Decietful Greedy Cheeky Christians

Deception and Greed Lust and Lies by Cheeky Members Acts 5:1 But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession, 2 And kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles' feet.

To begin with brothers and sisters, Christian Friends, Well Wishers, and Saints of God I was compelled and commanded to teach preach and reach God’s people with this powerful potent and prolific text. I want to talk about Deception and Greed coupled with Lust and Lies by Cheeky Members

The Acts 5 text deals with an instance of the scriptures where our Christian Character, Christian Stewardship and our Christian Integrity comes into play. Brothers and sisters it’s one thing to try to fool me, but it’s quite another to try to fool God. Nobody really knows you like God knows you. God even knows us better than we know ourselves.

And so let’s hear this story with all of its twists and turns. The bible says Ananias and Sapphira cooked up a great elaborate scheme to defraud God. They had possessions, they had resources, they sold realist ate and were a well off couple. We don’t really know anything about their home life. We don’t know anything about them personally or socially. We don’t know if they had kids, pets, friends, associates, jobs, or bosses, but the bible does give a negative picture and shines an ugly light on their Spiritual Character. They were Cheeky Members! The sin of Ananias and Sapphira was putting on a lovely “front” in order to conceal the shabby sin in their lives, sin that cost them their lives. They were so deceitful considering the meaning of their names. Watch this Ananias’ names means God is Gracious. Sapphira’s name means Beautiful. Ananias names means God is Gracious but Ananias forgot that God is also Holy and that foolery doesn’t cut it with God. Sapphira’s name means beautiful but she forgot that God hates an ugly heart. The bible is teaching us that God killed tow prominent people because they lied about their church giving. But it’s more than that. Because the bible teaches us that If you’re faithful over little then God can put you in charge over much. God can’t bless some of us because we are cheeky over the little bitty money we have. You want a lot from God but won’t even give the little tenth.

If we were describing Ananias and Sapphira In 2024 They would be the kind of members that got $10,000 back from income taxes and came to church and put up $10 dollars and say I did good by the church, because after all last Sunday I only put up $5 dollars. That’s a 50% increase, so what the problem is ?

And so the bible says that Ananias strolls into the church and go pow! bam! Why yah! and throws the money don’t at the Apostles’ feet. Everybody in the church go ooo oo weee because they thought that that was a lot of money.

Wait nah it was a lot of money!!! To the poor people who didn’t have nothing to put down it was a ton of money. But to rich folk or well off folk it was just a drop in the bucket. Brother and sister we’ve come a long ways from cotton sack to Cadillacs, We’ve come from rubber heel to rubber wheel. We’ve come from the out house to the white house, and we’ve come from a shot gun shack to the a mini mansion house on the hill, The Lord has brought us from a mighty mighty mighty long ways, so my advice is Don’t sit there and be cheeky with God. God knows what you have and what you don’t have. God is a discerner of all hearts.

And the bible says that Peter with the spirit of discernment said Ananias you tripping brah. You trippin man. Boy I don’t believe you coming here like this. The bible says in Acts 5:3 But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? You tripping. You done let the devil trick you to play with God!

Because You have lied to the Holy Ghost. Boy!!! you in the worst kind of trouble to be in. ANANIAS,,,, you ain’t lying to me. Listen to me and the whole clergy team will be taken care of by God! Whether you give or not. You ain’t giving nothing to the cloth, to the prebertery, to the Ekklesian, to the Poiman, to the Pastor, to the Bishop, You were supposed to give it to the Lord fool.

The bible says in verse 4 Peter said “Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God. Ananias you name means God is Gracious you know how God works Man why you did this like this?

Certainly brothers and sisters,in 2024 I approach God very differently when examining this kind of text. I don’t say nothing that I don’t mean. When you’re young and stupid you can say stuff and God will whip you with a few stripes, but when you get grown and know better and still say stupid stuff to God, God will whip you with many stripes. I ain’t catching no mo whipping from God behind stupid talk. And the Church said Amen. Let me back it up with Bible.

The bible says in Ecclesiastes 5:1 Keep thy foot when thou goest to the house of God, and be more ready to hear, than to give the sacrifice of fools: for they consider not that they do evil. 2 Be not rash with thy mouth, and let not thine heart be hasty to utter any thing before God: for God is in heaven, and thou upon earth: therefore let thy words be few. 3 For a dream cometh through the multitude of business; and a fool's voice is known by multitude of words. 4 When thou vowest a vow unto God, defer not to pay it; for he hath no pleasure in fools: pay that which thou hast vowed. 5 Better is it that thou shouldest not vow, than that thou shouldest vow and not pay. 6 Suffer not thy mouth to cause thy flesh to sin; neither say thou before the angel, that it was an error: wherefore should God be angry at thy voice, and destroy the work of thine hands?

Some people can come before God and do any and everything and think that there are no consequences. But you reap what you sow…Politic belong in the political arena, gambling belongs at the casino but not on the church dime. Socializes partying belongs at revery events but not with the church’s finances that goes here. People spend money everything but God business. Ananias and Sapphira are no different.

