Ananias and Sapphira

 Meditations on The Acts of the Apostles

January 27, 2021

Ananias and Sapphira

“What made you think of doing such a thing? You have not lied just to human beings but to God.”  When Ananias heard this, he fell down and died.

Acts 5:4b-5a

Read: Acts 5:1-11 

This is not a popular passage. I don’t recall ever hearing  a sermon preached on this passage, or me preaching one. My first thought today as I read this passage was of Hebrews 12:28-29:

Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, for our “God is a consuming fire.” (See also Deuteronomy 4:24)

I noted previously that Luke invoked the covenant community of God’s people to describe the New Community of Believers. In this time of the birth of the New Testament church, it was vital to maintain the integrity of their witness. As the Apostle Paul would later note, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.” (Galatians 6:7)

Truthfulness is intrinsic to the character of a Believer. Truthfulness is not intrinsic to the character models of our culture. When our lives more closely resemble our culture, we turn our churches into associations with a Christian veneer.

My Takeaway: I absolutely believe Brennan Manning when he stated, “God loves us unconditionally, just as we are, not as we should be. Because none of us are as we should be.” I also believe God is a consuming fire. I also believe there are times when, as Luke stated in verse 11, great fear should seize the whole church.

Sē’lah

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(Selah is a word that appears in the Book of Psalms that I often use as the Complimentary Closing in my correspondence. Its meaning, as I use the word, is to pause and think about these things.)

 

These meditations are written by Alex M. Knight as he seeks the life in Christ as his way of life.  The meditations are published on the BLOG, http://seekingthelifeinchrist.blogspot.com/ and they are also distributed on the Constant Contact email server. You may subscribe to this email service by sending an email to: amkrom812@gmail.com.

 

Copyright © 2021 by Alex M. Knight

 

Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.