STRUCK DEAD

Acts 4:32-5:12

Failed to post last week, so let me add a couple of quotes that I like from Acts 3-4.

The church no longer has to say it has no silver nor gold, but neither can it say rise, take up your bed and walk.

In Acts, when someone is filled with the Holy Spirit, they witness!

Note the boldness of Peter, who once denied Christ, telling the same men who had ordered Him crucified, You did it, but God overruled you and raised Him.

Now to this week's lesson...

At verse 32 we turn to another summary of church behavior as at the end of the second chapter. First, Luke says the church was completely united – as one. We underrate today the doctrine of fellowship. Often our churches, even our denomination gets embroiled in a battle over this and that, sometimes important, but usually not so much. But even when of vital importance, a Christian is called to treat the other with respect, sometimes firmly and taking a stand, but always respecting the other as one for whom Christ died. A major secret of the power of the early church was their unity, their fellowship.

Sharing grew out of their fellowship. We are often quick to point out this was not communism, and it wasn't. Communism is a form of government. It holds there is no private property, but the state owns everything. These people did own property. Else they could not have sold it. After selling it, they had money they could do with as they chose. They chose to donate a good portion to their church, many apparently gave all of it.

As a pastor I have often heard people maintain that tithing is an Old Testament practice, and we are not under the Law, but under Grace. Believe me, you don't want to go there. At one point Jesus makes a passing reference in approval of tithing, but much more often he asked people to sell all and give to the poor and follow Him. The early church caught that spirit. “If you need it and I have it, it's yours!”

The Essene sect we know from the Dead Sea Scrolls did require its members to turn over their possessions to their cult. They did this in two stages, first leaving it in escrow with the group for a trial year. Then if they were accepted and wanted to become a full fledged member, they signed all of it over to the sect. There is no evidence the early church practiced anything like that.

But look what happened next!

Ananias and his wife Sapphira sold a piece of property. They took part of the proceeds of the sale and gave it to the apostles, claiming it was the full price of the land. For whatever reason, Peter knew this guy was trying to deceive them. He spelled it out to Ananias:

The property was yours.

You chose to sell it, you were not required to.

After you sold it, the money was yours to do with as you chose.

You chose to give some of it to us, which is fine, BUT

You lied to us by telling us this was the entire price.

When you lie to the church, you are lying to God the Holy Spirit!

Ananias dropped dead.

Note: Scripture does not say God struck him dead. Nor that Peter cursed him. Did he die from a heart attack or fear of being found out? I leave it to you.

Sapphira came in three hours later, and Peter confronted her. Did you sell your land for such and such a price? She replied they did. Peter asked her why they had conspired to test the Spirit of God by lying? He told her that Ananias was dead and the men who had buried him would take her there.

She also dropped dead.

Again, notice exactly what Scripture says. It does not say God struck her dead, nor that Peter cursed her. Indeed, one can interpret Peter's words as meaning they would show her her husband's grave. Nevertheless, she fell dead.

And the whole church panicked! We don't need to water down the story, but rather point out that the Lord considers His Church as sacred. We are to deal carefully with holy things. As a result of all this, the church prospered, attracting more and more through its preaching and ministries.