Date: 02-13-00

Sermon Number: Acts 009

Text: 4:32-5:11

(Topics Addressed in this lesson: Principles of Christian charity and giving, The sin unto death)

We return to our study of the book of Acts this morning and once again are treated to a look at the infant church. Our reading begins in Acts 4:32-33 NASB. "And the congregation of those who believed were of ONE HEART AND SOUL; and not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own; but all things were common property to them" {33} And with GREAT POWER the apostles were giving witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and abundant grace was upon them all".

The great power that accompanied the apostles preaching came, of course, from God the Holy Spirit. It was in His power that they gave this witness to the resurrection of Jesus. This was the very thing the Sanhedrin had forbidden them to do. "Speak no more in this "Name", they said. But they could not stop speaking what they had seen and heard. The resurrection of the Lord Jesus was the major emphasis of the apostles preaching even though they knew this offended the Jewish authorities. The apostle’s message offended the Jews on two counts. It identified them as sinners with the rest of humanity and as murderers of the their own Messiah. This infuriated the Jewish leaders but the apostles could not change their message to appease them. Because of their uncompromising, powerful preaching, abundant grace was upon the whole church. This grace revealed itself in the changed lives of thousands.

The grace that enveloped that church revealed itself in the form of unity and love. The unity they experienced is described by the phrase, ". . . the congregation of those who believed were of ONE HEART AND SOUL". (Acts 4:32)

Both words, "heart", and "soul", refer to the mind. Therefore, we are being told that the members of this first church enjoyed mental, spiritual, emotional, and intellectual, unity. Wow! This blessedness of unity existed for a time in the first church simply because the things that cause disunity had not had time to develop. I speak of party spirits and deviant doctrines, things that divide the church today. Think of the unique privilege that church enjoyed. Their pastors or elders were the apostles. They were called by Christ and gifted as no other men have been gifted. They taught the words and commands of Jesus with absolute perfection and accuracy. They taught things that Jesus didn’t teach and they did that with perfect accuracy by direct revelation from God. Is it any wonder that the congregation lived in unity and love? Today there are no Pastors, Elders, or Bishops, who can or ever will teach with perfect accuracy and insight. Yes we have the Holy Spirit to help us and we have in our hands the finished word of God. But we do not have the apostolic gifts.

Thank God there are many things in the scriptures which cannot be misunderstood. Thank God the Holy Spirit for revealing to us the meaning of many other things difficult to understand and explain. But the truth of the matter is there are many mysteries that will remain mysteries to us until we stand, in person, before our Lord. The best and most intelligent among us still looks through a tinted glass, as it were, seeing truth yes, but it is often blurred around the edges. The limitations we live with since the apostles passing are part of the reason we have many differing denominations in the Christian church. We differ in opinion on things not essential to salvation and, after awhile, gravitate toward those who believe as we do and away form those we disagree with. Thus a denomination is born. In the beginning it was not so. For the pastor-teachers had a perfect understanding of God’s truth, their teaching was inspired by God, therefore, all the people understood the scriptures in the same way. There was peace, and unity; they were of one heart and soul.

This unity of heart and soul was expressed and proven in the love these Christians had for one another. Which love is the way the world will know we are part of the family of God. Look with me at the words of Jesus as recorded in John 13:34-35 NASB. "A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. {35} "By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another."

This love was certainly present in the new church. {32} "And the congregation of those who believed were of ONE HEART AND SOUL; and not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own; but all things were common property to them" . . . . {34} For there was not a needy person among them, for all who were owners of land or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds of the sales, {35} and lay them at the apostles' feet; and they would be distributed to each, as any had need. {36} And Joseph, a Levite of Cyprian birth, who was also called Barnabas by the apostles (which translated means, Son of Encouragement), {37} and who owned a tract of land, sold it and brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet.

The first statement that calls for our attention is found in verse thirty-three. ". . . and not one of them claimed that anything belonging to him was his own; but all things were common property to them" This is a picture of true Christian love and understanding of truth.

