Dangers of Lying
Out of a heart of great compassion directed by the Holy Spirit, the wealthier members of the 1st generational Body of Christ sold their lands & houses so that they could deposit the money acquired at the discretion of the Apostle in order to help those in real poverty need. Read Acts 4:34. There was no legislation requiring them to do so. Neither was there any social peer pressure to do so. This was a matter redistribution that the Holy Spirit caused to happen. With HIS help and guidance, our charity for others should abound more in knowledge (wisdom) plus in all judgement (proper discernment), as in Philippians 1:9. Communist movements have come into power by stirring up the lower classes with promises of bigger amounts of income from redistribution. They used the masses to overthrow the established government of that day. In doing so, they destroyed the middle class while making those collaborating with the new Socialist regime far more powerful than before. Farms and businesses were seized by the Socialist Marxists so that the government would be in control of daily operations. To hold and sustain all this together under Socialist control, there had to be a huge sacrifice of freedoms. This was the far opposite from what was happening with the great generosity in the 1st century Body of Christ. The Apostles were deserving of the sacred trust of having large amounts of cash placed in their discretion in order to help the needy among them. It was simply the Holy Ghost moving on the hearts of those Distribution was made by the Apostles to every man according as he or she had need. A man named Ananias with Sapphira, his wife, sold some property. They kept back part of the price. They were entitled to do that if they chose to do so. However, they pretended to give the total sum of the sale of their property. Peter said: Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Ghost as you have kept back part of the price of your land? (Acts 5:3) While it remained (unsold), was it not your own? After it was sold, was it (the money) not in your own power? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men, but unto God. (5:4) As Ananias heard these words from Peter, he fell down and died. Great fear came on all them that heard of this. (5) The young men arose and carried him out so that they could bury him. (6) It was about the space of 3 hours after that when his wife (Sapphira) came in without knowing what had happened to her husband. (7) Peter questioned her: Tell me whether you sold the land for so much? She agreed with the amount that Peter mentioned. (8) Then Peter said to her: How is it that you have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? Behold, the feet of them which have buried the husband are at the door so that they can carry you out. (9) Then, she fell down immediately and died. The same young men came in, finding her to be died, and took her out to be buried. (10) As a result of this, great fear came upon all the church and upon as many as heard about this. (11) As a result, some people dared not join this new movement as they were afraid that their sinfulness would be exposed. Nevertheless, the culture of that day magnified them because of the glory of the Lord Jesus Christ in their midst. (13) This reverential fear (respect for the supernatural) did provide for a spiritual environment for miracles to take place through the Apostles. See verses 12, 15-16. Your lying may not result in your premature, immediate death; however, there are consequences that you must deal with. Consider Luke 12:2-3. There is nothing covered that shall not be revealed; neither hid that shall not be known. Therefore, whatsoever that you have spoken in darkness shall be heard in the light. That which you have spoken in the ear in closets shall be proclaimed upon the housetops. Back in the Bible times, the housetops were flat surrounded by walls about 4 feet in height. When an announcement was to be made to the village, the family would stand on the top of their house and get the villagers attention for making an announcement (perhaps by clapping or whistling, etc.). When the villagers had gathered around the house, the announcement would be made like an engagement, death, etc. Today, our modern rooftops often have television equipment to receive television waves so that we can view the local and national news. Therefore, the equivalent of what Jesus was saying about it proclaimed from the housetops for today is having it placed it into the television news. Here is another scripture to consider along the lines of having your lies discovered. Numbers 32:23. Be sure that your sin will find you out. People who habitually lie to others have to labor at remember what they told to whom and how they said it. It is much easier to simply tell the truth consistently.
Purposes of HIS Resurrection
Without the resurrection of Jesus, the impact of HIS death on the cross for our salvation would be limited. God vindicated HIS Eternal Son as the Perfect Sacrifice and Exalted Lord of all when HE raised HIM from the dead. God wouldn’t do so for a man who lied about his identity. However, the testimony of Jesus about HIMSELF was true in word and miracles. Jesus said often that HIS Father bears witness of HIMSELF with a true witness as do the Holy Scriptures. Jesus was either the greatest egomaniac that ever lived or HE was simply who HE said that HE was. Romans 1:3-4 reads: “Concerning HIS Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was made of the seed of David according to the flesh. This same ONE was declared to be the (Eternal) Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, BY the resurrection from the dead”. I capitalized the word “BY” in the 4th verse here because the resurrection is the defining factor in HIM being declared to be the Exalted and Eternal Son of God according to what is right or according to the Spirit of holiness. Because of the resurrection of HIM, we have received a divine enablement to minister grace in the apostleship that HE gives to operate so that we can bring the nations into obedience to the faith for HIS name’s sake. See verse 5. From that, we can see that the resurrection power shared with us through HIS impartation to us is what we need to have the endurance and stamina to continue ministering in HIS name to the nations despite all the demonic obstacles thrown against us. HIS resurrection power imparted to us is that single overcoming factor to free us from the entanglements of sin working frustration in us because of the legal demands slaying our hopes of being righteous. In Romans chapter 7, Paul describes a man finding himself not doing the things that he knows that he should and doing the things that he knows is wrong. This man finds out that he is captivity to the law of sin which is in his members. What a heightened sense of frustration that is. Sin, taking occasion by the holy commandment, has deceived him. By this, he is slain spiritually. Therefore, such a man cries out with anguish: “O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death? (7:24) Thank God that this man does not have to stay stuck in this pitiful and wretched existence!! We move onto the glorious 8th chapter in Romans. Verses 1 to 2 read: “There is therefore now no condemnation to them who are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death”. That Spirit of life in Christ Jesus is the resurrection life. Romans 8:10 reads: “If Christ be in you, the body is dead (silenced) because of sin; but, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. Even stronger in verse 11 following: “But if the Spirit of HIM that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you; then, HE that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by HIS Spirit that dwells in you”. It gets even better with verses 12 & 13: “Therefore, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh to live after the flesh. For if you live after the flesh, you shall die; but, if you live through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body; then, you shall (truly) live (the abundant life). “ There is a vast difference between carnally minded leading to spiritual death and spiritually minded leading to life and peace. Will you choose to be spiritually minded? Will you be so foolish as to be carnally minded ruled by your body of sin?
