The Acts of the Apostles
Chapter 5
1. But a man named Ananias, with the consent of his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property; 2. with his wife's knowledge, he kept back some of the proceeds, and brought only a part and laid it at the apostles feet.
(Acts of the Apostles chapter 5 verses 1 to 2)
Although the Apostles shared all the proceeds together according to who really was in need of the resources pooled, the devil still managed to penetrate the heart of the first group of followers in spite of the works done by You by means of the apostles. This is the case in commercial establishment and sadly to say even in the Roman Catholic Church. Even though people are called by means of heir vocation as priests and nuns some decide to hold back their potential and end up corrupting themselves and others close to them as in the examples of reported child abuse accusations in Malta. Other people who were considered as being professionals and trusted in their field have also proved to be unfaithful to their profession. Nobody is excluded from falling into the traps set by the evil one
Therefore we are always to be on our guard against our enemy who will stop at nothing to cause us to sin and turn our backs against You my God. I simply do not approve of the acts done but in truth we all have the potential of becoming evil people even the most seemingly good people. With reference to this issue I invite you to click on the following links. I strictly advise that the third link be viewed in the presence of an adult or to be pre-filtered due to the nature of the content.
3. "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? 4. While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sols, 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!
(Acts of the Apostles chapter 5 verses 3 to 4)
Oh Jesus today You ask me the same question why does not My truth dwell in You, I have given you my presence and blessing time and time again. Every day I give you my message by means of My Word on which you meditate and share with others. Why do you still sin by not giving your best performance ant home where you are needed as much as at your workplace. Why do you keep of yourself and your skills. Forgive me oh Jesus for I am truly lax in this area. I truly am guilty of such a neglect and am to be repent and change my ways.
5. Now when Ananias heard these words, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who heard of it. 6. The young men came and wrapped up his body, then carried him out and buried him. 7. After an interval of about three hours his wife came in not knowing what had happened. 8. 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." 9. 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." 10. Immediately she fell down at his feet and died. When the young men came in they found her dead, so they carried her out and buried her beside her husband.
(Acts of the Apostles chapter 5 verses 5 to 10)
As mentioned in the Gospel according to Matthew if there is a thing that You hate is that of being tested by us humans. We not only put You to the test oh God but even ourselves and even each other. This may reflect our distrust in You others and even ourselves. When we do not trust You oh Jesus we end up in a spiritual death and experience a sense of confusion because we have entered the realm of darkness which we have chosen over that of the realm of light. The mentioned couple can be said to have partners in crime because they remained partners to the very end of their lives and even ended up buried next to each other.
11. And great fear seized the whole church and all who heard of these things.
(Acts of the Apostles chapter 5 verse 11)
Oh Jesus may we be all impressed by Your never ending love and by all the wonders great and small that you permit to happen in our lives such as the birth of a child or a proclamation of faith from a person who declares not to believe in you or even has never heard of You. You never stop speaking in our lives and in the life of the world. May we always have our ears turned to listen to Your voice and interpret the events that take place as being under Your control. Amen.
12. Now many signs and wonders were done among the people through the apostles. And they were all together in Solomon's Portico. 13. None of the rest dared to join them, but the people held them in high esteem.
(Acts of the Apostles chapter 5 verses 12 to 13)
The apostles became a nucleus of power. People feared them but on the other hand they really wanted to join them in order to obtain their power and support. These are wrong reasons while people want to join the Roman Catholic Church or in fact even other churches.. There are those of us Jesus who wish to find power in numbers or seek more to gain from You than to give or contribute in services or in kind. Others seek to be married in the Church so as to have a nice video and photographs without caring the least to shoulder the responsibility of a Catholic and Christian marriage as stipulated according to Your Statutes as held by the Roman Catholic Church. On reflecting oh Jesus this is the best time to stop and consider our own reasons for wanting to be part of Your body that is the Roman Catholic Church or even other churches. I hope that in a spirit of prayer we all find reasons for wanting to be a part of You my Father.
14. Yet more than ever believers were added to the Lord, great numbers of both men and women, 15. so that they even carried out the sick into the streets, and laid them on cots and mats, in order that Peter's shadow might fall on some of them as he came by. 16. A great number of people would also gather from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those tormented by unclean spirits, and they were all cured.
