Testing the Spirit of the Lord

"Peter said to her, "How could you agree to test the Spirit of the Lord?" Acts 5:9

There are not many more shocking accounts in the early church than the story of Ananias and Sapphira. It was fairly common practice for people to donate the proceeds of property sales to the apostles for expanding the ministry, and specifically to help with the needs of the poor. This was done with transparency, integrity, generosity, and without fanfare. Bomabas, (Paul’s later missionary partner) and the others had done this. Stan Spaulding is a recent example of the kind of modern day donor, who left the value of his estate to Grace Harbor last year, for the purpose of expanding the ministry of the Church and School. The amount of value is not important, but the heart and attitude of the giver and their purpose is what is the blessing.

So, basically when Ananias lies about the amount, and is confronted about it, he drops dead, and later when his wife Sapphira is confronted, she drops dead, also. (Read it for yourselves in Acts 5) Acts 5:9 summarizes the seriousness of this kind of misrepresentation when Peter equivalents it to testing God. Something we strive not to do. We can test His principles…tithing for example…but not Him, or His Spirit. Or, in Sapphira’s case, even agree to it. This double death event seized the early church with fear, understandably. So we look for a lesson. Duplicity, non-transparency and grandstanding are very serious, unacceptable and risky practices. God did not strike them dead. Which He has done under other circumstances, as recorded in scripture. But, He did permit them to suffer the consequences of their own egregious choices. It does convict me, and should convict you too, of how we are so desperate for approval, appreciation, and self aggrandizement that we would flat-out lie to get it, at whatever risk. We are to give and serve for God’s glory alone, not ours. Oh the weight of self-serving and the conscience it invokes. We must be very careful about disclosing how magnanimous we are and our motivations for drawing attention to ourselves, in any way. The other equally weighty matter is the secrecy of non-generosity and of taking much and giving little or nothing. I hope you will join me in not testing the Spirit of the Lord, or agreeing to it, and not pretending or being insincere. God wants us to be generous with little or a lot. He wants us to be genuine and honest with Him about out stewardship of time, talent, and treasure. Search your own heart, I am searching mine.

By His Grace,
Pastor Fred

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