What’s so bad about a lie? Our society has been teaching that the end justifies the means; That lying is ok as long as you do not get caught; That truth is appropriate if it is convenient or to your advantage, otherwise a little white lie is just as good; I am concerned that we are producing a generation of pretty little liars. Our crumbling foundation is riddled with the termites of hundreds of lies, and the whole edifice is ready to fall.
“Do not lie to one another, Colossians 3:9
Without honesty nothing else you say or do can be trusted
THE CHURCH IS A COMMUNITY OF TRUST 10 4:32-35
Heart and soul - They were a unified church Everything is Gods - They were a unified church Testimony - They were a powerful church Great Power - They were a strong church When we first believe we get saving grace Now that we believe God continues to grant sustaining grace Great Grace… Makes us strong in spirit and wisdom (Lk 2:40) Causes the glory of God to rest on us (Jn 1:14) Grants freedp, from sin (Rom 6:14) Empowers us to use our Spiritual Gifts to their capacity (Rom 12:6) Makes us adequate in ministry (2 Cor 9:8) Strengthens us when we are weak (2 Cor 12:9) Brings us answers to prayer (Heb 4:16)
THE CHURCH IS A COMMUNITY OF TRANSFORMATION 4:36-37
Much of their offerings went to Christians in need Barnabas sold his mansion and gave the proceeds to the Apostles
Barnabas was an encourager. Everyone admired Barnabas
THE CHURCH IS A COMMUNITY AT RISK 5:1-11
The Counterfeit
It began like any legitimate transaction
Ananias desired approval.
Ananias lied because he had an image to keep up
We don’t have to exaggerate to be acceptable to Jesus. Just be honest.
The Consequences
Ananias and Sapphira died immediately
God had to protect the infant he had birthed – the church.
Signs and wonders - God dealt swiftly and harshly with sin.
Sin is bad, very bad. Sin destroys people, and the church.
Our sin gives God a pretty bad name.
THE RESULT
Great fear came upon everyone.
Don’t mess with God. He has a tendency to discipline his own children. What could possibly make us brave enough to risk the wrath of God? The Big lie… it’s just not worth it.
FULL TRANSCRIPT
What’s so bad about a lie, especially if it doesn’t hurt anyone? How can a lie be bad if it actually helps someone? We tell people that we are fine, when we clearly are not. We tell people that we are not angry, when we clearly are. And, “No, you don’t look fat in those jeans.” You see, we find honesty a little convoluted at times. Some of us say that lying is wrong, and yet, we tell lots of little social white lies.
And what about this? How many of you told your kids that Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy and the Easter Bunny are real! Were you telling the truth? Does it even matter? It’s just a game, right? Or were you teaching your children how to tell a little white lie? And unfortunately we have raised a generation of pretty little liars! People lie, and they lie a lot! Now why do we lie to each other? There are numerous reasons. We lie to avoid hurting other people’s feelings (social lies). We sometimes use lies to tell jokes! We have an entire type of humor that has developed around misleading and fooling people called “Harmless Delusion Humor.” We lie to make ourselves look better and to save face when we’ve done something dumb. We lie to impress others; we lie to avoid conflict and argumentation. We lie to shirk responsibility; we lie to hide misdeeds, to avoid punishment or consequences, and many other reasons.
The Bible says, “Do not lie to one another since you have put off the old man and it’s wicked deeds.” Col 3:9
Lying is bad. Let me tell you why. Lying undermines trust between people. lying shows that you don’t respect a person so you use little deviations from the truth to fool them. For some reason, people don’t appreciate being manipulated. Lying is bad because it treats those who are lied to as a means to achieve the liar's purpose. Lies prevent informed decision-making, potentially causing us to make poor decisions based on false information. When my lie leads people to decide other than they would, had they known the truth, I have harmed them. Lies damage relationships, and harm our ability to have honest conversations because they manipulate and distort the truth. O what a tangled web we weave when set out to deceive. Lies have unintended consequences often so great that we can’t even begin to calculate the risk of one little lie. One little lie about a medal of honor, cost a congressman an election. One little lie about his whereabouts, cast doubts on a defendant’s entire testimony and sent him to jail. One little lie usually means that underneath, there’s another and another. Some of us live with multiple layers of lies meant to make us look squeaky clean, when all along, below the surface, our crumbling foundation is riddled with the termites of hundreds of lies. And the whole edifice is ready to fall. The problem with telling lies is that you have to have an exceptional memory! lying entails a great deal more mental and emotional effort than truth-telling.[i]
Believers must set an example of honesty and truthfulness. There is no room in our faith for little white lies. Honesty is not simply the best policy, it is the only policy. And in fact, Honesty is the wellspring of the virtues, because without it you can’t even be honest with yourself! Not to mention that nothing you say or do can be trusted.
