Acts 5:8
12 A Critical Moment Acts 5:8 “And Peter answered her, ‘Tell me whether you sold the land for so much?’ She said, ‘Yes, for so much?’” (Acts 5:8). The Jews captured Jesus in the middle of the night and brought Him before Pilate at the crack of dawn. For Pilate, it was the most critical moment in the history of the world. Pilate responded as a judge. “What accusation do you bring against this man” (John 18:29)? The leaders of Israel did not have any evidence against Jesus that concerned Pilate. The Romans had only recently taken away the right for any nation to put anyone to death. Only the Romans could execute a person. Pilate urged the Jews to judge Jesus by their law, but that did not satisfy the Jews who wanted Jesus eliminated. Pilate began a conversation with Jesus, asking, “Are You King of the Jews” (John 18:33)? Jesus tried to tell Pilate that indeed He was a King, but His kingdom was another world. If His kingdom were of this world, He would declare war, and His men would fight the Jews. So Pilate was correct, Jesus is King. Jesus answered, “You say rightly that I am a king. For this cause I was born, and for this cause I have come into the world, that I should bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth hears My voice” (John 18:37). Pilates’ response was significant. “What is truth” (John 18:38)? I identify with Pilate’s question! Many voices sound in my ear. We can pick and choose what religion we want. Even in the latest news in the country, there is “fake news.” The reporters do not tell the truth, and what they do say is twisted to fit their agenda. Even the preachers of the Gospel do not speak with one voice. There are many denominations, each with their brand of truth. What am I supposed to believe? “What is truth?” Most of us do the best we can. We operate out of truth from our viewpoint. We develop our philosophy, and if it is right for me, then it is truth. I decide between true and false, making me my final reference point for truth. In my younger years, I discovered the idea of “situational ethics.” There is no absolute truth; the situations and the people involved determine their authenticity. The world view says premarital sex and adultery are right or wrong determined by the circumstances in which they happen. When a young couple loves each other, how can it be wrong? Indeed, not telling the truth is a gracious and benevolent thing to do in some circumstances. Telling you that your haircut is the worst may be the truth, but it is not kind. Therefore, is it right in light of kindness to say to you that I love your haircut? Is it an acceptable lie given the situation? Is there an absolute truth regardless of the circumstances? Some have proposed they can offer a lie if it does not hurt anyone. Others think the truth may do more harm than good; therefore, it is in the best interest of everyone to lie. The person who smuggles Bibles into a restricted country, when questioned about possessing Bibles, says, “No.” They tell a lie, but it is an acceptable lie because the result is good. Their situation demands a lie. But at the heart of it all, is there truth that we cannot violate? Is there that which is true regardless of the circumstances? Ananias and Sapphira sold a piece of property with the motive of helping the early Church in ministry. They both knew the selling price, and they agreed on how much of it they would give to the church. All of this was legitimate and truthful. The difficulty came in their agreement to lie about the amount received for the sale. They said that the amount they gave the church was the selling price, which was not the truth! But what was the harm? The early Church benefited from the money given, and Ananias and Sapphira had a little extra for personal use. Lying was undoubtedly an issue for Peter. Listen to His words to Ananias. “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself? While it remained, was it not your own? And after it was sold, was it not in your own control? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God” (Acts 5:3-4). Lying did matter to Peter. There is a definite reference for truth, and it is the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth (John 14:17). Untruth violates the relationship with the One who is the truth! To live in deceit, you must live outside of Jesus. But untruth not only is about God, but it is also about us. Falsehood is not a surface piece of dust on the human sleeve that we can quickly brush off. It is dirt in the heart of the person. The dust on the sleeve effects little of who we are, but the dirt in the heart determines our character. Untruth is not a cosmetic matter but is the foundational material of a person. Now in our passage, Peter questions Sapphira, “Tell me whether you sold the land for so much?” Sapphira answered, “Yes, for so much” (Acts 5:8). It was a moment of truth! Truth