Ananias and Sapphira ~ What was their crime? Lying, hypocrisy, and coveteousness. Some read this section & think it tells them that material wealth is sinful. Others may think they are required to give all they have to the church. But that's not what this portion of Scripture is telling us.
Let's think back to Jesus and the pharisees. He lambasted them because of their lying, hypocrisy, and coveteousness. They were all about looking holy and spiritual without actually being holy and spiritual. They were focused on their outerward appearance to the point that they neglected their inward appearance. It doesn't matter what others think about you. What matters is your relationship with God.
We don't go to church, give to the needy, or volunteer our time and resources to charity so that others will see how wonderfully spiritual we are. We do these things because we choose to be part of a family. We don't do these things to please God. We do these things because of our relationship with God. He healed us, saved us, cleaned us up. He is our cheerleader, coach, and referee. He took us from the dark place we were in, bringing us into the light. He loved us. It is only natural for us to treat others in the same way.
Ananias and Sapphira either forgot that or they never had the relationship in the first place. Instead of cultivating a relationship, they sought to lie, cheat, and buy their way in. That is were the sin lies. So, what can we learn from this? Work on your relationship with God and everything else will fall into place.
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