The account of Ananias and Sapphira at Acts 5 categorically proves the Bible is not inerrant

by yadda yadda 2 58 Replies latest watchtower beliefs

  • yadda yadda 2
    yadda yadda 2

    Go and read it again at Acts 5: 11. Ananias and Sapphira drop dead at Peter's feet for "playing false to God/holy spirit" by not giving all of the money to Peter that they got from a field they sold.

    Ananias and Sapphira were Christians. They wanted to help the poor and so sold one of their possessions, a field, and gave most of the money to Peter. Perhaps they told a wee fib by pretending that the money they gave was the whole sale price, while secretly holding some of it back.

    Is that a sin worthy of instant death? Good grief. For this they were killed by God (Jesus or an angel, doesn't matter).

    Can you imagine Jesus Christ doing this if he was the one that Ananias and Sapphira gave the money to? Remember, the apostle Peter was a very sinful man, so sinful that he even bold-face lied about knowing Jesus before the cock crowed thrice. Was Peter in any position to judge and condemn Ananias and Saphira, and to such an extent that they were instantly killed??

    Even worse, Jehovah's Witnesses and Christians in general believe that up until Christ's death, God apparently did all sorts of amazing miracles, such as turning the nile into blood, causing manna to fall from heaven, and parting the red sea, etc, etc. Then Christ came along and did all sorts of amazing, positive miracles that helped people. He never used his miraculous powers to kill or harm anyone. Then Jesus died and was resurrected, and things radically changed so that for the next 2,000 years there have been no miracles, but until the death of the last apostle some positive miracles kept occuring, such as healing and speaking in tongues. These positive miracles happened basically to prove the credentials of Christianity and to show that God had transferred his favour from his former chosen people the Jews to the Christian congregation. Right?

    Then from the death of the last apostle, Jehovah disappeared. Poof, no more interventions in human affairs. No more miracles, PERIOD! Not a trace. Not even the slightest evidence he hears prayers. Apparently this is because Jesus death and resurrection was the ultimate miracle, and since God couldn't top that why keep performing miracles?

    Or if God does hear prayers and intervenes in Christians lives and minds by giving them holy spirit in answer to their prayers, He at the same time ignores the prayers of the suffering and dying. He intervenes in human affairs to give the holy spirit to some Christians on one hand but ignores the prayers of millions of suffering and dying persons on the other hand. Go figure.

    As the Dalai Lama said, if there is a God it appears he has gone to the other end of the universe. He seems to have checked out, left the building.

    But the killing of Ananias and Saphira by God is a different kind of miracle following Jesus death. It is the ONLY miracle and intervention in human affairs post-resurrection in scripture that is grossly negative, where God exercises divine judgement and punishes someone to the point of death.

    This is completely at odds with the Issue of Universal Sovereignty as taught by Jehovah's Witnesses.

    Post-resurrection of Jesus, why would God murder Ananias and Saphira, two otherwise faithful Christians, but never lift a finger to kill any other person on the planet for much worse sins?

    Now ask yoursef what seems more reasonable to believe? That the account of Ananias and Sapphira as recorded in Acts 5 is the absolutely truth and is historically what actually happened; or that it is an embellishment, a story that was created and circulated verbally that eventually got recorded by Luke to scare Christians back then into making sure they obeyed the apostles directions to give up all their money, or suffer the terrible wrath of God?

    What is the more likely scenario to you?

    We know from the gospel accounts that there is no way that Jesus would have killed Ananias and Saphira for such a relatively minor sin, while at the same time standing by and doing absolutely nothing to prevent all manner of horror and violence committed by and against Christians. Such a thing would be grossly immoral. It would make the concept of morals meaningless, as if they are not objectively and independently real, since they can be flouted and abused willy nilly by God just because he is God. We cannot accept such a thing.

    Therefore, we must conclude that the account of Ananias and Sapphira must be fictitious (as are numerous other fictitious accounts of grossly immoral actions by God in the Bible). It is clearly a story that was made up to put the fear of God in Christians who might tell lies about their donations, that made its way into the Bible. It categorically proves that the Bible is not inerrant.

    There is an excellent Youtube clip that goes into this by the way, if someone can be so good as to post it on this thread as I don't know how.

