"You Shall Not Steal."
Wednesday Bible Study

Exodus 20:15

Jim Davis

Bill Versteeg in his sermon: The Heart that Takes The Heart that Gives, gives one statistic about stealing. It is the only important statistic.

"The statistic is this. Everyone here is a thief. You have all stolen. I include myself. Everyone of us, at one time or another, has taken what was not given, lifted something that was not purchased, owned something we did not earn, kept something we did not inherit, destroyed something that was not ours to demolish.

"Whether its a candy in a grocery store, a friends toy, an unreported income on a tax return, a scammed slice of software, a copyrighted piece of music, taped or written, that small office supply from the office, that idea someone else worked hard to put together, getting that extra special deal at a garage sale for a person who didn't know the value of what they were selling, time from our employer, even a person's innocence, or their good reputation - taken away, destroyed by gossip, the myriad of ways to steal is endless.

And our excuses - we've heard them all

  • Finders, keepers
  • They made the error
  • I deserve this,
  • I've worked here for 20 years,
  • The price they were charging was highway robbery anyways.
  • They won't notice it's missing.
  • The profound - 'I won't get caught'
  • He deserves this treatment - look what he did.
  • Everyone is doing it.
  • This is the easy way out of a difficult situation - Bankruptcy.
  • Its nothing,
  • I couldn't help myself.
  • No one will notice.
  • If he doesn't find out, it won't hurt him." (The Heart that Takes, The Heart that Gives: http://www.pbv.thunder-bay.on.ca/NetSermons/Ex2015ser.html)
    • The Different Aspects of Stealing

    The eighth commandment dealt with differing aspects of stealing. The Old Testament had extensive laws to regulate the buying and selling of property. These laws reveal the nature of the commandment, "You shall not steal." These laws taught the Hebrews how to deal honestly with their brothers.

    You cannot forcefully take someone's freedom for kidnapping was a form of theft. In the ancient world those kidnapped were usually kept for slaves rather than ransom.

    Exodus 21:16
    "Anyone who kidnaps another and either sells him or still has him when he is caught must be put to death. (NIV)

    Neither could you swindle others out of their freedom. Under the ancient law, in dire times, a man could sell himself and his family to another, however the person buying their servitude was not allowed to take advantage of the situation. The seventh year of jubilee prevented abuse because it was a year when those who sold themselves into slavery were freed. It was also a year that debts were erased.

    Leviticus 25:23-43
    "'The land must not be sold permanently, because the land is mine and you are but aliens and my tenants. Throughout the country that you hold as a possession, you must provide for the redemption of the land. "'If one of your countrymen becomes poor and sells some of his property, his nearest relative is to come and redeem what his countryman has sold. If, however, a man has no one to redeem it for him but he himself prospers and acquires sufficient means to redeem it, he is to determine the value for the years since he sold it and refund the balance to the man to whom he sold it; he can then go back to his own property. But if he does not acquire the means to repay him, what he sold will remain in the possession of the buyer until the Year of Jubilee. It will be returned in the Jubilee, and he can then go back to his property. "'If a man sells a house in a walled city, he retains the right of redemption a full year after its sale. During that time he may redeem it. If it is not redeemed before a full year has passed, the house in the walled city shall belong permanently to the buyer and his descendants. It is not to be returned in the Jubilee. But houses in villages without walls around them are to be considered as open country. They can be redeemed, and they are to be returned in the Jubilee. "'The Levites always have the right to redeem their houses in the Levitical towns, which they possess. So the property of the Levites is redeemable-- that is, a house sold in any town they hold-- and is to be returned in the Jubilee, because the houses in the towns of the Levites are their property among the Israelites. But the pastureland belonging to their towns must not be sold; it is their permanent possession. "'If one of your countrymen becomes poor and is unable to support himself among you, help him as you would an alien or a temporary resident, so he can continue to live among you. Do not take interest of any kind from him, but fear your God, so that your countryman may continue to live among you. You must not lend him money at interest or sell him food at a profit. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt to give you the land of Canaan and to be your God. "'If one of your countrymen becomes poor among you and sells himself to you, do not make him work as a slave. He is to be treated as a hired worker or a temporary resident among you; he is to work for you until the Year of Jubilee. Then he and his children are to be released, and he will go back to his own clan and to the property of his forefathers. Because the Israelites are my servants, whom I brought out of Egypt, they must not be sold as slaves. Do not rule over them ruthlessly, but fear your God. (NIV)

    The fiftieth year was also a year of Jubilee. This year made provisions for property that had been bought or sold to revert to the original owners. There was to be no hoarding of land for the rich to get rich and poor to get poorer.

