OUR GUIDE is published by the Protestant Reformed
Sunday School Association.
EDITORS -- Mr. and Mrs. Don Doezema
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GRANDVILLE, MI 49418
Lesson No.63
The Scripture Lesson
When Satan looked at the people who belonged to the early Christian church there were many things that he did not like at all. He did not like it that there were so many of them. Every day more and more people were added to the church, so that soon there were well over 10,000 people who had become Christians after listening to the preaching of the apostles. Satan did not either like it that the people in the church had such a wonderful Christian love for each other. Rich people would sell some of their possessions so that they would have money to give to those who were hungry.
Satan saw all of this as the work of God. He could see that the kingdom of Christ was prospering. And because he hated God, He wanted more than anything else to destroy the kingdom of God on earth. That means that he wants to destroy the church.
He had hoped that the threats of the Sanhedrin would frighten the apostles so that they would not dare to preach anymore. But, as we saw last time, that did not work. He decided therefore to try something else. He would attack the people of God from inside the church rather than from outside. He would bring wickedness into the church through its own members. We will learn about that in our lesson for this week.
Ananias and his wife Sapphira had watched when other members of the church had sold possessions and brought the money to the apostles. They saw that everybody else would praise these people for doing that. Now, Ananias and Sapphira wished that people would praise them. But the problem was, they did not really want to part with so much of their hard-earned money. So what they decided to do was this: they would sell a piece of their property, keep back some of the money for themselves, and bring the rest to the apostles, pretending that it was not part but all of the money from the sale. They were sure that, if they were careful, no one would ever learn the truth. They would fool everybody. And as long as men did not find them out, they figured that they were safe.
So one day Ananias came with his bag of money to where the Christians were gathered. At a time when everybody was watching, he presented his gift to the apostles. The people were probably already thinking, "What a wonderful man Ananias is." And Ananias expected that the apostles would think and say the same.
But they did not. The Holy Spirit had already told Peter that Ananias was lying. So Peter looked at him and asked, "Why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost? Thou hast not lied into men but unto God." And as soon as Ananias heard those words he fell dead at Peter's feet. Several of the young men came forward, carried him out, and buried him.
About three hours later his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. She perhaps hoped that she would be able to get some of the praise for herself. But as soon as she came in, Peter asked her if they had sold the land for the amount of money that Ananias had given. She answered right away that that was true. Peter then said to her too that they had really tempted the Holy Spirit, and he told her that the young men who had buried her husband would likewise carry her out. And immediately she also fell dead.
That was terrible punishment for Ananias and Sapphira, was it not? Do you know why the Lord did that? He did it first of all to keep out the wickedness that Satan was trying to get into the young church. But He did it also to show to us how terribly wicked it is when people try to appear before others to be very pious and godly when they are not, and when they do things in order to get the praise of men rather than because they love God. God loves honesty and true service; He hates lying and hypocrisy and will surely punish men for it.
The death of Ananias and Sapphira caused great fear to fall upon all who heard about it. But it was the kind of fear that was good for the church. For it kept out of the church those who were not true believers. Once again Satan had failed in his attempt to destroy the church of Christ.
When Peter and John were brought before the Sanhedrin they were warned that they must never again do anything in the name of Jesus. Peter told them that the apostles had been appointed by God to be witnesses of Christ, so they must witness, no matter what men might say.
Peter and John were true to their word. They, and the other disciples with them, went right back to their preaching about Jesus - not in secret, but in the temple itself. Not only did they preach, they also did miracles - many of them. So many sick people were brought that the apostles did not have time to heal them all. Sick people were therefore put on little beds and laid on the streets that Peter walked, and when he walked by that way they were healed as his shadow passed over them.
This made the people think of Jesus, for Jesus also had great power to do miracles. They believed therefore that it must be true, as the apostles said, that Jesus had risen and was now working through His disciples. The miracles helped them to believe. And hundreds of them did believe.
All of this made the Sanhedrin very angry. They were angry that the apostles had disobeyed their command. They were jealous, too, of the popularity of the apostles; and they were afraid that if the people would believe that Jesus was raised by God from the dead, then they would think that the Sanhedrin was guilty of murdering the Messiah. This worried them.
Finally the Sanhedrin could stand it no longer. They ordered the temple police to round up all the apostles and put them in prison. The next day they would call a meeting, make the apostles stand before them, and decide how to stop them once and for all.
