Ananias and Sapphira.

Acts 5:1-5 English Lesson.

1 “But a CERTAIN MAN named Ananias,
with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession. 2 You’ll notice that this chapter of Acts
And he kept back part of the proceeds, his begins with the word, “But.” Nobody begins
wife also being aware of it, and brought a a sentence with a conjunction unless they
certain part and laid it at the apostles’ feet. 3 are referring back to something else. To
But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan what are they referring? Let’s have a little
filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and English lesson.
keep back part of the price of the land for
yourself?
5 Then Ananias, hearing these words,
fell down and breathed his last. So great
fear came upon all those who heard these
things. 6 And the young men arose and
wrapped him up, carried him out, and buried
him.”

Ok class, what is a conjunction? A

“Conjunction” by definition is “The action
or instance of two or more events or
things occurring at the same point in
time or space.”
We need to back up a few verses and
see what was happening prior to this
incident and establish the proper context
into which this story fits. Otherwise, we’ll
also end up with the same old flawed, “Fiery
(Ananias falls down dead.) conclusion” proclaimed by so many well-
meaning pastors.
Most Christians have heard a sermon or
two starring these two. Ananias and
Sapphira have been portrayed forever as
the poster children for not to lying to the
Holy Spirit. You are told that, if you do, you
could be struck dead…IN CHURCH no less!
That’s a retty frightening thought, isn’t it?
And preachers are wondering why Church
attendance is dwindling? Sounds kinda like
a threat! Some sermons on this passage
can be so fiery, they just about singe your
hair!
–
I’m sure such messages are preached The Backdrop.
with a good heart and an honorable motive.
But this idea that a believer could be In the previous chapter, the Church was
struck dead in church is not only flourishing and everyone prospered. Those
inaccurate: It’s downright cruel, NOT TO with abundance shared with those of lesser
MENTION, UNTRUE! means so that NO ONE LACKED. Let’s
follow the story…
 –
Acts 4:32-37
“Now the multitude of those who believed
were of one heart and one soul; neither
did anyone say that any of the things he
possessed was his own, but they had all
things in common. And with great power
the apostles gave witness to the resurrection
of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was
upon them all. Nor was there anyone
among them who lacked; for all who were
possessors of lands or houses sold them,
and brought the proceeds of the things that
were sold, and laid them at the apostles’
feet; and they distributed to each as anyone
had need.
And Joses, who was also named
Barnabas by the apostles (which is translated
Son of Encouragement), a Levite of the
country of Cyprus, having land, sold it, and
brought the money and laid it at the apostles’
feet.”
–
The chapter ends with the account of
Barnabas selling some land and bringing
ALL the proceeds to the apostles and laying
it at their feet to be distributed. Ananias
thought he’d do something similar
except that he kept back part of the price.
Nothing wrong with not giving them the
whole amount, but he lied about it and his
wife was in on it with him.
The Importance of Context.
In order to be truly understood, every
story in scripture must be put into its proper
context. The reason for all the fiery
sermons is that it has been taken out of
context, thereby MISunderstood,
MISused and MISapplied. It has been
MISused to frighten Christians into living
holy lives and to obeying the law…OR
ELSE.
They’re implying, of course, that God
might get angry with you and strike you, A
BELIEVER, dead if you don’t measure up.
What a horrible thought!
Salvation: Eternal or Not?
As if that weren’t bad enough, they are
also implying that you might lose your
salvation. That would mean it isn’t eternal,
despite the FACT that the Bible says it is.
Well, that’s confusing! Is it eternal or not?
If their assumption is true, then Jesus
lied (HE DID NOT!!!) and we really don’t
have any hope or security.
AS IF!!!
Thanks be to God, NOTHING COULD
BE FURTHER FROM THE TRUTH.
Pastors’ Responsibility.
Are pastors really responsible to see to it
that their people live holy lives? Yes and no.
Yes they must lead their flock in the right
direction but NO, IT ISN’T BY GIVING
THEM A LIST OF DO’S AND DON’TS. In
other words, by teaching them the Law.
–
The problem isn’t that they teach the
law. No one truly teaches pure law, even
Jewish congregations. The problem is they
MIX law with GRACE, hence the Holy
Spirit’s motivation to illustrate the
dangers of this practice.
