The
Double Edged Sword of the Holy Spirit
Can
Either Heal or Condemn
[Acts
chapter 5, verses 1-16]
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At
the conclusion of last week's study when we finished the last of Acts
chapter 4, we found out that the organization, purpose and
propagation of Christianity was markedly different from that of the
modern church. We discovered that the early Church was organized into
what we would call today a peer-to-peer network. Moreover, it was a
socialistic arrangement as far as meeting the people's needs were
concerned. That is, its internal management structure was of a
lateral nature rather than hierarchical. Those who were able to work,
or who were skilled tradesman or business owners contributed what
they could towards the Church's needs, and those who attended from
elsewhere helped out financially whenever they could. Today we would
call this a nonprofit, but without any government funding. Another
thing I want to illuminate right here is that since this was a period
when Christianity was criminalized by the Roman Empire, having a
building in which to hold their services was out of the question. My
point here is that the early Church had no rent or mortgage to pay.
There were no utility bills, no Internet bill, and no property taxes
to pay. All the funds that were collected – virtually 100% of it –
were allocated to take care of the needs of the people, particularly
the most vulnerable. There was no tithing as we understand it today.
All the gifts were made voluntarily, and nobody was asked to give 10%
of their income each week.
For
this week's study as we begin chapter five, we will get to see the
flip side to this arrangement. What I mean is that I want to show you
all in vivid detail what can happen in a worst case scenario when
anyone tries to abuse the Holy Spirit of the Risen Lord. I would even
go so far as to argue that this is a sacred order of things that was
first being put into practice by the first century Christians. And so
to abuse or misuse that sacred order, which the Holy Spirit presides
over, is to court disaster. So let's get started today at verse 1 of
Acts chapter 5. “Now a
man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece
of property. With his wife's full knowledge, he kept back part of the
money for himself, but brought the rest and put it and the apostles'
feet. Then Peter said, 'Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled
your heart that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and kept for
yourself some of the money you received for the land? Didn't it
belong to you before it was sold? After it was sold, wasn't the money
at your disposal? What made you think of doing such a thing? You have
not lied to men but to God.' When Ananias heard this, he fell down
and died. And great fear seized all who heard what had happened. Then
the young men came forward, wrapped up his body, and carried him out
and buried him.” (Acts
5, verses 1-6)
So
the moral of the story here is that nobody, and I mean absolutely no
one, trifles around with the Holy Spirit of the Risen Savior and gets
by with it. There are no exceptions to this rule at all –
absolutely zero! In fact, disobeying this 'rule of the universe' can
and does have lethal consequences. Why did Ananias lie about his gift
to begin with? One possibility was to help save on his tax bill, and
Roman taxes were steep. Problem was, Ananias had to lie to the Holy
Spirit and to Rome in order for his plan to succeed. If Ananias would
lie to the authorities he would lie to God too. But Peter knew all of
this by the time Ananias arrived. By whatever means, including
supernatural, Peter was fully aware of Ananias' scheme. And so when
Peter confronted Ananias, he apparently died of a massive heart
attack or stroke right where he stood. The tragic part is that he
died needlessly. All he had to say to Peter was that he had sold the
land but needed some of the money to pay off debts, and give Peter
the rest. But Ananias failed to take the overwhelming power of the
Holy Spirit into account, and that mistake cost him everything,
including his place in heaven. Now, let's pick up at verse 7 and see
what happens to his wife.
“About
three hours later his wife came in, not knowing what had happened.
Peter asked her, 'Tell me, is this the price you and Ananias got for
the land?' 'Yes', she said, 'that is the price'. Peter said to her,
'How could you agree to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look! The feet
of the men who buried your husband are at the door, and they will
carry you out also.' At that moment she fell down at his feet and
died. Then the young men came in and, finding her dead, carried her
out and buried her beside her husband. Great fear seized the whole
church and all who heard about these events.”
(Acts 5, verse 7-11)
If
that is the kind of life-and-death power possessed by the Holy Spirit
of our Risen Lord, how much more of this power has been stored up
over the centuries for those who have yet to see it but believe in it
anyway? Moreover, how much more of this awesome power is in store as
wrath and rebuke for those who dismiss it? If a simple lie from a
married couple can kill, how much more so can murder, adultery or
sexual promiscuity, pollution of our environment and the waging of
war be killers of our own souls? Sapphira didn't have to lie about
the money either. She could have saved her own life just by telling
the truth about the money, but she underestimated Peter and the Holy
Spirit with which he was filled. Like her husband before her, she
collapsed and died right where she stood, and nobody dared say
anything about it in Peter's presence. They had already seen the
overwhelming power of the Holy Spirit firsthand. If this doesn't put
the fear of God into you, better have someone call 911 to come and
bring you back to life! And now let's finish today's lesson, starting
at verse 12.
“The
apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders among the
people. All the believers used to meet there in Solomon's Colonnade.
No one else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded
among the people. Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed
in the Lord and were added to their number. As a result, people
brought the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and mats so
that at least Peter's shadow might fall on some of them as he passed
by. Crowds also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing
their sick and those tormented by evil spirits, and all of them were
healed.” (Acts 5,
verses 12-16)
Here
again, as we saw in the beginning of this week's teaching, there are
two sides to the Holy Spirit, which was left behind after Jesus rose
into heaven. One is a giver of life, healing, peace and balance, and
it can save the souls of all who want to be saved by it. The other
can instantaneously destroy all who stand against it, or who actively
reject it. There is no middle ground with the Holy Spirit of the
risen Lord! “No one
else dared join them, even though they were highly regarded among the
people. Nevertheless, more and more men and women believed in the
Lord and were added to their number.”
In 21st
century English this simply means that no one dared join the first
true believers unless they were 200% serious! After what had happened
to Ananias and Sapphira, no one dared to tamper around with God.
“As
a result, people brought the sick into the streets and laid them on
beds and mats so that at least Peter's shadow might fall on some of
them as he passed by.”
By this point, the Holy Spirit anointing was so strong on Peter that
he no longer found it necessary to lay his hands upon the sick and
disabled, to pray for them and heal them individually. All he had to
do was walk by someone while in prayer for everyone in his sight, and
they were all healed as he went! If nothing else, Peter – the “born
again” Peter, the post Pentecost Peter – was a very efficient
worker. No wonder the Lord chose him and the other eleven with him!
“Crowds also
gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing their sick and
those tormented by evil spirits, and all of them were healed.”
As things were at the beginning of this week's lesson, so it is at
the end. The early Church collected no weekly tithes where they
demanded 10% of people's incomes like churches do today, and none of
the Twelve, from Peter to Matthias, charged for their services. The
churches and evangelists of our modern era, especially the so-called
“prosperity” preachers, would do well to relearn these important
lessons. Of course, what the apostles were doing was raising the ire
of most of the religious authorities. Next week in part 2 of Acts
chapter 5, we'll find out how the authorities react to the remarkable
success of Christianity in its earliest form, word and deed. See you
then....
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