Concerning this John McArthur wrote, "The phrase "not one of them" shows that this attitude was characteristic of everyone inclusively. They all understood that everything they had belonged to God, and they possessed it in trust for Him. Since all belonged to God, when someone had a need, they were obligated to use the divine resources to meet that need. A very practical test of a Christian’s love is how much he or she is willing to sacrifice financially. James asks, "If a brother or sister is without clothing and in need of daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and be filled,’ and yet do not give them what is necessary for their body, what use is that?" (James 2:15–16). The apostle John expressed it even more bluntly: "But whoever has the world’s goods, and beholds his brother in need and closes his heart against him, how does the love of God abide in him?" (1 John 3:17). (End Quote)

These people loved one another in a tangible way. The way they expressed their love was based on the truth that we are not owners of anything. Rather, we are God appointed stewards of what He has entrusted to us. There is only one owner that is God. Responding to this truth those in the first church would often sell some of their property so they could meet the needs of a brother or sister. True love will sacrifice itself for others. This generosity was characteristic of Christians in other churches as well. Consider 2 Corinthians 8:1-5 NASB. "Now, brethren, we wish to make known to you the grace of God which has been given in the churches of Macedonia, {2} that IN A GREAT ORDEAL OF AFFLICTION their abundance of joy and their DEEP POVERTY overflowed in the wealth of their liberality. {3} For I testify that ACCORDING TO THEIR ABILITY, (Giving according to ability is giving that does not interfere with our own comfort. These gave according to their ability . . .) AND BEYOND THEIR ABILITY (This phrase describes giving that involves the sacrifice of ones own comfort for that of another. This is what love does.) they gave of their own accord, {4} begging us with much entreaty for the favor of participation in the support of the saints, {5} and this, not as we had expected, but they first gave themselves to the Lord and to us by the will of God". The result of such practical, sacrificial, love in the early church was that everyone had sufficient food, clothing, and shelter.

We need to be careful not to find here a recommendation that Christians become communal or communistic in their thinking. The Holy Spirit is not recommending this at all. There was no rule that said anyone had to sell his or her property. The only rule was love. "Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength. Love your neighbor as yourself". What we see happening here is faith working itself out through the practical love of the brethren. We see God’s people doing uncommon things in an extraordinary time and situation. The time and circumstances of the day called for this kind of action. Yet every such act of love was strictly voluntary.

Imagine the situation the early church faced. The moment the church was born there were thousands of members. Many were from out of town and had no resources, no jobs, or family to help them. Obviously many of them chose to stay in Jerusalem for a time to hear more of the apostles teaching and they needed help to establish themselves. Add to that some of the consequences that went with a Jew coming to faith in Christ and you have a number of crises the church had to deal with. It was not uncommon for a converted Jew to be ostracized from his family and to loose all means of making a living as well. Such people, and those who depended on them, would have to be taken care of. Christian love demanded the self-sacrifice recorded in our text. Luke offers an example of how this worked.

(Acts 4:36-37 NASB) "And Joseph, a Levite of Cyprian birth, who was also called Barnabas by the apostles (which translated means, Son of Encouragement), {37} and who owned a tract of land, sold it and brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet".

The apostles were obviously the ones who decided which persons or families were to be helped with the money that was, "Laid at their feet." This all worked very well for a time. But a look at chapter six will reveal that after a while the apostles appointed deacons to take care of such matters.

The person Luke uses as an example of how the new church met the needs of its members was a man named Barnabas. He was given the name Barnabas by the apostles, which translated, means Son of Encouragement. The name tells us something about his character. He was a good, kind, individual who loved to help and encourage others. The reason for this is revealed in Acts 11:24. There, we find Barnabas described as, "a good man, and full of the Holy Spirit and faith". It is, beloved, God the Holy Spirit who causes and enables us to love our brothers and sisters to the extent that their well being becomes just as important to us as our own.

We have spoken of the wonderful unity and love that was characteristic of the new church. But now we are reminded of who the members of that and of every church since really are. In the following text we have the record of the first entrance of sin into the fellowship of saints and of how that sin was dealt with in the early church. There is much to learn from these words.

(Acts 5:1-11 NASB) "But a certain man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, {2} and kept back some of the price for himself, with his wife's full knowledge, and bringing a portion of it, he laid it at the apostles' feet. {3} But Peter said, "Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back some of the price of the land? {4} "While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your control? Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men, but to God." {5} And as he heard these words, Ananias fell down and breathed his last; and great fear came upon all who heard of it. {6} And the young men arose and covered him up, and after carrying him out, they buried him. {7} Now there elapsed an interval of about three hours, and his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. {8} And Peter responded to her, "Tell me whether you sold the land for such and such a price?" And she said, "Yes, that was the price." {9} Then Peter said to her, "Why is it that you have agreed together to put the Spirit of the Lord to the test? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they shall carry you out as well." {10} And she fell immediately at his feet, and breathed her last; and the young men came in and found her dead, and they carried her out and buried her beside her husband. {11} And great fear came upon the whole church, and upon all who heard of these things.

