These small group Bible studies of Acts 5 contain commentary, discussion questions, and practical application. Visit our library of inductive Bible studies for more in depth inductive studies on this and other books of the Bible you can use in your small group.
Acts 5 Bible Study Guide – Ananias and Sapphira Lie
Discussion Questions
• What sin did Ananias and Sapphira commit?
• What should Sapphira have done when she learned about Ananias’ plan?
• Where did this idea to pretend to give the whole amount come from?
• Were they required to give the entire proceeds to God?
• If they didn’t want to give everything, what was the problem?
• Why would they lie about this?
• What are spiritual things a person might do today to try to impress others?
• What is the proper motivation for doing good?
• How important is it for you for other people to see and acknowledge your good deeds?
• Why do we often feel the need to impress others?
• What does the punishment they received show us about the seriousness of sin? What does it teach us about God’s character?
• Why doesn’t God always punish that quickly and strictly?
• Why did Peter ask Sapphira about the price the land was sold for?
• How did the news of their deaths influence the church?
• Was the fear they felt good or bad? Why?
• What applications can you make from the passage?
Cross-References
2 Corinthians 9:7 – Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
Matthew 23:5-6 – They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long, and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues.
Matthew 23:27-28 – Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people’s bones and all uncleanness. So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
Matthew 6:3-4 – But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
Verse by Verse Commentary
1. Ananias kept back for himself some of the proceeds –
Ananias observed how the other believers were selling property and donating the proceeds to God. This practice was surely commended and those who did so were held in high esteem.
It seems that Ananias wanted to get in on it and receive praise and admiration from man.
Were Ananias and Sapphira real believers?
We cannot know for certain. I believe they likely were.
• The account is told in the context of “those who believed” (Acts 4:32).
• Never does the passage say that they did belong to the Lord or belonged to Satan. It does not say that were fake or would go to hell, etc.
• “Cultural Christianity” was not yet a thing. Declaring oneself to be a follower of Jesus was not traditional or normal. It cost you something to identify with Christ. Believers would be scorned by the powerful religious and political leaders of the Jews. They would be put out of the synagogue. Being a Christian did not really offer power or prestige at that point in history.
• They were disciplined by God. God disciplines His children (Hebrews 12:8).
• If Ananias and Sapphira were truly con artists from the beginning, what could their motive have been? They pretended to be believers and gave away a lot of their possessions just to receive some accolades. It doesn’t exactly make sense.
Most likely, they were genuine believers who fell into temptation. They likely wanted to serve God by giving something to Him. But they also desired to look spiritual and righteous before men. That desire caused them to deceive others and give a false impression about how spiritual and devoted they were.
Which of us can say that we have never tried to impress others with our dedication to God or some good deed we have done? Which of us has never covered over sin because we didn’t want to look bad in front of our family or friends?
2. Sapphira went along with it –
Acts 5:1-2 – 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.
The text indicates this was Ananias’ plan, but that Sapphira went along with it.
Reflect – What should a wife (or a husband if the sinful idea is the wife’s) do in this situation?
Sapphira should have taken a stand on what is right. She should have counseled her husband not to commit this sin.
What if he insisted? Was it her duty to submit to her husband and go along with it?
The final authority is God. If any other authority tells us to sin, we must refuse and obey God first. If the husband tells his wife to sin, she is not required to go along with it. On the contrary, she is required to resist it.
Acts 5:29 – But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.
Ananias was, in fact, not able to do this sin without his wife’s cooperation. If she had said, “I am going to tell the truth and let people know how much the land was really sold for,” then Ananias would be unable to carry out the ruse.
Sapphira could have, therefore, saved her husband’s life and her own by standing up for what was right. Little did she know that her cooperation would be so disastrous.
The point is not that Sapphira was entirely to blame. Ananias contrived this scheme and carried it out. The point is that she could have greatly helped her husband by doing what was right. Yet she didn’t. They both suffered the consequences.
One reason that God designed marriage is that “two are better than one.” When one’s spouse has a terrible idea, the other should restrain them.
One example of a wife using wisdom to try to save her husband from a bad decision is Abigail (1 Samuel 25). Her husband, Nabal, foolishly provoked David and was soon going to be killed because of his insolence. Abigail took it upon herself to seek peace and try to calm the situation.
Husbands also have an important responsibility to lead their wives in a proper direction. In Scripture, husbands are specifically commanded to “sanctify” their wives (Ephesians 5:26).
Reflect – Are you influencing your spouse to be a better follower of Jesus? Or are you actively bringing about temptations for your spouse or enabling sinful behavior?
3. Satan tempted them in an effort to corrupt the church –
Acts 5:3 – But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit…
Satan is not omnipresent. Not every temptation is a direct result of Satan. When you consider the sheer number of people in the world and the fact that Satan is only one being, it is likely you will never be directly tempted by Satan. He shows up in critical situations.
One example is that he himself indwelt Judas and prompted him to betray Jesus to death.
Here is another example. The fact that Satan tempted them, shows us the behind-the-scenes spiritual warfare taking place. The church was rapidly growing. The gospel was spreading. God was winning. Satan sought to hinder the church’s growth. He steps in to try to corrupt the church. How does he do it?
