[The following is the manuscript of my sermon delivered on the 27th of September, 2015. Look for the video on our Vimeo channel, http://vimeo.com/pilgrimreformedchurch.]
I want to pick up today’s scripture reading right where we left off last Sunday. Peter and John had healed a lame man by calling on the name of Jesus. The Sadducees and high priests commanded them to stopped doing any more healing or teaching in the name of Jesus - the name these priests despised.
So Peter and John and all the disciples and a group of believers got together and prayed to God for the strength and courage to continue preaching and teaching in the name of Jesus. And they promised to speak God’s word with boldness.
Listen and follow along to what happened next, while they were still together, as I read from Luke’s Book of the Acts of the Apostles, from chapter 4 verse 32 through chapter 5 verse 11, reading from the New King James Version of our Bible…
So Peter and John and all the disciples and a group of believers got together and prayed to God for the strength and courage to continue preaching and teaching in the name of Jesus. And they promised to speak God’s word with boldness.
Listen and follow along to what happened next, while they were still together, as I read from Luke’s Book of the Acts of the Apostles, from chapter 4 verse 32 through chapter 5 verse 11, reading from the New King James Version of our Bible…
4:32 Now the multitude of those who believed were of one heart and one soul; neither did anyone say that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common. 33 And with great power the apostles gave witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And great grace was upon them all. 34 Nor was there anyone among them who lacked; for all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold, 35 and laid them at the apostles’ feet; and they distributed to each as anyone had need.
36 And Joses, who was also named Barnabas by the apostles (which is translated Son of Encouragement), a Levite of the country of Cyprus, 37 having land, sold it, and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
5:1 But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession. 2 And he kept back part of the proceeds, his wife also being aware of it, and brought a certain part and laid it at the apostles’ feet. 3 But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself? 4 While it remained, was it not your own? And after it was sold, was it not in your own control? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.”
5 Then Ananias, hearing these words, fell down and breathed his last. So great fear came upon all those who heard these things. 6 And the young men arose and wrapped him up, carried him out, and buried him.
7 Now it was about three hours later when his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. 8 And Peter answered her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for so much?”
She said, “Yes, for so much.”
9 Then Peter said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.” 10 Then immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last. And the young men came in and found her dead, and carrying her out, buried her by her husband. 11 So great fear came upon all the church and upon all who heard these things.
--Acts 4:32-5:11 (NKJV)
Let us pray… Heavenly Father, we come before You this morning to worship You and to hear what You would tell us. Speak to us through Your Holy Spirit and help us discern Your will for each of us. In the blessed name of our Lord Jesus we pray. Amen.
A minister in a small town was having trouble with his collections. So one Sunday he announced from the pulpit: “Before we pass the collection plate, I would like to request that the person who stole the chickens from Brother Harvey’s henhouse please refrain from giving any money to the Lord. The Lord doesn’t want money from a thief.”
The collection plate was passed around, and for the first time in many months, everybody gave.
[* From 1001 Humorous Illustrations for Public Speaking, “Thieves Don’t Give”, #564, page 218. *]
A man called the church and asked if he could speak to “the Head Hog at the Trough”. The secretary asked, “Who?”. The man repeated, “I want to speak to the Head Hog at the Trough”.
Now sure that she had heard correctly, the secretary replied, “Sir, if you mean our pastor, you will need to treat him with more respect and ask for ‘the reverend’ or ‘the pastor’. But certainly you cannot refer to him as ‘the Head Hog at the Trough’”!
At this, the man responded, “Oh, I see. Well, I have $10,000 I was thinking about donating to the church building fund…”
The secretary quickly exclaimed, “Hold the line – I think I hear the big pig walking in the door right now!”
[* From 1001 Humorous Illustrations for Public Speaking, “Pastor Pig”, #666, page 255. *]
Yes, we’re going to talk a little today about church giving. And yes, it can be a touchy subject, one most preachers try to avoid as much as possible. But giving and supporting the church are necessities.
And while there are some ministers who may indeed think of themselves as the head hog at the trough, most are more concerned with the welfare of their church family. They’re more worried about keeping the lights on and paying the bills than about padding their own coffers. They’re more interested in making ends meet than adding to the church’s bank account.
But I don’t ever want us to fall into the trap of giving so that others won’t think badly of us, like in the first little story. Now I know it was just meant to be funny. And the preacher probably made up the part about hens being stolen. But if whoever had stolen some chickens gave to the church after the pastor told them not to, because God would not accept their offering from stolen gain, then that person would be trying to deceive God just so they would look good - or at least not guilty - in front of their peers. And our scripture reading tells us what might happen when we try to deceive God.
