Acts Chapter One

 Act 1:1  Indeed, O Theophilus, I made the first report concerning all things which Jesus began both to do and to teach, 

Act 1:2  until the day He was taken up, having given directions to the apostles whom He elected, through the Holy Spirit, 

Act 1:3  to whom also He presented Himself living after His suffering, by many infallible proofs, being seen by them through forty days, and speaking the things concerning the kingdom of God. 

Act 1:4  And having met with them, He charged them not to leave Jerusalem, but to await the promise of the Father, "which you heard of Me; 

Act 1:5  for John indeed baptized in water, but you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit not many days after."

Act 1:6  Then, indeed, coming together they questioned Him, saying, Lord, do You restore the kingdom to Israel at this time? 

Act 1:7  And He said to them, It is not yours to know times or seasons which the Father placed in His own authority; 

Act 1:8  but you will receive power, the Holy Spirit coming upon you, and you will be witnesses of Me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and Samaria, and to the end of the earth. 

Act 1:9  And saying these things, as they looked on, He was taken up, and a cloud received Him from their sight. 

Act 1:10  And as they were intently looking into the heaven, He having gone, even behold, two men in white clothing stood by them, 

Act 1:11  who also said, Men, Galileans, why do you stand looking up to the heaven? This Jesus, the One being taken from you into the heaven, will come in the way you saw Him going into the heaven. 

Act 1:12  Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount being called Of Olive Grove, which is near Jerusalem, a sabbath's journey away. 

Act 1:13  And when they went in, they went up to the upper room where they were waiting: both Peter and James, and John and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alpheus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas the brother of James. 

Act 1:14  These all were continuing steadfastly in prayer and in supplication with one mind, with the women, and with Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers. 

Act 1:15  And in these days, standing up in the middle of the disciples, (and the number of names together being about a hundred and twenty), Peter said, 

Act 1:16  Men, brothers, it was necessary for this Scripture to be fulfilled which the Holy Spirit spoke before through David's mouth concerning Judas, the one having become guide to those seizing Jesus; 

Act 1:17  for he was numbered with us, and obtained a portion of this ministry. 

Act 1:18  Indeed, then, this one bought a field out of the reward of unrighteousness; and falling headlong, he burst in the middle, and poured out all his bowels. 

Act 1:19  And it became known to all those living in Jerusalem, so as that field to be called in their own dialect, Akeldama, that is, Field of Blood. 

Act 1:20  For it has been written in the scroll of Psalms, Let his estate become forsaken, and he not be living in it. And, "Let another take his overseership." (LXX-Psa. 68:26; Psa. 108:8; MT-Psa. 69:25; Psa. 109:8) 

Act 1:21  Therefore, it is right that men being together with us all the time in which the Lord Jesus came in and went out among us, 

Act 1:22  beginning from the baptism of John until the day when He was taken from us, one of these to become a witness of His resurrection with us. 

Act 1:23  And they set out two: Joseph, he being called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias. 

Act 1:24  And having prayed, they said, You, Lord, knower of all hearts, show which one You chose from these two, 

Act 1:25  to take the share of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas fell, to go to his own place. 

Act 1:26  And they gave their lots. And the lot fell on Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles. 

Verses 1-5: This accounting is written to Theophilus and appears to connect to another account. That previous writing documented the life of Jesus until He was taken up. At that point, Jesus ordered the disciples to stay in Jerusalem, awaiting the promise of God, the Holy Spirit.

Note: Read/compare the first four verses of Luke. We have a very strong indication of Luke writing the book. Theophilus us an unknown person to us today. There are a few strong speculations. In the gospel he is addressed as "most excellent," inferring a station of power (nobility).

1. What important event(s) took place in verse 3? The resurrected Jesus is plainly seen by many. He spends an extended period of time with His people.

    Why was it so important? It is a "proof" against those who seek to discredit the Christian movement. It would be easy for one person to make such an outlandish claim. One person could lie and try to stay consistent with that lie with other lies. It is impossible for so many witnesses to do that. 

2. What was the “promise” they were to wait for in Jerusalem?
Act 1:4b/5  "which you heard of Me; for John indeed baptized in water, but you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit not many days after."