Rightly Dividing The Word Of God.
Let’s take a closer look at this story IN
CONTEXT. This requires you have a proper
understanding of how to rightly divide the
Word. It is the only way to determine the
context of any passage.
Believe it or not many pastors, some
even with PhD’s, don’t know how to
rightly divide the word of God. It’s true!
I’ve heard it with my own ears. I’m sure you
have too, though you may not have known it
at the time. Well, you’re about to learn how
to discern rightly dividing from not rightly
dividing.
Context Is King.
When studying any part of scripture,
CONTEXT IS KING. Any “text,” when it is
taken out of it’s “Con” leaves you with a
“CON.” We don’t need or want any of that in
the Church. We want to know the truth!
That’s what sets us free!
What does it mean to “Righty Divide?” It
means you don’t mix the covenants together,
i.e. Law with Grace. (If you’re still not sure
what that means = /part-1-of-16-introduction-
to-rightly-dividing-the-word-of-god/)
Another Ananias.
Secrets In The Hebrew Language.
Names as well as numbers throughout
the scriptures play a major role in unlocking
the mystery of many cryptic passages, like
this one. They help us correctly interpret the
Word, depending on how deep we want to
go. The names of the major players in this
tale hold the key.
What’s so disconcerting about the whole
thing is that Ananias’ name is derived from
the Hebrew, “Hananiah,” which means
“God’s grace.” The big question is, “Were
these two believers,” and if so, why did they
die? That’s very troubling! Why?
Because believers, the Bible tells us, are
cleansed of ALL SIN, including those in the
future. So, question #1 that needs a
definitive answer is “Were these two
saved?” Because if they were truly
believers, then it’s a pretty frightening idea to
think that “Lying to the Holy Spirit,” or
committing any other sin for that matter,
could cut down a believer…in Church!…or
any place for that matter! Where’s the grace?
That would make the Church a place you
would most definitely NOT want to go!
– 5:1 But “A CERTAIN MAN” named
Let’s let the Bible interpret itself and find
our the answer.
(Ananias prays for Saul to open his eyes.)
There is another Ananias in the book of
Acts four chapters later, in chapter 9. This is
the Ananias who prayed to open the eyes of
a young man, Saul, whom God would raise
to become the greatest evangelist of all
time: The Apostle Paul.
–
As this young man was healed to
Damascus to round up and persecute
Christians, he was knocked off his “High
horse.” He was sent there with the blessing
of religious leaders in order to round up
believers when Jesus appeared to him in a
bright light. He spoke to him as he lay on the
ground. Saul was blind for three days.
As Ananias prayed for him, Saul’s eyes
were opened, both natural and spiritual, and
he could see again. AWESOME!
God’s grace is just like that. It heals
us BOTH physically and spiritually, but
only by GRACE, not Law.
–
So why did the other Ananias, husband
of Sapphira, drop dead? Did Peter say God
would strike him dead for lying to the Holy
Spirit? No. Read carefully: The Bible simply
says “He fell dead when he HEARD his
words.”
Let’s follow the story.
–
In the beginning of verse 1 it says:
Ananias, TOGETHER with his wife
Sapphira…

Unfair To Jesus.
Typologies.
This Ananias is mentioned along with his
wife, Sapphira. The other Ananias who
prayed for Paul was alone. Why is this
important? The Holy Spirit is painting
pictures for us again. These two dropped
dead as a result of their sin because they
were NOT SAVED.
– penalty for ALL your sins. ALL MEANS
How do we know they weren’t believers?
Because Dr. Luke, who penned the book of
Acts, is very consistent in his writings. He
called believers either “Disciple or believer;”
usually disciple. Unbelievers were simply
identified as “a certain man” or “a certain
woman.”
There are a number of other
corroborating scriptures which support this
fact which I won’t go into here. Feel free to
research it for yourself and don’t forget to
check the Greek text.
Words Added By Translators.
Translators often add in words which are
not in the original text, which appear in
italics. They do it to make the text flow
better, meaning well, but often causing more
confusion.
The Ananias in this story is NOT called a
“Disciple” which means he was not a
believer nor was his wife, Sapphira, though
they obviously associated with them. That is
the only reason they could drop dead:
They weren’t believers. Had they been
saved, GOD COULD NOT STRIKE THEM
DEAD. Why?