Today’s scripture coupled with last week’s really looks at four separate instances that are all joined together, scripturally and intrinsically. First, the disciples and the believers all gathered together, as one body, and prayed to God for guidance and strength. Second, as one body they reached an agreement and came to one accord. Third, they began sharing, in all things, so that none would do without. And fourth, they received a very dramatic demonstration showing why we cannot lie to God.
The first actually comes from last week’s scripture, when God made vegetable soup. Just taking Peter and John as examples, you could hardly find two men more unalike. Where Peter was more fiery and impulsive, John was more reflective and reverent. Now add in the rest of the disciples remaining in Jerusalem along with a heaping serving of other believers and you end up with a pile of vastly different flavors.
But they got together and prayed to God and He blended them all until, as today’s verse 32 says, they all were of one heart and one soul. They came to an agreement on what needed to be done, which is our second point. Anyone who has ever served on any kind of board or committee knows that getting everyone to come to an agreement on any action is nearly impossible. There is always at least one person who wants to impose their will on everyone else. Not in this case, unless you consider that God imposed His will. This is part of what they prayed for - that God show them His will.
If you have ever felt the Holy Spirit moving as you prayed, then you know the great and awesome power that lives within you. The same power that in verse 33 gave voice to the apostles and the boldness to witness to the resurrection of Jesus, and to His authority. That same power moved them into agreement that none should lack as long as any had resources. That same power brought grace unto them all.
And the third point of the scripture came to pass as they began sharing all they had so that none would be lacking in the basic necessities. Barnabas, who later would travel with Paul and help spread the Gospel, was one of those who sold land that he possessed and gave all the money to this effort.
Most of us, when we think about giving to the church, the words “tithe” and “tithing” usually come to mind. The practice of tithing has Old Testament roots and is represented many times in our Bible as paying proper and appropriate tribute to God. After all… God gives us everything, so we should give a portion back to Him.
Moses let the children of Israel know that tithing was just a nice thing to do to honor the Lord, but was a requirement. One such instruction comes from the Book of Leviticus, chapter 27, verses 30 and 32…
30 And all the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land or of the fruit of the tree, is the Lord’s. It is holy to the Lord.
32 And concerning the tithe of the herd or the flock, of whatever passes under the rod, the tenth one shall be holy to the Lord.
--Leviticus 27:30, 32 (NKJV)
Moses said that the tithe, one tenth - whether it is of the seed of the land, the fruit of the tree, or the animals of the herd or flock – that one tenth is holy to the Lord. It is His, it belongs to Him, it should be returned to Him for His use and His purposes.
Many of the early believers in Jesus, such as Barnabas, carried this a lot further and gave far more than a tithe to the church. And they set the example for the rest of us that a tithe should only be considered as the beginning of our giving, the bare minimum for returning to God what He has given us.
Now in today’s church there are all ranges of thought regarding tithing and giving to the church. Do we tithe on net or gross income? Does it all need to go to the church or does it “count” if we give to other charitable organizations? Do we even really need to tithe at all? What if we can’t pay the bills as is, let alone give ten percent of our meager paycheck to the church?
That brings us to the fourth point of today’s message, but it may not exactly be the point you think. At the end of chapter 4, Barnabas sold some land and gave all the proceeds to the apostles for use for the church. Chapter 5 opens with a man named Ananias and his wife Sapphira who also sold a possession. But they decided to hold back part of the proceeds and gave the rest to the apostles.
From Peter’s response, and from what he asked Sapphira, we can tell that the two lied about how much they had sold their land for. They told the apostles that the amount they were giving to the church was the full sale value, but they both knew that they had sold it for more and were holding back a portion for themselves.
Was this action wrong? Was it wrong of them to keep a portion of the proceeds for themselves?
No! Absolutely not! Peter even said as much, in verse 4, when he said that the couple had full control of the property before the sale and the proceeds afterwards and could do anything with it they liked. And they did just that, but then they lied about it.
As Peter noted in verses 4 and 9, we cannot get away with lying to God or His Holy Spirit. We cannot deceive God. Ananias and Sapphira were punished, to the full extent of God’s law, not for holding back a portion of their offering, but for lying about it before God.
We don’t know how much Ananias and Sapphira gave of the proceeds from the sale of their land. Luke only tells us that they withheld a portion, but not how large a portion. I think it safe to say that, all things considered, they had probably given over ten percent, more than a tithe of their gain. Why can I make that claim? Because neither Peter nor God accused them of robbing God or the church. Their sin was in trying to lie to God, not take from Him what is His. Otherwise the accusation against them would have been more in line with what our Father said through his prophet Malachi in chapter 3 verse 8 of his book…
Many of the early believers in Jesus, such as Barnabas, carried this a lot further and gave far more than a tithe to the church. And they set the example for the rest of us that a tithe should only be considered as the beginning of our giving, the bare minimum for returning to God what He has given us.
