‘For nor was there among them any who lacked, for as many as were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the prices of the things that were sold, and laid them at the apostles' feet, and distribution was made to each, according as any one had need.'
Again we can compare and contrast with Acts 2:45. There they sold their ‘possessions and goods' and met each other's needs, here they have advanced to selling ‘lands or houses' and bring the money to the Apostles. The numbers were growing and the need was growing, and as the numbers grew, the need for funds grew, and larger assets had to be brought into account, and the requirement for administration was growing. So the spirit of unity and fellowship in Christ was nowhere better revealed than by the fact that whenever there was a lack of funds, which would be often, those who possessed larger evidences of wealth such as houses or lands would sell them and bring the prices obtained to the Apostles' feet so that they might be distributed among the needy. Houses and lands were men's most vital possessions. Yet they were prepared to fulfil the Lord's command and yield even their most crucial possessions. These were the tests of discipleship and Jesus had promised that those who sacrificed such things would not lose their reward (‘houses -- and lands' - Matthew 19:29; ‘house' - Luke 18:29; ‘houses -- and lands' - Mark 10:29-30).
This is not to be seen as just a duplicate of chapter 2, but as an expansion in generosity as time went by, as the system of giving and of provision became more organised. It reveals how God's grace and the church's response was continually expanding in response to rapidly growing numbers. Spontaneous generosity and love had become real sacrifice, and thought through generosity and love. It is also an indication that the Gospel was expanding among the more well-to-do.
‘And laid them at the Apostles' feet, and distribution was made to each, according as any one had need.' And the Apostles then as best they could arranged for the needy to be helped. Thus the Gospel was advancing and progressing, and not only bringing spiritual blessing to all but also provision for every need.
But we can now begin to see how what at first was a simple means of meeting obvious need, and revealing God's love practically, was becoming a large administrative task that would begin to take up all the Apostles' time, and would make life impossible for them. They were neither trained for this task, nor had the time to do it properly. The neglect of Hellenist widows (Acts 6:1) was not due to favouritism or lack of concern, it was due to inefficiency in organisation and planning, because no Hellenists were directly involved (which was the gap that the seven made up). As we learn in chapter 6, it could not go on. If it were to be done properly and efficiently, changes would have to be made.
This use of alms would not just be limited to Christians. It would also benefit needy Jews who were known to them. Of course, not all would be able sell lands and fields. They did not have them to sell. The examples are provided precisely because they were outstanding. Many had a responsibility to their families which they had to take into account. And not all would have spare houses to sell, and they would need somewhere to live with their families. But the point is that, because of their love for Christ, none withheld what they could reasonably, and even going beyond reasonably, spare, whenever need arose. And some went the whole way. Never before in the experience of many had such love and sacrifice been shown. Again it was a revelation of the presence of the Kingly Rule of God among men. There were to be no poor among them (Deuteronomy 15:4).
It is probably not correct to say that this was a failure or a mistake (how we love to show how superior our wisdom is). It was rather simply Christian love and compassion at work practically and without restraint. And Luke approved of it. There is no suggestion, in contrast with the foolish among the Thessalonians (2 Thessalonians 3:11), that they ceased work or retired from business. They simply helped each other with their needs, and withheld nothing because of their love for each other. They actually did what Jesus had taught them to do (Matthew 5:42 compare Luke 3:11). Nor are there any real grounds for saying that it led to the poverty of the Jewish church. That would be due more to outside circumstances and to religious ostracism, and it would give to the Gentile churches the opportunity to fulfil Scripture in bringing their wealth to Jerusalem.
Should the church be like this today? While the church is now too vast to operate solely on this basis, the principles here should surely be the pattern that we are following. Possibly we should not be neglecting the ‘forgotten' Christians in the poorer and needier parts of the world, and in the light of these verses possibly it is we who need to learn a lot more of what it means to be self-giving.
Chapter 5:1-11 The Sin Of Ananias and Sapphira - The Kingly Rule of God Is Manifested By The Execution Of Those Who Withhold What Is His.
