Acts 4:32 – 5:11
by Rev. Carson Overstreet
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church
June 23, 2019
Now the whole group of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one claimed private ownership of any possessions, but everything they owned was held in common. With great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. There was not a needy person among them, for as many as owned lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold. They laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. There was a Levite, a native of Cyprus, Joseph, to whom the apostles gave the name Barnabas (which means ‘son of encouragement’). He sold a field that belonged to him, then brought the money, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
But a man named Ananias, with the consent of his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property; with his wife’s knowledge, he kept back some of the proceeds, and brought only a part and laid it at the apostles’ feet. ‘Ananias,’ Peter asked, ‘why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back part of the proceeds of the land? While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, were not the proceeds at your disposal? How is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You did not lie to us but to God!’ Now when Ananias heard these words, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who heard of it. The young men came and wrapped up his body, then carried him out and buried him.
After an interval of about three hours his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. Peter said to her, ‘Tell me whether you and your husband sold the land for such and such a price.’ And she said, ‘Yes, that was the price.’ Then Peter said to her, ‘How is it that you have agreed together to put the Spirit of the Lord to the test? Look, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.’ Immediately she fell down at his feet and died. When the young men came in they found her dead, so they carried her out and buried her beside her husband. And great fear seized the whole church and all who heard of these things. Acts 4:32 - 5:11
Have you ever asked yourself the question, “Why does the Church exist?” You might find yourself answering the question, “It is where we go on Sunday mornings” or “The Church exists because God made it.” These answers are true, but they do not capture the whole truth.
When the early Church was born in the first century it was not an institution built of religious doctrine or physical buildings. Luke tells us in Acts the Church exists for two purposes: it is a community of believers uniting in heart and soul and giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus (Acts 4:32-33). God honored the early church’s budding faithfulness by giving the apostles great power and an abundance of grace (Acts 4:33).
It matters that Luke places the purpose of uniting before the purpose of giving testimony. In the first century it was believed that the heart and soul joined together as the center of one’s spiritual life. The heart (more like the gut) was considered the seat of decision-making and the soul was considered the seat of feeling God’s love.
Borrowing the Apostle Paul’s words, the Spirit was shaping the believers to be of the same mind, to have the same love, and to be in full accord with the mind of Christ (Philippians 2:2). Uniting in heart and soul meant doing nothing from a point of selfish ambition or conceit but living by the godly virtue of humility; looking to the interest of others (Philippians 2:3).
Luke lifts up Barnabas as a model for what uniting in heart and soul look like. Barnabas knew he was a steward of God’s grace. The land he owned was not his, but it belonged to God. So he sold it and gave it back to God to further the Lord’s work in his community.
Luke’s point is that uniting with Jesus’ ministry of pursuing a common good will for others is what the Church in every generation should look like. Reaching out into the community to live in authentic relationship with our neighbors and sharing our God-given resources to meet real needs is a primary way of sharing the good news of God’s grace.
Luke remembered the core of Jesus’ ministry of sharing the good news came from Jesus' Sermon on the Plain (Matthew's Gospel remembers this as Jesus' Sermon on the Mount). The core of Jesus' ministry was and is to bless the poor, bless the hungry, and bless those who weep over injustices (Luke 6: 20-21). God’s great power and abundant grace will bless the poor to behold the kingdom of God, the hungry will be filled, and those who mourn will rejoice in God’s provision and deliverance (Isaiah 61: 2-3).
The Lord not only invites us to participate with God’s economy of grace, but also the Lord holds us accountable to be good stewards of it. Therefore, Luke lifted up Ananias and Sapphira, the couple who decided to hold back a portion of their land proceeds out of self-interest.
A friend of mine puts it this way: We are all connected. When you reject your God-given assignment, you could be unconsciously blocking someone else’s blessing. Don’t be fooled. Your life choices affect more than just you. Someone needs to see and experience the very gift God has given to you.
While Ananias’ and Sapphira’s motivations and actions were judged by Peter’s authority, there was no mandate on behalf of the apostles to hold all their resources in common. Luke doesn’t want us to miss what is at stake for uniting in one heart and soul. Uniting is never out of obligation or duty, but rather gratitude.
The early Christians, like Barnabas, shared all things in common for the well-being of all out of a deep spiritual well of gratitude. They gave and shared with grateful hearts in praise of God’s faithfulness. As the apostles received the gifts of time, talents, and treasures from the believers, I can imagine they all sang these familiar words with conviction; the same words we sing as we give back to God our time, talents, and treasures in worship:
Praise God from whom all blessings flow;
Praise him, all creatures [and all neighbors]here below;
Praise him above, our heavenly host [and provider];
Praise [the promises, grace, and guidance of] Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. Amen.
The early Christians had a deep gratitude and respect for the relationships they had with fellow believers and their community, especially those who were poor, hungry, and mourning. Their respect and gratitude to love their neighbor as themselves overflowed to the point where God multiplied their gifts to meet the needs of the vulnerable. Luke says as a result there was no needy person among them (Luke 4:34).
The early Christians had deep gratitude and praise for who God is, what God was going, and what God promised to do. The early church knew that all they had belonged to God, therefore they gave their resources back to God to join God in building the kingdom in the community.
Van Wyck Presbyterian Church has long been known as a small church that cares. This church cares greatly about the relationships in the wider community and the relationships within the body of Christ.
Van Wyck Presbyterian was born 135 years ago in the spirit of generosity, with the land given as a gift for the original body of Christ to gather, worship, and serve. Throughout the generations, many apostles within this body of Christ have been and are movers and shakers to seek the good will of the community.
As this body of Christ has slowly grown in number and spirit, the session elders and I know that God’s Spirit is still moving among us. I am grateful this church has a memory of being forward thinking to envision the ways the Spirit is leading us to build God’s kingdom here. As we continue to discern what is means to be good stewards of the land surrounding the church, our text today gives me pause.
Four years ago when God called me to walk beside this body of Christ in faith, this church had already made the decision to be more missionally present in the community. God’s faithfulness continues to amaze me as I see God’s grace bearing fruit here. That good fruit is present because this body of Christ values relationships with God and neighbor. God has blessed us to be a blessing to the surrounding community.
My dream for Van Wyck Presbyterian is for us to keep growing in our passion to love God and love our neighbor as ourselves because it mattered more than anything to Jesus Christ. It is the greatest commandment after all. I am not dreaming so much about growing church membership. Growing in number is a good thing. But growing in number is not the only thing. I am dreaming about growing our passion to participate in what God is already doing among us.
Karl Vaters is a small church pastor. He says:
A church that has strong discipleship, deep relationships, passionate worship, and transformative outreach is contributing to Christ and his mission on earth, whether or not it results in the numerical increase of our local congregation.
Celebrating effective ministry is to find my place in what Jesus is doing and participate in it with all the faithfulness and passion I have… not for numbers. Not for attendance. Not for church growth. But for Christ. For his mission. And for God’s glory.
These are the things that really matter as we gather to love God and love neighbor as ourselves.
My ultimate prayer is that together we will envision how to be good stewards of God’s land that fosters strong discipleship, deep relationships, passionate worship, and transformative outreach.
May we be empowered by the apostles’ acts of uniting our hearts and souls in the mind of Christ, in God’s mission and for God’s glory.
In the name of God our Creator, Redeemer, and Sustainer. Amen
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