  • on the rocks
    on the rocks

    Compare this with what David did....he got away with murder...and these folks got killed cos they told a lie!!!!

  • EdenOne
    EdenOne

    Compare Ananias and Sapphira with the Israelite that was stoned to death for picking sticks on a sabbath.

    Both happened at the infancy of the congregation. Both were executed for apparently minor transgressions.

    Clearly, both were used to set as an example for the rest.

    Eden

  • smiddy
    smiddy

    And what about the children who were torn to peices by she bears because they called a man a baldhead ?

    smiddy

  • insearchoftruth4
    insearchoftruth4

    I agree with OP. Money! Like Matt 18:18 where men can retain sins. Jesus diciples had some major problems with pride!! Whoever stuck those words in there and a lot more for there own authority, control much like the WTS, ect. Who knows how much of it is the words of men?

  • Phizzy
    Phizzy

    I believe a story like this was more than likely motivated by a desire to establish the authority of the Church Leaders,

    " don't lie to the Elders/GB or you will die !"

    I know that when Luke wrote his Gospel and Acts the Christian church was not organised in any real sense, and of course there was not a GB like JW's have today, but the authority of those like the Apostles and older men who had been close to Jesus was recognised.

    As Luke wrote Acts more than likely as late as say 95-100 C.E we are looking at a third generation situation, though possibly one Apostle may have still been alive, but the majority of Christians were third generation, authority over them could be claimed by those the mantle of the Apostles had fallen on, (Bishops) and stories like this would keep them in line.

  • bats in the belfry
    bats in the belfry

    Weighing Weakness, Wickedness, and Repentance

    How can elders know when someone is repentant? This is not a simple question. Think, for example, of King David. He committed adultery and then, in effect, murder. Yet, Jehovah allowed him to keep living. (2 Samuel 11:2-24; 12:1-14) Then think of Ananias and Sapphira. They lyingly tried to deceive the apostles, hypocritically pretending to be more generous than they really were. Serious? Yes. As bad as murder and adultery? Hardly! Yet, Ananias and Sapphira paid with their lives. – Acts 5:1-11.

    Why the different judgments? David fell into serious sin because of fleshly weakness. When confronted with what he had done, he repented, and Jehovah forgave him – although he was severely disciplined with regard to problems in his household. Ananias and Sapphira sinned in that they hypocritically lied, trying to deceive the Christian congregation and thus ‘play false to the holy spirit and to God.’ That turned out to be evidence of a wicked heart. Hence, they were judged more severely.

    In both cases Jehovah made the judgment, and his judgment was correct because he can examine hearts. (Proverbs 17:3) Human elders cannot do that. So how can elders discern whether a serious sin is evidence of weakness more than of wickedness?

    The Watchtower, January 1, 1995, pages 27-28

    Q.: Did David not also 'play false' by not confessing? He hid his deed until the prophet showed up in his house. Meanwhile he had Uriah drugged up and later murdered. But NO, he did not deceive the congregation of God (the house of Israel). - Woah!

    That's why those of you reporting more field service hours than you actually do will be toast come the big A. — Those of you with an inherent fleshly weakness of screwing other people's mate(s) with intent will live to see the other side.

  • ProdigalSon
    ProdigalSon

    What else would anyone expect from a book compiled at the Nicean Councils to instill fear in the masses? All three Abrahamic religions are based on fear. They worship a "God" who commanded their grand patriarch to lure his own son to his death by burning him alive on an altar followed by a dagger to the heart.. a clearly Satanic ritual. In the Koran version it's "Shaytan" who repeatedly pleads with Abraham to spare the boy's life and the old nut job chases him away three times with stones. Jehovah = Satan, Lucifer is the good guy and the Bible in no way tries to hide this. Jews, Christians and Muslims are all Devil worshipers and that's why this world is fucked. Since the Watchtower has resurrected the old desert Warmonger and his "holy name" that would make the JW's Devil Worshipers on steroids.

  • designs
    designs

    There are a lot of people afraid of a lot of Bishops, Peter started a tradition.

  • ProdigalSon
    ProdigalSon

    And for those of you who think that "Jehovah" stopped this fanatical maniac from killing Isaac, in the original version it was the angel Metatron....

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