Michigan Advance Partners
The early Christian church was marked by its deep love for the Lord and sacrificial giving to His cause. In Acts 2:44, 45 we read how “all who believed were together, and had all things in common, and sold their possessions and goods, and divided them among all, as anyone had need.” Two chapters later we are told that “all who were possessors of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold and laid them at the apostles’ feet; and they distributed to each as anyone had need.” (Acts 4:34, 35)
Amid this incredible tide of giving, the hearts of two believers, Ananias and Sapphira, were stirred as well. When selling a valuable possession, they enthusiastically pledged the proceeds to the Lord. But as the time to surrender their pledge drew near, their enthusiasm cooled, and they decided to only give part of what they had originally promised. You can read the tragic results in Acts 5:1-11.
The great sin of this couple wasn’t that they refused to give all. The Lord doesn’t ask us to give everything, but merely to give as our hearts are moved—and to give without wavering. The sin of Ananias and Sapphira was making a covenant with God and then going back on their commitment. As we give for the work of evangelism today, let us do so without wavering. May the Lord remove any equivocation in our hearts and bless our humble offerings to His glory.
—North American Division Stewardship Ministries
