Death in the Church
Acts 4:32-37 ESV
Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. There was not a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was distributed to each as any had need. Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles BARNABAS (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
Acts 5:1-11 ESV
But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, and with his wife’s knowledge he kept back for himself some of the proceeds and brought only a part of it and laid it at the apostles’ feet. But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land? While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? Why is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to man but to God.” When Ananias heard these words, he fell down and breathed his last. And great fear came upon all who heard of it. The young men rose and wrapped him up and carried him out and buried him. After an interval of about three hours his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. And Peter said to her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for so much.” And she said, “Yes, for so much.” But Peter said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.” Immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last. When the young men came in they found her dead, and they carried her out and buried her beside her husband. And great fear came upon the whole church and upon all who heard of these things.
Lessons From a Funeral
- There are RIGHT reasons to give, and there are WRONG reasons to give.
What the gospel does is transform our hearts from STONE to HONEYCOMB.
RIGHT REASONS TO GIVE:
- God tells us to
- A transformed heart
- The world gets better
WRONG REASONS TO GIVE:
- For people’s praise
Lessons From a Funeral
- MEN are called to lead their families to RIGHTEOUSNESS.
Acts 5:8-10 ESV
And Peter said to her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for so much.” And she said, “Yes, for so much.” But Peter said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.” Immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last.
Ephesians 5:22 NIV
Wives, submit yourselves to your own husbands as you do to the Lord.
Wives, you are called to follow your husband into what you think could be a MISTAKE, but you’re never called to follow your husband into what you know is SIN.
Ephesians 5:25-27 NIV
Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless.
Ephesians 5:21 NIV
Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Lessons From a Funeral
- Lying to GOD is a DANGEROUS thing.
Acts 5:4 ESV
“You have not lied to man but to God.”
“God is indeed long-suffering, patient, and slow to anger. In fact, he is so slow to anger that when his anger does erupt, we are shocked and offended by it. We forget rather quickly that God’s patience is designed to lead us to repentance, to give us time to be redeemed. Instead of taking advantage of this patience by coming humbly to him for forgiveness, we use this grace as opportunity to become bolder in our sin. We delude ourselves into thinking that either God doesn’t care about it, or that he is powerless to punish us. The supreme folly is that we think we will get away with our revolt.”
— R. C. Sproul, The Holiness of God
The closer you are to the FLAME, the more likely you will get BURNED.
FEAR OF THE LORD // “Awe Mixed with Intimacy”
“Father, forgive us for the times we have tried to make people believe we are more than we truly are. Forgive us for the times we have wanted applause from people more than applause from Heaven. Forgive us for giving with wrong motives. Forgive us for not leading our families the way we should. Forgive us for the times we have lied to You. Today, we hear Your words, and we respond, ‘Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner.’”
Maybe you made a decision to follow Jesus today, or maybe you’re curious what life with Him is all about. Wherever you are on your journey, we invite you to share with us
