"But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession. And he kept back part of the proceeds, his wife also being aware of it, and brought a certain part and laid it at the apostles' feet.
But Peter said, "Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself? While it remained was it not your own? And after it was sold, was it not in your own control? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God."
Then Ananias, hearing these words, fell down and breathed his last. So great fear came upon all those who heard these things. And the young men arose and wrapped him up, carried him out, and buried him." (Acts 5:1-6)
Three hours later his wife Sapphira showed up not being informed of the death of her husband. Peter asked whether she had sold the land for the price indicated by her late husband. Perhaps he even pointed to the money at the feet of the apostles. She answered, "Yes, for so much." Peter, undoubtedly distraught and yet filled with righteous indignation toward her brazen lie, asked why she had conspired with her husband to test the Spirit of the Lord. Those who had buried her husband were ready at the door to carry her corpse away. Immediately, she fell dead.
Such a reading needs to be considered thoughtfully. We are not reading an event from the Law of Moses, when the fire from God consumed Nadab and Abihu or when Achan and his household were stoned by the congregation. Those events would be appropriate warnings to us, yet such Old Testament episodes are discounted in the minds of people because they belong to the Mosaic era. Here is an event early in the Gospel age in which we live where we witness a candid display of God's wrath. What is the message of God's judgement on Ananias and Sapphira?
We must not be guilty of treating the blood of Christ as a common thing. Forgiveness of sin is a precious gift. Its cost was the price of God's own Son. When we sin and repent, sin and repent, sin and repent with a remorse that is transitory, with little or no struggle to defeat sin in our life, and with no concerted planning to escape the wiles of the devil, are we not treating the grace of God lightly? The cross of Christ is not to be regarded like Aladdin's lamp. We cannot willfully sin or engage in half hearted holiness and then conspire in our heart that we can always repent tomorrow. Just rub the cross and say the magic formula and poof our sins are gone. Is God obligated to forgive us just because we say the right words? Does He not see our motives and know that we don't mean it? Does God not know our hearts? Does He not see such presumptions? The judgement on Ananias and Sapphira says that He does!
To play the hypocrite is to lie, not to men, but to God. The real sin of Ananias and Sapphira was hypocrisy. There was a legitimate need in Jerusalem. They, like Barnabas and others, sold their property and brought the proceeds from the sale to the apostles to be distributed to the needy saints. Did they feel pressured to give because others were doing so and they had the means to help? They might have felt embarrassed if they did not join the benevolent activity. Or were they jealous of the notoriety that comes from philanthropy? Whatever their reasoning they pretended to give the entire price of the land when in fact they kept a part of the price for themselves.
They of course did lie to men, but the real lie was to God. They gave of their means under the pretense of being thoughtful and kind. They Gave. But they gave to gain glory for themselves. We must be careful that our worship, that our service to God on any plain does not become merely a veneer. We cannot allow it to degenerate to a theatrical production that is put on so that the elders, the preacher, our family will speak well of us, or maybe leave us alone. We will probably succeed in fooling them. But God is not mocked. When we have pretended to be His servants by yielding to the pressure of Godly company or to gain the audience and applause of men we have told a serious untruth to God. This occasion with Ananias and Sapphira demonstrates His disgust for those who wear His name like a mask.
We must be sober in our service to God. I don't wish that God would perform in our time the type of cleansing activity that He did that day before the saints in Jerusalem. I fear the loss of life that would come for I have had times when the gift of forgiveness has been regarded lightly and service has been rendered for show or for masquerade rather than for God's glory. But if God did interject a demonstration of this sort, what would that do to our worship? What effect would that have on our daily conduct? We would have a marked awareness that we stand before the Almighty. May I suggest that we keep such a picture of His glory and reign upon the heavenly throne before us each day. Such a vision should not just evoke fear, but hope that inspires us to serve our God. For He is alive!
MR
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