That was their plan. They thought they could do with the apostles just as they pleased. But they could not. The church belongs to God, and men can do to it only what God pleases. God showed that to the Sanhedrin by taking the apostles right out of prison. He sent an angel who unlocked the door in the middle of the night and led the apostles out, without the guards seeing or hearing a thing. The guards kept standing at the door, not knowing that the jail was empty.
The next day the Sanhedrin came together and sent for the apostles. Imagine their surprise when the temple police returned and reported that, though the doors of the jail were still locked, nobody was inside. What could possibly have happened? While the Sanhedrin was wondering about this, a messenger came and said that the apostles were back in the temple, preaching as usual. The Sanhedrin should have known that this was a work of God. But they went right ahead with their plan to punish the apostles. They sent the captain of the temple and his men to go and get them.
When the disciples finally stood before the Sanhedrin, Caiaphas demanded to know why it was that they had so openly disobeyed the command not to preach in Jesus' name. Peter answered again, "We ought to obey God rather than men." He reminded the Sanhedrin that they had killed Jesus, but God raised Him up. And God was now working through the apostles, giving the Holy Spirit to those who were joined to the church of Christ.
The Sanhedrin, when they heard these things, became furiously angry. They began to plan to kill all the apostles. But then a man by the name of Gamaliel stood up and advised them to be careful. He told them that if the work of the apostles was not of God, it would die out anyway. But if it WAS of God, they could never stop it. The Sanhedrin took this advice and decided to let the apostles go. But first they beat them and warned them again not to preach in Jesus' name.
The beating was very painful for the apostles. But they went away, not crying, but rejoicing. They rejoiced that Christ, the King of the church, had counted them worthy to suffer shame for His Name. They had learned well what we should also learn, namely, that what the Sanhedrin did to them was the Lord's will. When God is pleased to keep His people from suffering, He does that. But when suffering is good for the church, He sends that too. The enemies of the church can do nothing apart from His will.
Group A
Acts 5:38b, 39 "For if this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nought: but if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest haply ye be found even to fight against God."
Group B
Acts 5:41 "And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name."
Group C
Acts 5:29b "We ought to obey God rather than men."
This paper has been prepared in the hope that it will be used by students of all ages. The activities are designed so that the oldest will be challenged, and the youngest will find some of it within reach. Parents should encourage their children to attempt only what they can handle without frustration. For some that will be much, for others little.
DO YOU AGREE?
If you do, write Yes; if you do not, write No.
___ 1. After Peter and John were released by the Sanhedrin, the two apostles reported to the rest of the company that they had been threatened with punishment if they continued to speak in the name of Jesus.
___ 2. The apostles decided then to continue to teach about Jesus, but to do so in secret, in order not to arouse the anger of the leaders of the Jews.
___ 3. The apostles also prayed that they would not be hurt by the leaders of the Jews, but that God would instead punish the Sanhedrin for their wickedness.
___ 4. God showed His approval of the prayer of the apostles by shaking the house in which they were gathered.
___ 5. One of those in the church who sold property in order to have money to give to the poor was a levite named Barnabas.
___ 6. Ananias and Sapphira saw how the people admired Barnabas for his generosity, and they conspired together how they might also get the praise of men.
___ 7. After selling a piece of property, Ananias brought part of the money from the sale and laid it at the apostles' feet.
___ 8. Ananias however died right then and there because he did not give all of his money to the church.
___ 9. After Ananias died, his body was immediately taken to the funeral home, in order that it might be properly prepared for burial.
___10. When Sapphira learned of God's terrible judgment on her husband, she repented of her sin of hypocrisy and deceit, and confessed it before Peter and the church.
___11. After the death of Ananias the church stopped growing, because people became afraid to join themselves to a company in which such holiness of life was demanded.
___12. Satan's plans were, however, defeated; for that which he had hoped to use to weaken the church was used by God instead to make the church purer and stronger.
___13. The apostles continued meanwhile to preach and to work miracles, so that people even brought their sick into the streets hoping that Peter's shadow would pass over them.
___14. Peter and John had been warned not to do what they were now doing, so the Sanhedrin ordered the temple police to arrest just those two apostles.
___15. When an angel of the Lord came during the night and let the apostles out of prison, the guards were terrified and they hurried to report the matter to the chief priests.
