Introduction
Today we are going to look at the situation that the first Christians found themselves in and how they dealt with it. Then we will look at four challenges that the passage throws up for us.
Background
This passage is really just and introduction to the story of Ananias and Sapphira which follows in Acts 5. If you've never read it – do so after lunch today. If you don't you'll miss out, because our series moves straight to Acts 6 next week. If you've never read Acts as a book, perhaps you should start at chapter one. It certainly rivals Harry Potter for excitement AND its a true story.
Back in Acts 4, let us take a look at what we can learn from the passage. First lets see what has happened so far.
The story so far ...
Back in Acts 2, the church was born on the day of Pentecost, or more accurately the Jewish celebration Shavuot, or the Day of First fruits (Numbers 28:26). On that day Peter preached to the crowd, who had come from all over the place (Parthians, Medes and Elamites; residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome, Cretans and Arabs). About 3000 of them accepted Peter's message that day, and joined the new Jewish sect – because that's all it is, until we get to Acts 11. Now many of them were just visiting for the celebrations and would have to return to their country of origin, but there would be quite a few who stayed on – because they had no pressing need to return and wanted to hear more of what Peter had to say. By the time we get to 2:42 we hear that the believers “devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”.
In that same section we read “All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need.” which is very similar to the passage we are looking at today.
Then in Acts 3 there is the healing of a lame man, and another sermon from Peter, after which he and John get arrested. This doesn't seems to bother the crowd, as we are told that the number of MEN grew to about five thousand at the start of Acts 4. Peter and John get the chance to tell the Sanhedrin that it is impossible for them to stop talking about Jesus, and are let off with a stern warning. The disciples pray some more, their building is shaken and they continue their witness about Jesus.
The baby church was beginning to grow, and so was the opposition to it. First century Jerusalem was not a peaceful place to live, it was under occupation by a foreign enemy, its political and religious leaders were weak, indecisive, and ineffective. We have already seen how they dealt with the first leader of Christianity (from their point of view), but crucifixion on trumped-up charges had not worked, and here were new leaders – doing the same things. The Roman leaders were also weak. The Jewish territories were considered a place to send leaders as a reprimand. Right now Jerusalem was still full of visitors from all over them empire. There was constant political tension, and point scoring. To gain favour with the current leader you might be expected not to trade with the people who have joined the new sect, or you might be sacked from your job if you follow what Peter and John are saying.
Everything in the city would have been under strain, supplies of food are likely to be short, there was famine in some regions. There were just so many people, and they were not going home as quickly as usual.
In Billericay
Try to imagine such a situation in Billericay. Suddenly there are 5000 more people to look after. They have travelled here for a festival, but something remarkable has happened, and most of them have decided to stay. We – Christchurch – are the centre of events, the other churches have disowned us, and will not offer help, in some cases, they will no longer even be friendly. There is uproar in the town, our counsellors are demanding that something is done. The police are under pressure to disperse the crowds, maybe they will prevent us from entering Lake Meadows. The people who are leading the events have already been arrested and warned about illegal assembly. Where will all these people they stay? Where will they sleep? How will they be fed? Will there be enough water for them? Will the sewerage system cope? How will they move around – what transport is available? That's were you and I come in. They are our guests, as they get thrown out of their hotels, and turned away from their hosts in the other churches, it's our job to find them somewhere to stay, to eat, sleep, and live there lives. Many of them are young and are running out of cash, some of them were poor to start with. How will we cope?
[Children – house illustration]
For the Jews in Jerusalem hospitality was considered a good deed. They would have been Very Very reluctant to turn anyone away. Somehow they would find a way, or would this be too much even for them?
We jokingly say that this is a nice problem to have – that we'd like to see the church grow massively and quickly. The reality is that it isn't a nice problem to have.
Four Challenges
As I read through this passage, I found four challenges, we are going to take a look at them now, they will help us to understand what God was doing with His church, and how the peoples responses in Acts can challenge the way we do things now.
[Envelope]
“No-one claimed that any of his possessions was his own, but they shared everything they had”. The first thing to note here is that they had very little compared to us. It is sometimes easier to give up things when you don't have too much in the first place. The Jews had a principle of hospitality, so would always be prepared to share with a stranger.
Tanzanian Hospitality
When I was in Tanzania, staying in the village of Chibelela, we were the guests of the pastor and his family. There were occasions when we were treated to a lavish meal, and ate with the men of the family, the women served us and went outside. I wondered what they ate. The leftovers?, or perhaps even less. There seemed no limit to their hospitality.
When I was a child and was fighting with my sister over something, my Mum would always say “share and share alike”. A good principle, but there were some of my sister's things I didn't want to share, and it was a demand based on sharing out of joint riches – I was never arguing about something that would affect my survival.
We, in our sophisticated, advanced society have lost some of the basics of human community. What would it take for us to be able to say that we did not claim ownership of our goods? To answer that question we must first address the last challenge.
2 Use of capital
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Joseph A.K.A Barnabus was a Cypriot, a member of the Jewish family of Levi from the dispersion. As a Levite he was associated with the priesthood. We do not know for sure that he was living in Jerusalem permanently, but it seems likely that he had been there for some time. It is possible that the field he sold may even have been in Cyprus.
