1. A summary of sweetness: a sharing community
Studded throughout Acts are summaries of the life and experiences of the early church (as we've seen in 2:42ff). Here Luke again writes of the quality of life that the early church shared in together. He highlights in particular their attitude and actions in caring for each other.
"All the believers were one in heart and mind". There was a sympathy between them that was very strong indeed, and all the more remarkable given their diverse backgrounds. And that oneness worked itself out in a particular approach to the needs that arose among them: "No one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had."
What that meant in practice was that "From time to time those who owned lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles' feet, and it was distributed to anyone as he had need." They didn't pool their resources in a communal life but they did put their resources at the disposal of others. The upshot was that "There were no needy persons among them".
Here is Christian love and fellowship at work in very down to earth ways. Love is not just a word, it is affection and attitude that expresses itself in deeds. Fellowship is not just a feeling; it is a genuine sharing in life together.
Now, notice what Luke says of their life together in v.33 - "With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the lord Jesus and great grace was upon them all". The shared life of the community created the conditions in which the apostles ministered in power and which God was pleased to bless.
That isn't saying that our obedience can somehow earn God's blessing; it is, however, saying that there is a clear connection between the two.
The Lord is pleased to use us and make us a blessing when we seek to live out our faith with genuine sacrificial love for each other.
Does that mean where his blessing seems to be absent that we have the reason why? Not exactly; the issue is much more complex than that, but we do need to say that if the cap fits...
The early church is a prime example of how we are to live as the Lord's people. We are not called to emulate their practices but we must imbibe the principles and live them out with joy.
2. From prime example to crime example
Luke gives a prime example of this kind of action in Joseph of Cyprus, who the apostles nicknamed Barnabas. But in the verses that follow, we go from prime example to crime example with Ananias and Sapphira. Their deceit shows the squalid nature of the sin that lurks in our hearts and the very real spiritual battle that the church faces.
The incident is solemn and sobering. It's the kind of passage we may wish wasn't there because it is so painful as we see something of our own hearts there. But, in experiencing the pain of conviction, we need to remember that the Lord "does not willingly bring affliction or grief to the children of men" and that he "disciplines those he loves". It is with such assurances that we approach this passage.
i) Their sin & what it shows - Ananias and Sapphira were clearly motivated by greed but their sin is more complex than that. In a context where there is openness and generosity, they want to be well though of but without feeling the pain of sacrificial giving. And that leads them into the depths of deceit, which Peter sees as the heart of their crime. They "lied".
But what is especially notable is that he describes them as having "lied to the Holy Spirit". Their sin was not that they had failed to be as honest to their brothers and sisters as was humanly possible; rather, they had deliberately chosen to lie and deceive the Lord's people and so they had lied to the Lord himself.
This is a salutary reminder to us of the wretched state of our hearts, even when we have become Christians, and the ease with which we may fall into sin. We do well to remember Paul's words to the church at Corinth: "If you think you are standing firm, be careful that you don't fall!" (1 Cor. 10:12).
What this also shows us is the intent of Satan to wreck the life of the church. He is behind this act of deceit, although that doesn't mean Ananias and Sapphira are simply victims. The church is always involved in an intense spiritual battle. At times, that battle takes the form of persecution from outside, as we saw in chapter 4; at other times, it takes the form of sin within the church of Jesus Christ.
ii) God's judgement on their sin - If the mere fact of their sin is sobering, what happened next is even more so. Using Peter to deliver his message, the Lord pronounced sentence on them for their sin and both Ananias and Sapphira lose their lives.
This perhaps feels quite unexpected to us, almost unreal. We may feel this to be 'over-the-top'. But what we are failing to grasp is the awesome nature of God and his holiness and the squalid, disgusting nature of sin. All sin is worthy of the most terrible judgement. And our sin is no different, in essence, to what we see here.
God hates sin far more than we realise. And he is far less prepared to tolerate it in the lives of his people than we realise, too.
Immediate action as we have here may not be the norm but no sin is trivial and all sin damages the life of God's people. Of course we need to bear in mind that this was premeditated, calculated sin; it wasn't a 'heat of the moment' issue. But in recognising that we must not lose sight of God's intense hatred of sin.
Were A&S really the Lord's people? Can Satan fill the hearts of believers in this way? There doesn't seem to be anything here to suggest they were not Christians. And in terms of Satan's schemes, what Peter is saying is that Satan has tempted them, he has made them dare to do such a thing. It is sadly true that we can fall prey to his schemes. That's why we need to be wise to them.
iii) The impact on others - That this was not an everyday event is clear from the impact it made on others. All who heard of it were seized with great fear. There was a realisation of God's power and awful majesty; there was a conscious awareness of the state of their own hearts. Perhaps many said, 'There but for the grace of God go I'.
It should have a similar impact upon us too. It should encourage a true fear of God that leads to godlier lives. When we speak of fear, a passage like this is not meant to terrorise us but to tenderise us, to soften our hard hearts, to humble us, to impress upon us again the intense and immense holiness of our God.
The summary at the end of chapter 4 shows something of the powerful presence of God among his people in blessing. That same powerful presence is seen here is judgement. We may long to know more of God's presence in our lives; there is nothing greater that we could long for. If that is our desire, we must be prepared to face the cost too and be ready to humble ourselves before the Lord.