Now in today’s church there are all ranges of thought regarding tithing and giving to the church. Do we tithe on net or gross income? Does it all need to go to the church or does it “count” if we give to other charitable organizations? Do we even really need to tithe at all? What if we can’t pay the bills as is, let alone give ten percent of our meager paycheck to the church?
That brings us to the fourth point of today’s message, but it may not exactly be the point you think. At the end of chapter 4, Barnabas sold some land and gave all the proceeds to the apostles for use for the church. Chapter 5 opens with a man named Ananias and his wife Sapphira who also sold a possession. But they decided to hold back part of the proceeds and gave the rest to the apostles.
From Peter’s response, and from what he asked Sapphira, we can tell that the two lied about how much they had sold their land for. They told the apostles that the amount they were giving to the church was the full sale value, but they both knew that they had sold it for more and were holding back a portion for themselves.
Was this action wrong? Was it wrong of them to keep a portion of the proceeds for themselves?
No! Absolutely not! Peter even said as much, in verse 4, when he said that the couple had full control of the property before the sale and the proceeds afterwards and could do anything with it they liked. And they did just that, but then they lied about it.
As Peter noted in verses 4 and 9, we cannot get away with lying to God or His Holy Spirit. We cannot deceive God. Ananias and Sapphira were punished, to the full extent of God’s law, not for holding back a portion of their offering, but for lying about it before God.
We don’t know how much Ananias and Sapphira gave of the proceeds from the sale of their land. Luke only tells us that they withheld a portion, but not how large a portion. I think it safe to say that, all things considered, they had probably given over ten percent, more than a tithe of their gain. Why can I make that claim? Because neither Peter nor God accused them of robbing God or the church. Their sin was in trying to lie to God, not take from Him what is His. Otherwise the accusation against them would have been more in line with what our Father said through his prophet Malachi in chapter 3 verse 8 of his book…
8 “Will a man rob God?
Yet you have robbed Me!
But you say,
‘In what way have we robbed You?’
In tithes and offerings.”
--Malachi 3:8 (NKJV)
Do we ever think of it in that way, that we rob God of what is due Him when we do not tithe?
The Old Testament tells us our tithe should be based on our increase, whether it be from our salary or retirement benefits or gifts or interest received from bank accounts or the like. If we receive gain in any form from any source, we should return at least ten percent of it to God as His rightful due and tribute. That’s why Higher Site is so faithful to return a tithe of the love offering we share with them for performing here, and they return it here to our local church.
I’m not going to get into whether that gain is based on gross income or net, or whether we should give only to our local church, or those questions I posed earlier. I feel the answer to those can be found by examining your own heart. Just be sure not to try to deceive God or the Holy Spirit within you! My only concern is that we give the Lord what is rightfully due Him.
But does that only involve money? Is God only due a tenth from our financial gains? Not according to Jesus. Listen to what He says as recorded in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 23 verse 23…
The Old Testament tells us our tithe should be based on our increase, whether it be from our salary or retirement benefits or gifts or interest received from bank accounts or the like. If we receive gain in any form from any source, we should return at least ten percent of it to God as His rightful due and tribute. That’s why Higher Site is so faithful to return a tithe of the love offering we share with them for performing here, and they return it here to our local church.
I’m not going to get into whether that gain is based on gross income or net, or whether we should give only to our local church, or those questions I posed earlier. I feel the answer to those can be found by examining your own heart. Just be sure not to try to deceive God or the Holy Spirit within you! My only concern is that we give the Lord what is rightfully due Him.
But does that only involve money? Is God only due a tenth from our financial gains? Not according to Jesus. Listen to what He says as recorded in the Gospel of Matthew, chapter 23 verse 23…
23 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faith. These you ought to have done, without leaving the others undone.”
--Matthew 23:23 (NKJV)
If we get all caught up in trying to figure out how much money we should give the church, do we even stop to consider the many other blessings God bestows on us that are not of a monetary nature?
Justice, mercy, faith… Are we just in our treatment of others or are we judgmental? Do we truly seek justice, or vengeance? Are we even ten percent as merciful to others as God is toward us?
We deserve nothing but punishment for our sins against Him, yet God in His great mercy pardons us our sin and gives us chance after chance if we only believe in His Son. His faith is infinite! He never fails us! How close do we come to returning that faith to Him, to Jesus, to the Holy Spirit?
Yes, we need to return a tithe portion of any financial gain we receive from God. But we also need to give Him of our time, our faith, our mercy toward His children.
