These versus have been curious to some people for how the words could be applied. This was at a time when the church was young. There were some believers in certain areas that suffered immensely for their faith in Christ. They lacked the basic necessities to sustain them in life. As a result, other churches received monies to support their brothers and sisters. In the case of our text, it may seem they followed the tenants of communism by local believers who surrendered their properties for sale so that the money could be deposited in a joint account. Then those in need could withdraw funds.
By surrendering ownership of property, by having a central deposit of money, and by having a fear of death to those who were not cooperating, it does seem to follow the demands of a central government that oversees property, money, and delegates punishment. A central figure in history was Karl Marx who taught against capitalism in favor of socialist communism. The ultimate aim was a society where wealth and resources are shared collectively, and social hierarchies based on economic power are abolished. Marx’s ideas, expressed in works like The Communist Manifesto and Das Kapital, laid the foundation for socialist and communist movements worldwide, influencing political thought, labor movements, and debates on economic justice.
The man who wanted to revolutionize society caused his family and himself to be victims of his own philosophy. He drank heavily. He moved from place to place with his family. Finally, he settled in London where the living conditions were so poor that most of his seven children died early. Whenever he rented a property, he used a false name to avoid those who opposed his ideas. In the late 1800s his efforts laid the groundwork in Germany for the eventual rise of Nazism while in Russia the state is cemented in communism. Even though his influence has been worldwide, his economic and philosophical ideas have proven throughout history to be failures.
We need to review the source of this despicable form of government and declare it has nothing to do with the practice in our Scripture text today. A brief review of our scriptures may cause us to think there are similarities. However, let us examine closer to what really happened in the church that definitely was not any form of communism and socialism.
The collection of money from private individuals was not universal to all the churches. There was no central demand by any form of government to surrender funds even voluntarily. The need addressed was for those greatly afflicted because of their own Christian faith not to equalize the social standing of everyone. The rebuttal against the couple that lied about how much they contributed was not punishment from some large overpowering governmental big brother. These people lied to the Holy Spirit directly.
Strict church discipline had to be observed in the early stages of church growth. Any effort to deceive and manipulate God had to be immediately addressed. The simplicity of this scripture is that all contributions was voluntary without any demand placed on anyone. This was a type of love offering for brothers and sisters in the Lord who were especially in dire straits because they were Christians. The concern for others is part of our service to God. In fact, people will be judged in eternity for how they treated people in need. We are not a believing community who would dip         so low to involuntarily put a large hand into someone else’s pocket against their will. We are a people whose heart is large for helping those in need.Â
Christian Writer 