With this message we shall begin to consider the failures in the churches.
In the Bible there is a record not only of the positive things concerning the church but also a record of the failures in the churches. There are no failures in the universal church; however, there are failures in the local churches. All the failures come out of one source, and this source is Satan, who instigates the weak saints to cause all kinds of local problems. The universal church is heavenly, holy, and even divine. But when the universal church reaches a certain locality to be expressed in a local church, the church in that locality may become contaminated and polluted by certain local customs, practices, and philosophies. Therefore, the failures are not in the universal church but in the local churches which have been contaminated by the things of their localities. For this reason, in the New Testament there is not only a clear vision of the pure, holy, heavenly, and divine church but also a record of all the failures in the local churches.
The first failure in the churches was that of hypocrisy seen in the case of Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11). Hypocrisy is a matter of pretending to be somebody in order to get a name that we may have vainglory. This is altogether related to ambition. Ambition, therefore, is the seed of the failures in the churches. We all should condemn ambition and not seek to get a name for ourselves in order to have vainglory.
Ananias and his wife Sapphira were seeking a position. They wanted to be somebody and to have a name so that they could enjoy vainglory. This was the cause of their hypocrisy. They did not offer everything to the church for the Lord’s sake but pretended to do this. As a result, although they were saved persons, they were condemned and suffered physical death.
Acts 5:1-11 indicates that two persons were making their residence in Ananias and Sapphira. First, the Spirit was no doubt dwelling in them. Because they were saved, the Holy Spirit had taken up His residence within them. Second, Satan was dwelling in them, for he had filled their hearts to lie to the Spirit (v. 3). Satan was not merely outside them but was in their hearts deceiving them and seducing them.
How could Satan have such ground within Ananias and Sapphira? Satan had this ground because of their ambition. The ground in Ananias and Sapphira that was the basis for Satan’s deception of them was their desire to have a name. They wanted to have the reputation of having sold everything for the church. Because of their ambition, they formed a plan. They sold a piece of property, kept some of the proceeds for themselves, and then brought a certain part and laid it at the feet of the apostles.
Satan is not far from us, and we need to be careful lest we be deceived by him. If we would avoid Satan’s deception, we must reject, condemn, and abandon the position to be somebody in the church life. Whenever we have the thought of being somebody in the church life, Satan has the ground to deceive us.
Ananias and Sapphira had the ambition to be somebody in the church; they had the ambition to have a name. Because of their ambition they were deceived, and that deception brought them into death. As the record indicates, both Ananias and Sapphira died physically.
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