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Are We Close Enough Yet? Act 5:1-5 (KJV) “But a certain man named Ananias, with
Sapphira his wife, sold a possession, (2) 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. (3) 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? (4)
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. (5) And Ananias hearing these words fell down,
and gave up the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things.” This is a picture of the unusual sudden violence with which
the Holy Spirit judges conduct. Peter could have dealt with their lie in a
different way. He could have barred them from the fellowship. He could have
demanded the rest of the money. He could have given back what they offered and
told them God was not interested in anything less than total consecration. But
why the violent judgment? Maybe it was because of the presence of the Lord. If we
really want in increase of the Presence of God, then we must be ready! Ananias
had not lied to the Apostles but to God. His heart was not right toward God, but
he pretended it was. There was no evidence that Ananias and Sapphira were
anything but members in good-standing otherwise, why give anything? The believers had decided to share their material goods. God
had not commanded them to do so. The money belonged to Ananias. No-one was
pressuring him to give away any of it. So the issue was not that Ananias gave
part and held back part, it was that he and his wife pretended to be fully
consecrated. Judas did the same thing. No one forced Judas to follow
Christ. Judas wanted to be a disciple and the Lord even said he was chosen. But
He also said that Judas was a devil (Jn.6:70) So we know that devils follow the
Lord and fellowship with true believers. You see, this is the point: the closer we are to God the more
our conduct matters to Him. In the same way, those who are closest to us affect
us differently than those who are not. But many, like Ananias, keep part of the
proceeds for their own pleasure; and when the Lord comes, He will drive them
away from his Presence. Why did such wrath fall on these types of people? They were
religious. They wanted to be known as God’s people. (If you would have known
them, you probably would have liked them.) We have people today who act good and
look good and so we enjoy being with them. But in their heart they are lying to
the Spirit of God-they are pretenders; they are hypocrites; they are lying to
the Holy Ghost. Since this sin is possible today, we ought to look at our own
hearts. Are we giving to God what He deserves and what He asks of us? Do we
worship with the Saints while our hearts tend to be somewhere else? God may
permit such hypocrisy for a while, but when His Presence increases, the
pretenders will have no part of the Kingdom of God. I think the answer is this: There must have been a part of
their heart that was still in the world. There must have been a desire for
security and happiness in the world. They just weren’t ready to completely trust
in God. This flaw in their hearts brought down the Divine Judgment of God. I believe God wants us to know today how important it is to
be counted as a true member of the Body of Christ. We must be utterly sincere
and faithful. There is no evidence that Ananias and Sapphira were not
genuine Christians. Peter did not say, “Ananias, you never were a very good
Christian.” Peter dealt with the sinful act itself. Judas had been stealing all the time from the other
disciples, yet the Lord included him among the chosen, even though He knew there
was sin in his heart. Judas was not thoroughly evil because once Satan had him
in control Judas still repented, but it was too late. Judas could have shared in
Holy Ghost power after Christ’s death and resurrection, but money was more
important than the cross. We tend to think people are either totally wicked or totally
righteous. They are not. No, these people were not devils with pitchforks
either. They were just like you and me who desire to be close to the things of
God. There were Pharisees more wicked than Judas (Matt. 27:3-5).
“What is that to us?” Judas did their dirty work but was tortured in his mind
until he killed himself because he had not fully consecrated himself. There were people worse than Ananias and Sapphira; they went
about trying to kill Paul and stop the Word of God from going forth. But God did
not kill them. We have people like this today; we are even close to some.
They seem like pretty good people, but God used Ananias and Sapphira as an
examples for us. How close are we to the Presence of God and yet how far away?
How can we tell? Do we really know how dangerous His presence can be when our
hearts are not right? Fire can destroy anything that is not fireproof. So how
can we really tell if we are acceptable to God and in good standing with Him?
Rev 17:14 (KJV) “These shall make war with the Lamb, and
the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and
they that are with him [are] called, and chosen, and faithful.” One of the most prominent characteristics of the Lord Jesus
is faithfulness. He is God’s faithful and true witness. Those who appear with
Christ will have been proven faithful. We all know people who have revealed their lack of
faithfulness. You and I have Judas in us. We have Ananias and Sapphira in us. We
are so close to the glory of God, but what are we when we are called upon to pay
the price of faithfulness? What happens to us when we don’t get our way any
longer? What happens when we don’t experience what we once thought was God? We don’t know God today. We have him confused with Santa
Claus. Those who have given their all to the Lord are learning to
live one minute at a time, trusting in the Lord. We are not to split our
allegiance between the world and with the things of God. We are giving our best
to the Kingdom of God without reservation. What we will receive on that day is exactly in proportion to
what we have given in this day. Some will reap thirty-fold, some sixty, and some
a hundred. People today are losing part or all of their inheritance because of
their unwillingness to be totally sincere with God. Lack of diligent
consecration exists because American Christians have learned to “play church”
and then go out and live their own way. Do we not want the fullness of the
Kingdom of God? What has happened to previous generations can happen to us
unless we search our hearts diligently and see if we are holding back part of
the proceeds. For those who will not search their hearts, the Lord will send
strong delusion that they will believe a lie and they will be filled with
confusion. We must come to the truth of the Knowledge of the Son of God. We
cannot save ourselves; instead, we must absolutely depend and utterly trust in
the Lord with all our hearts. God will not come to us where sin is operating. We
must utterly return to the Lord, humble ourselves, confess our sins, and serve
the Lord with a whole heart. We are being tested. If we guard the word of Christ’s
patience and not flee from the cross assigned to us, we will be guarded from the
hour of temptation. Sin is going to become so abundant that only those who are
truly consecrated in holiness and godliness will be able to witness of the power
and glory of God. This is an excellent opportunity for those in the Kingdom.
Many of the last in time are going to be the first in the Kingdom. We can profit
from our past mistakes by allowing the Holy Spirit to bring us to new heights of
glory. But we must not forget, to whom much is given much is required. There is
no safer place to be than with those who are totally sold out to God. Are we
truly, utterly, sincerely faithful, or are we holding back our money and goods
to save ourselves from calamity? What is the Lord telling you when you seek His face and listen? Are you really faithful to Jesus Christ to the point that your life is as nothing as long as He is glorified? We are near to the fullness of the Glory of God; but if we are not completely faithful, we are farther away than we think from what God has prepared for those who truly love Him. -Pr. Steve April Newsletter 2009 | Are We Close Enough Yet Pastor's Journal 2008 | Crucified With Christ
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