Tonight I'm giving a talk at Ley Street youth club from Acts 4/5. It's usually called "The story of Ananias and Sapphira" in honor of the two people who die for their deception. But at the heart of the story is the eradication of poverty among the fledgling church in Jerusalem. Chapter 4 ends by saying that the believers shared everything they had, and there were no needy persons among them. The story of Ananias and Sapphira follows right after this - I think - because it demonstrates just how important sharing of property was. Yes, the immediate cause of their death was that they lied to God - but they lied to God on matters of utmost importance to God's kingdom.
I'll be the first to admit that I love money. We haven't given money at church since we've been here in London, and I think that lack of giving is slowly killing us. Part of the problem is that none of the churches we've been to pass the plates - they just have a box at the back. Being the outsiders that we are, we just figured that out last week. But the point is, we need to start giving away more than we are. Anybody who reads this in need of some money? Again, drop me an e-mail if you're interested.
[update] the talk went well, though I hadn't counted on the kids' insanely strong sense of injustice. I had asked a couple of the girls to help by giving them some candy and then asking them to give all of it back during the story. one of them played the part of Ananias and didn't give it all back. when they saw that she kept some for herself...the boys flipped out! In the end, I think the talk was good. They were quiet while I read the poem from Philippians 2 about Jesus emptying himself. The God of self-giving love is the one who
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