matters every moment of our lives. However, there are some moments when it is critical. When Sapphira agreed with her husband to lie, she should have stood on truth. We do not know where she was for the three hours she was absent from her husband. She was living in the lie, but then, Peter confronted Sapphira with a critical moment for truth. Everything came together in that climactic moment. Could I impress upon you this reality? God is bringing you to a crucial moment of truth! He is now, at this moment, confronting you with His truth. The Issue The truth makes a critical moment. We often say there is my opinion, your opinion, and the way it is really. I am interested in living in “the way it is really,” the truth. However, the reality is not perceiving correct data or information. Truth is more often than not beyond facts, for we can know all the facts and not know the truth. A person can diligently study the New Testament, glean all the facts about Jesus, and never embrace Him. Can we see the truth about Jesus and not know Him? On the other hand, we might not know all the facts about Him and still know Jesus, the Truth! In the New Testament, the Greek word “aletheia” is translated “truth.” The Scriptures seem to suggest three elements in the word’s use. Truth is a picture of the CHARACTER of God. He is dependable, truthful, and upright in character. We understand from the Scriptures that we can trust God to keep His word. Paul wrote, “In hope of eternal life which God, who cannot lie, promised before time began” (Titus 1:2). According to the Book of Hebrews, God based His promises on His oath because He could not find anyone greater than Himself. “It is impossible for God to lie” (Hebrews 6:18). Lying was the dilemma faced by Ananias and Sapphira. By their participation in the early Church, they claimed alignment with God’s character. The fullness of the Holy Spirit, the essence of God’s heart, supposedly filled them. But Peter said that Satan filled their hearts (Acts 5:3). They became an expression of Satan’s character who “is a liar, and the father of it” (John 8:44). Satan does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in Him. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus used six illustrations to contrast the old view with the new Kingdom reality. One of those illustrations deals with oaths. In the former view, telling the truth was only an obligation when they involved God. In the New Covenant, the character of God fills the believer; therefore, every word spoken by the believer includes God (Matthew 5:33-37), and there is never room for non-truth. The second element of truth in the Scriptures is COMPLETENESS. Truth is real and complete as opposed to false and wanting. We are to see Christianity as the absolute truth (Ephesians 1:13). Jesus presented Himself as truth personified, saying, “I am the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). What Jesus says is true because He is the truth! All the realities of the Trinity are visible in the Person of Jesus. He is not a partial revelation of truth, leaving more to come. No truth is wanting in Jesus. “For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth came through Jesus” (John 1:17). Through the merger with Jesus, God promised, “when He, the Spirit of truth, has come, He will guide you into all truth” (John 16:13). Now we come to the problem of Ananias and Sapphira. Jesus did not fill them; therefore, they did not speak the truth. The judgments of God are according to the truth (Romans 2:2). “But to those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness” (Romans 2:8). God exposes the completeness of truth. Falseness cannot exist in His presence. Satan could fill their hearts with deception because Jesus did not fill them. Paul said, “Who hindered you from obeying the truth? This persuasion does not come from Him who calls you” (Galatians 5:7-8). Sapphira came to a critical moment of truth. The expression of her heart determined her destiny. She could know the truth, but would she be the vessel for its exposure? The third element of truth in the Scriptures is CONCRETE. In this case, “alethinos” is usually an adjective, expressing the sense of something real as opposed to mere appearance or copy. The writer of the Book of Hebrews thundered into this use of “alethinos.” For seven chapters, he presented his arguments. Now he summarizes all he said to give us the main point. “We have such a High Priest who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, and not man” (Hebrews 8:1-2). The tabernacle and the Levitical rituals are a copy or shadow of the real things (Hebrews 8:5). The Lord’s Supper is a copy of the One who is the true bread (John 6:32, 35) and the true vine (John 15:1). Jesus is the eternal reality symbolized by the bread and wine. Not being real was the issue faced by Ananias and Sapphira. Being Jews, they lived