Today we discover how God really feels about little white lies. And perhaps you need to have a shoot out on Main Street the villain of lies and send him to his final resting place. That’s what’s going to happen today… the shootout at the not so OK corral.
And may I say, lying is bad for the church. Lying and deceit is a clear and present danger to the Body of Christ. Lies can rip the church apart and leave us fragmented and disillusioned. Lies have consequences.
The Church is a Community of Trust 10 4:32-35
32 Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; This is a snapshot of State of the Church in its infancy. Heart and soul, they were one. Heart and soul they were in love with Jesus! Heart and soul, they loved the church. It takes a special kind of something to produce this kind of culture and comradery, heart and soul. It is unique and wonderful. In this case it was precipitated by persecution! Peter and John had been arrested and reprimanded. But they stood their ground and the Gospel had won the day! Every believer was so grateful to God, that they came together for a church wide prayer meeting and their heart and soul exploded with unity and joy. They believed in the mission and the ministry of the Church! They believed it so much that they were willing to sacrifice everything they had! They trusted God, and they trusted the church! And they believed in their leaders. The verse goes on: 32 Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; neither did anyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common. It takes an incredible amount of trust to say something like this! The wording of this verse is very interesting. It wasn’t that they didn’t have anything of their own, it is just that they didn’t say it was their own. Their mindset was not materialistic. They recognized a fundamental fact, that everything in this world is just borrowed from God, and whenever he wants it back, we should give it gladly. So when someone was in need, they all gave. They also believed that God was using the church to do great and significant things, and in fact they were experiencing some of those great and things themselves! 33 And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all. The early church had great power, as well as great grace! The power came from their witness. (Acts 1:8) Do you realize that one of the most powerful things you can do is to witness for the risen Christ? After all, there’s nobody else in the entire history of the world that has ever claimed to be resurrected, and nobody else in the history of the world that has ever claimed that He was God because of His resurrection. Jesus stands unique. That’s why this witness is so powerful. We serve a risen savior. If Christianity is true, if the resurrection is true, then you should become a follower of Christ. It’s that simple, and that is exactly what happened. The early church was a powerful church. With the apostles leading the church it was the most dynamic moment in all of church history. The historian Josephus estimated that there were over 100,000 Christian believersin Jerusalem by 70 AD. Phenomenal growth. Powerful evangelism. And when you believe in Jesus, an amazing thing happens and great grace comes upon all who will believe. What does it mean to have “great” grace. Grace is God’s goodness by which he grants us eternal life and abundant life. When we first believe we get saving grace. Now that we believe God grants sustaining or empowering grace. I did a little study of the word Grace and I discovered that when the sustaining Grace of God is upon us that there are several transforming things that happen to us. #1 Great grace makes us strong in spirit and wisdom (Lk 2:40) #2 Grace causes the glory of God to rest on us (Jn 1:14) #3 Great Grace grants freedom from sin (Rom 6:14) #4 Great Grace empowers us to use our Spiritual Gifts to their capacity (Romans 12:6) #5 Abundant Grace makes us adequate in ministry (2 Cor 9:8) #6 Great Grace strengthens us when we are weak (2 Cor 12:9) #7 Great grace poured out on us brings us answers to prayer (Heb 4:16) We could use some great grace so that God’s transforming power would rest on us. Father pour out your grace upon us. Now the result of the Church’s vitality was astonishing. They were a spiritual force to be reckoned with.
