In the early church prior to the coming of the Holy Spirit, the disciples had to find a replacement for Judas Iscariot. However after the Holy Spirit's coming they made their decisions somewhat differently. They could have intimate communion with God because of the presence of the Holy Spirit. The Early Church were eschatological in their thinking. The word eschatological comes from the word eschatology which means the end.
Eschatology is the study of the end times.
It covers issues such as the rapture, the tribulation, the millenium, Daniel's 70th week and so on. Jewish expectations were that God through His Messiah would bring a dramatic end to the present age. The sign for this happening was the resurrection of the dead and the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the Jews it was simply the present age followed by the age to come. With the coming age would also come peace, health and universal righteousness and joy.