Grace, Generosity and Greed

And the multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul: neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common. And with great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus: and great grace was upon them all. Neither was there any among them that 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 down at the apostles' feet: and distribution was made unto every man according as he had need. And Joses, who by the apostles was surnamed Barnabas, (which is, being interpreted, The son of consolation,) a Levite, and of the country of Cyprus, Having land, sold it, and brought the money, and laid it at the apostles' feet. But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession, And kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles' feet. But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? to lie to...: Or, to deceive Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God. And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things. And the young men arose, wound him up, and carried him out, and buried him. And it was about the space of three hours after, when his wife, not knowing what was done, came in. And Peter answered unto her, Tell me whether ye sold the land for so much? And she said, Yea, for so much. Then Peter said unto her, How is it that ye have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband are at the door, and shall carry thee out. Then fell she down straightway at his feet, and yielded up the ghost: and the young men came in, and found her dead, and, carrying her forth, buried her by her husband. And great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things. - Acts 4:32-5:11

    In the book of Acts the Holy Spirit gives us a detailed picture of the early church. Like the church today, it was a mixed multitude. Tares grew with the wheat. Goats were mingled with the Lord's sheep. Among the people of God there were, even in those early days, covetous, idolatrous hypocrites. Every Sunday School child has heard about Ananias and his wife Sapphira. Their story begins in Acts 4:32 and continues through to chapter 5:11. In this story the Spirit of God gives us a striking contrast between true faith in Christ and a mere hypocritical profession of faith. True faith surrenders all to Christ. Religious hypocrisy merely pretends to surrender all to Christ. If you will carefully read these few verses of the inspired record, three things will catch your attention.

    1. An attitude of grace

    The first thing the Holy Spirit directs our attention to in this passage is an attitude of grace among the people of God (4:32-35). Believing hearts are gracious hearts. True faith really converts sinners. The person who is born again by the Spirit of God is no longer a selfish, self-centered, self-seeking, self-serving person, but a grateful, thoughtful, generous, serving person. All who live unto God die unto the world. The person who finds his life in Christ loses his life to Christ (Matt. 10:39). These early disciples show by their example that faith lives not for material gain, but for spiritual good. Faith does not seek temporal riches. Faith loves, not the things of this world, which are passing away, but the things of that world which is to come, which are eternal (2 Cor. 4:18). Faith seeks the kingdom of God and his righteousness, not the mammon of unrighteousness (Matt. 6:24,31-33). Faith in Christ produces an attitude of grace in the heart. Those who have experienced the grace of God are gracious. Isn't this the teaching of these four verses?

    Faith unites the people of God. Luke tells us that 'The multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul' (4:32). All of God's people truly are one in Christ. We are one family (Eph. 3:14-15), a family of sinners saved by grace. Our hearts love one person supremely, the Lord Jesus Christ (1 Peter 1:8; 1John 4:19). We are devoted to one cause, the kingdom of God. We seek one thing above all other things, the will of God (Matt. 6:10,33). We have one dominating, ultimate goal, the glory of God (John 12:28). These things are true of all believers! Many other things, regrettably, may divide us while we live in this body of flesh and sin. But here we are one. Let every child of God endeavour, therefore, to keep 'the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace' (Eph. 4:1-6).

    Faith in Christ makes men and women generous with their possessions: 'Neither said any of them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all things common' (4:32). These men and women were so taken up with the cause of Christ and with their love for one another that they placed no value upon personal property, personal wealth, or personal advantages. These believers were truly indifferent to such things. They did not even look upon their own possessions as their own. In their hearts' affection they had forsaken all to follow Christ. They recognized that all earthly, material things are only temporary. They were so thoroughly united to one another in love that they each looked upon their own property as the common property of God's people.

    These men and women had learned what every child of God in this world must learn: all that we have in this world belongs to God. God has entrusted each of us with certain of this world's goods to use as stewards in his house. We are responsible to use them wisely for the advancement of his kingdom, the furtherance of his gospel, the comfort of his people and the glory of his name. These men and women were willing to rob themselves of comfort, convenience and personal satisfaction for one another's good. Is it any wonder that the apostles preached with such power when such 'great grace was upon them all'? (4: 33).

    True faith actually causes God's saints to prefer each other above themselves. This is manifest in verses 34 and 35. These men and women sold their possessions, their houses and their lands rather than allow their brothers and sisters in Christ to be in need of the necessities of life! The grace of God still produces this kind of graciousness, mercifulness and love (Phil. 2:1-8; James 2:14-17; 1 John 3:16-18).

    Their gifts were free, voluntary sacrifices of love. No one told them to give. No one told them how to give. No one told them how much to give. In the church of God giving is not regulated by law, but by love (2 Cor. 9:7). The only constraint these people felt was the constraint of love (2 Cor. 5:14). They saw what the needs of the church were and willingly met those needs, without the least pressure to do so. Notice also that the people of God trusted the servants of God to distribute their gifts under the direction of the Spirit of God (4:35). Where the Spirit of God rules the hearts of men there is trust and trustworthiness! The apostles of Christ were not (and his servants are not) greedy men. They took only what they needed to sustain themselves. Everything else was distributed as needs demanded.

    2. An act of generosity

    The Spirit of God inspired Luke to tell us about one man specifically, who was an example of the rest. Barnabas performed a great deed, an act of generosity (4:36-37). As one who was ordained of God to be a preacher of the gospel, Barnabas disentangled himself from the affairs of this world (2 Tim. 2:4; 1 Cor. 9:6-14). Perhaps Barnabas did not know it at this time, but God was preparing him for the work of preaching the gospel. Indeed, all who are called of God to preach the gospel are prepared, equipped and qualified by him to do so (1 Tim.3: 1-7;Titus 1:6-9). Barnabas was just the kind of man God uses in the work of the ministry. God had made him such a man by his Spirit and by his grace. He was a peaceful man, one who comforted and encouraged the saints. He was a generous man, an example of Christian charity. He was willingly submissive to the apostles, the servants of Christ (Heb. 13:7,17). Barnabas was a man of good report, who in the providence of God gained the love and respect of God's people. Then, after God prepared him for it, he was made a preacher of the gospel (Acts 13:2).

    3. An act of greed

    There was a wicked, hypocritical couple in the church, Ananias and Sapphira. When Ananias saw how greatly Barnabas was admired by God's people, he was filled with envy. So he and his wife agreed to lie to God. (Hypocrisy is lying to God!) They made a great gift to the church, but their gift was an act of greed. They gave because they wanted recognition. At first glance they appear to have done a great thing. They sold a piece of property to help the church. They gave a handsome amount of money, perhaps much more than Barnabas had given. But God looks on the heart (1 Sam. 16:7). The gift Ananias and Sapphira brought revealed graceless, greedy hearts. They pretended to give all, when in fact they had given nothing. No one asked them to give anything. Theirs was an unwilling sacrifice, given only in a hypocritical pretence, a sham, a show, a mockery. Their gift was an act of covetousness and greed, not of grace and love. They hoped to gain by giving, to gain the applause of men! Their gift was an abomination to God (Luke 16:15). Beware of covetousness and hypocrisy!