Lying to the Spirit

Acts 5:3, 9

The early church, guided and enveloped by the Holy Spirit, was of one mind and one heart in the matter of possessions. They looked at nothing they had as their own but shared communally so that no one went in need. Through submission to the Holy Spirit, great power came upon them which caused them to live as dynamic witnesses of the grace and mercy of God which was made known through Jesus Christ. Now, the Holy Spirit in them was bearing witness to Christ as they remained unified around the Word and one another.

In Acts 4, well-known Barnabas, who truly exemplified his name sake (son of encouragement) gave evidence to the Spirit cutting loose in lives by selling some property and giving all the proceeds to the church in order to meet the needs of believers. Remember, these believers had lost all their livelihood due to the faith, so this sort of communal mindset was necessary. I don't believe it was easy. It was, however, a truly spiritual thing; people just don't give away all their stuff unless they're nuts or the Holy Spirit has control of them.

No one had to sell their property and give all the proceeds to Christian charity. Ananias and Sapphira were not required to do what they did. They did, however; and the way in which they did so was condemned as lying to the Spirit. It seems there are several things here which, somehow, add up to lying to the Spirit.

1. They were led by Satan. They were putting on a front so as to look spiritual to the congregation but in their heart only desired the accolades of Barnabas. They wanted to look it but not be it. Jesus called this hypocrisy--an actor wearing a mask.
   
2. They were opposed to the oneness of mind and heart of the congregation. They showed themselves to not really be a part of what the Spirit was doing among the people of God. They were motivated by pride and not partnership.
3. They were messing with Christ's church. You don't mess with Christ's bride. These two saw the church as an opportunity to finagle a deal. Christ is present among the Church by His Spirit. You mess with the Church, you're messing with the Spirit.
   

Questions for my personal application:

• What masks do I wear?
• What is God doing among believers that I withhold my support from.
• How might I use the church for my own promotion?

The above are personal questions; please don't answer them for me. But I would ask this--how else might we apply this passage to our lives as we seek the filling and empowerment of the Holy Spirit?