Struck Dead?

Now when Ananias heard these words, he fell down and died. And great fear seized all who heard of it....And great fear seized the whole church and all who heard of these things. Acts 5: 5,11 NRSV



Ananias and his wife, Sapphira, try to pull a fast one on Peter and the disciples. But what they don't realize is that the One whom they are trying to trick is God. If they had kept their land and not sold it, they would have been alright. But because they both tried to keep some for themselves - and we don't know why- they end up being struck dead for their misdeeds. And their deaths strikes fear into everyone who hears of it, especially in the church.



Okay, so God doesn't want us to worship God with fear in our hearts. However, God still wants us to be true. God does not want us to keep something back. God wants us to give our all. The message seems to be that we don't need to fear God but we do need to fear a lack of right relationship with God. If we hold back, if we lie or tell half-truths, if we don't give God our all...well, we'll be struck dead?

Maybe not dead but our relationship with God will be dead and I think this will also impact our relationships with other people. An unhealthy relationship is usually one that we should give up for dead or try to make it healthy again.

God, you want the best possible relationship with us. May we have a healthy dose of fear that will motivate us to work on our relationship with You. In Jesus' name.

Copyright 2009 Amelia G. Sims



Copyright 2009 Amelia G. Sims