The sharing of everything was not so literal that Barnabus allowed others to determine that his field should be sold. This passage is often seen as a kind of Christian communism. That is not the case. Communism is based on compulsion – you have no choice but to give up you wealth, your property, your belongings – for the good of everyone. That is most definitely not happening here. Barnabus is responding to God, and the needs of God's people he sees around him. Sale of a field is the sale of an asset that allows you to make money. The field is used to grow food, or raise cattle, without it there will be a reduction in income, but the capital raised will keep God's people from becoming needy – starving in this case. This is sacrificial giving – Barnabus will be worse off from now on – his income has been reduced.
What do you have that you could sell if the need arose?
I don't own a field. I doubt that many of us do. What is the modern equivalent? Perhaps a shop, a factory or an office. I don't own any of those either. So what have I got that I could use to raise capital? Well I do have some investments. They don't provide a great deal of income, some insurance policies, a few shares, an ISA, but they do provide a little. If the circumstances required they could certainly be cashed in and the money provided for the needy.
What do you have?
3 Where does you giving go?
[Envelope]
This is not about how much you give. “Each of us should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.“ 2 Cor 9:7. As time passes its always a good idea to review your giving, to ensure that its at the level that you are happy with. You may decide to change it, or you may have to make adjustments to keep it at the same level!
My question is where do you put the money that you set aside to give? I've heard all sorts of ideas as to exactly what counts towards giving to God.
Some people will tell you that giving to Greenpeace counts towards their giving to God. Yes, we are supposed to look after the environment, but Really? What connection has Greenpeace got with the church of God?
Others will tell you that Amnesty International counts towards their giving to God. Well I can see the justice connection, but what has Amnesty International got to do with the Christian Church. Some will tell you that Christian Aid counts towards their giving to God? Well maybe it does, but lets take a look at this passage. When Barnabus sold his field, he put the money at the disciples feet. That may be literal, or it may be symbolic, whichever it is, Barnabus brought his money, and gave up all control over how it was used when he put at the disciples feet. The Jews had a religious tax of 10% which defined how much they should give, some Christians have a similar system. We have a guideline in the church of 12%, in case you were wondering. The tax was known as a tithe. Malachi 3:10 “Bring the whole tithe into the store house”. Which means that the tithe was to be given to the temple for the use of its official. God is consistent in his approach between the old and the new testament. However much you decide to give God, must be given in total to God, for those He has appointed to use as He directs.
Now don't let that stop you giving to Greenpeace, Amnesty International, Christian Aid, or any other organisation. Don't let me stop you from starting to give to any of these organisations. Just please don't tell God that you're giving it to Him. Which brings me back to the story of Ananias and Sapphira.
4 Testifying to the resurrection
[Envelope]
This may possible be the greatest challenge for us all.
What was the priority of the very first believers? [Straw Poll]
Church?
Worship?
Preaching?
Eschatology?
Prophecy?
Writing a bible – so that posterity would be able to follow in their footsteps?
or something different?
NO – they are just about one man – a new type of man – the resurrected Jesus WHO IS coming back.
Peter and John have already told the Sanhedrin – the Jewish supreme council, that they cannot stop talking about Jesus. Every time Peter speaks he mentions the resurrection.
Acts 2:32 “God has raised this Jesus to life, and we are all witnesses of the fact.”
Acts 3:15 To the onlookers at the healing of the lame man “You killed the author of life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses of this.”
Acts 4:10 to the Sanhedrin “It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that this man stands before you healed.”
How often do we tell people who don't know, that God has raised Jesus from the dead?
There is a consequence to the willingness of the disciples to talk to everyone they meet about Jesus. “much grace was upon them all”. It is the grace of God that has allowed the few to share what they have, to not claim ownership of their belongings. It is grace of God that has allowed them to meet the challenges to turn what riches they have into capital, and provide support for the poor – the needy – amongst them. It is grace of God that allows them to trust the disciples implicitly, to bring what they have and to trust that the disciple will distribute it wisely.
Conclusion
The baby church was growing under Gods care, already they had 5000 plus members. The people involved were filled with the spirit, and had God's grace to help them overcome the unique problems that they faced. The miracles that Jesus started are continuing, and it can only be a matter of time before all these changed people start to have a dramatic effect on their society. Here we see the enormous excitement that a work of God brings – hugh crowds, dramatic miracles, run-ins with earthly authorities. Its a great story, and we know that our God was in control of everything that happened, but there were also great sacrifices.
Whenever God is at work there are things to do, things to learn, and blessings to be received. There is much to make us think about how we live our lives in this passage, so I leave you with the four challenges:
Claiming ownership – how ready are you to share ALL that you have with others when the NEED arises?
Use of capital – What do you have that you could sell to support an urgent NEED in the Christian community?
Where does your giving go? - Is everything that you have promised to give to God brought into the church, or are you keeping control of the funds by directing them to certain organisations?
Testifying to the resurrection – How often do you explain the central basis of your faith to those who don't understand.
Amen.
