God's Holy Fire: 'Lying to the Holy Spirit'

This verse comes from the story of Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5:1-11). They sold their land and gave some of the proceeds to the apostles to help their fellow disciples who had financial needs (Acts 4:32-37). Ananias and Sapphira conspired to make it seem that they gave the whole amount but kept back part for themselves — a premeditated lie to make themselves look good. The fact that they were deceptive and did not recognize the Holy Spirit's work in the apostles' ministry adds to the heinousness of their sin. They weren't lying to just human beings (the apostles and the church), but they were also lying to the Holy Spirit that gave authority to the apostles and empowered the church! Some of the devotionals this year focus on different kinds of sins against the Holy Spirit: blasphemy; resisting, testing, quenching, and grieving the Spirit; and lying to the Spirit. The situation with Ananias and Sapphira, however, is a powerful reminder of the authority of the apostles and should call us to a deep respect for God's leaders in general (see Hebrews 13:7, 17).