Paul gives us a Biblical principle: we reap what we sow. Galatians 6:7 Don’t be misled—you cannot mock the justice of God. You will always harvest what you plant.[1] As you meditate on this verse, you will see that the Lord has much to say to us. We may fool others about our giving or the motives behind our actions, but we won’t fool God.
In the early church, Barnabas gave a generous gift to the Apostles to assist those in need. Barnabas’s real name was Joseph. His nickname was Barnabas, which means “Son of Encouragement.” Barnabas was a faithful believer and later went with Paul on his first missionary journey. Not long after Barnabas’s gift to the Apostles, Ananias and his wife Sapphira sold some property and brought it to the Apostles. Unlike Barnabas, they did not have the same motives, which was to their detriment.
You Can’t Fool God
Sin begins in our minds, and Ananias and his wife Sapphira wanted to impress the Apostles with their gift. It is often a dangerous trap when we try to impress people and forget about pleasing God. Acts 5:2 Ananias brought part of the money to the apostles, claiming it was the full amount. With his wife’s consent, he kept the rest. 3 Then Peter said, “Ananias, why have you let Satan fill your heart? You lied to the Holy Spirit, and you kept some of the money for yourself. 4 The property was yours to sell or not sell, as you wished. And after selling it, the money was also yours to give away. How could you do a thing like this? You weren’t lying to us but to God!” 5 As soon as Ananias heard these words, he fell to the floor and died. Everyone who heard about it was terrified.[2] Ananias sowed the seeds of deception but did not deceive God, who revealed his deception to Peter. Ultimately, Ananias reaped what he had sowed, which is very sad.
Reaping and Sowing
An important teaching in the Bible is being careful about one’s actions because every action has repercussions. As seen throughout the Bible and our lives, people reap what they sow. In a good way, we can sow seeds of truthfulness, generosity, and other fruits of the Spirit. As we listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit, He will guide us in sowing the proper seeds and convict us when we think about sowing the wrong seeds.
The Lord wants the seeds of our life to bear good fruit, and as we listen to His voice and obey, our seeds will be fruitful. When we place our faith in Jesus and the pursuit of holiness, we sow to the Spirit. We are sowing to the flesh if we depend on ourselves without trusting God. This will lead us to a dead end. When we place our faith in Jesus, we reap blessings in this life and eternal life.
To learn how we reap what we sow, listen here:
https://podpoint.com/light-of-christ-church-podcast/ananias-sapphira
[1,2] Tyndale House Publishers. (2015). Holy Bible: New Living Translation . Tyndale House Publishers.