Acts; Scared Straight

July 22

Read: Acts 4:32-5:11

Acts;

Scared Straight

“When Ananias heard these words, he fell down and breathed his last. And great fear came upon all who heard of it.” (v. 5:5)

There are few passages scarier than Acts 5:1-11*. On the surface, it seems ruthless… abrupt… harsh… maybe even capricious. God strikes dead a husband and then his wife three hours apart from each other when they lie about their gift to the community. This was a gift they were not obligated to give. It was a gift that mirrored what others in the community were giving. To the outside observer… this was a kind and generous act. So what went wrong? Could this still happen today? Would this happen today? What can we learn from this snapshot taken of the fledgling church? Here are some things to consider:

1.) “Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common.” (v.32)

The Church was marked by an intense and genuine UNITY. This is seen as a marker of true faith from the very beginning of the church. (cf. 1:12, 2:44, etc.) This unity and “togetherness” extended not simply to what they believed or who they worshipped… but it spilled over into the material realm. They saw one another as a single “body” or “family- and meeting the material needs of those in their community was a central part of Christian life! They understood that they were connected to one another in a supernatural and meaningful way… “what’s mine is yours”… “when you hurt then I hurt”… “when you are hungry then I am hungry”… this is radical “oneness”. I think this was so important to the church because it is practice for the radical oneness we experience with Christ! - “our lives are hidden in Christ”… we are “in Chirst”… “United with Christ”. (cf. Col. 3:3, Rom. 6:4, Rom. 8:1-, etc.) We practice radical oneness with Christ when we function as radically one with our brothers and sisters in Christ. In short - UNITY is crucial and important.

2.) “There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need” (v.4:34-35)

Notice the plural of “lands” and “houses”. This is not a critique of excess, but simply a reality. There were those in the community with more than 1 piece of land to work… more than 1 house… and they were willing to sell those assets to support those in need. This was NOT communism, but rather radical generosity and viewing the material resources that one has as truly belonging to the Lord.

3.) “But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, and with his wife's knowledge he kept back for himself some of the proceeds and brought only a part of it and laid it at the apostles' feet.” (v. 5:1,2)

We don’t know his motivation - greed, arrogance, fear - but what we do know is that the actions of Ananias were selfish and deceptive. He “kept back for himself” the untold amount. Doing so was deceptive - Peter says as much: ““Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land?…You have not lied to man but to God.” (v. 5:3,4) His wife was in on it as well… she was complicit in this deception. (cf. v. 5:1) His actions corrupted his wife as much as himself!

4.) “But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land?” (v. 5:3)

I think this is the real crux of this passage… and something that is very hard for us to assimilate as modern readers. This is the supernatural part of this passage! Peter knows what is up… but how? Was he looking at public records… or he sat in on the closing!? Obviously NOT. God cued Peter in on the deception… and this is crucial. This deception was NOT simply a lie driven by greed, arrogance, or vain… it was a byproduct of one whose “heart was being filled by Satan”. Satan had access to Ananias’s heart in a way that was so radical… so consuming… it was a drastic matter! God let Peter in on this reality. This is not the main point to be made - but it is worth noting that Satan is identified as the source of Ananias’s desire to lie… not his “sin nature”. I believe Ananias was a Christian… he was in community and had the Holy Spirit. Yet, he had given access to his heart to Satan in such a way that his heart was being “filled by Satan” and causing him to lie to the Holy Spirit. This was not a matter of lying as much as it was a matter of spiritual warfare and “testing the Spirit of the Lord”. (cf. 5:9)

5.) Lying and Deception inherently break apart crucial unity and together-ness, are a test of the Spirit of the Lord, and markers of Satan himself.

Maybe it was actually the most gracious thing God could do to take the lives of Ananias and Sapphira? When Satan has a believer so trapped and ensnared… with access to their heart in such a way that it is filled with the desire to lie and confront the Holy Spirit… it could be gracious to set them free from that body of flesh that wars against the Spirit. (cf. Gal. 5:17) Maybe it was an act of graciousness for the community… when you are unified as one, you cannot have Satan dwelling in your midst… like a cancer in the body of believers? I do know that lying divides a person… and a community… there can be no UNITY with lying and deception - Maybe this was driving God’s decision? I do not know the mechanics of it all… but I do know that God took drastic measures… and it SCARED the people of God! (cf. 5:5,11)

There is a healthy and necessary fear of the Lord that belongs to the people of God. What exactly is “filling our hearts”? There is great “power and grace” given to the people of God. (cf. 4:33) There is also no room to give your heart to Satan to be filled and driven to lie to the Spirit and test God. The chilling tale of Ananias and Sapphira shows us as much! “Resist the Devil and he will flee. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you.” (James 4:7,8) Love you guys! - JDP

*Other “scary” verses: Matt 7:21-23, Luke 22:31, 2 Cor. 12:7, Heb. 6:4-8, Job 1,2 are contenders!