    Leviticus 25:8-17
    "'Count off seven sabbaths of years-- seven times seven years-- so that the seven sabbaths of years amount to a period of forty-nine years. Then have the trumpet sounded everywhere on the tenth day of the seventh month; on the Day of Atonement sound the trumpet throughout your land. Consecrate the fiftieth year and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all its inhabitants. It shall be a jubilee for you; each one of you is to return to his family property and each to his own clan. The fiftieth year shall be a jubilee for you; do not sow and do not reap what grows of itself or harvest the untended vines. For it is a jubilee and is to be holy for you; eat only what is taken directly from the fields. "'In this Year of Jubilee everyone is to return to his own property. "'If you sell land to one of your countrymen or buy any from him, do not take advantage of each other. You are to buy from your countryman on the basis of the number of years since the Jubilee. And he is to sell to you on the basis of the number of years left for harvesting crops. When the years are many, you are to increase the price, and when the years are few, you are to decrease the price, because what he is really selling you is the number of crops. Do not take advantage of each other, but fear your God. I am the LORD your God. (NIV)

    Israel was guilty of taking advantage of the poor and needy.

    Amos 8:4-6
    Hear this, you who trample the needy and do away with the poor of the land, saying, "When will the New Moon be over that we may sell grain, and the Sabbath be ended that we may market wheat?"-- skimping the measure, boosting the price and cheating with dishonest scales, buying the poor with silver and the needy for a pair of sandals, selling even the sweepings with the wheat. (NIV)

    Church is warned about taking advantage of others.

    1 Thessalonians 4:1-6
    Finally, brothers, we instructed you how to live in order to please God, as in fact you are living. Now we ask you and urge you in the Lord Jesus to do this more and more. For you know what instructions we gave you by the authority of the Lord Jesus. It is God's will that you should be sanctified: that you should avoid sexual immorality; that each of you should learn to control his own body in a way that is holy and honorable, not in passionate lust like the heathen, who do not know God; and that in this matter no one should wrong his brother or take advantage of him. The Lord will punish men for all such sins, as we have already told you and warned you. (NIV)

    Laws governing embezzlement and negligence.

    Leviticus 6:2-7
    "If anyone sins and is unfaithful to the LORD by deceiving his neighbor about something entrusted to him or left in his care or stolen, or if he cheats him, or if he finds lost property and lies about it, or if he swears falsely, or if he commits any such sin that people may do--when he thus sins and becomes guilty, he must return what he has stolen or taken by extortion, or what was entrusted to him, or the lost property he found, or whatever it was he swore falsely about. He must make restitution in full, add a fifth of the value to it and give it all to the owner on the day he presents his guilt offering. And as a penalty he must bring to the priest, that is, to the LORD, his guilt offering, a ram from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value. In this way the priest will make atonement for him before the LORD, and he will be forgiven for any of these things he did that made him guilty." (NIV)

    Failing to return something to its owner is stealing.

    Deuteronomy 22:1-4
    If you see your brother's ox or sheep straying, do not ignore it but be sure to take it back to him.

    If the brother does not live near you or if you do not know who he is, take it home with you and keep it until he comes looking for it. Then give it back to him. Do the same if you find your brother's donkey or his cloak or anything he loses. Do not ignore it. If you see your brother's donkey or his ox fallen on the road, do not ignore it. Help him get it to its feet. (NIV)

    Laws governing fraud and extortion.

