After Pentecost: The Disciples DeployedSample

 Generous Spirit

At first, the early Church did not really experience anything but success. Even Peter and John’s arrest and release, in spite of the threats that were made against them, were viewed as victories for the Kingdom. They had given Peter and John the chance to be Jesus’ witnesses in Jerusalem and so fulfill the first part of the three-part prophecy Jesus had delivered before His ascension. 

Excitement was in the air as the believers enjoyed ‘great grace’ from one another and those outside the Church. The believers all put the needs of others above their own and held their own possessions loosely in the interest of the Church and its mission to advance truth, proving their faith sincere and their submission to the Holy Spirit complete. 

Throughout His earthly ministry, Jesus had demonstrated the same healthy attitude toward possessions. When people expressed a desire to follow Him, He challenged them to prove their faith by letting go of their possessions. Those who did were promised an inheritance in the Kingdom, and those who did not were disqualified. 

In those early days, the Church was growing, happy, and healthy, and people wanted to be part of it. Ananias and Sapphira were members of the Church. As they were in communication with the Holy Spirit, we can assume that they had put their faith in Jesus Christ for salvation. Like the rest of us, however, they continued to struggle against their sin nature and grew prideful. 

Ananias and Sapphira wanted to impress onlookers by seeming to be more generous and to have more faith in God’s provision than they actually did, so they lied about their offering. The Holy Spirit convicts believers of sin, so we know there must have been a moment when they knew what they planned to do was wrong, but they did it anyway. 

God’s swift punishment of Ananias and Sapphira reminded the Church that there was no room for pride or false spirituality in their midst. In their devotion to one another, their generosity, and their faith in God to provide, they were to be sincere and preserve unity in the Body. 

What about you? Whose opinion matters more to you, man’s or God’s? To which do you hold more tightly, your possessions or the Kingdom of God? Is your faith in God’s provision sincere?