34 Nor was there anyone among them who lacked; for all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold, 35 and laid themat the apostles’ feet; and they distributed to each as anyone had need. The early church was different from us in one fundamental fact. When the early church took an offering much of it went to Christians in need. That’s because back then the church was the social welfare plan of the country. They didn’t have food stamps or social security. They had the church! Perhaps today, in all our prosperity, we’ve lost sight of the fact that the church is life, and life is meant to revolve around the God. Perhaps we need to reorient our ministries so that we are prepared to help the needy. And that’s one of the things that revolutionized the world! Christians cared for their own!
The Church is Community of Transformation 4:36
When Jesus changes lives, some of those lives are so transformed that they become incredible, unstoppable, heroic examples of sacrifice and inspiration, that blow us away! Enter a man named Barnabas.
36 And Joseph who was renamed Barnabas by the apostles (meaning Son of Encouragement), a Levite of the country of Cyprus, 37 having land, sold it, and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet. Barnabas was a Levite. He was also a Hellenistic Jew, typically meaning he lived abroad, in this case the Island of Cyprus, and was heavily influenced by Greek culture, customs and philosophy while still maintaining Jewish religious practices. In other words, because he was a modernist, he wasn’t fully accepted by the Jews, but when he came to Christ, he was fully accepted by Christians. And that made all the difference. He made his home on the Island of Cyprus, a rich commercial trading Island. And He sold his Beachfront mansion for big bucks to some Roman Nobleman, moved to Jerusalem and gave all the proceeds to the Apostles to be used in the ministry!
What a man this Barnabas was. He later became a prominent teacher in the great Gentile church at Antioch (Acts 11:25- 26). He was the man who sought out Paul and helped him become established in the ministry. He was the man who found John Mark when he was down and out, and returned him to usefulness. He was an inspiration.
Everyone admired Barnabas. He became the poster boy of the early church. Everybody wanted to be like Barnabas! These verses set the scene for the big lie. The very thing that made the church so transforming almost became their Achilles’ heel. Almost killed the church before it even got started.
The Church is always at Risk 5:1-11
Being a community of trust, and being a community of transformation, puts the church in a vulnerable position. There have always been, and will always be those who seek to take advantage of the church. All you have to do is pay attention to the news, and you’ll always find some church or another that has been deceived by a charlatan.
Act 5 contains the story of a really nice couple who were trying to scam God. Kind of dangerous thing to do. But that’s why we must always keep in mind that there are counterfeit Christians out there who can destroy the churchif we let them.
The Counterfeit
1 But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a piece of property. 2 And he kept back part of the proceeds, his wife also being aware of it, and brought a certain part and laid itat the apostles’ feet.
So far this looks like a legitimate transaction. Ananias and Sapphira sold some property. They decided that the church would get x amount and that they would retain x amount. They brought their gift to apostles. So far, so good.
So Ananias concocted a scheme to gain the admiration of the people. Instead of getting respect the old-fashioned way – by earning it, he tried to steal it.
And that’s the problem we face in the church. A lot of scam artists are so good at concealing their ulterior motives, that we can’t tell the difference between the Annanias’ of the world and the Barnabas’ of the church! But God can tell the difference. And he revealed it to Peter.
3 But Peter said, "Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back partof the price of the land for yourself? 4 "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."
Why did Ananias lie? He lied, because he’s not that different than some of us. We have an image to keep up. Whether it is saying the fish was “THIS BIG” or denying that we have ever been involved in “That sin,” some of us lie because we’re afraid that if people find out what we are really like, they won’t accept us.
Ananias was aware of the notoriety that Barnabas had gotten by giving a great gift to the church. Everyone was talking about the generosity of good old Barnabas. Ananias wanted people to look up to him like that. He craved their approval. And who knows, maybe he even had designs on becoming a leader of the church so he could somehow profit from it! Now that would be a catastrophe.
We do not have to exaggerate to be acceptable to Jesus. We don’t have to brag to get the approval of others. We don’t have to lie so that others will think well of us. Just be honest. Jesus knows what you’re really like anyway. You’re not fooling the Holy Spirit.