I for one am very glad that God includes in His word the record of the sins of believers. It is encouraging to read of the strong and holy. But it is also encouraging to see that even the greatest men and women of God were not perfectly strong and holy. Moses was a great man of God performing great exploits and miracles in his day. But because of his disobedience, his sin against God, he could not enter the Promised Land. King David’s history is glorious indeed. He is called a man after God’s own heart. However, the same book that tells us of his love for God reveals his sin against the God who saved him. He was at one time an adulterer and then a murderer. The book of Proverbs reveals how wise King Solomon was while elsewhere we find him marrying idolatrous women and building high places for the worship of idols. On we could go. God has never tried to hide the fact that even His best servants are sinful and weak at times. The passage before us records the sins of two Christians and the price they paid for that sin.

Had Luke painted a picture of the church that failed to include the sinfulness of its members he would have been telling a half-truth at best if not a lie. God the Holy Spirit does not work that way. The church of Jesus Christ will never be perfect simply because she is made up of sinners saved by grace who still wrestle with indwelling sin. It is a sad to discover sin in the church but we must not be surprised because all its members are just like us.

Again I think John McArthur helps us think through this section when he says, "Satan’s purpose is to oppose the work of God. In so doing he is living up to his name, which means "adversary". Wherever God is at work, he will be active. His initial attack on the church, the persecution of the apostles by the Sanhedrin, backfired. Not only did it fail to silence the apostles, but also Acts 4:4 records that "many of those who had heard the message believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand." Further, it gave Peter and John the opportunity to preach the gospel to the Sanhedrin. Faced with that defeat, Satan changed his tactics. Realizing that external pressure only tended to fan the flames, he decided to get at the base of the fire. To do so, he infiltrated the church to attack it with corruption from within. Through the centuries, that tactic has proven to be far more effective than external persecution". (End Quote)

Even in the first church Satan was at work. (Acts 5:1-11 NASB) But a certain man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, {2} and kept back some of the price for himself, with his wife's full knowledge, and bringing a portion of it, he laid it at the apostles' feet. {3} But Peter said, "Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back some of the price of the land"?

As I pointed out before there was no rule, no requirement that people sell their things to provide for the needs of others. This is just something that began to happen in the church when needs became evident. Barnabas was not asked to sell his property he just did it. He was motivated by his faith and his love for the brethren. Ananias and Sapphira were motivated by something quite different. It seems that they wanted some of the praise and notoriety that Barnabas and others like him received when they had given large gifts to the church. So they concocted a scheme whereby they could have their cake and eat it too. In other words, they would sell a piece of property and would make it appear that they had given the whole amount to the church. The praise of men would follow. They would keep some of the money for themselves but no one would know. As we read on we will discover that keeping all or part of the proceeds for themselves was not the problem. The deceit and hypocrisy was the problem. Peter speaks to Ananias;

{4} "While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your control? Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men, but to God."

Here we have some important New Testament principles for giving. The New Testament teaches that all must give to the support of the church and the care of its members. This is not an option even for the poorest among us. However, the New Testament teaches that giving amounts are to be personally determined. Lets consider the scriptures on this topic.

(1 Corinthians 16:1-2 NASB) "Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I directed the churches of Galatia, so do you also. {2} On the first day of every week let EACH ONE OF YOU PUT ASIDE AND SAVE, (Here we see that everyone in the church must set aside a portion of his income each week for the church’s expenses whatever they may be. Giving is not optional for the Christian. Next we find some direction as to how much we are to give. Paul says one is to give . . .) as he may prosper, (KJV says, "as God has prospered you". Which is to say, our giving is to be in proportion to what God has given us. We must determine the amount to be given for the support of the church and, in this case, the poor in the church. The very generous donations recorded in the book of Acts are the product of faith, love, and truth. These people understood the truth that all they had came from and belonged to God. They were simply stewards of what they possessed. This is true of us as well. Now Paul tells us why we are to give weekly.) that no collections be made when I come." This phrase tells us that offerings are to be collected weekly and kept in store for the meeting of needs as they arise.