– one-is-forgiven-little/)
Because the Bible says Christians are
no longer under condemnation…OF ANY
KIND…for the rest of eternity. Had they
been believers, they would have faced
correction for their wrong behavior but
they would never be punished by being
struck dead because they lied. That
correction or discipline comes from man.
The reality for believers is ALL YOUR
SINS, EVEN YOUR FUTURE ONES, ARE
PUT AWAY. They are not imputed to you
having been imputed to Jesus when He
hung on the cross. Your debt, Church, was
OVERPAID long ago. Long before you were
born. When Jesus died, all your sins were
future.
Even if you lied to the Holy Spirit, as the
text records–not that you would want to nor
does anyone condone lying–it would not be
imputed to you because it was cleansed by
the precious blood of Jesus 2,000 years
ago! It would be unfair for God to punish you
for that, or any other sin: Unfair to Jesus,
that is, because He already bore the full
ALL.
As we walk through life, being human,
you and I will occasionally sin. But we are
under Jesus’ Blood covering.
If you were taught that you are forgiven
only of all your past sins up to the present
but must ask forgiveness as you go, you
have the same “present-tense”
understanding of forgiveness that Simon,
the Pharisee had. Jesus had to set him
straight. He explained to him what it means
to be “Forgiven much: Perfect tense
forgiveness.” (For more on is topic = /no-
–
Christians in leadership are there to
correct…in love…any wrong behavior on the
part of believers in their care. It is part of
their job. God would not strike any
believer dead because you stand in the
perfection of His Son.
– Rabbinical tradition the Ten Commandments
Sin destroys. That’s why God hates it so
much. He loved us so much He sent Jesus to
save us because He doesn’t want to see His
beloved ones destroyed. He wants us to live
happy, healthy and long lives. Toward that
end, He corrects those He loves so we can
see more of Jesus and tell MANY others
about Him.
(Sapphira falls dead at the Apostle’s Feet.)
These two con artists were trying to
cheat the church financially in some way.
If anything, it should be of great comfort
to know that we are protected by our God
from those who would try to cheat or
harm us.
– they saw God, and they ate and drank. 12
It shouldn’t be surprising that the whole
church was very upset either. Who wouldn’t
be? Someone drops dead in your midst?
That’s a natural, human response, not proof
that God would strike believers dead for
sinning in Church.
–
Ananias, as I said, is mentioned together
with his wife, Sapphira. This is not a
coincidence or an insignificant detail. Herein
is the key to understanding this entire
story. The Holy Spirit made a point of
including both their names to reveal a truth
of MEGAimportance.
Solving The Mystery.
In the Talmud and in accordance with
were written and engraved on sapphire
stones.
WHAT?!
Yep. It’s true. But not just any sapphire.
It was a particular kind called “Lapis lazuli,”
which means, “Blue stone.” Just in case
you don’t put any stock in the Talmud, is any
scriptural evidence to support the rabbis’
claims? Yes, there is!
–
Come with me now, up to the top of Mt.
Sinai. I think you’ll be surprised what we find
there!
Exodus 24:9-12
9 “Then Moses went up, also Aaron, Nadab,
and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of
Israel, 10 and they saw the God of Israel.
And there was under His feet as it were a
paved work of SAPPHIRE STONE, and it
was LIKE THE VERY HEAVENS IN IT’S
CLARITY. 11 But on the nobles of the
children of Israel He did not lay His hand. So
Then the LORD said to Moses, “Come up to
Me on the mountain and be there; and I will
give you tablets of stone, and the law and
commandments which I have written, that
you may teach them.”

Sapphire is formed under great heat
and pressure. When God came down on
the top of that mountain with lightenings, fire
and thunderings, the whole top of it was
scorched, burned a deep blue, making a
pavement of sapphire, “like the very
heavens in its clarity.”
When God, JEHOVAH JESUS, wrote on
stones the Ten Commandments, that’s the
stone He wrote on: THE SAPPHIRE STONE
AT HIS FEET!
Sapphira, by her very name, is
therefore a picture of the law.
Running Undercurrent.
The Bible is a running narrative all about
One Person: Our Lord Jesus. There is,
however, a running undercurrent; it’s the
message of that grace is superior to the law,
how it would ultimately usurp or replace it.
