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Some time ago, a crime fighter found a bomb before it exploded. He was so enamored with the publicity he got, that he planted bombs at two malls, a courthouse, and coliseum. When a hidden camera caught his deception, he said he was just trying to enhance his image. Ananias and Sapphira were trying to do the same thing when they lied about their donation to the early church—recorded in Acts Chapter 5. The couple sold a plot of land and Ananias brought part of the money to the apostles, claiming it was the full amount. With his wife’s consent, he kept the rest. Then Peter said, “Ananias, why have you let Satan fill your heart? You lied to the Holy Spirit, and you kept some of the money for yourself. The property was yours to sell or not sell, as you wished. And after selling it, the money was also yours to give away. How could you do a thing like this? You weren’t lying to us but to God!” The outcome of this deception was that God judged them by causing them to die for their sin. Matthew Henry says we need to be careful, or we will mimic Ananias and Sapphire by boasting of good works we never do, by promising what we never intend to do, or by bragging, or even by exaggerating what we do.