This Is That
It all begins with an idea.
On the Day of Pentecost, Peter explains what has happened with these words: “this is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel”. See Acts 2:16. Verse 17 reads: “It shall come to pass in the last days, says God, I will pour out of MY Spirit upon all flesh. Your sons and daughters shall prophesy. Your young men shall see visions and your old men shall dream dreams”. Verse 18 reads: “On MY servants and MY handmaidens, I will pour out in those days of MY Spirit and they shall prophesy”. I choose not to go further in this quotation from Joel as it pertains to signs and wonders in the heavens above and the earth beneath; because, it is far more important for our discussion here to focus on the content of verses 17 and 18. That’s because it is the appropriate explanation for what is happening through the 120 persons speaking in supernatural languages in the languages known to these visitors from other areas of the world. The Galileans only knew the Hebrew/Aramaic language. In order to be able to speak fluently, intelligently, and understandably in the language of each language group represented, it required supernatural assistance to do so. How was this accomplished? Acts 2:4 reads: “And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost and began to speak in other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance”. Therefore, the 120 were speaking in these supernatural languages totally dependent upon the Holy Ghost giving them the direction to do so. Now, an utterance of tongues plus the interpretation of it equals prophecy. Prophecy both exhorts strongly the hearers to a divinely designated outcome and predicts the future. In Acts 2:11, the people being spoken to by supernatural languages said that “we hear them speak in our dialects the wonderful works of God”. That means that they were being prophesied to by combination of tongues and interpretation of tongues. Therefore, the Old Testament passage that Peter chose for the explanation of the events of that Day was appropriate. However, it was not entirely in the right time frame as the time frame of Joel. We can see the truth of this last statement by studying the historical context of verses before Joel 2:28-29 and afterwards. Joel 2:20 speaks to the Lord God Almighty removing a northern army away from Israel. In the times that Peter spoke of this prophecy from Joel, the Roman army was an army from the north occupying and oppressing the Israelites in their homeland. Furthermore, the last words of Joel 2:26 and 27 proclaim: ‘and MY people shall never be ashamed”. There has been shame that other nations have directed harshly toward Israel for multi-generations even until today. Yet, the first few words of Joel 2:28 start this way: “And it shall come to pass afterward”. In other words, the total fulfillment of HIS Spirit being poured must happen after what is mentioned to happen takes place. Joel 3:1 reads: “For behold, in those days and in that time, when I will bring Judah and Jerusalem” back to restoration. At the time, it says that HE will gather all nations into a valley of decision so that HE can execute judgment upon them. Egypt shall be a desolation and Edom shall be a desolate wilderness. Has that happened yet? The simple answer is no. Now, was Peter wrong to use the quote “this is that “when referring to Joel 2:28-29? Peter tweaked those first few words of Joel 2:28 to say: “And it shall come to pass in the last days”. Peter recognized that since Jesus the Christ appeared on earth (revealed as God, the Eternal Son clothed in flesh); it became the countdown for the last days. This then was the beginning of the end of an old era of God’s dealings with Israel and the new era of giving supernatural help to live a victorious life of true righteousness through the resurrection power that Jesus imparts to HIS followers. Peter sensed what Isaiah prophesied in Isaiah 43:19 reading: “Behold, I will do a new thing. Now, it shall spring forth. Shall you not know it?”. Previous verse 18 reads: “Remember you not the former things, neither consider the things of old”. Peter also sensed what Ezekiel prophesied in Ezekiel 36:26-27, reading: “A new heart also will I give you and a new spirit will I put within you. I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh so that I can give you a heart of tenderness towards ME. And I will put MY Spirit within you so that I may cause you to walk in MY statutes and keep MY judgments to do them”. Peter nailed it right on as far as what Isaiah and Ezekiel said as recorded in these mentioned passages. What we see in the time frames in Joel chapters 2 and 3 speak to an open time expansion (even to this time today) of receiving the baptism in the Holy Ghost plus the spiritual gifts listed in 1st Corinthians 12:8-10. The possible access to it has never ceased. Peter speaks to this in Acts 2:38-39 in saying this gift or promise is for you, your children, to those far off, and as many as the Lord our God shall call. To God be the glory for making it so.