Note:
a) What is the difference between these two baptisms? We will see later (as well as in the gospels) that the baptism of John is a baptism of repentance. Chapter two reveals what this baptism is. In that moment when the Spirit "falls" on them, they gain the full understanding of the message/mission of Jesus. His life was not given for material gain as was the false expectation. He is the catalyst by which God would draw His children back to Him in a more meaningful, spiritual dimension. 

b) There is no small significance to this city Jerusalem. If we compare verses like 2Kings 21:7 and 2Chronicles 6:6, we see God's spiritual plan was to center and go forth from here.

Verses 6-11: Jesus is taken up to heaven. The disciples are looking up and two "men" question them as to why they are looking up to heaven.

3. What did the disciples expect to happen (vs.6)? ...they questioned Him, saying, Lord, do You restore the kingdom to Israel at this time? 
Like the differences in baptisms the disciples had not yet been given the gift of the Holy Spirit for full understanding of what the mission of the Messiah really was.

4. What is the prophecy about Jesus in verse 11? ...the One being taken from you into the heaven, will come in the way you saw Him going into the heaven. 
SEE:
Mat 24:30  And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the heavens. And then all the tribes of the land will wail. And they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and much glory. (Dan. 7:13) 
Rev 14:14  And I saw; and behold, a white cloud and on the cloud One sitting like the Son of Man, having on His head a golden crown, and in His hand a sharp sickle. 

 The implication in both of these texts is judgment.

Verses 12-26: Those who are the first members of His church are staying together. They include the eleven disciples, Jesus. mother and His brothers. Peter rises and uses scripture to point out that since Judas had fallen, they need a replacement for his position. They put forward two who are qualified, cast lots and choose Matthias.

5. How many were present when Matthias was chosen? 120

    a. What were the requirements for the one who was to be chosen? He had to be one who was with them the entire time from the beginning to His ascension.

6. Who ultimately chose Matthias? The act of casting lots was an act of faith. The belief was that God was the one going the choosing.

7. Did the disciples understand what Jesus purposed to do?  (6) - No not exactly.

    a.  What was Christ’s instructions to them on the matter? Wait for the promise of the Holy Spirit. To gain insight of what this means we must first know the purpose of the Holy Spirit.

    b. How can we know what Christ has purposed for us? See answer 8a. 

8. How did the disciples exercise their faith in choosing of Matthias? Casting lots.

a.      Identify some times in your life when you needed to exercise your faith. As a young person, it was difficult to see how God is going to provide a life on this earth. This issue comes from trusting my own strengths and not relying on God. God teaches us to focus on Him and His ways in our every day lives. The rest of life becomes second in our living. As time goes by, we grow and His faithfulness is revealed.

Additional: Why were the disciples still together? Describe this assembly of faithful people, who are they? Why is it important that Jesus’ brothers are there?  The ministry of Jesus lasted about three years. The main characters in this part of the story are those who were closest to Him during that time, They heard His words and witnessed His signs. Many of them were likely already put out onto the fringe of Jewish society. There was a big cost for following Jesus. 
More important to the moment is that Jesus was not what they expected. He was executed in a shameful manner. He was not an earthly king. Israel was not lifted up above all other nations.
But, He did raise from death. And He ascended to heaven. So they faithfully waited for what was to happen next. They waited for God to do things in God's time.

Word study:
Verse (2) apostles - 652 ἀπόστολος apostolos ap-os'-tol-os From G649; a delegate; specifically an ambassador of the Gospel; officially a commissioner of Christ (“apostle”), (with miraculous powers): - apostle, messenger, he that is sent.
649 - ἀποστέλλω apostellō ap-os-tel'-lo From G575 and G4724; set apart, that is, (by implication) to send out (properly on a mission) literally or figuratively: - put in, send (away, forth, out), set [at liberty].
Verse (25) apostleship- 651 ἀποστολή apostolē ap-os-tol-ay' From G649; commission, that is, (specifically) apostolate: - apostleship.

Verse (15) disciples - μαθητής mathētēs math-ay-tes' From G3129; a learner, that is, pupil: - disciple.