AP

Jerusalem to Rome: A Journey Through Acts

Bible Studies on the Acts of the Apostles

Acts 4:32 to 5:16

Verses 32-37: The Sharing Community. These verses are a summary, much like Acts 2:42-47, but they also serve to introduce Barnabas, who will form a contrast with Ananias and Sapphira in chapter 5.

All the believers were of one heart and mind (in the Greek: soul), i.e., they were one in love and thinking. The information about sharing possession is repeated (c.f. 2:44). The believers’ prayer (4:29-30) was answered: The apostles continued to preach boldly about the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. They shared their possessions, and no one was needy (later, matters became more complicated, and some widows were overlooked, 6:1). The profits from the sale of real estate were shared among the believers.

Verse 36 introduces Joseph, surnamed Barnabas. He was from Cyprus but had family in Jerusalem (Mark was a cousin; see 12:12 and Colossians 4:10). Most likely, he had come to Jerusalem for the feast of Pentecost. He was called ‘Son of Encouragement.’ The use of ‘son’ to indicate a man’s character is a familiar Semitic idiom. Everything we know about him, here and later, is positive! He sells his field and lays the money at the feet of the apostles to distribute.

Chapter 5:1-11: Ananias and Sapphira

Verses 1-2: This couple was probably impressed by the appreciation Barnabas and others received when they donated the money from the sale of fields and houses. These were voluntary actions: there was no compulsion to sell anything. Ananias and Sapphira decided to sell “a piece of property” in an effort to also gain a reputation for generosity. However, they did not want to donate all the money. This was their right, but they should not have lied about it.

Verses 3-4: Peter discerned the lie. He calls it a lie “to the Holy Spirit” which is equivalent to lying “to God” (v.4). He explained what Ananias must have known, that he was free to do whatever he wished with the money, but he was not free to lie about it. Peter equates lying to the Holy Spirit with lying to God: the divinity of the Holy Spirit and his unity with God is affirmed.

Verses 5-6: Ananias instantly fell down and died, he expired (Luke’s Greek uses a medical term). No wonder the people were seized with great fear! The young men do the heavy lifting, the wrapping up (another medical term), and the burying. There were no refrigerated mortuaries available!

Verses 7-11: Sapphira came in about three hours later. Perhaps she hoped to share in the appreciation she no doubt expected her husband to receive. She had not heard what had happened. Peter gives her an opportunity to come clean, but she commits the original lie. Verse 9 makes it clear that they had agreed together on this plan (the ‘you’ is plural). Peter calls it a test of the Spirit of the Lord. The holiness of God was being tested; lying does not agree with the holiness of God.

Sapphira gets a double shock: not only is her lie exposed to the whole congregation, but she is also told that her husband is dead and buried. She also falls dead instantly. The young men are assigned another task of wrapping and burying. Husband and wife conspired together and now are buried together, side by side. “The fear which fell upon the whole community suggests that many a member of it had reason to tremble and say, ‘There but for the grace of God, go I’” (F.F. Bruce). When placed in an embarrassing position it is easy to tell a lie, even a white lie, or not the whole truth. However, Ananias and Sapphira had actually planned the lie together. It was not a spur of the moment decision in an awkward situation. The judgement was severe.

The apostle John has 42 out of 102 New Testament mentions of the truth. The following are a sample:

The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth (John 1:14).

But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what they have done has been done in the sight of God (John 3:21).

God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth (John 4:24).

You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44).

But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth (John 16:13).

Verse 11:

The occurrence of the word ‘church’ (Gk. ekklesia) is its first occurrence in the text of Acts. The Greek word has both a Gentile and a Jewish background. In its Gentile sense it denotes chiefly the citizen-assembly of a Greek city (cf. Acts 19:32, 39, 41), but it is its Jewish usage that underlies its use to denote the community of believers in Jesus. In the Septuagint it is one of the words used to denote the nation of Israel in its religious character as the ‘congregation of Jehovah.’ (Bruce)

Verses 12-16: The Apostles Heal Many This is another summarizing statement, coming before the next big event in verses 17 ff. It was a time of miracles and meetings in Solomon’s Colonnade. At first glance there seems to be a contradiction between v. 13 and v. 14. Who were those who dared not join them? In the Amplified Bible we read: “And none of those who were not of their number dared to join and associate with them, but the people held them in high regard and praised and made much of them.” The initial ‘not daring’ arose perhaps out of the fear that “seized the whole church and all who heard about these events” of verse 11. This fear was replaced by faith as more and more men and women believed in the Lord.

Peter healed many in Jesus’ name and after his example. Even his shadow falling on someone was enough to initiate a healing! Paul was similarly blessed with the gift of healing: “God did extraordinary miracles through Paul, so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured, and the evil spirits left them” (Acts 19:11-12).

Questions:

Some people have seen this early Christian community as a form of Communism. What are some of the differences between these communities?

Not all sins are instantly brought to light, nor are they all punished instantly. Why do you think this sin of lying was so quickly and severely punished? Think of the context.

Sharp business practices are very common today, but Christians are called to a higher ethic. What are some of the obstacles to honest dealings in today’s economy?

– Alida Sewell