"[...]humble, he sought the Lord and walked in His way, he obtained promises and was prospered; but in his age he went astray, his consecration failed, the vision was dimmed, the glory departed, and great and sad was his fall.
It was at this point that Ananias and Sapphira failed. They had given themselves to the Lord, but later they conspired to hold back 'part of the price,' and perished in their hypocritical falsehood. It was a withdrawal of this kind on the part of Demas that so hurt the heart of Paul when he wrote: 'Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world.'
It is only a consecration like Paul's -- Unconditional, complete, and sustained to the end -- that will satisfy a man's own soul, meet the infinite claims of Jesus, and answer the awful needs of a world weltering in pride and lust and covetousness and sin.
1. Men sink to what is low, mean, and devilish, but they can never themselves be satisfied with such things. A man may be gratified with that which is base, but he [...]".