The Great Climax
It all begins with an idea.
On the Day of Pentecost, there were three thousand persons added to the apostolic church. That didn’t cause a controversial clash with the Jewish priesthood right away; however, it was inevitable that it would happen at some point. Surely, the religious leaders were keeping themselves very informed about this new movement. The new additions continued steadfastly in the doctrines of the apostles, and fellowship such as breaking of bread (communion) and prayers. There was a spirit of reverential fear that fell upon the common people concerning the first generational Body of Christ. Many signs and wonders were done by the Holy Spirit through the apostles. The crescendo towards a great conflict with the religious leadership was beginning to climb upwards toward a collision course. All they that believed were together in one mindset and in one heart relationship. Some of the wealthier members sold their possessions & goods so that they could help those in real poverty need. So, they continued daily in the Temple plus from house to house. There was great joy that was greatly evident among them. As they continued to praise the Lord Jesus, favor was given to them with all the common people of Jerusalem. The church continued to grow as the Lord Jesus added to the church daily such as should be saved. The crescendo kept climbing upwards towards a climax of conflict. Peter and John, while going up to the Temple at 3 pm in the afternoon (Jewish 9th hour); they met a man who was born lame from his mother’s womb. He was asking alms of those passing by. What he received from Peter & John instead was a miraculous healing. Peter commanded him: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk. While saying this, Peter grabbed him by his right hand lifting him up. Immediately, his feet, ankle bones, and legs received strength. Out of sheer joy, the man began to leap and run for joy. Surrounding people did recognize him as the lame man who had been there day after day begging for alms because of his lame condition. Some knew that he had been lame from birth. They were filled with amazement at that which had happened to him. This drew a rather large crowd at Solomon’s porch in the Temple to find out who was responsible for this man’s healing. Peter gave glory to faith in the name of Jesus the Christ. Then, Peter preached Jesus to them plus their need to repent. Soon, the temple guards came to escort Peter and John to confinement so that the next day; they could be questioned by the Jewish leadership. That day, that Peter spoke to the people at Solomon’s porch (before he was escorted away); there were five thousand men that became believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. Now, the great climax is ready to happen. As many as were of the kindred of the high priest were invited to attend the questioning. Their first question was: “By what power or by what name, have you done this (for this lame man)? Peter answers: By Jesus Christ of Nazareth does this man stand here fully recovered. This is the same Jesus, whom you crucified. HE is the chief cornerstone, whom you builders have rejected. There is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved. Peter could have simply answered saying: Jesus healed this man without mentioning their sin in crucifying HIM. However, Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit, who gave him great boldness. The religious leaders marveled at the boldness and authority of both men noting that they had been with Jesus. They threatened them by commanding them to not preach Jesus anymore; then, they let them go. When Peter and John returned to their brothers, the whole of them refused to sulk in self-pity. They did not ask God to cause the persecution to cease or diminish. Rather, they recognized that the persecution and threatening were part of God’s plan to give reason for HIM to more fully release HIS glory. As they prayed together requesting for more boldness, the place where they were was shaken by the power of God as there was another infilling of the Holy Spirit upon them all. As a result, they all spoke in boldness. As a result, great power came upon the Apostles with additional wonders happening. There was also great grace given to them as a covering for any mistakes, etc.
The Precious Value of Wisdom
It all begins with an idea.
Consider Proverbs chapter 8 for an examination of the precious value of wisdom. Proverbs chapter 8 starts out with declaring that wisdom is crying out to be heard in order to help the simple to have a better life. Does not wisdom cry? Does not understanding put forth her voice? Wisdom stands in the top of the high places desiring to be seen. Wisdom is there in the wayside by the important paths. Wisdom cries at the gates of the cities wherein men might enter into the doors of safety and opportunity. Wisdom says: Unto you, O men, I call and my voice is to the sons of man. O you simple, I would that you would understand wisdom. You fools , be you of an understanding heart. Hear, for I will speak of excellent things. The opening of my lips shall be right things. For my mouth shall only speak of truth. There is nothing crooked or evil in any of my communications, which are plainly simple and easy to understand. My instructions are better than silver and choice gold. Yeah, my wisdom is better than rubies. All the things that could be desired are not worthy to be compared to my wisdom. I help people find out witty inventions. Riches and honor are with me; yea, even durable riches and righteousness. My fruit of wisdom is better than fine gold choice silver. I will cause those who love me to inherit property or substance so that I may fill their treasures. The Lord God Almighty possessed me in the beginning of HIS ways of setting up creation. When a man or woman fills that that he or she lacks wisdom, they may ask God for wisdom. HE will not withhold wisdom from them. James 1:5. Think of this in its most impactful connection to us. The same wisdom that the Lord God Almighty used to create all of creation can live inside of us to work for our best benefits.
Second Great Conflict
It all begins with an idea.