___16. When the Sanhedrin assembled in the morning and learned that the apostles were once more preaching in the temple, they commanded that all of the apostles be brought immediately before them.
___17. After Peter's speech before them, the Sanhedrists were furious and began to talk at once about killing all of the apostles.
___ 18. Gamaliel, however, advised that they not act rashly, because the miraculous deliverance from prison proved that God was on the side of the apostles.
___ 19. The Sanhedrin therefore had the apostles whipped, and then, after giving them another warning, they let them go.
___ 20. Far from being frightened or discouraged, the apostles actually rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer for Jesus' sake.
1. Why does Satan want to destroy the church?
2. In what two different ways, in our lesson for this week, did Satan try to destroy the church?
3. Ananias and Sapphira did not really want to help the poor in the church. Why then did they want to lay a large gift of money at Peter's feet?
4. Peter told Ananias that he did not have to give to the church any of the money he had received from selling his land. Why then was it wrong for Ananias to have given only part of the money?
5. How were Ananias and Sapphira punished?
6. All who heard about Ananias and Sapphira were afraid. Do you know how that fear was good for the church?
7. What do we sometimes do today that is like the sin of Ananias and Sapphira?
8. Where did the apostles preach - after the Sanhedrin told them not to speak anymore in the name of Jesus?
9. How were some sick people healed by Peter? What good did all these miracles do?
10. Why would the leaders of the Jews be worried about how fast the church of Christ was growing? What did they decide to do about it?
11. What did God show the Sanhedrin by taking the apostles out of their prison?
12. When the apostles stood again before the Sanhedrin, what answer did Peter give to Caiaphas?
13. What did the Sanhedrin think should be done to the apostles? What advice did Gamaliel give?
14. What happened to the apostles before they were released? Why did they rejoice about that?
1. On being threatened with dire consequences if they continued to speak in the name of Jesus, Peter and John had informed the Sanhedrin that they must obey God rather than men. How hard that must have been for the apostles! - not only because they were risking their very lives, but also because their faithfulness to Jesus required that they defy those who were the spiritual leaders of Israel. Immediately after their release, therefore, Peter and John went to their own _________________________ and reported all that the chief priests and ___________________ had said to them. And then they all lifted up their voice to _________________ with one _____________________. They prayed to the lord who, "by the mouth of thy servant ________________ hast said, Why did the heathen, and the people imagine ____________________ things." They evidently saw the psalmist's implied prophecy of victory for the Messiah as extending also to Christ's church. They therefore prayed that the Lord would behold their (the Sanhedrin's)______________ and grant the apostles that with all ___________________ they may speak God's _________________ (Acts 4:23-30).
2. God heard this selfless prayer of the company of Jesus' disciples, and He gave to it His immediate seal of approval. For, as soon as they had prayed, the place was_____________ where they were __________________ together. And they were all _____________________ with the Holy Ghost, and they spoke the Word of God with ______________ (Acts 4:31).
3. Counting only the men, the church numbered already ____________ (Acts 4:4). Yet, amazingly, the ____________________of them that believed were of_________ heart. That is, there was no strife or division among them. And the blessed unity which prevailed among them showed itself in their attitude toward their possessions. They helped each other, so that there was not any among them that _______________________ A notable example of such generosity was a man by the name of____________________ surnamed _____________________, who sold some of his property and brought the money and________________ laid it at the ______________________ feet (Acts 4:32-37).
4. Satan was of course not at all pleased at the rapid growth and the remarkable holiness of the church of Jesus Christ. Having failed in his wicked attempt to cripple the church by threats of punishment from outside the church, the devil decided now to attack the church from within. The two who became his willing instruments were _______________ and his wife _______________________. This couple must have noticed how much the rest of the members of the church appreciated the generosity of people like Barnabas. They coveted that praise of men, and decided to try to get it for themselves... while keeping as much money as possible for themselves. They therefore sold a________________________ kept ______________ part of the price, and brought only a certain ____________________ and laid it at the apostles' ________________ (Acts 5:1,2).
5. Ananias must have presented his gift in such a way that he clearly implied that it was the entire sale price of the possession sold - a bare-faced lie, spoken as if he had to do only with men. But such was not the case; for God knew, and the Holy Spirit revealed to Peter the scheming of Ananias and Sapphira. Peter therefore immediately asked, "Why hath _________________________ filled thine __________________ to lie against the ___________________________ and to keep back ___________________ of the price of the land?" Peter then explained to Ananias, before the whole assembly, that he was under no obligation to sell the possession, and that, once he did sell it, he could have done as he pleased with the money. But to give some of the money, pretending that it was all, was to lie, not unto ____________, but unto ______________ (Acts 5:3, 4).
