You Did Not Lie To Us But To God
But a man named Ananias, with the
consent of his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of
property; with his wife’s knowledge, he kept back some of the proceeds, and
brought only a part and laid it at the apostles’ feet. “Ananias,”
Peter asked, “why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to
keep back part of the proceeds of the land? While it remained unsold, did it
not remain your own? And after it was sold, were not the proceeds at your
disposal? How is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You did
not lie to us but to God!” Now when Ananias heard
these words, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who heard of it.
The young men came and wrapped up his body, then carried him out and buried him.
After an interval of about three hours his wife came in, not
knowing what had happened. Peter said to her, “Tell me whether you and your
husband sold the land for such and such a price.” And she said, “Yes, that was
the price.” Then Peter said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together to
put the Spirit of the Lord to the test? Look, the feet of those who have buried
your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.” Immediately she
fell down at this feet and died. When the young men came
in they found her dead, so they carried her out and buried her beside her
husband. And great fear seized the whole church and all who heard of these
things.
Acts 5:1-11
No one gets away with lying. Truth is one of the attributes of
God. So when we tell a lie, we offend Him. And sooner or later He will uncover
every falsehood – if not in this life, then at the final judgment, when we each
give an account of ourselves to God.
We live in a highly competitive world, and sometimes we may be
strongly tempted to shad the truth to get ahead. But the short-term gains from
lying are worth little compared with the long-term benefits of telling the
truth. If you have deceived someone, confess it to that person and to the Lord.
It may be humbling, but it is the first step to restoring integrity to your
life.
If you always tell the truth, you will
never be trapped in a lie.
Our Daily Bread –