Chapter 5 of the Book of Acts begins with a disturbing story of a man named Ananias and his wife Sapphira. They sold some land in order to give the money to the apostles; but rather than give them all the money, they kept some for themselves and told the apostles they sold the land for less. They essentially lied to God. As a result of their misdeed, they both fell dead in front of the apostle Peter.
This makes me wonder about all the times we lie to God indirectly and what the consequences of those actions might be. Probably the grandest example of this might be our marriage vows. In a religious marriage ceremony, couples usually make a vow to God to love, honor, and cherish their spouse as long as they both shall live – or something to that effect. If you consider that statement carefully, it’s pretty easy to short-change God in the delivery of that vow.
I know God is well aware of the enemy’s attack on all of us and I suspect He is cutting us all a little slack; nevertheless, Ananias and Sapphira are a harsh reminder of the awesome power of God and His total righteousness. Praise God for sending His Son to save us from our sins. I can’t help but think Jesus is working overtime at the right hand of God trying to explain all of our misdeeds.
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