“Immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last.” (Acts 5:10)
The passage above paints a dreadful picture. After Ananias first fell dead and was immediately buried, his wife Sapphira now also died at Peter’s feet. This was a very dark day in the history of the church. And yet… this story is also a sign of God’s faithfulness.
Just imagine if God had not intervened. Then Satan would have achieved his goal, and the church would have been hollowed out from within by hypocrisy. The mutual love and heartfelt unity of the believers would have been destroyed. The hypocrisy that people outside the church (rightly!) find so objectionable today would have taken deep root and completely ruined the good reputation of the first Christians, and thus of their God. In this way, Satan would have destroyed the congregation and severely hindered the spread of the Gospel.
But God knew the danger and protected His church. It was not Peter, but the Lord God Himself who struck Ananias and Sapphira dead. He had this account written down in the Bible both as a warning example and as proof of His faithfulness. He gives no room to the evil one and does not allow His church to be destroyed.
How about today? In what ways do you think God protects the church now?