Some times it takes strong discernment to know when we are being sold a bill of goods, but In this case, the Holy Spirit revealed to Peter that Ananias was a liar.
And I want you to notice that this little passage teaches a great big truth about God. In verse 3 Peter chastises Aninias for lying to the Holy Spirit. Just who is the Holy Spirit, anyway? There are some aberrant cults that believe that the Holy Spirit is nothing more than a force like electricity or gravity. But let me ask you this, Have you ever lied to electricity or gravity? What would be the point! You can’t lie to electricity, because electricity don’t care!
But you can try to lie to God. In fact that’s what verse 4 says. “You haven’t lied to men, when you lied to the Holy Spirit, you lied to God! Who is the Holy Spirit? 2 Corinthians 3:17 says, “The Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.”
It is a dangerous thing to try to outsmart God.
The Consequences
The consequences for this sin were dire and serious. Both Ananias and Sapphira died immediately upon discovery of their sin.
5 Then Ananias, hearing these words, fell down and breathed his last. So great fear came upon all those who heard these things. 6 And the young men arose and wrapped him up, carried him out, and buried him. 7 Now it was about three hours later when his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. 8 And Peter asked her, "Tell me whether you sold the land for so much?" She said, "Yes, for so much." 9 Then Peter said to her, "How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out." 10 Then immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last. And the young men came in and found her dead, and carrying her out, buried herby her husband.
Why was this lie treated so harshly? Why was the FIRST SIN of the church so egregious? Why didn’t they just kick them out, or strike them with leprosy, or make them say 100 Hail Mary’s or something?
It gets back to the idea that this was the VERY FIRST SIN against the infant church. And God knew that if scandal rocked the church that it would have infected the entire body, destroyed their unity, it would have deflated their enthusiasm and would have stalled their growth.
If Satan had his way, this would have been a knife thrustto the beating heart of the church, ending its existence right then and there.
But instead, The church exploded. The church maintained its fervency and purity as God dealt swiftly and harshly with sin. It is all part of the way God worked in the early church.
What would happen in the church if every lie and every sin in the church was treated with similar consequences? Why doesn’t God strike me dead when I sin against Him. No question about it… if this were the case, I’d earn more doing funerals than I do preaching!
Look, let’s understand something, sin is bad, really bad. Sin destroys people, and it has the potential to destroy us as a church. And the very fact that this little white lie was punished with a severe penalty should be a warning to everyone of us about how deadly and dangerous sin is.
I don’t know anything more destructive to our reputation than the sin of the people who attend church. And quite frankly our sin gives God a pretty bad name. God has gotten quite a black eye because those who call themselves Christians live unchristian lives.
THE RESULT
11 So great fear came upon all the church and upon all who heard these things.
Great fear came upon everyone. Don’t mess with God. Hebrews 12:6 says Whoever the Lord loveth he disciplines.” What could possibly make us brave enough to risk the wrath of God, when all along he wants to give us great grace that will make our lives a shining example of purity and hope.
Our society has been teaching that the end justifies the means. That lying is ok as long as you don’t get caught. That truth is appropriate if it is convenient or to your advantage, otherwise a little white lie is just as good.
Let me end with this story:
A very friendly black dog wandered into a preacher’s farmyard one summer day. His two boys begged their father to keep the dog. After being licked to death, he consented. A week later he read in the newspaper that a neighbor was missing his black dog. To identify the dog, the ad stated that it had three white strands of hair on its tail.
The Preacher took his two boys out to the barnyard and got the dog. He took a pair of pliers and carefully removed each of the hairs. Later on, the dog's owner, hearing that the preacher had a black dog, came by to see if it was his dog. It looked just like him, but the preacher pointed out that this dog had no white hair on his tail. Later on in life he stated: "We kept the dog, but I lost my boys." Who were they? Jesse James & his brother, the infamous outlaws who terrorized the west with their reckless abandon and daring. Jesse James life ended when a member of his own gang killed him for $10,000 reward money.
The Big lie… it’s just not worth it. I think it’s time that we all reevaluated our commitment to honesty and integrity, and that we as a church chose truth over temptation.