(Acts of t he Apostles chapter 5 verses 14 to 16)
A great investment results in a great reward.These new believers went to great efforts in order to see their relatives and maybe their friends be healed by means of t he power of the Holy Spirit that they believed could be transmitted to them by means of Peter's shadow. This is one of many cases of extreme faith and its outstanding results. Among many mentioned in Your Good News is that of the woman who believed that if she touched the hem of Your cloak she would be healed.
On reflecting it is a good time to stop and evaluate our type of faith especially when compared to the types of faith referred to. Moreover how nice it is to have others intercede on our behalf. As in the case of mentioned in verses 14 to 16. When we pray on behalf of others we are doing the same thing. This confirms the healing power of intercession.
17. Then the high priest took action: he and all who were with him (that is, the sect of the Sadducees), being filled with jealousy, 18. arrested the apostles and put them in the public prison. 19. But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors, brought them out, and said, 20. Go, stand in the temple and tell the people the whole message about this life."
(Acts of the Apostles chapter 5 verses 17 to 20)
During moments of our lives we end up sad and depressed and we end up in a prison of sin. As in the case of the apostles the jealousy of others may contribute to our situation along with the consequences of our own sins. However in cases when we are treated unfairly You oh Jesus are able to bring justice over non justice and throw off their hinges the prison gates of our situation and free us from our bondage.
21. When they heard this, they entered the temple at daybreak and went on with their teaching. When the high priest and those with him arrived, they called together the council and the whole body of the elders of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought.
(Acts of the Apostles chapter 5 verse 21)
Although the apostles they experienced the first direct encounter against the forces of evil the apostles were not discouraged but empowered by Your Holy Spirit they were empowered to keep on spreading the message of Your Good News. Oh Jesus the same thing happened to me. After alot of attempts to share these posts on line using different methods You showed me that it is You who empowers people to find these post and that I need to let others grow in their relationship with You, and not force them to read or delete these posts by spamming their in box. I tank You oh Jesus for not discouraging me but motivated me to keep on sharing these posts.
22. But when the temple police went there, they did not find them in the prison; so they returned and reported, 23. "We found the prison securely locked and the guards standing at the doors, but when we opened them, we found no one inside."
(Acts of the Apostles chapter 5 verses 22 to 23)
When You intervene oh Jesus we end up in a state of utter confusion and awe because we are either mystified from a positive aspect or act in rebellion from a negative aspect in a strong sense of disapproval. on witnessing Your miracles.
24. Now when the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these words, they were perplexed about them, wondering what might be going on.
(Acts of the Apostles chapter 5 verse 24)
When faced with Your wonders and interventions oh Jesus intelligent men and people held high by society become fools because nobody can ever understand Your wonders. They are indeed miracles. Although many have tried to explain Your miracles they are still and ever will be a mystery that the human mind cannot find words to explain. The greatest of which is the 'Mystery of the Holy Spirit, meaning the Father, Son and Holy Spirit who are all equal and non separable.
25. Then someone arrived and announced, "Look, the men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people!"
(Acts of the Apostles chapter 5 verse 25)
This is the first case of a whistle-blower in the New Testament however without knowing this person was giving testimony to Your great and wonderful works. At times there are those who try to blacken the good names of others but instead spread goodness on such people.
26. Then the captain went with the temple police and brought them, but without violence, for they were afraid of being stoned by the people. 27. When they had brought them, they had them stand before the council. 28. The high priest questioned them, 28. saying, "We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name," you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and you are determined to bring this man's blood on us."
(Acts of the Apostles chapter 5 verses 26 to 28)
Oh Jesus what the world plans for us to be a public humiliation or downfall You change into a testimony and proclamation of Your word. You are able to make good of all opportunities in order to have Your message proclaimed. Although as in the case of the apostles, evil will rise up and offer persecution, You have the casting vote which determines the outcome of the situation. So whenever we are facing such trials we are to pray Your Holy Spirit to help us proclaim the truth and nothing but the truth and we will leave the rest for You to accomplish.
