I've started reading through the book of Acts again and noticed that in chapter one of Acts Peter indicates to the other disciples and to those gathered that Judas betrayed Jesus and led others to arrest him. He says that there needs to be a witness to take his place as an apostle. It then says in Acts 1:24-25 "And they prayed and said, "Thou Lord, who knowest the hearts of all men, show which one of these two Thou hast chose." Meaning, the two men they set forward, Barsabbas and Matthias. So, by lots Matthias was chosen and numbered among the 12 apostles.
Having said all of that, Paul also calls himself an apostle of the Gentiles, so is he now number 13 or is Matthias not to be counted? I wonder since it doesn't appear that God specifically told Peter to bring this up if this is another case of Peter jumping the gun? Remember, this is Peter before Pentecost that we are talking about. It would not be the first time that Peter would do that. Furthermore, we never hear another word about Matthias, good or bad. It could be he was martyred early as James was, but that is only speculation.
I ask the question, because I believe it goes to the heart of how God works. The church was in unity at this time. They were in agreement that Judas should be replaced. They also agreed that it should be someone who had been around from the beginning of Jesus' ministry to the end. Matthias was apparently a faithful close follower who had been active the whole 3 years of Jesus' earth ministry. Furthermore, they were in prayer about the subject.
On the negative side of things, they limited the choices to two men who they put forward. Paul at the time was still unconverted and a part of the Sanhedrin. In fact, he was a persecutor of the church at the time and an unlikely candidate for the job. I'm not so much concerned about the idea that they cast lots. Many times in the Old Testament you see things like that to determine God's will. I am concerned I don't see God specifically speak and say yes or no or bless this decision. In fact, I don't see God confirm or deny this choice at all
What do you think? Did Peter jump the gun here or just do what is necessary?
Are apostles limited only to 12? I know some people believe it is a gift that still exists, but I don't. Apostles were eyewitnesses of what Jesus did and nobody is that old, so that is irrelevant to me.
