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THE KING’S BUSINESS
partnership with the devil, and this is what ¡every liar is doing (Jno. 8:44), and every one who teaches error instead o f teaching the W ord o f God (1 Jno. 2:22). Hn ch. 4:31 we have the Disciples Spirit-filled, and here we have Ananias devil-filled. The heart that is open to the Holy Spirit He will fill; the heart that is open to Satan he will fill. Ananias had not lied unto men, but unto God. Those are solemn words. A lie to man is bad enough, but a lie to God is appalling. Every reader o f these notes would do well to ask himself, Am I lying to God? In verse 3, Paul speaks of Ananias’ lie as a “lie to the Holy Spirit.” In verse 4, he tells Ananias that he had “ lied unto God.” Evidently then the Holy Spirit is God. Sunday, October 29 . ■ Acts 5 : 5 - 14 - The presumption o f Ananias brought swift and awful judgment. He fell dead the minute his sin was uncovered, an awful warning to those who attempt to deceive God. But not every one who thus sins is so suddenly overtaken with judgment, nevertheless judgment is none the less sure because it is not so swift. I f every one who is lying to God today, every one who is making profession o f full consecration when a full consecration has not been made, should drop dead instantly our churches would be decimated. • The deception o f Ananias was deliberate and daring! He had talked it over with his wife (vs. 2, 9). It imperilled the infant' church, it threatened to choke the fountain o f Divine Love that had sprung up in this selfish world. The stern judgment was richly merited, and while apparently very severe, it was most gracious, for it sifted and saved the church. It is God’s method in dealing with men to give illustrative examples o f His feeling toward certain sins, e. g., in the Old Testa ment we have the case o f Achan (Josh. ch. 7), and here we have the case o f Ananias and Sapphira. When God thus has given an illustrative example, the same sin is not again visited with immediate judgment, but there will none the less be a great loss for
every one who pretends full consecration but who has not made it, and who thus lies to the. Holy Ghost. The effect o f this stern judgment in the present case was most salutary; those who were thinking o f joining the church from mercenary motives were held back from so doing. Would that the Spirit were present in such power in the church today that hypocrites would regard it with terror and not dare to join themselves to it. Buy while “ o f the rest’’ no man dared join himself to it,, real "believers were the more added ,to the Lord, multitudes both o f men and women.” There is nothing in the record here to make it absolutely sure that Ananias and Sapphira were eternally lost. They were judged it is true because o f their sin„ sternly and immediately judged, but that they perished eternally we are not told (cf. 1 C or.T l :30-32), and it is not wise for us to attempt to go beyond what is written ; nevertheless their story ends in the deepest gloom. •Monday, October 30. A cts 5 : 15 , 16 . The report o f the power that there was in the church. spread far and wide, and from every direction multitudes flocked to Jerusalem bringing their sick. Wherever a man is reported with any probability o f healing the sick, multitudes flock to him. In the present case “they were healed, every one.” In the case o f many modern healers, some are healed and many die, but nothing is ever said about the latter. There is a wide gap between the modern type o f healing and that recorded here, though there can be no question that many are truly and wonderfully healed in answer to the prayer o f faith today. The Apostles had prayed for boldness and that signs and wonders might be done in the name of Jesus (ch. 4:30) and this prayer had been very literally and very fully answered. Tuesday, October 3 1 . Acts 5:77-20. This display o f power on the part o f the Apostles awakened the jealousy and increased the hate o f the Sadducees. They
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