“Peter said, “Ananias, how did Satan get you to lie to the Holy Spirit and secretly keep back part of the price of the field? Before you sold it, it was all yours, and after you sold it, the money was yours to do with as you wished. So, what got into you to pull a trick like this?” (Acts 5:3-4)

Reflecting on the action of Ananias and Sapphira, we can understand better why the Holy Spirit spoke through Paul saying: “I want each of you to take plenty of time to think it over and make up your own mind what you will give. That will protect you against sob stories and arm-twisting. God loves it when the giver delights in the giving” (2 Corinthians 9:6-7).

At every time, we should take sufficient time, think it over and make up our own mind what we will give joyfully. God wants us to be free from compulsion, condemnation, or guilt. Paul made this valuable remark about the very poor believers in Macedonia: “They gave offerings of whatever they could—far more than they could afford! —pleading for the privilege of helping out in the relief of poor Christians. This was totally spontaneous, entirely their own idea, and caught us completely off guard” (2 Corinthians 8:4-5). It was their own idea, not an act of intimidation or coercion.

Why was this possible? Paul tells us their secret: “What explains it was that they had first given themselves unreservedly to God and to us. The other giving simply flowed out of the purposes of God working in their lives” (2 Corinthians 8:5-6). Glory! When we continually give ourselves to God first, we see and learn of His own generosity from His grace!

BeEncouraged❤️ Freely Received. Freely Share