No Stealing

Deuteronomy 5:19

When I lived in Florida, I left my truck at work one night. It was in a well-lit area, but that did not matter. When I came back to work the next day, my toolbox had been broken into. I did not lose a lot, but I did lose a battery drill. This really wasn't a big deal, except it was the first power tool I had purchased. I was proud of that drill because I had worked for it. I never got it back, but I learned what it was to have something stolen from me. I cannot stand a thief to this day.

---

You shall not steal

Deuteronomy 5:19

---

If there can be theft, then there must also be personal property. There have been those through the years that have taught that we should not own personal property. All property should belong to the community and should be available for the use of the community. They tried to blame this on Acts 4:32-37. The idea of this passage was not that a person was required to give all they had for the welfare of their brothers and sisters, but rather that they willingly did so. A person cannot give a tithe, offering, or charity if they do not own something to give.

The problem with owning things is that there is always someone who wants what you have. It used to be that a person stole to have what they themselves did not possess. Now, people steal from others so that they can sell those items and then sell them for drugs or alcohol. It has become about supporting a habit. I know of a man who used to be very faithful in church, but he stopped attending when he was coming home from church one afternoon and saw his living room furniture going down the road in someone else's vehicle. It had been sold illegally for drug money.

Drugs are not the only reason people steal. Sometimes it is to have what another person has. Sometimes it is for survival. Sometimes it is for sport or compulsion. Regardless of the reason, stealing is a sin.

Property is also not the only thing that is stolen. A major object of theft today is not tangible. Employees all over the world are stealing time from their bosses. They use company time to take care of personal business or waste time when they should be working. This is not harmless. We all get paid to do a job for a certain period of time. When we are not working, but we accept the pay, we are stealing that money. I have worked with people in the past who made it their personal mission to do just as little work possible while not losing pay. This was theft.

Why is stealing so bad? The number one reason is because it is a characteristic of Satan. A child of God should not look like Satan. In I Peter 5:8, Satan is referred to as a lion seeking whom he may devour. No one would care if a lion raised and killed his own sheep. The problem with lions is that they kill and devour that which is not theirs. They steal the sheep that belong to farmers, or in the case of Satan, he seeks to devour the child of God by destroying their testimony and reputation. We see this with pastors all too often. We should also note that by contrast to Satan stealing, God did not steal us from the judgment for our sins, but rather He redeemed (or purchased) us with the blood of His Son.

Father, we all hate being stolen from. Yet, we are all tempted to steal from time to time in some way. It may be by taking the occasional office supplies, or keeping money that we saw someone drop. Perhaps we are taking time from our employers. Help us to have Your heart. Burden our hearts when we are wrong and correct our behavior.