Knowing man's human nature there had to come a time when the idyllic picture was broken. From the point of view of the world's attitude to the Christian message that had happened when Peter and John were arrested. That was a reminder of the continuing threat from without. But now there would be something even worse, hypocrisy and dealing falsely with sacred things within the church, a trouble which had to be dealt with drastically in order to prevent it from spreading. The purity of the church had to be maintained. It is an indication of Luke's practicality that he tempers his description of the early church with a recognition of treachery within. Yet only in order that it might be a prelude to greater blessing.
In order to understand this account we must see the position clearly in its context. The church was going forward as one. There was complete love and harmony. The Kingly Rule of God was being manifested. The temper of the new age was being made known. And then secretly and insidiously into this perfect harmony came two people with the equivalent of a spiritual time bomb, a bomb that could have destroyed all that had been accomplished. It was a root of evil that could destroy the whole. And behind it was Satan. It was he who was seeking to undermine the witness and life of the church by hypocrisy. And Ananias and Sapphira were his representatives.
When man first came into the world his desire for what was pleasant resulted in betrayal, and in his expulsion from God's earthly Paradise (Genesis 3). When Israel were on the very verge of taking possession of the promised land a man, filled with greed, almost brought the whole project to a halt (Joshua 7). In both cases the crime was the same. They withheld from God what had been totally dedicated to Him. When Judas became disappointed with Jesus his love for money led him into betrayal, resulting in the crucifixion of Jesus and his own self-destruction. And now here again we have people whose love for money could well have proved the undoing of God's people, another Adam and Eve, another Achan, another Judas. As the new creation, the new age, began they had had to choose between God and Mammon and they chose Mammon. But worse. They did it pretending that they were choosing God. Indeed they went a stage further. They took what had been wholly dedicated to God and kept it back for themselves.
The point of this incident is that it was a rejection of the Kingly Rule of God while professing to accept it, and that it was crucially at a time when all eyes needed to be fixed on the King because the world was about to reveal itself in a wholesale attack on the Gospel. And it was a withholding from God of what had become His right because they had dedicated it to Him. It cut right into the heart of the total dedication of God's people. It is a reminder that the behaviour of each individual is of great concern to God. But thanks to Peter's prompt action the church was kept pure and prepared. Had Ananias and Sapphira not been firmly dealt with, the outcome might have been very different. It was the first real test of the genuineness of the response of the early church, and the first evidence of what a serious matter it was to come under the Kingly Rule of God. And the final result was that the church continued to walk in awe of God and not of men.
There is a solemnity about this story that cannot be denied. It is clear that Peter was vividly conscious that God was directly involved in it. It is the only explanation for various elements within it. Why did Peter not admonish them and call on them to repent as he did later with Simon the sorcerer (Acts 8:22)? Why was Ananias' body dealt with so abruptly so that even his wife was not involved in his preparation for burial? Why was she not immediately informed? Why did Peter, or some friend, not give Sapphira a warning of what might be? Why was the whole affair deliberately made so public? There is only one explanation. The deed had already been committed in the mind. The crime had been done. The dedication had been drawn back on. God, Who knew all things, had already passed His sentence. And the thing had now to be made known to all. There was no going back. It was to be an example to the early church. Peter was simply appointed to be God's executioner.
The similarity with the sin of Achan in Joshua 7, and it was the same sin, is striking, as is the harshness of the sentence. They had appropriated for themselves what had been fully and solemnly dedicated to God. They had broken their vow to the Most High which they should have brought to the Temple of the Lord (Psalms 116:18-19; Ecclesiastes 5:4-5; Malachi 1:14; Psalms 50:14; Psalms 76:11; Psalms 116:14). In the very Temple of God they would lie to God Himself. Their sin was exposed in all its awfulness. And they were therefore to be made an example to the flock. The seriousness of their crime might best be expressed in the words of Malachi 1:14, “But cursed be the deceiver, who --- vows, and sacrifices to the Lord a corrupt thing, for I am a great King,” says the Lord of hosts, “and my name is dreadful among the nations.” And that was what they were doing. Seeking to deceive the great King.
In times of revival when God's presence has been most vividly made apparent similar sudden deaths have been known. Ananias and Sapphira were greatly privileged in being present during the most powerful spiritual movement of all time. But great privilege and opportunity brings great responsibility.
The account begins with an example of one of Luke's many contrasts. On the one hand was the godly man who came and gave his all. On the other was the couple who tried to keep back part of the price. It is salutary today to consider that most of the church is exemplified in the second.