Soon on September the 15th I will also be facing the tribunal. I have been given a ticket for having the wrong time showing on the screen of my car while parked in a timed parking zone for only a couple of minutes. The warden told me to contest this fine on the grounds that I had my mother with me who has a physical impairment and that she had forgotten to bring her disability card with her that could have justified in his opinion the fact that I had parked in that zone. I am aware that the forces of evil will also make a field day out of the situation but I also know that the victory is Yours oh God and that You are already in control of the situation and that if I merit the fine I will accept and pay it, but if not You will free me of all charges amen
29. But Peter and the apostles answered, "We must obey God rather than any human authority,
(Acts of the Apostles chapter 5 verse 29)
Oh Jesus how true is this declaration. We are bombarded with many voices from the media and other social pressure groups that attempt to influence us with their ideology and worldly values. As in the case of the apostles we are also to always be aware of such messages and base our decisions on Your teachings oh God and not on that of the world. I was deeply shocked when the people of Malta voted in favour of divorce which was a gateway to other laws that are in the pipeline. It was a strong indicator that the level of faith may be on the decrease, however this is only one indicator among many that are more positive. Therefore when it comes to making serious decisions it is best to refer to You and to the teachings that You have given us by means of the Holy Spirit and if necessary refer to people whom you have called to be our shepherds and advisers.
30. The God of our ancestors raised up Jesus, whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. 31. God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior that he might give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. 32. And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him."
(Acts of the Apostles chapter 5 verses 30 to 32)
Oh Jesus today we are also witnesses, some of us have had their heads beheaded in order to give witness of their belief in You. This is a time when many trends are being spread that go against our faith. This is the time when as Christians we are to stand up and give testimony that You are really present in our life and speak of the healing of our spirit and other miracles that You have done in our lives.
33. When they heard this, they were enraged and wanted to kill them. 34. But a Pharisee in the council named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, respected by all the people , stood up and ordered the men to be put outside for a short time. 35. Then he said to them, "Fellow Israelites, consider carefully what you propose to do to these men. 36. For some time ago Theudas rose up claiming to be somebody, and a number of men, about four hundred, joined him; but he was killed, and all who followed him were dispersed and disappeared. 37. After him Judas the Galilean rose up at the time of the census and got people to follow him: he also perished, and all who followed him were scattered. 38. So in the present case, I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone; because if this plan or this undertaking is of human origin, it will fail; 39. but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them-in that case you may even be found fighting against God!
(Acts of the Apostles chapter 5 verses 35 to 39)
Oh God indeed You speak by means of others. Anybody can be Your mouthpiece even a Pharisee as in the case of Gamaliel. Indeed the Roman Catholic Church has been put to the test many times from the point of its conception up to this very day. It has been attacked from different sides both externally as in the case of Ottoman attacks on Christians and Roman Catholics, and ISIS among others, however it is currently being attacked internally by means of priests who have been reported and accused on charges of child abuse among other issues. However in the Roman Catholic Church there are also my and your sins which also may have a negative consequence on the Church. However although the Roman Catholic Church because it is indeed of God has survived the onslaughts of Nazism and even modern day harassment. This proves according to the criteria of the wise Gamaliel that the Roman Catholic Church is in deed according to the will of God even though, it is sinful and has even done many mistakes however because, it is of God it is also blessed and holy.
Then they were convinced by him, 40. and when they had called in the apostles, they had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.
(Acts of the Apostles chapter 5 verse 40)
Due to the fact that the Pharisees were influenced by the wise counsel of Gamaliel the apostles were whipped and set free. At times when our accusers find no serious fault against us they just say, "okay you can go but don't do it again". This is what is called a reprimand. In order to comprehend the meaning of this word please view the following video clip.:-
How to reprimand employee
41. As they left the council, they rejoiced that they were considered worthy to suffer dishonor for the sake of the name. 42. And every day in the temple and at home they did not cease to teach and proclaim Jesus as the Messiah.'
(Acts of the Apostles chapter 5 verses 41 to 42)
Instead of arguing complaining or becoming discouraged the apostles were more empowered by the fact that they were happy to have endured this persecution for Your name.
I would like to end this chapter with the following prayer:-
In every situation we can have the same attitude that of thanksgiving and rejoice. All that we endure in life oh Jesus we accept it as being according to Your will therefore we accept it in s spirit of thanksgiving
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