[i] https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/whats_good_about_lying
What’s so bad about a lie? Our society has been teaching that the end justifies the means; That lying is ok as long as you don’t get caught; That truth is appropriate if it is convenient or to your advantage, otherwise a little white lie is just as good; I am concerned that we are producing a generation of pretty little liars. Our crumbling foundation is riddled with the termites of hundreds of lies, and the whole edifice is ready to fall.
“Do not lie to one another, Colossians 3:9
Without honesty nothing else you say or do can be trusted
THE CHURCH IS A COMMUNITY OF TRUST 10 4:32-35
Heart and soul - They were a unified church Everything is Gods - They were a unified church Testimony - They were a powerful church Great Power - They were a strong church When we first believe we get saving grace Now that we believe God continues to grant sustaining grace Great Grace… Makes us strong in spirit and wisdom (Lk 2:40) Causes the glory of God to rest on us (Jn 1:14) Grants freedp, from sin (Rom 6:14) Empowers us to use our Spiritual Gifts to their capacity (Rom 12:6) Makes us adequate in ministry (2 Cor 9:8) Strengthens us when we are weak (2 Cor 12:9) Brings us answers to prayer (Heb 4:16)
THE CHURCH IS A COMMUNITY OF TRANSFORMATION 4:36-37
Much of their offerings went to Christians in need Barnabas sold his mansion and gave the proceeds to the Apostles
Barnabas was an encourager. Everyone admired Barnabas
THE CHURCH IS A COMMUNITY AT RISK 5:1-11
The Counterfeit
It began like any legitimate transaction
Ananias desired approval.
Ananias lied because he had an image to keep up
We don’t have to exaggerate to be acceptable to Jesus. Just be honest.
The Consequences
Ananias and Sapphira died immediately
God had to protect the infant he had birthed – the church.
Signs and wonders - God dealt swiftly and harshly with sin.
Sin is bad, very bad. Sin destroys people, and the church.
Our sin gives God a pretty bad name.
THE RESULT
Great fear came upon everyone.
Don’t mess with God. He has a tendency to discipline his own children. What could possibly make us brave enough to risk the wrath of God? The Big lie… it’s just not worth it.
FULL TRANSCRIPT
What’s so bad about a lie, especially if it doesn’t hurt anyone? How can a lie be bad if it actually helps someone? We tell people that we are fine, when we clearly are not. We tell people that we are not angry, when we clearly are. And, “No, you don’t look fat in those jeans.” You see, we find honesty a little convoluted at times. Some of us say that lying is wrong, and yet, we tell lots of little social white lies.
And what about this? How many of you told your kids that Santa Claus, the Tooth Fairy and the Easter Bunny are real! Were you telling the truth? Does it even matter? It’s just a game, right? Or were you teaching your children how to tell a little white lie? And unfortunately we have raised a generation of pretty little liars! People lie, and they lie a lot! Now why do we lie to each other? There are numerous reasons. We lie to avoid hurting other people’s feelings (social lies). We sometimes use lies to tell jokes! We have an entire type of humor that has developed around misleading and fooling people called “Harmless Delusion Humor.” We lie to make ourselves look better and to save face when we’ve done something dumb. We lie to impress others; we lie to avoid conflict and argumentation. We lie to shirk responsibility; we lie to hide misdeeds, to avoid punishment or consequences, and many other reasons.
The Bible says, “Do not lie to one another since you have put off the old man and it’s wicked deeds.” Col 3:9
Lying is bad. Let me tell you why. Lying undermines trust between people. lying shows that you don’t respect a person so you use little deviations from the truth to fool them. For some reason, people don’t appreciate being manipulated. Lying is bad because it treats those who are lied to as a means to achieve the liar's purpose. Lies prevent informed decision-making, potentially causing us to make poor decisions based on false information. When my lie leads people to decide other than they would, had they known the truth, I have harmed them. Lies damage relationships, and harm our ability to have honest conversations because they manipulate and distort the truth. O what a tangled web we weave when set out to deceive. Lies have unintended consequences often so great that we can’t even begin to calculate the risk of one little lie. One little lie about a medal of honor, cost a congressman an election. One little lie about his whereabouts, cast doubts on a defendant’s entire testimony and sent him to jail. One little lie usually means that underneath, there’s another and another. Some of us live with multiple layers of lies meant to make us look squeaky clean, when all along, below the surface, our crumbling foundation is riddled with the termites of hundreds of lies. And the whole edifice is ready to fall. The problem with telling lies is that you have to have an exceptional memory! lying entails a great deal more mental and emotional effort than truth-telling.[i]
Believers must set an example of honesty and truthfulness. There is no room in our faith for little white lies. Honesty is not simply the best policy, it is the only policy. And in fact, Honesty is the wellspring of the virtues, because without it you can’t even be honest with yourself! Not to mention that nothing you say or do can be trusted.