(For more on that topic = /till-all-be-fulfilled/))
God did just that. By fulfilling all the Law,
He replaced it with the New Covenant the
moment He cried out “FINISHED!!!” His
Father ripped that temple veil from top to
bottom. He was SO EXCITED because we
could now have fellowship with Him face to
face and not die! It was yet another way of
telling us that we are NOT under law
anymore; we under grace because Jesus
nailed the law–the handwriting of
requirements–to the cross! (add info =
esther-series-part-6-evil-day-turned-into-
victory/)
Connecting The Dots.
How does all of this all figure into the
story? Well, we have Ananias–the “grace of
God”–married to “Sapphirah–the law. “It’s
MIXTURE; the ministry of death–which
God HATES!!! Teaching law mixed with
grace is like ingesting little bits of arsenic.
Both will kill you DEAD.
GRACE MARRIED TO LAW PRODUCES
DEATH.
That’s the message. Now, no church or
synagogue today actually preaches pure
law. Honestly, they’d be better off if they did
because we’d very quickly realize we can’t
keep it…AT ALL. We would run screaming
for help to Jesus!
–
This trying to keep the law n order to
be pleasing to God is what brings death
and all manner of disease into the Church
today, which ought not be. Mixing law and
grace is literally, physically killing people,
hence the dropping dead part of this story.
–
Yes, this was a real-life event. The Holy
Spirit has included it in scripture to teach us
and important spiritual principle: MIXTURE
KILLS…LITERALLY.
False Gospel.
The #1 reason our people are not
healed, are not delivered and not enjoying
the all blessings of God today is that THEY
ARE NOT HEARING THE REAL GOSPEL.
They are hearing, “Do good, get good;
Do bad, get beat.” That is NOT the
gospel: It’s “mixture or Galatianism.” or
whatever you want to call it. Paul called it,
“Another Gospel,” which carries a DOUBLE
CURSE ON THOSE WHO PREACH IT.
–
Folks, this is no joking matter. It’s
serious stuff. Preachers who are focusing on
YOU and your doing are, in fact, promoting
self-righteousness. They are aiming for true
holiness which, no surprise, continually
eludes them and their people. The harder
 they try, the further away from it they…and
their people…fall.
– Look and see what happened after
Church, all of the blessings of Abraham
are our inheritance, just as they are for the
Jewish people. Unlike them, however, we
have the full blessing because we aLao
Jesus. Abraham enjoyed them because he
was under pure grace.
Mutually Exclusive.
Both systems, Law and Grace, cannot
co-exist because the law demands; grace
supplies. They are mutually exclusive,
canceling each other out. This is how
Christ becomes of “NO EFFECT to you.”
(See Galatians 5:4). Those under the
teaching of the great lie we call, “Mixture,”
CANNOT experience the blessings of
Abraham because they are ours by faith, not
works.
Prophetic Significance.
After these two dropped dead the Bible
says, “the young men carried them out.”
Prophetically speaking, God is saying the
young generation is going to bury for all
time, NEVER TO BE RESURRECTED, this
deadly teaching of mixture. I say,
“HALLELUJAH!!!”
–
At last the church will be rid of it. She will
finally flourish, grow, change lives and be
effective in the world. She will experience
countless people saved, miracles of all kinds
and worldwide revival that will make all
others of the past pale in comparison.
Epilogue.
“Mixture” died:
12 “And through the hands of the apostles
MANY SIGNS AND WONDERS WERE
DONE AMONG THE PEOPLE. And they
were all with one accord in Solomon’s
Porch. 13 Yet none of the rest dared join
them, but the people esteemed them highly.
14 AND BELIEVERS WERE
INCREASINGLY ADDED TO THE LORD,
multitudes of both men and women, 15 so
that they brought the sick out into the streets
and laid them on beds and couches, that at
least the shadow of Peter passing by might
fall on some of them. 16 Also a multitude
gathered from the surrounding cities to
Jerusalem, bringing sick people and
those who were tormented by unclean
spirits, and THEY WERE ALL HEALED.”
–
It’s happening now, Church. It’s
happening! Little by little the “YOUNG MEN,”
meaning new younger ministries on the
“block,” are routing out of our ranks of the
deadly mixture Ananias and Sapphira!