Luke’s work, his Gospel and Acts, are among my favorite things in the Bible. But there is a story in Acts which may give us pause.

The early Christians in Jerusalem sold all their possessions and gave it to the church. They lived a communal life. (Acts 4:32)

Ananias and his wife Sapphira sold some land and gave part of the money to the church.

But they told the church they gave all of it.

Somebody found out and Peter confronted Ananias.

“How could you do this? Peter asked him. “You did not lie to us. You lied to God.”

And as soon as Peter said this, Ananias dropped dead at Peter’s feet. Peter called on some young men to carry the body away.

Later that day Sapphira came in, not knowing her husband was dead.

Peter asked her if she and her husband had sold their land for a certain sum of money.

“Yes,” she said, “that was the price.”

“You have schemed together to test the Spirit of the Lord,” Peter told her.

“Look over there,” he said. “You will see the young men who buried your husband. They will carry you out, too.”

And Sapphira dropped dead at Peter’s feet, just as her husband had.

And, we are told, “great fear seized the whole church.”

Yes, I think it would.

The implication is that God killed Ananias and his wife for lying about their offering.

I have a question for you—and I need answers from a lot of people. This is for my sermon a week from this Sunday.

Question: Did God kill Ananias and Sapphira?

Please give a reason for your answer.

My e-mail address is below.

revmaxb@tx.rr.com