Considering these New Testament principles for giving should help us understand why Peter said to Ananias, {4} "While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your control? Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men, but to God." In other words, "Ananias, you didn’t have to sell your land in the first place. Secondly, having sold it you didn’t have to donate the whole amount. The land and the money you received when you sold it were in your control the whole time. The call was yours. Give 5, 10, 20 percent or all of it, the choice was yours. But you did not have the right to lie about what you were going to do. You did not have the right to pretend to give the whole amount when that was not true at all. You may think you have lied only to men. But the truth of the matter is, this sin, as is true with all sins, has been committed against God. You have lied to the Holy Spirit"! Finally Peter asks, "Why did you come up with such a scheme"? The answer would have no doubt been interesting but Ananias didn’t get a chance to speak. He had sinned a sin unto death and to death he would go.

{5} "And as he heard these words, Ananias fell down and breathed his last; and great fear came upon all who heard of it. {6} And the young men arose and covered him up, and after carrying him out, they buried him". Peter now deals with the man’s wife.

{7} "Now there elapsed an interval of about three hours, and his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. {8} And Peter responded to her, "Tell me whether you sold the land for such and such a price?" And she said, "Yes, that was the price." (Peter gave her an opportunity to tell the truth about how much the property actually sold for. But she continues the deception. She sticks to the lie and says that she and her husband gave the whole amount to the church. She refuses to repent of her sin.) {9} Then Peter said to her, "Why is it that you have agreed together to put the Spirit of the Lord to the test? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they shall carry you out as well." {10} And she fell immediately at his feet, and breathed her last; and the young men came in and found her dead, and they carried her out and buried her beside her husband. {11} And great fear came upon the whole church, and upon all who heard of these things".

There is not a lot said about the sin unto death in the scriptures. We are simply told that such a sin exists. We are made aware that, at times, God will take the life of a Christian who refuses to turn from sin. Consider these revealing texts.

(1 John 5:16-17 NASB) "If anyone sees his brother (The writer is talking about real Christians.) committing a sin not leading to death, he shall ask and God will for him give life to those who commit sin not leading to death. There is a sin leading to death; I do not say that he should make request for this. {17} All unrighteousness is sin, and there is a sin not leading to death". The essence of this text is as follows. There are sins committed by Christians that will not result in God putting them to death. But there are sins committed by Christians which may result in God taking their lives! There is a sin unto death! One text, quite familiar to us, speaks of this sin unto death. Look with me at 1 Corinthians 11:30 where the writer is speaking to the Corinthians about their continued abuse of the Lord’s Supper. He says, "For this reason many among you are weak and sick, and a number sleep".

Speaking of this text one commentator writes. "The types of chastening the Lord may use (in a believer’s life) are illustrated in verse 30. Sleep is here, as in several other places in the New Testament, used metaphorically to speak of the death of believers (as of Lazarus, John 11:11; and Stephen, Acts 7:60). God actually put to death a number of believers in Corinth ‘because they continually despised and corrupted the Supper of His Son’, just as He had put to death Ananias and Sapphira for lying to the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:1–11). There is a remedy for such unworthiness and divine judgment. If we judged ourselves rightly, we should not be judged. This involves discerning what we are and what we ought to be. If we confess our sins, our wrong attitudes and motives, God "is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). (End Quote) Praise God for His mercy and grace in forgiving our daily sins.

There is, beloved, a sin unto death as God’s dealings with Ananias, Sapphira, and the Corinthians proves. God dealt with them in such a way to impress upon the rest of the church the seriousness with which God looks upon sin in the Christian’s life. The two deaths in Acts chapter five had the desired effect. For in verse eleven we read, "And great fear came upon the whole church, and upon all who heard of these things". This is the result God intended.

I know that most of the world does not think that corporal punishment is a deterrent to crime but God does, even in the church. Likewise church discipline, which we must exercise from time to time, is intended to be a deterrent and warning to others. (1 Timothy 5:19-20 NASB) "Do not receive an accusation against an elder except on the basis of two or three witnesses. {20} Those who continue in sin, rebuke in the presence of all, so that the rest also may be fearful of sinning". The discipline of God, whether administered directly or through the local church, is untended to make all God’s people fearful of sinning.