Today we discover how God really feels about little white lies. And perhaps you need to have a shoot out on Main Street the villain of lies and send him to his final resting place. That’s what’s going to happen today… the shootout at the not so OK corral.
And may I say, lying is bad for the church. Lying and deceit is a clear and present danger to the Body of Christ. Lies can rip the church apart and leave us fragmented and disillusioned. Lies have consequences.
The Church is a Community of Trust 10 4:32-35
32 Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; This is a snapshot of State of the Church in its infancy. Heart and soul, they were one. Heart and soul they were in love with Jesus! Heart and soul, they loved the church. It takes a special kind of something to produce this kind of culture and comradery, heart and soul. It is unique and wonderful. In this case it was precipitated by persecution! Peter and John had been arrested and reprimanded. But they stood their ground and the Gospel had won the day! Every believer was so grateful to God, that they came together for a church wide prayer meeting and their heart and soul exploded with unity and joy. They believed in the mission and the ministry of the Church! They believed it so much that they were willing to sacrifice everything they had! They trusted God, and they trusted the church! And they believed in their leaders. The verse goes on: 32 Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; neither did anyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common. It takes an incredible amount of trust to say something like this! The wording of this verse is very interesting. It wasn’t that they didn’t have anything of their own, it is just that they didn’t say it was their own. Their mindset was not materialistic. They recognized a fundamental fact, that everything in this world is just borrowed from God, and whenever he wants it back, we should give it gladly. So when someone was in need, they all gave. They also believed that God was using the church to do great and significant things, and in fact they were experiencing some of those great and things themselves! 33 And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all. The early church had great power, as well as great grace! The power came from their witness. (Acts 1:8) Do you realize that one of the most powerful things you can do is to witness for the risen Christ? After all, there’s nobody else in the entire history of the world that has ever claimed to be resurrected, and nobody else in the history of the world that has ever claimed that He was God because of His resurrection. Jesus stands unique. That’s why this witness is so powerful. We serve a risen savior. If Christianity is true, if the resurrection is true, then you should become a follower of Christ. It’s that simple, and that is exactly what happened. The early church was a powerful church. With the apostles leading the church it was the most dynamic moment in all of church history. The historian Josephus estimated that there were over 100,000 Christian believersin Jerusalem by 70 AD. Phenomenal growth. Powerful evangelism. And when you believe in Jesus, an amazing thing happens and great grace comes upon all who will believe. What does it mean to have “great” grace. Grace is God’s goodness by which he grants us eternal life and abundant life. When we first believe we get saving grace. Now that we believe God grants sustaining or empowering grace. I did a little study of the word Grace and I discovered that when the sustaining Grace of God is upon us that there are several transforming things that happen to us. #1 Great grace makes us strong in spirit and wisdom (Lk 2:40) #2 Grace causes the glory of God to rest on us (Jn 1:14) #3 Great Grace grants freedom from sin (Rom 6:14) #4 Great Grace empowers us to use our Spiritual Gifts to their capacity (Romans 12:6) #5 Abundant Grace makes us adequate in ministry (2 Cor 9:8) #6 Great Grace strengthens us when we are weak (2 Cor 12:9) #7 Great grace poured out on us brings us answers to prayer (Heb 4:16) We could use some great grace so that God’s transforming power would rest on us. Father pour out your grace upon us. Now the result of the Church’s vitality was astonishing. They were a spiritual force to be reckoned with.