Family, there are great needs in this world, even here in our own community. We cannot come close to meeting them all. But God does not expect us to, nor does He ask us to try. He does not ask for all we have gained, as Barnabas so generously responded when the early church was in need. He asks only for what is His due. And not only in coin but also in time and mercy and faith and love.
If all of us who call Jesus Lord, all of His church here on earth, would return to God His due, all these needs could be met today just as they were in the days of Peter and Barnabas. This is all part of God’s great plan for us – that we not only share in His bountiful blessings, but that we help meet the needs of all those He loves so much.
Amen.
Let us pray… Father, You are so very generous with Your blessing. You give us so much, and in so many different forms. You have blessed this nation to where even the poorest among us are richer than many throughout the world. And You bless us with far more than just money and all it can buy. Your greatest blessing is Your mercy and Your grace – a mercy that does not give us what we deserve and a grace that gives us what we could never deserve. You forgive our sins and offer us eternal life and all you ask in return is that we believe in Jesus as Your Son and obey His commands.
Lord Jesus, You and our Father both tell us to tithe, and not only of our financial gain but of the other many blessings poured over our heads each day. Forgive us Lord when we quibble over what constitutes a tithe, when we forget about God’s great mercy and faith, when we even subconsciously try to withhold a portion of what is due and should be returned to God.
Hear us now, Lord, as we give thanks for the bounty we receive, as we repent of our sin, as we seek forgiveness, as we speak to You silently from our hearts…
Father God, we pray that Your blessings will never cease, that Your mercy and grace will continue to know no bounds, even if we fail to return a proper portion to You for the use of Your church and the advancement of Your kingdom throughout all the earth. Forgive us when we are selfish. Forgive us when we doubt that You will see us through any tight times that our giving may seem to cause. Help us to give all of our offering not only out of respect to You and our responsibility to obey Your command, but also out of love, for You and for Your creation. And please, dear Father, know that we are thankful for all You give us, even when we neglect to tell You so. This we pray in the name of Him who gave His all for us, the precious name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen.
Justice, mercy, faith… Are we just in our treatment of others or are we judgmental? Do we truly seek justice, or vengeance? Are we even ten percent as merciful to others as God is toward us?
We deserve nothing but punishment for our sins against Him, yet God in His great mercy pardons us our sin and gives us chance after chance if we only believe in His Son. His faith is infinite! He never fails us! How close do we come to returning that faith to Him, to Jesus, to the Holy Spirit?
Yes, we need to return a tithe portion of any financial gain we receive from God. But we also need to give Him of our time, our faith, our mercy toward His children.
Family, there are great needs in this world, even here in our own community. We cannot come close to meeting them all. But God does not expect us to, nor does He ask us to try. He does not ask for all we have gained, as Barnabas so generously responded when the early church was in need. He asks only for what is His due. And not only in coin but also in time and mercy and faith and love.
If all of us who call Jesus Lord, all of His church here on earth, would return to God His due, all these needs could be met today just as they were in the days of Peter and Barnabas. This is all part of God’s great plan for us – that we not only share in His bountiful blessings, but that we help meet the needs of all those He loves so much.
Amen.
Let us pray… Father, You are so very generous with Your blessing. You give us so much, and in so many different forms. You have blessed this nation to where even the poorest among us are richer than many throughout the world. And You bless us with far more than just money and all it can buy. Your greatest blessing is Your mercy and Your grace – a mercy that does not give us what we deserve and a grace that gives us what we could never deserve. You forgive our sins and offer us eternal life and all you ask in return is that we believe in Jesus as Your Son and obey His commands.
Lord Jesus, You and our Father both tell us to tithe, and not only of our financial gain but of the other many blessings poured over our heads each day. Forgive us Lord when we quibble over what constitutes a tithe, when we forget about God’s great mercy and faith, when we even subconsciously try to withhold a portion of what is due and should be returned to God.
Hear us now, Lord, as we give thanks for the bounty we receive, as we repent of our sin, as we seek forgiveness, as we speak to You silently from our hearts…
Father God, we pray that Your blessings will never cease, that Your mercy and grace will continue to know no bounds, even if we fail to return a proper portion to You for the use of Your church and the advancement of Your kingdom throughout all the earth. Forgive us when we are selfish. Forgive us when we doubt that You will see us through any tight times that our giving may seem to cause. Help us to give all of our offering not only out of respect to You and our responsibility to obey Your command, but also out of love, for You and for Your creation. And please, dear Father, know that we are thankful for all You give us, even when we neglect to tell You so. This we pray in the name of Him who gave His all for us, the precious name of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. Amen.
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