10 ways to love God (part 4)

Exodus 20:15
15 "You shall not steal."

Seems easy doesn't it? Just keep your hands and arms inside the vehicle at all times and you should be okay, right? Well, sort of. We seem to have developed a strange sense of entitlement in our country where we can justify thievery. And you can steal just about anything now too, so much more than when this verse was written. You can steal cars, bikes, satellite signals, movies, internet, video games, music, the list goes on! It seems the more tech savvy we get as a species the more inclined we become to steal things. And we have a strange justification process that we go through, "I deserve to take this because..." (insert pretty much whatever reason you want.) I am not innocent of this either, I used to work for a movie store and I would get hungry or thirsty in the middle of my shift and feel entitled to have some pop or candy. I of course wasn't the only one on staff doing this. One other employee had an affinity for Dr. Pepper, one night during inventory the store manager looks at the inventory results and asked (in a very stressed out voice) "How are we missing 46 Dr. Peppers!?"

I try my best not to steal anymore, but I find I'm still tempted some times. It's the thrill of thinking you can get away with it. Luckily, I've never been caught.

I'm noticing a recurring theme withing the commandments. Stealing, like coveting, comes down to a trust issue. To steal isn't only wrong because you are taking something that doesn't belong to you, it's also wrong because you are telling God "I don't trust you to provide for me, so I'll take it myself."

Jeremiah 17:11
11 Like a partridge that hatches eggs it did not lay
is the man who gains riches by unjust means.
When his life is half gone, they will desert him,
and in the end he will prove to be a fool.

God calls us to a life of faithfulness and integrity. We are to be Christs ambassadors on earth.
In Matthew 7:16 it says;
"By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles?"

in Titus 2:10 it says;
"and not to steal from them, but to show that they can be fully trusted, so that in every way they will make the teaching about God our Savior attractive."

It comes down to this, if we are doing things like stealing, no matter how small the gain or how innocent it may seem, then we are not being an effective representation of the love of Christ. So remember, we are not a people who steal, we are a people who trust in the Lord. So try and have good fruit on your trees ;)