their lives in the copy or shadow, the Levitical rituals. Perhaps they found it easy to hide in the shadows, but now they had to step into the Light. Sapphira experienced a critical moment of truth. Would she try to remain in the shadows? Would she continue in deception? Regardless of her attempt, the Light exposed her. There is nothing but truth in the Light. Satan may not fill our hearts to lie to the Holy Spirit, but the rejection of truth on any level is a rejection of authenticity on every level. Trying to solve a problem out of our strength and wisdom rejects the dependency Jesus demands of us in the merger. He will not let us deny the truth, “for without Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). We come to a critical moment of truth! If we focus on materialism and worry about our future, we contradict the truth. “For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:32-33). Jesus always brings us to a critical moment of truth! Do not ever step out of the truth. Always be in Jesus! The Intention The intent of every critical moment is the past! Truth is not an attribute of the Trinity God but is the fiber of His character and essence. We do not have to argue to verify that truth fits His activities. God judges truthfully (Psalms 96:13), and He sends truth forth with His presence (Psalms 5:3). “For the law was given through Moses, but grace and truth come through Jesus Christ” (John 1:17). Jesus is the visible image of the invisible Trinity God, and His activities are a demonstration of truth. If we merge with Him in oneness, could anything less be expected of our actions as new creatures? Ananias and Sapphira faced the problem of demonstrating truth. They deviated from God’s character and the merger of His presence by deception. They had an attitude or spirit that manifested itself in the act of embezzlement. As the Spirit of Christ, the Truth, confronted Ananias and Sapphira, He required they return to their departure from His presence. They could not move beyond this departure. They couldn’t ignore the past and move forward. Any further relationship with the Spirit of Truth must flow from the redemption of the departure. We cannot have a relationship with the Spirit of Truth without confrontation because He bases that relationship on truth, not falsehood. The central issue of this moment is Truth! Jesus, the Truth, will confront the falsehood in our lives. Our hearts break at the experience of Ananias and Sapphira. Sapphira chose to remain in her deception (Acts 5:8). If she had only repented (given up a former thought to embrace a new thought), forgiveness could have been hers. She would have been set free by Truth. Jesus, the Light, would have embraced her in life (John 1:4). Embracing the Truth, who is Jesus, is the call of God on our lives. We again face the message of completeness. All goodness, church support, or the authentic prayers of Ananias and Sapphira were to no avail. They deviated from Truth in one area, materialism; yet, all the assets of prior faithfulness did not compensate. “That God is light and in Him is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5). The call is not to have perfect actions; the call is to have total openness to the Truth! The Inheritance The inheritance of every critical moment of truth is the future. Did Ananias and Sapphira think their deception would determine their fate? They agreed together to embezzle the funds from the sale of their property. In the deceit of hypocrisy, they proposed their complete commitment to Jesus in giving all while they selfishly held back. Did they think they would live in favor of the early Church and know the blessings of God’s movement in others? Did they think God’s blessings would flow in their lives while they benefited from deceit and embezzlement? They must have known the future is never determined by deception, but by the truth. Suddenly Sapphira saw the truth as Ananias did, and her future was secured. Does this not scream at us that we must live in the truth? We cannot say that they were confused about what is truth and what is deception. Jesus is Truth! Again, Jesus calls us to abandon ourselves to Him. The Spirit of Jesus will guide you into all truth. He will continually reveal Himself to you and in you. There is no darkness in Jesus. He is the Light! We do not find truth in facts, data, or the comprehension of information through education. We must have a relationship with the Person named Jesus. Facts and data focus on the discipline of learning, the achievement of knowledge, and the pursuit of degrees. Relationship with the One who is Truth focuses on intimacy, oneness, and merger. The relationship is the openness of life to the invasion of all that Jesus wants to be in you. Will you abandon yourself to Jesus? Will you allow Him to take you into intimacy to share His mind and heart, a place without deception?