6. Deceit and hypocrisy like that of Ananias and Sapphira are an abomination to God. And the punishment which befell them is a powerful illustration of the judgment which will come upon all such reprobate hypocrites. For Ananias, on ____________________ the words of Peter, fell down and gave up the __________________. And the young men in the company arose,__________________ him up, and carried ___________________, and him (Acts 5:5, 6).
7. Perhaps it was according to their plan that, about the space of ______________________ hours after, Sapphira, not ___________________ what was done, came in, in order to receive her share of the people's admiration. When Peter said to her, "Tell me whether ye _____________________ the land for _________________ much," Sapphira answered quickly, "____________, for so much." After asking Sapphira why they had agreed together to _______________ the Spirit, Peter declared that those who had ___________________ her husband were at the ____________, and would_____________ her out. And Sapphira fell down ________________ at his feet and yielded up the ____________________ (Acts 5:7-10).
8. Great _________________________ came upon all the _____________________, and upon as many as___________ these things. Once more Satan had failed in his designs. God had so turned the wickedness of Ananias and Sapphira that it served to keep the young church pure. For while believers were the more ________________________ to the Lord, of the rest _________________ no man join himself to them (Acts 5:11-14).
9. The Sanhedrin found out soon enough that the apostles were serious when they said they would obey God rather than men. For the apostles not only continued to preach in the name of Jesus, but did so right in the temple, on Solomon's _______________, where large numbers of people who were present for the regular temple services could gather also and hear the preaching of the apostles. The people were attracted by the preaching, and also by the many signs and _________________________ wrought by the apostles. In fact, they brought the ______________________ into the streets, and laid them on ___________________ in order that at least the ________________of Peter passing by might fall on them. This included not only people of Jerusalem, but also a __________________________ out of the cities round about Jerusalem, bringing __________________ folks. And they were _________________ every one (Acts 5:12-16).
10. The result of all this (the apostles' preaching, confirmed by the signs and wonders) was that the people______________ them (Acts 5:13), and there was added to the church _________________both of men and of women (Acts 5:14). The high priest and the sect of the ____________________ were filled with ________________________. Restrained for awhile, perhaps, by their fear of the people, they were at last unable to contain themselves, and they ordered the temple police to seize all of the apostles and put them in the common _____________________ (Acts 5:17,18).
11. Sometime during the night, however, an _________ of the Lord _________________ the prison doors and, after bringing them out, told them to speak again in the___________ to the people all the words of this life. Thus it was that, while the keepers continued to stand guard before an empty jail, the apostles spent the night at home and then entered the temple ______________ in the morning and ___________________ (Acts 5:19-21). Such deliverance must have served to assure the disciples that the enemies of Christ could do nothing to them apart from the will of God.
12. Unaware at first of the escape, the high priest called the __________________________________ together and all the ____________________ of the children of Israel, and sent to the ___________________ to have the apostles brought. But when the officers found them not, they returned and told the gathered dignitaries, "The prison truly found we___________ with all __________________, and the __________________ standing without ________________ the doors; but when we had opened, we found __________ man within" (Acts 5:21-23).
13. While the Sanhedrin was puzzling over this unexpected development, one came and told them that, Behold, the menwho were put in prison are in the____________ and ____________________ the people. Faced thus with clear evidence that there had been divine intervention on behalf of the disciples of Jesus, the Sanhedrin remained nevertheless determined to do whatever was necessary to silence them. The captain and the ______________________ therefore went immediately to the temple to arrest the apostles a second time - but without _____________________ for they _____________________ the people lest they be ___________________. The people they fear; God they defy (Acts 5:25,26).
14. The apostles went along peacefully and were set directly before the ______________________. Had the high priest not been convinced that their escape from prison was by the hand of God, he would surely have examined them on this matter. But he didn't. Instead he proceeded at once to accuse them of defying the authority of the Sanhedrin by filling Jerusalem with their ________________________ intending thereby to bring this man's ___________________upon the leaders (Acts 5:27, 28).