    Leviticus 19:13
    "'Do not defraud your neighbor or rob him. "'Do not hold back the wages of a hired man overnight. (NIV)

    Leviticus 19:35-37
    "'Do not use dishonest standards when measuring length, weight or quantity. Use honest scales and honest weights, an honest ephah and an honest hin. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of Egypt. "'Keep all my decrees and all my laws and follow them. I am the LORD.'" (NIV)

    Deuteronomy 25:13
    Do not have two differing weights in your bag-- one heavy, one light. (NIV)

    Proverbs 11:1
    The LORD abhors dishonest scales, but accurate weights are his delight. (NIV)

    Micah 6:10-11
    Am I still to forget, O wicked house, your ill-gotten treasures and the short ephah, which is accursed? Shall I acquit a man with dishonest scales, with a bag of false weights? (NIV)

    Luke 3:12-14
    Tax collectors also came to be baptized. "Teacher," they asked, "what should we do?" "Don't collect any more than you are required to," he told them. Then some soldiers asked him, "And what should we do?" He replied, "Don't extort money and don't accuse people falsely-- be content with your pay." (NIV)

    Worship must not become a means of stealing from God.

    Malachi 3:8-14
    "Will a man rob God? Yet you rob me. "But you ask, 'How do we rob you?' "In tithes and offerings. You are under a curse-- the whole nation of you-- because you are robbing me. Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this," says the LORD Almighty, "and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it. I will prevent pests from devouring your crops, and the vines in your fields will not cast their fruit," says the LORD Almighty. "Then all the nations will call you blessed, for yours will be a delightful land," says the LORD Almighty. "You have said harsh things against me," says the LORD. "Yet you ask, 'What have we said against you?' "You have said, 'It is futile to serve God. What did we gain by carrying out his requirements and going about like mourners before the LORD Almighty? (NIV)

    1 Corinthians 16:1-2
    Now about the collection for God's people: Do what I told the Galatian churches to do. On the first day of every week, each one of you should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up, so that when I come no collections will have to be made. (NIV)

    2 Corinthians 9:6-8
    Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. (NIV)

    God's house must not become a den for thieves.

    Matthew 21:13
    And said unto them, It is written, My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves.

    John 12:4-6
    But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, "Why wasn't this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year's wages." He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it. (NIV)

    The needs of the poor must not be overlooked.

    Acts 6:1-7
    In those days when the number of disciples was increasing, the Grecian Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. So the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, "It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. Brothers, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word." This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit; also Philip, Procorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism. They presented these men to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them. So the word of God spread. The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith. (NIV)

    Job 31:16-22
    "If I have denied the desires of the poor or let the eyes of the widow grow weary, if I have kept my bread to myself, not sharing it with the fatherless--but from my youth I reared him as would a father, and from my birth I guided the widow--if I have seen anyone perishing for lack of clothing, or a needy man without a garment, and his heart did not bless me for warming him with the fleece from my sheep, if I have raised my hand against the fatherless, knowing that I had influence in court, then let my arm fall from the shoulder, let it be broken off at the joint. ( NIV)

    We must Trust God

    Many steal for self-preservation. However, God promises to take care of those who trust him.

    Leviticus25:18-22
    "'Follow my decrees and be careful to obey my laws, and you will live safely in the land.

    Then the land will yield its fruit, and you will eat your fill and live there in safety. You may ask, "What will we eat in the seventh year if we do not plant or harvest our crops?" I will send you such a blessing in the sixth year that the land will yield enough for three years. While you plant during the eighth year, you will eat from the old crop and will continue to eat from it until the harvest of the ninth year comes in. (NIV)

    Proverbs 3:9-10
    Honor the LORD with your wealth, with the firstfruits of all your crops; then your barns will be filled to overflowing, and your vats will brim over with new wine. (NIV)

    Matthew 22:21
    "Caesar's," they replied. Then he said to them, "Give to Caesar what is Caesar's, and to God what is God's." (NIV)

    Romans 13:7
    Give everyone what you owe him: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor. (NIV)

    2 Corinthians 9:6-10
    Remember this: Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each man should give what he has decided in his heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver. And God is able to make all grace abound to you, so that in all things at all times, having all that you need, you will abound in every good work. As it is written: "He has scattered abroad his gifts to the poor; his righteousness endures forever." Now he who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will also supply and increase your store of seed and will enlarge the harvest of your righteousness. (NIV)

    Conclusion:

    God's provision for us is sufficient. We must give ourselves to overcoming the evil each day presents to us.

    Matthew 6: 19-34
    "Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. "The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light. But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness! "No one can serve two masters. Either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and Money. "Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more important than food, and the body more important than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Who of you by worrying can add a single hour to his life? "And why do you worry about clothes? See how the lilies of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. (NIV)