The bible says in verse 5 that Ananias dropped dead. Look at verses 5&6 And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things. 6 And the young men arose, wound him up, and carried him out, and buried him.

Ananias dropped dead. When I read the text with fresh eyes, 2024 eyes I said oh Jesus. And the Lord reminded me, Allen you’re not a rookie or a kid anymore I hold you to a stricter accountability and I want you to always sow good seeds because you never know when the Lord God Jehovah will harvest His crop. Church It’s His vineyard, It’s His crop, It’s his money, It’s His business ventures, It all belongs to God anyway.

The bible say in Psalms that the earth is the Lord’s and they that dwell therein belong to Him too. That’s why Malachi 3 says bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse that there may be meat in mine house said the Lord the Lord said try me right now and see if I won’t open up a window an pour you out a blessing that you don’t have room enough to receive it.

The second thing the text indicates is that they didn’t even have a funeral for Ananias. And if the funeral did take place the last thing about Ananias that was said was that he was a lying deceitful greedy cheater. I don’t know about you but I sure don’t want that to be on my tombstone. Because the songwriter says May the work I’ve done speak for me.

Brothers and sisters Even the contents of your character will be revealed before the True and Living God. God shines a spotlight on the integrity of your Person-hood. The heart of the man is exposed, because Jeremiah 17 says that only God truly knows the heart of a man/woman. And speaking of woman the bible says in verse 7 And it was about the space of three hours after, when his wife, not knowing what was done, came in. Sapphira said within herself, Ananias is taking entirely too long up there at that church. In 2024 Sapphira would have said Ananias knows that our bags are packed and he better hurry up so we can catch our flight to the Bahamas. We going on vacation. He better hurry up so we don’t miss the cruise ship. Ananias is going up there to that church to break off a little something something to church before we leave and that’ll be it. Ananias knows I’m ready to get my tan on, and my pina colatas on pool side. Come on man. I’d better go up there and see what’s really going on. So Mrs. Sapphira goes up too the church.

And Peter and the Apostles are waiting for her. Look what transpires next. 8 And Peter answered unto her, Tell me whether ye sold the land for so much? And she said, Yea, for so much.

All Sapphira had to do was come clean. I wonder if she would have repented and said Lord I’m sorry, or forgive me Jesus for my deceitful ways or Lord I’ve been cheeky with my husband and I’m godly sorry if things would have gone a different way.

Because you do know that God gives us a chance to change. I was at a revival in New Orleans and I had put $30 gas in my car and I had $20 for the offering. That’s $50 dollars and a long drive home afterwards. And while the preacher was preaching the Lord said go write out a check for $100 dollars. I said Lord He said hush 3x And I wrote out the check. I told my wife what I had done, and she said thank God we have it to give. I really didn’t want to give that hundred extra… Normal church folk don’t put up a $150 dollars in no offering at no revival, I don’t who preaching. But obedience is better than sacrifice. Long story short after that my seminary brothers started calling me for 11 am preaching appointments. Obedience is better than sacrifice.

And so Peter said in verse 9. Sapphira Sapphira Sapphira , How is it that ye have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband are at the door, and shall carry thee out. 10 Then fell she down straightway at his feet, and yielded up the ghost: and the young men came in, and found her dead, and, carrying her forth, buried her by her husband. I know if Sapphira would have known what was going to happen would Free Will Defense Theodicy have help her make a more godly decision? Everybody in here have Free Will. God ain’t gon make you make Him make you act right so you can get blessed.NO NO NO It doesn’t work like that , you’ve got to be willing to be a cheerful giver not a cheeky giver. I’m talking to somebody today.

Poor thing didn’t had any idea of what was about to happen to her. And so since no man knows the day or the hour, Why Play with God? Why be stingy with God? Why some people try to trick God? Saying God if you this then I’ll do that .When in fact if God doesn’t do anything else He’s done enough. He’s done enough? Can I tell you what He did so far and you can kind of count your blessings.

1. He woke you up this morning.

2. He started you on your way.

3. He enclosed you in your right mind.

4. He gave you a reasonable portion of health and strength.

5. He put food on your table.

6. He put a real roof over your head you ain’t sleeping in a tent under the bridge.

7. He gave me a godly wife and not a Jezeebel.

8. He gave me children with flaws but children that Love the Lord and I ain’t got to make them go to church.

9. He gave me an Acts 3:15 Blessing a Perfect Soundness Healing Thank you Jesus. The Lord healed a lot of us in here and somebody ought to testify and say I should have been dead! but the Lord made oh death behave. Thank you Jesus. Thank you Lord. Hey Hey Hey Yeah

Because One Friday yes they took my Lord and your God and led Him on up Calvary’s Hill . They nailed his hands and riveted His feet . They stretched Him wide and hung Him up high. And Oh He died out on an old rugged cross Yes He did.

And three days later Early 3x Sunday Morning He Got Up! With All Power in His Hands. Exousia Power Dynimas Power Everlasting Power Life Giving Power because He can speak and men live and then speak again and laid men down to die > Ain’t He Alright!