THE SPIRIT’S WITNESS
38-3707
TEXT – ACTS 5:25-32
INTRODUCTION:
I.
Sometimes traumatic experiences take place at church. Over fifty plus
years of preaching I think I’ve seen some pretty unusual things happen
but I’ve never experienced anything like what happened in the Jerusalem
church one day.
II.
When chapter four-closed Luke told us that the church was doing a
tremendous job of taking care of each other and that people in the church
were digging deep to meet the needs of people in the body. Luke
mentioned what Barnabas did in selling land and giving the money to the
apostles to take care of needs.
III.
Ananias and Sapphira were members of the Jerusalem church and wanted
to get in on the care for others. We don’t know all their motives but it
seems as if they may have wanted the spotlight that had been given to
Barnabas for his gift.
IV.
So they took their land and sold it with view to making a substantial gift
to the church for the needy people. Understand that no one was telling
them that they had to give everything from the sell of the property. We
don’t even know that they were being told they had to give at all. But
they sold the property and lied about how much it was sold for and
pretended they were giving the entire amount while holding back a part
for them.
DISCUSSION:
I.
SATAN FILLED THEIR HEART TO LIE TO THE HOLY SPIRIT.
a. When Ananias brought the gift and gave it to Peter as an apostle, Peter
challenged him, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has so filled your heart
that you have lied to the Holy Spirit and have kept for yourself some
of the money you received for the land?
i. Notice Peter said, “Didn’t it belong to you belong to you before
it was sold?”
ii. While it is true that everything belongs to God, notice there is a
strong difference between when it is ours before giving it and
afterward.
b. When you lie to the Holy Spirit you lie to God.
c. When Sapphira returned and Peter asked her about their gift, she
joined in the lie. Peter said to her, “How could you conspire to test the
Spirit of the Lord?”
d. How was what they did a lie to the Spirit and a test of the Spirit?
i. It assumed that God’s Spirit doesn’t know about what we do
and our motives in life.
II.
ii. It is treating God as though he were a man and can be fooled by
our actions.
iii. Look at Psalms 139:7-18
e. Both Ananias and Sapphira were struck dead by Peter through the
power of the Spirit that day and were carried out and buried by the
people.
f. Great fear seized the whole church and all who heard about these
events. The result was the apostles performed many signs and
wonders among the people. There was deep respect for the apostles
and no one tried to join them.
g. More and more men and women believed in the Lord and were added
to their number.
THE WITNESS OF THE SPIRIT WITH US.
a. The church growing so rapidly caused tremendous jealousy among
the Jewish leaders. They arrested the apostles and put them in jail.
b. During the night an angle of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and
brought them out. “Go, stand in the temple courts and tell the people
about this new life.”
c. At daybreak the Sanhedrin met to try the apostles and sent for them
to be brought from the jail, but when the people went to get them
from jail they weren’t there. AS they were puzzling over the matter,
word came that they were standing in the temple preaching the
gospel of Christ.
d. Peter and John were brought before the Sanhedrin to be questioned.
“We gave you strict orders not to preach anymore in this name. Yet
you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and are determined to
make us guilty of this man’s blood.”
i. This is an amazing statement. They had led the way in
crucifying Jesus from the beginning. But as is so often the case
after a thing has been done the ones who are guilty don’t want
anyone to actually blame them.
ii. Peter and the other apostles replied, “We must obey God rather
than human beings!”
iii. “The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead, whom
you killed by hanging him on a cross. God exalted him to his
own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might bring Israel
to repentance and forgive their sins.”
iv. It seems that God’s Spirit would never allow Peter to take it
easy on them to the slightest degree. You did it. God raised
him. God had a powerful plan in mind. He would exalt Jesus to
be savior.
e. We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God
has given to those who obey him.”
i. Notice the Spirit’s witness is being done through the words of
the apostles and it would spread through the people who
devoted themselves to Christ.
III.
IV.
ii. The Spirit is given to all who obey the Lord.
DAY AFTER DAY, IN THE TEMPLE AND FROM HOUSE TO HOUSE.
a. The Jewish leaders were enraged at Peter’s words. A religious leader
named Gamaliel spoke to the group to encourage them to act with
care. If this is just a human thing it will die out. But if it is a God thing
you won’t stop it and you will be ones fighting against God.
b. They decided to have the apostles flogged and release them.
c. What happened then? The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing
because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the
Name.
i. What a tremendous response!
ii. It wasn’t a “Why me?” spirit but a praise the Lord spirit.
d. Luke sized up the whole thing like this: “Day after day, in the temple
courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and
proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Messiah.
i. It is vital to notice that they weren’t satisfied to simply speak
for Jesus in the temple, in the public realms.
ii. They were going from house to house dealing with people very
personally about Jesus. They were teaching those who didn’t
know him yet in the homes and meeting in homes with those
who were already his.
e. Certainly God’s Spirit was guiding them in this public and personal
witness for Jesus and he still does so among us today.
CONCLUSION:
a. Living for Jesus should put us on the alert that nothing in our life is
hidden from the Holy Spirit of God. He knows what we do, what we
say and what we think. Our motives matter because the Spirit of God
sees them as clearly as our actions.
b. God’s Spirit witnesses through us to the world, to people around us,
publicly and privately. Allow the Spirit to lead you as a witness for
Jesus.