He tempted people to be spiritual and religious in the sight of man. He had been very successful with the Pharisees, misleading entire generations of Jewish spiritual leaders. These leaders cared more about their own reputation than they did for the people.
Here Satan was sowing these same seeds of spiritual pride in the early church.
From this, we can learn a lesson. Where God is working, Satan is also likely working. Sometimes he goes himself. Sometimes he sends his demons. Regardless, his goal is to thwart God at every turn.
We should be aware that there is a spiritual battle going on behind the scenes. If your church is growing and people are being saved, be on the alert. If your family is seeking to follow the Lord, be ready. Satan does not want your kids to come to Christ.
We have seen this spiritual battle many times in our family. Before school each day, we have family devotions together. We open God’s Word and seek to share, pray, and worship Him in song. Many times, some petty disagreement will spring up among the kids. Arguments and strife rise up and threaten to derail the devotion time. It could be silly stuff like “That is my seat,” or “Move over,” or “Stop touching me,” or even “Don’t look at me.”
It seems there is a real spiritual battle that wants to distract our children from hearing and applying God’s Word and from worshiping Him.
Reflect – How can you fight this spiritual battle in your family, church, and community?
4. Peter’s rebuke –
Acts 5:3-4 – 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.
Peter makes it clear that they were not required to sell their land and give away the money. It was their choice. The others had done this voluntarily.
The sin was not keeping some of the proceeds back, but lying about it. The lie was motivated by pride. They wanted to appear to be something they were not. They wanted their cake and to eat it too.
Peter also said their primary sin was against God. David noted the same thing when he sinned with Bathsheba (Psalm 51:4).
Our sin is much more serious than only offending or hurting people. All sin is an offense directly against God. It is casting off His standard and rebelling by going our own way.
5. Why did God punish them for lying? –
Ananias dropped dead for his sin. Soon after, the same fate would come to Sapphira.
Many have asked, “Why did God punish them for lying?” After all, people lie every day and most are not punished this swiftly.
Scripture does not directly tell us why God chose to do this in this case, but here are some likely reasons.
• It was a warning to the early church. The passage that “great fear came on all who heard it.” God was gracious. He forgives sins. But He was still just and holy. He didn’t lose those attributes from the Old to the New Testament. The church was to take holiness seriously. The Lord did want the church to adopt a casual or licentious attitude toward sin.
• It is a warning and reminder to all believers for all time. God is just. He is holy. It is well within His prerogative to execute any and all sinners immediately (Romans 6:23). The fact that He does not generally do this is not something we should take for granted. We should live in the ever-present reality that each breath is a gracious gift from God we don’t deserve.
• It is a reminder that God hates sin.
• It helped establish the apostles’ authority in the church. “The sinners had fallen dead at Peter’s feet. It was Peter who had known of the secret sin and had the authority to pronounce judgment in the church. If the hypocrisy of Ananias and Sapphira had succeeded in fooling Peter, it would have severely damaged the apostles’ authority.” Source – https://www.gotquestions.org/Ananias-and-Sapphira.html
• It was a warning against hypocrisy, pride, and living to please men. Believers should remember that God sees the heart and lives to please him, not people. This was very important as the early church was just being established.
Galatians 1:10 – For am I now seeking the approval of man, or of God? Or am I trying to please man? If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.
6. Peter gave Sapphira an opportunity to confess and avoid punishment –
Acts 5:8 – And Peter said to her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for so much.”
His question provided a way for her to distance herself from her husband’s decision. After all, each person should be punished for their own sin and not for others.
Sadly, Sapphira chose to perpetuate the lie and suffered the consequences.
7. Nothing can be hidden from God though people try –
The Holy Spirit was not deceived. He knew what was going on. Nothing can be hidden from God.
Hebrews 4:13 – And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
I was a teacher of young children for over ten years and have four children. Sometimes I am amazed at how children think they can pull a fast one on me.
One child disappeared into the bathroom for a long time. His mother’s phone was gone.
We asked through the door, “Are you playing with the phone?”
“No” was the answer.
So we told him to come out. He came out clearly hiding something under his shirt.
“What is under your shirt?”
“Nothing” as he tried to run away.
Lo and behold it was the missing phone. Who could have guessed?
Parents around the world often think, “Really? I wasn’t born yesterday” to their children’s shenanigans.
God must feel something like that when we try to hide our sin from Him.
8. Lessons we can learn from this sad event –
• God is holy and just.
• God is the judge and has the authority to judge the sinner.
• If we are not judged right away, that is evidence of God’s patience and longsuffering (2 Peter 3:9).
• Satan seeks to thwart God’s work and corrupt the church.
• Satan and his demons can and do tempt people, including believers.
• Living to please men is dangerous and leads to many other sins.
• A spouse should obey God rather than man and counsel their spouse to do what is right. A spouse is not obligated to follow their partner into sin.
• The church and believers should take sin seriously.
• God desires for His people to be pure inside and out.
• Every sin is ultimately against God.
• Nothing can be hidden from God.
Application – Based on the above principles, what is one application God is leading you to make?
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