know, God often passes over one thought highest of by men to cast down all pride. And there are traditions that Matthias became a missionary to Ethiopia. The other, forced to drink poison, lived. By the way, I'm reminded of an occasion with that name, Matthias. We had a Bible trivia contest right here when I was in college. And the question of who was the one who replaced Judas was asked, and it was answered immediately by Dr. Froberg, my Greek teacher, he wrote out the name Matthias very quickly on a blackboard over on that wall. Somehow we had a blackboard there. It was clear, it was legible, done in less than a second. And the student opponent to him just said, well, that's what you get when you go against a professor. So I remember that name. Anyway, here having two possibilities, Well, certainly that does not require that two nominees be put up for every church office. That's what they did here, because the real choice was left to the Lord, since apostleship was not a humanly ordained office. Yet in all times, the necessary witness to Christ's saving work must be carried forward, and it must be carried forward from the heart. Well, with God's choice sought, the church prayed. They prayed for the one the Lord knew to be the best for that office. They prayed for Christ's choice to be made known as he knows the hearts of all people. And here the word Lord, as they prayed, Lord by itself, as in verse 24 in the New Testament means, quote, almost universally the Son of God. And the word for chosen there is the same as in chapter one, two, that Jesus had chosen the apostles. And so truly, the Lord Jesus is prayed to here, and that's another proof of his deity, his God in the flesh. He is the one for you and me to rely upon always, beloved. Now, since he chose the other apostles directly, it must be the same with the replacement or, you know, you can understand that one would have less authority than the rest or be seen that way. And he had to be fit for the ministry and apostleship, meaning for self-sacrificing service as Jesus came to serve and give his life as a ransom for many. And as an apostle, he was a sent one, an ambassador of Christ. And so truly they prayed. And they prayed for the one with the heart to be known that the Lord knew best. That was most important. God alone knows the heart of each one of us, of every human being, of course. And as with the choice of David to be the next king of Israel, God said, the Lord looks at the heart for that one. And along with that, I confess that sometimes through the years I have wondered about my own calling when I see my sins. For as John Calvin said, without integrity, learning, and eloquence, and every other distinction are insubstantial as smoke. As smoke. And so the mercy of the Lord is what I must rely on, as we all must. to serve Him, whatever our calling. Again, as for this case, it was the one time a church officer was chosen by lot, for it had to be directly Christ's choice of an apostle. Obviously, that is not an endorsement of gambling with dice or any other way. But God's Spirit led in this case. Officers, pastors, elders, and deacons were chosen by vote of the congregation. I think that's even the case as in chapter 1423 where elders were, quote, appointed in our translation in new churches. But the Greek word is literally to raise the hand as to vote. Well, beloved, clearly there are no apostles today with that special office, for no one living has seen or been in the presence of the resurrected Lord Christ physically. But now we have pastors, elders, and deacons. And all Christians are to be witnesses for Jesus Christ, the one who died to save sinners, who rose from the dead, who rules in heaven, You and I know he will return to judge all mankind. And so may we each point others to him. And may many more repent and trust in Jesus and have that salvation. Amen. Let us pray together. Oh, Heavenly Father, help us indeed to learn from your word, even as we learn with the early church as you led them. Yes, we must depend upon your mercies in the Lord Jesus Christ. I know there were the 12 apostles to Israel, and Paul was the one sent to Gentiles, as it were. And we know that gospel even through the writings of the apostles. We know that we must be warned of apostasy and all sin. May we turn away from it more and more in our lives and seek your righteousness instead. And may your word go forth. Yes, may we depend upon it. May the witness to the Lord Jesus continue to go forth day by day, that many more would be converted to him before that last day of judgment that is coming. Help us to serve you, and yes, point others to that one way of redemption in him. Forgive our sins, increase our faith, guide and direct us. And I would pray together as Christ taught us to say, our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread, and forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory forever. Amen. This time we'll give offerings and tithes in thankfulness to our God. so so Let's turn to our last hymn, 478. We stand to sing as his witnesses. I love to tell the story of I love to tell the story of unseen things above. of Jesus and His glory, of Jesus and His love. I love to tell the story because I know it is true. It satisfies my longings as nothing else can do. I love to tell the story, it will be my theme in glory, to tell the old, old story of Jesus and His love. I'd love to tell the story, for wonderful it seems, that all the golden fancies of all our golden dreams. I'd love to tell the story, it did so much for me. and that is just the reason I tell it now to thee. My love to tell the story will be my theme in glory, to tell the old, old story of Jesus and His love. I love to tell the story, it's pleasant to repeat. What seems each time I tell it, more wonderfully sweet. I love to tell the story, for some have never heard. the message of salvation from God's own Holy Word. My love to tell the story will be my theme in glory, to tell the old, old story of Jesus and His love. I love to tell the story for those who know it best. Seem hungering and thirsting to hear it like the rest. And when in scenes of glory I sing the new, new song, It will be the old, old story that I have loved so long. I love to tell the story. It will be my theme in glory, to tell the old, old story of Jesus and His love. if you receive the Lord's benediction. And now may the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Amen. Praise God from whom all blessings flow. Praise him, all creatures here below. Praise Him above, ye heavenly hosts. Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.