Do not steal.

Exodus 20:15 (CSB)

As we continue our series looking at the 10 Commandments, we come to the eighth commandment: “Do not steal.” I believe that this commandment is easily understood by just about anyone who hears it. I do not know anyone who has a problem with standing against someone from taking what is theirs.  

The Associated Press ran a story of a very unfortunate young man back in 1991. A 14-year-old boy attempted to siphon gasoline from a motor home parked on a Seattle street. When the owner found the young man, he was on the ground extremely sick. Unfortunately, instead of siphoning out gasoline, the young man had put a tube into the motor home’s sewage tank. When the police arrived, the owner and the police let the young man go feeling that he had paid for his crime enough. ^[1]http://apnews.com/article/d0407fac588f7bd14ce44770deaf435f  

We are taught from a young age that stealing is wrong, and we should have no part in it. Still, some insist on taking things that do not belong to them. It does not take long for our depravity to arise in our lives. 

When we hear about stealing, it is easy to think about images of some burglar or professional thief. The truth is, stealing is taking place all around us each day.

• False reporting of taxes
• Keeping incorrect change
• Time at work

When God forbids stealing in the 10 Commandments, He is not just talking about thieves that break in during the night and rob our possessions. He is talking about an issue of the heart. God desires His people to be people of integrity and honesty.  

Methods of Stealing

1. From Man

We said before that the Ten Commandments can be divided into two basic categories: those that deal with our relationship with God and those that deal with our relationship with other people. This is why Jesus said that all the commandments of God can be summed up in “loving God” and “loving others” (Matthew 22:34-40).

God created us to have good relationships with the people we come in contact with during our lives. When stealing takes place, the trust in that relationship is fractured to the core.  

Each person has the right to own personal property, but they also have the right to keep that property. We receive everything that we have in one of three ways:

• Gift – this is an act of grace; the receiver does not deserve it, but it is given to them anyway.
  • Salvation, birthday presents
  • These things build within us a sense of self-worth; someone thought we were worth it.
• Work – receiving through earning
  • Paycheck, rewards
  • These things build within us a sense of self-respect and ownership
• Theft – taking something without permission
  • These things build within us a sense of entitlement, guilt, and suspicion.

God has called each of us to lift one another up and to help one another.

So then, let us pursue what promotes peace and what builds up one another.

Romans 14:19 (CSB)

When we steal from another person, we are not building them up, but rather we are tearing them down.

2) From God 

I don’t know who in their right mind would set out and say, “I’m going to try and rob God today.” We are talking about the all-powerful, all-knowing Creator of the universe. But sadly, people do rob God frequently.

“Will a man rob God? Yet you are robbing me!”
“How do we rob you?” you ask.
By not making the payments of the tenth and the contributions.

Malachi 3:8 (CSB)

In the Old Testament, the tithe was set up. It was set that a person would give the first 10% of their earnings to the Lord for the work of the ministry. The word ‘tithe‘ literally means ‘ten percent.’ Offerings were what a person would give over and above his or her tithe. 

There has been debate over whether or not we are still required to give the “tithe” now that we are living under the new covenant of the New Testament instead of the Old Testament law. That would be a topic that would call for a whole sermon in itself.

Each person should do as he has decided in his heart – not reluctantly or out of compulsion, since God loves a cheerful giver.

2 Corinthians 9:7 (CSB)

We should recognize that our giving is a method of worship. The work of the ministry does take money in this world in which we live. It is something that should be prayed over. As God directs us, we should be faithful in the giving to see that what the Lord wants to do through the local church is carried out.

Does God need our money? No. He owns everything. Tithes and offerings were set up as a way for us to demonstrate our faith in God’s economic plan. It may not add up on paper all the time, but when we trust the Lord and use our finances according to His plan, we can do so much more than we could ever do on our own. This is the one area that God told us to test Him in. 

“Bring the full tenth into the storehouse so that there may be food in my house. Test me in this way,” says the LORD of Armies. “See if I will not open the floodgates of heaven and pour out a blessing for you without measure.”

Malachi 3:10 (CSB)

3) From Ourselves

While any form of stealing just seems foolish, I believe that this method of stealing might be the most foolish of all. We steal from ourselves when we refuse to serve and obey what the Lord is calling us to do.  

for you were bought at a price. So glorify God with your body

1 Corinthians 6:20 (CSB)

When we refuse to do and speak the things which God tells us to do, we rob ourselves of a blessing that God has for us. It might be that God is calling us to serve in some capacity in the church, go on a mission trip, or share our faith in Jesus with someone. Great or small, if God is calling us to do or say something, you can be assured that He has a blessing tied to it for your obedience. When we disobey God’s leading, we rob ourselves of those blessings.

Conclusion

Are you a thief? Most of us would take offense to that comment. The truth is that we might not be as innocent as we think.  

The Bible is clear on stealing in saying that it is wrong. The Bible also tells us “let the thief no longer steal. Instead, he is to do honest work with his own hands, so that he has something to share with anyone in need” (Ephesians 4:28).

As followers of Jesus, the church should be people of honesty and respect. When people steal from others, they are not representing Christ. May we be people who are true, honest, and respectful… by doing this, we can show the world Christ.