15. Peter, speaking again on behalf of the apostles, declared forthrightly that Jesus, whom they had slain and____________ on a tree, had raised up. Further, Peter said, God had ______________________ Him to be a Prince and a _____________________. And not only were the apostles witnesses of these things, but so also was the_______________ whom God had obviously given only to followers of Jesus. Thus did Peter prove that they were in truth obeying________ rather than men (Acts 5:29-32).
16. Enraged by this defense, the council did not even bother to refute the arguments. They simply took counsel at once to ____________________ them all. However, a certain Pharisee named ______________________, who had a good __________________________ among all the people, cautioned his fellow Sanhedrists not to act rashly. For, he argued, if this work be of men, it will come to _______________________ anyway, and if it be of God, the Sanhedrin not only cannot ____________________ it, but might be ______________ even to ___________________ against God (Acts 5:33-39).
17. God uses even the advice of wicked men to advance the cause of His church. For we read that the counsel agreed with Gamaliel. However, before they let the apostles go, they had them ______________________, and then commanded them again not to _________________ in the _________________ of Jesus (Acts 5:40).
18. The apostles departed, _______________________ that they were counted _________________________ to suffer ___________________ for Jesus' sake. And they __________________not to teach and ___________________ Jesus Christ (Acts 5:41, 42).
1. What do you think -- did the apostles, at the beginning of their conflict with the leaders of the Jews, see themselves as being the leaders of the church, or did they still consider the Sanhedrin to be the leaders of the church?
2. Read the prayer of the apostles after the release of Peter and John (Acts 4:24-30). What comfort did they evidently find in Psalm 2? (Consider especially the relationship they saw between the raging of the wicked on the one hand, and the counsel of God on the other.)
3. Can you show that the apostles' prayer, though it did include a request for boldness and power, was nevertheless a truly selfless prayer - that is, that their concern in their prayer was not for themselves?
4. What does Luke mean when he says that the multitude of believers "were of one heart and of one soul" (Acts 4:32)?
5. Acts 5:3 makes it clear that Satan was behind the deception of Ananias and Sapphira. What was very likely Satan's plan in tempting Ananias and Sapphira to this sin?
6. Read Peter's rebuke to Ananias as it is recorded in Acts 5:4. Which words of Peter show that Ananias' sin was not simply that he had kept back part of the money?
7. Ananias lied to Peter, before all who were in the company. Can you explain how that lie was nevertheless, as Peter said, not first of all unto men but unto God?
8. Ananias and Sapphira were hardly the only (or the worst) hypocrites in the history of the church. How do you account for the fact that they were exposed and struck dead, while others apparently escape undetected?
9. News of the strange and sudden deaths of two people who had joined the Christian church must have spread quickly through Jerusalem. How, do you suppose, would the story of Ananias and Sapphira affect the attitude of people towards the church?
10. From Acts 5:12-16 we learn that the apostles must have performed miracles of healing by the hundreds. What important purpose was served by those signs at that early stage in the history of the Christian church?
11. From the first part of Acts 5 we are led to believe that the apostles were actively and openly engaged in preaching and working miracles for some time before the Sanhedrin finally arrested them for disobeying their orders. Undoubtedly the Sanhedrin was restrained by their fear of the people (see Acts 4:21 and Acts 5:26). Do you see, from Acts 5:28, how it was this same fear of the people that convinced the Sanhedrin that they must act?
12. After the miraculous deliverance from prison, the disciples were so quickly re-arrested that it might seem as if the deliverance was for nothing. There was however an important speech of God in it, both for the Sanhedrin and for the apostles. What important truth did the deliverance demonstrate to the disciples at the beginning of the history of the New Testament church? What was demonstrated to the Sanhedrin? Do you think that this demonstration made any difference in how the Sanhedrin treated the apostles?
13. Escape from prison is a punishable offense. Why did not Caiaphas raise that issue at all in his examination of the apostles? Do you see how this proves that the Sanhedrin was not acting here in ignorance of the will of God but out of hatred against God?
14. The Sanhedrin would agree with Peter that one must obey God rather than men. They would not however have agreed that in obeying the Sanhedrin the apostles would be disobeying God. Can you explain how Peter's defense, in Acts 5:29-32, proved that the Sanhedrin's will and God's will were indeed opposite?
15. Can you show how the advice of Gamaliel, which God used for the good of the church, was in fact wicked advice?
16. From Acts 5:41 can you see why the apostles considered their stripes to be, not marks of shame, but "badges of honor"?