34 Nor was there anyone among them who lacked; for all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold, 35 and laid themat the apostles’ feet; and they distributed to each as anyone had need. The early church was different from us in one fundamental fact. When the early church took an offering much of it went to Christians in need. That’s because back then the church was the social welfare plan of the country. They didn’t have food stamps or social security. They had the church! Perhaps today, in all our prosperity, we’ve lost sight of the fact that the church is life, and life is meant to revolve around the God. Perhaps we need to reorient our ministries so that we are prepared to help the needy. And that’s one of the things that revolutionized the world! Christians cared for their own!
The Church is Community of Transformation 4:36
When Jesus changes lives, some of those lives are so transformed that they become incredible, unstoppable, heroic examples of sacrifice and inspiration, that blow us away! Enter a man named Barnabas.
36 And Joseph who was renamed Barnabas by the apostles (meaning Son of Encouragement), a Levite of the country of Cyprus, 37 having land, sold it, and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet. Barnabas was a Levite. He was also a Hellenistic Jew, typically meaning he lived abroad, in this case the Island of Cyprus, and was heavily influenced by Greek culture, customs and philosophy while still maintaining Jewish religious practices. In other words, because he was a modernist, he wasn’t fully accepted by the Jews, but when he came to Christ, he was fully accepted by Christians. And that made all the difference. He made his home on the Island of Cyprus, a rich commercial trading Island. And He sold his Beachfront mansion for big bucks to some Roman Nobleman, moved to Jerusalem and gave all the proceeds to the Apostles to be used in the ministry!
What a man this Barnabas was. He later became a prominent teacher in the great Gentile church at Antioch (Acts 11:25- 26). He was the man who sought out Paul and helped him become established in the ministry. He was the man who found John Mark when he was down and out, and returned him to usefulness. He was an inspiration.
Everyone admired Barnabas. He became the poster boy of the early church. Everybody wanted to be like Barnabas! These verses set the scene for the big lie. The very thing that made the church so transforming almost became their Achilles’ heel. Almost killed the church before it even got started.
The Church is always at Risk 5:1-11
Being a community of trust, and being a community of transformation, puts the church in a vulnerable position. There have always been, and will always be those who seek to take advantage of the church. All you have to do is pay attention to the news, and you’ll always find some church or another that has been deceived by a charlatan.
Act 5 contains the story of a really nice couple who were trying to scam God. Kind of dangerous thing to do. But that’s why we must always keep in mind that there are counterfeit Christians out there who can destroy the churchif we let them.
The Counterfeit
1 But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a piece of property. 2 And he kept back part of the proceeds, his wife also being aware of it, and brought a certain part and laid itat the apostles’ feet.
So far this looks like a legitimate transaction. Ananias and Sapphira sold some property. They decided that the church would get x amount and that they would retain x amount. They brought their gift to apostles. So far, so good.
So Ananias concocted a scheme to gain the admiration of the people. Instead of getting respect the old-fashioned way – by earning it, he tried to steal it.
And that’s the problem we face in the church. A lot of scam artists are so good at concealing their ulterior motives, that we can’t tell the difference between the Annanias’ of the world and the Barnabas’ of the church! But God can tell the difference. And he revealed it to Peter.
3 But Peter said, "Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back partof the price of the land for yourself? 4 "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."
Why did Ananias lie? He lied, because he’s not that different than some of us. We have an image to keep up. Whether it is saying the fish was “THIS BIG” or denying that we have ever been involved in “That sin,” some of us lie because we’re afraid that if people find out what we are really like, they won’t accept us.
Ananias was aware of the notoriety that Barnabas had gotten by giving a great gift to the church. Everyone was talking about the generosity of good old Barnabas. Ananias wanted people to look up to him like that. He craved their approval. And who knows, maybe he even had designs on becoming a leader of the church so he could somehow profit from it! Now that would be a catastrophe.
We do not have to exaggerate to be acceptable to Jesus. We don’t have to brag to get the approval of others. We don’t have to lie so that others will think well of us. Just be honest. Jesus knows what you’re really like anyway. You’re not fooling the Holy Spirit.
