Question 1

Stealing is obviously wrong—why do people do it anyway?

Accepted Answer

Genesis 27:1-40“Take the food to your father so he can eat it and bless you before he dies.” “But look,” Jacob replied to Rebekah, “my brother, Esau, is a hairy man, and my skin is smooth. What if my father touches me? He’ll see that I’m trying to trick him, and then he’ll curse me instead of blessing me.” But his mother replied, “Then let the curse fall on me, my son! Just do what I tell you.” . . . Esau prepared a delicious meal and brought it to his father. . . . But Isaac said, “Your brother was here, and he tricked me. He has taken away your blessing.” Esau exclaimed, “No wonder his name is Jacob, for now he has cheated me twice. First he took my rights as the firstborn, and now he has stolen my blessing. Oh, haven’t you saved even one blessing for me?”Jacob stole his father’s blessing from Esau out of a combination of envy and ambition.Joshua 7:21“Among the plunder I saw a beautiful robe from Babylon, 200 silver coins, and a bar of gold weighing more than a pound. I wanted them so much that I took them. They are hidden in the ground beneath my tent, with the silver buried deeper than the rest.”In spite of being clearly warned, greed led Achan to steal valuables that had been set aside for God. He and his family suffered the severest of consequences.Matthew 15:19“For from the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, all sexual immorality, theft, lying, and slander.”Stealing is a symptom of the sinful condition of our hearts.Deuteronomy 25:13-15“You must use accurate scales when you weigh out merchandise, and you must use full and honest measures. Yes, always use honest weights and measures, so that you may enjoy a long life in the land the Lord your God is giving you.”In God’s eyes, a lack of integrity and honesty in business practices is stealing. This is a guiding principle for all people for all time.Leviticus 6:1-7Then the Lord said to Moses, “Suppose one of you sins against your associate and is unfaithful to the Lord. Suppose you cheat in a deal involving a security deposit, or you steal or commit fraud, or you find lost property and lie about it, or you lie while swearing to tell the truth, or you commit any other such sin. If you have sinned in any of these ways, you are guilty. You must give back whatever you stole, or the money you took by extortion, or the security deposit, or the lost property you found, or anything obtained by swearing falsely. You must make restitution by paying the full price plus an additional 20 percent to the person you have harmed. On the same day you must present a guilt offering. As a guilt offering to the Lord, you must bring to the priest your own ram with no defects, or you may buy one of equal value. Through this process, the priest will purify you before the Lord, making you right with him, and you will be forgiven for any of these sins you have committed.”We forget that theft of any kind is not only an offense to other people; it is also an offense to God and harms our relationship with him. If we think we can get away with it, we display a low and disrespectful view of God.

Question 2

In what ways do I steal from others?

Accepted Answer

Leviticus 25:14, 17“When you make an agreement with your neighbor to buy or sell property, you must not take advantage of each other. . . . Show your fear of God by not taking advantage of each other. I am the Lord your God.”Deuteronomy 25:13-15“You must use accurate scales when you weigh out merchandise, and you must use full and honest measures. Yes, always use honest weights and measures, so that you may enjoy a long life in the land the Lord your God is giving you.”Joshua 7:21“Among the plunder I [Achan] saw a beautiful robe from Babylon, 200 silver coins, and a bar of gold weighing more than a pound. I wanted them so much that I took them.”Romans 13:9-10The commandments say, “You must not commit adultery. You must not murder. You must not steal. You must not covet.” These—and other such commandments—are summed up in this one commandment: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the requirements of God’s law.The cartoon version of a thief is usually a sinister figure in a black mask that robs banks, snatches purses, and breaks into homes after dark. Although theft and violent crime are a real part of our world, most of us will be tempted by more subtle and “civilized” forms of stealing, such as padding an expense account, adding false deductions to an income-tax statement, or taking advantage of someone’s gullibility or goodness. Whether we rob a widow at knifepoint or skim so smoothly that our victims never know it, stealing is detestable in the eyes of a holy God. As God’s people, we are required to be completely honest in all we do and say.Leviticus 19:16“Do not spread slanderous gossip among your people.”When we gossip about others, we are stealing something from them—their honorable reputation. We are also using information that belongs to them in a destructive way.Romans 12:11Never be lazy, but work hard and serve the Lord enthusiastically.When we waste time on the job, we are stealing from our employers.Hebrews 13:4Give honor to marriage, and remain faithful to one another in marriage. God will surely judge people who are immoral and those who commit adultery.Having sex before or outside of marriage is stealing the purity of another. It may also involve taking something we have promised to our spouse and giving it away to someone it doesn’t belong to.Exodus 20:1-17Then God gave the people all these instructions: “I am the Lord your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. You must not have any other god but me. You must not make for yourself an idol of any kind or an image of anything in the heavens or on the earth or in the sea. You must not bow down to them or worship them, for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God who will not tolerate your affection for any other gods. I lay the sins of the parents upon their children; the entire family is affected—even children in the third and fourth generations of those who reject me. But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands. You must not misuse the name of the Lord your God. The Lord will not let you go unpunished if you misuse his name. Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. You have six days each week for your ordinary work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath day of rest dedicated to the Lord your God. On that day no one in your household may do any work. This includes you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, your livestock, and any foreigners living among you. For in six days the Lord made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything in them; but on the seventh day he rested. That is why the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and set it apart as holy. Honor your father and mother. Then you will live a long, full life in the land the Lord your God is giving you. You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely against your neighbor. You must not covet your neighbor’s house. You must not covet your neighbor’s wife, male or female servant, ox or donkey, or anything else that belongs to your neighbor.”Whether it’s stealing honor from God, stealing from ourselves in the manner of rest, stealing respect from parents, or robbing our neighbor in some way, every one of the Ten Commandments in some way confronts the insidious ways we can steal from others.

Question 3

What if I have been guilty of stealing in some way?

Accepted Answer

Leviticus 6:1-7Then the Lord said to Moses, “Suppose one of you sins against your associate and is unfaithful to the Lord. Suppose you cheat in a deal involving a security deposit, or you steal or commit fraud, or you find lost property and lie about it, or you lie while swearing to tell the truth, or you commit any other such sin. If you have sinned in any of these ways, you are guilty. You must give back whatever you stole, or the money you took by extortion, or the security deposit, or the lost property you found, or anything obtained by swearing falsely. You must make restitution by paying the full price plus an additional 20 percent to the person you have harmed. On the same day you must present a guilt offering. As a guilt offering to the Lord, you must bring to the priest your own ram with no defects, or you may buy one of equal value. Through this process, the priest will purify you before the Lord, making you right with him, and you will be forgiven for any of these sins you have committed.”Luke 19:1-10Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the town. There was a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich. He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way. When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.” Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled. Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!” Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. For the Son of Man came to seek and save those who are lost.”Stealing is remedied by restoration, restitution, and forgiveness.Romans 13:9-10The commandments say, “You must not commit adultery. You must not murder. You must not steal. You must not covet.” These—and other such commandments—are summed up in this one commandment: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to others, so love fulfills the requirements of God’s law.We must avoid stealing and dishonesty by learning to love others as God loves us. This builds trust and respect. It’s harder to steal from people we already trust and respect.