June 21, 2007

“’Therefore it is necessary to choose one of the men who have been with us the whole time the Lord Jesus went in and out among us.’” Acts 1:21.
While in the period between Jesus’ return to the Father (the Ascension) and the arrival of the Holy Spirit, in which Jesus had instructed them to wait, the disciples met together regularly. During this time, the disciples had discussed the fact that Jesus had selected 12 particular men to be in a “closer” discipleship mode than the remainder of the disciples. We have called these twelve the “apostles”. With the loss of Judas, their number was now 11, so they decided that it was “necessary” to choose another to fill the position. They discussed the qualifications necessary for the one who was to fill this twelfth spot. As a result of their actions, Matthias was selected, and we promptly never hear about him, personally, again in all of the Scriptures.
It was thought by some that these early believers might have possibly gotten out ahead of God’s intentions by selecting Matthias. It is not that he was not a good person or not able to fill this position. It just might be that God had someone else in mind and that they needed to wait more patiently for His direction. If they had waited, perhaps they might have more naturally selected someone such as Paul, although he did not meet the qualifications that they had set. Certainly Paul functioned as one of the most effective, if not the most effective, disciples/apostles within the early Church. God used Paul in amazing, miraculous ways to expand the early Church and push them out into the world beyond Judaism, a place that the other original apostles did not desire to take her (the Church).
I identify with Peter and his tendency towards being impetuous, with its lack of patience. It is easy for me to get out there ahead of God with a great idea, battling away and wondering why it is just not working. It is not that the idea is bad. It just might be that I do not have the timing for implementation correct. What I need to learn in those instances is patience and timing. I need to have the patience to wait for His proper timing to implement His idea. Have you ever surfed? When surfing, it is vital to wait for just the perfect moment to catch the wave. If one is too early or too late, it just does not work! But when the timing is correct, it does not seem like work at all! Waiting of God’s perfect timing is similar. So even though it seems like a good idea or even “necessary” to do something, or might even seem to be God’s will, waiting patiently for His timing is a necessary component. Take some time today to reflect on this issue of God’s timing. Remember a time when you believed God gave you a great idea, yet the timing was not quite right. What were the consequences? Now, can you remember when you got the timing right? Wasn’t it like catching God’s wave, where it left you with a great feeling and sense of connected-ness? Remember: patience and timing.