Some times it takes strong discernment to know when we are being sold a bill of goods, but In this case, the Holy Spirit revealed to Peter that Ananias was a liar.
And I want you to notice that this little passage teaches a great big truth about God. In verse 3 Peter chastises Aninias for lying to the Holy Spirit. Just who is the Holy Spirit, anyway? There are some aberrant cults that believe that the Holy Spirit is nothing more than a force like electricity or gravity. But let me ask you this, Have you ever lied to electricity or gravity? What would be the point! You can’t lie to electricity, because electricity don’t care!
But you can try to lie to God. In fact that’s what verse 4 says. “You haven’t lied to men, when you lied to the Holy Spirit, you lied to God! Who is the Holy Spirit? 2 Corinthians 3:17 says, “The Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.”
It is a dangerous thing to try to outsmart God.
The Consequences
The consequences for this sin were dire and serious. Both Ananias and Sapphira died immediately upon discovery of their sin.
5 Then Ananias, hearing these words, fell down and breathed his last. So great fear came upon all those who heard these things. 6 And the young men arose and wrapped him up, carried him out, and buried him. 7 Now it was about three hours later when his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. 8 And Peter asked her, "Tell me whether you sold the land for so much?" She said, "Yes, for so much." 9 Then Peter said to her, "How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out." 10 Then immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last. And the young men came in and found her dead, and carrying her out, buried herby her husband.
Why was this lie treated so harshly? Why was the FIRST SIN of the church so egregious? Why didn’t they just kick them out, or strike them with leprosy, or make them say 100 Hail Mary’s or something?
It gets back to the idea that this was the VERY FIRST SIN against the infant church. And God knew that if scandal rocked the church that it would have infected the entire body, destroyed their unity, it would have deflated their enthusiasm and would have stalled their growth.
If Satan had his way, this would have been a knife thrustto the beating heart of the church, ending its existence right then and there.
But instead, The church exploded. The church maintained its fervency and purity as God dealt swiftly and harshly with sin. It is all part of the way God worked in the early church.
What would happen in the church if every lie and every sin in the church was treated with similar consequences? Why doesn’t God strike me dead when I sin against Him. No question about it… if this were the case, I’d earn more doing funerals than I do preaching!
Look, let’s understand something, sin is bad, really bad. Sin destroys people, and it has the potential to destroy us as a church. And the very fact that this little white lie was punished with a severe penalty should be a warning to everyone of us about how deadly and dangerous sin is.
I don’t know anything more destructive to our reputation than the sin of the people who attend church. And quite frankly our sin gives God a pretty bad name. God has gotten quite a black eye because those who call themselves Christians live unchristian lives.
THE RESULT
11 So great fear came upon all the church and upon all who heard these things.
Great fear came upon everyone. Don’t mess with God. Hebrews 12:6 says Whoever the Lord loveth he disciplines.” What could possibly make us brave enough to risk the wrath of God, when all along he wants to give us great grace that will make our lives a shining example of purity and hope.
Our society has been teaching that the end justifies the means. That lying is ok as long as you don’t get caught. That truth is appropriate if it is convenient or to your advantage, otherwise a little white lie is just as good.
Let me end with this story:
A very friendly black dog wandered into a preacher’s farmyard one summer day. His two boys begged their father to keep the dog. After being licked to death, he consented. A week later he read in the newspaper that a neighbor was missing his black dog. To identify the dog, the ad stated that it had three white strands of hair on its tail.
The Preacher took his two boys out to the barnyard and got the dog. He took a pair of pliers and carefully removed each of the hairs. Later on, the dog's owner, hearing that the preacher had a black dog, came by to see if it was his dog. It looked just like him, but the preacher pointed out that this dog had no white hair on his tail. Later on in life he stated: "We kept the dog, but I lost my boys." Who were they? Jesse James & his brother, the infamous outlaws who terrorized the west with their reckless abandon and daring. Jesse James life ended when a member of his own gang killed him for $10,000 reward money.
The Big lie… it’s just not worth it. I think it’s time that we all reevaluated our commitment to honesty and integrity, and that we as a church chose truth over temptation.
[i] https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/whats_good_about_lying