FOLLOW HIM  ·  Week 1

The Gap in Your Faith You Can’t Ignore

Acts 5:1–11  ·  April 19, 2026

BIG IDEA

Following Jesus requires honesty before God, not performance before people.

Key Passage

Acts 5:1–11 (NLT)

Ananias and his wife Sapphira sold property, kept part of the proceeds, but told the apostles they had given the full amount. Peter said: “You weren’t lying to us but to God!” Both died. Great fear gripped the entire church.

Supporting Verses:

Acts 5:4  —  “The property was yours to sell or not sell, as you wished… You weren’t lying to us but to God!”

Matthew 6:1  —  “Don’t do your good deeds publicly, to be admired by others, for you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven.”

Hebrews 4:13  —  “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God. Everything is naked and exposed before his eyes, and he is the one to whom we are accountable.”

Psalm 111:10  —  “Fear of the Lord is the foundation of true wisdom. All who follow his commandments have good understanding.”

Isaiah 6:5  —  “It’s all over for me! For I am a man of unclean lips… Yet I’ve seen the King, the Lord of Heaven’s Armies.”

Main Points

1.  God Is Not Impressed by the Show

God is not interested in behavior modification — He has always been interested in your heart. Performance for people misses the only audience that matters.

Ananias and Sapphira wanted the reputation of radical generosity without the cost. The sin wasn’t keeping the money — it was the lie. They were performing for the wrong audience.

Like King Saul (1 Samuel 15), who used religious language to cover self-serving behavior — obedience matters more to God than sacrifice.

Reflect:  Identify one place where you’ve been performing for people rather than living honestly before God. Name it. Confess it. Stop managing it.

2.  God Cannot Be Manipulated

Peter’s charge is striking: “You lied to the Holy Spirit” (Acts 5:3). They weren’t just deceiving the church — they were acting as if God could be tricked.

Private sin is still sin. God doesn’t respond to how things look — He sees what is.

Like Achan (Joshua 7), who hid forbidden plunder under his tent thinking no one knew — God saw through the tent. The whole nation suffered as a result.

Reflect:  Is there an area of your private life you’ve kept from full surrender? Name it before God — not publicly, just between you and Him first.

3.  God’s Holiness Is a Gift, Not a Threat

The fear that gripped the church (Acts 5:11) was not a bad outcome. It was the natural, appropriate response to encountering the holiness of God.

The fear of the Lord is not cowering before a tyrant. It is reverence — coming close enough to real holiness to feel its weight, and letting it change how you live.

Like Isaiah (Isaiah 6:5), encountering holiness first brings undoing — then grace. The seraph touched his lips. His guilt was removed. His sin was atoned for.

Fear of God → Honesty → Confession → Grace

Ananias and Sapphira bypassed this process entirely. They short-circuited the fear of God by manufacturing the approval of people. The grace that could have met them in confession never got the chance.

Application

Most of us aren’t living double lives — but we all have gaps. Small ones:

•  The version of your marriage you present at church vs. the reality on a Tuesday night.

•  The financial integrity you project vs. a decision you haven’t told anyone about.

•  The spiritual engagement you perform on Sunday vs. your private life.

Following Jesus is not about reforming your image. It is about changing your allegiance.

You can be in the room and still be lying to the Holy Spirit.

Today, Jesus is asking you to close the gap.

Live honestly before the One who already knows.

Confess and ask for the grace He bought at an enormous price.

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