Exodus 20:15 - The Eighth Commandment

Exodus : From Bondage to Glory  •  Sermon  •  Submitted   •  Presented   •  52:12
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Exodus 20:15 ESV
“You shall not steal.

Introduction

Everything belongs to God
Psalm 24:1 “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein,”
He has entrusted men with ownership and stewardship of His resources.
Stealing is addressed further in the next 3 chapters of Exodus.

Sins Forbidden

Stealing is wrongfully taking possession of what does not belong to you.
Seriousness of the command Exodus 22:1-4
Exodus 22:1–4 ESV
“If a man steals an ox or a sheep, and kills it or sells it, he shall repay five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep. If a thief is found breaking in and is struck so that he dies, there shall be no bloodguilt for him, but if the sun has risen on him, there shall be bloodguilt for him. He shall surely pay. If he has nothing, then he shall be sold for his theft. If the stolen beast is found alive in his possession, whether it is an ox or a donkey or a sheep, he shall pay double.
Heart issue:
Greed
Wanting what God has not given to us.
Heidelberg Catechism
Question 110
God forbids not only those thefts, and robberies, which are punishable by the magistrate; but he comprehends under the name of theft all wicked tricks and devices, whereby we design to appropriate to ourselves the goods which belong to our neighbour: whether it be by force, or under the appearance of right, as by unjust weights, measures, fraudulent merchandise, false coins, usury, or by any other way forbidden by God; as also all covetousness, all abuse and waste of his gifts.
Deception for gain
False measurements or fraud
embezzlement
Charging excessive interest or extortion
Getting rich off of others misfortunes.
Withholding what is due a person James 5:4 “Behold, the wages of the laborers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, are crying out against you, and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts.”
Kidnapping and slavery - Ex. 21:16 “Whoever steals a man and sells him, and anyone found in possession of him, shall be put to death.”
Borrowing money or items we do not intend to repay
Using credit we don’t repay.
Identity theft
Pirating media - songs and movies
Negligence in Exodus 22:5-6
Exodus 22:5–6 ESV
“If a man causes a field or vineyard to be grazed over, or lets his beast loose and it feeds in another man’s field, he shall make restitution from the best in his own field and in his own vineyard. “If fire breaks out and catches in thorns so that the stacked grain or the standing grain or the field is consumed, he who started the fire shall make full restitution.
Borrowed item breaks
Someone’s possession stolen from your home.
Time - Col. 3:23 “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men,”
Wasting of squandering the gifts God has given you
Stealing from God
Malachi 3:8–10 ESV
Will man rob God? Yet you are robbing me. But you say, ‘How have we robbed you?’ In your tithes and contributions. You are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me, the whole nation of you. Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.

Duties Required

Stewardship and generosity
Good stewards of what God has entrusted to us.
The parable of the talents in Matt. 25:14-30
Have a generous heart
Happy to share and give to others.
Be a giver rather than a taker
Love your neighbor
Heidelberg Catechism Question 111
That I promote the advantage of my neighbour in every instance I can or may; and deal with him as I desire to be dealt with by others: further also that I faithfully labour, so that I may be able to relieve the needy.
Share and help others
Phil. 2:3-4 “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others.”
Help others - Deuteronomy 22:1-4
Deuteronomy 22:1–4 ESV
“You shall not see your brother’s ox or his sheep going astray and ignore them. You shall take them back to your brother. And if he does not live near you and you do not know who he is, you shall bring it home to your house, and it shall stay with you until your brother seeks it. Then you shall restore it to him. And you shall do the same with his donkey or with his garment, or with any lost thing of your brother’s, which he loses and you find; you may not ignore it. You shall not see your brother’s donkey or his ox fallen down by the way and ignore them. You shall help him to lift them up again.
To work -
2 Thess. 3:10 “For even when we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat.”
Not dependent - 1 Thess 4:11-12 “and to aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.”
Support the helpless
1 Timothy 5:8 “But if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an unbeliever.”
Lev. 25:35 “If your brother becomes poor and cannot maintain himself with you, you shall support him as though he were a stranger and a sojourner, and he shall live with you.”
The return of property on the year of jubilee
Love your enemies
Luke 6:32–35 ESV
“If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil.

Application

Possessions are for stewardship, not worship.
gods Matthew 6:24 ““No one can serve two masters, for 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 God and money.”
R. Kent Hughes: “Every time I give, I declare that money does not control me. Perpetual generosity is a perpetual de-deification of money.”
Be faithful with what God gives you. Luke 16:10-12
Luke 16:10–12 ESV
“One who is faithful in a very little is also faithful in much, and one who is dishonest in a very little is also dishonest in much. If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches? And if you have not been faithful in that which is another’s, who will give you that which is your own?
What stealing do you excuse or find acceptable?
What are some ways you might be more generous this week?
Respect the way God has distributed what is His.
Greed is discontentment at what God has provided
Phil Ryken, “every theft is a failure to trust in his provision. Whenever we take something that doesn’t belong to us, we deny that God has given us or is able to give us everything we truly need. Therefore, keeping the eighth commandment is a practical exercise of our faith in God’s providence.”
Phil Ryken, “theft is also an assault on God’s providence for others … It robs what he has provided for someone else.”
Jen Wilkin writes,

And as with murder and adultery, stealing is an expression of contempt. If I can steal from someone, I’m probably not going to pray for her or seek her good. Stealing prays, “My kingdom come, my will be done.”

Share with those in need.
Ephesians 4:28 “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.”
Be greedy for greater treasure
Heavenly treasure Matt. 6:19-21
Matthew 6:19–21 ESV
“Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.
Life is not about possessions.
Seek imperishable treasure.
1 Peter 1:3–4 ESV
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! According to his great mercy, he has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you,
God can give us what we treasure.
Psalm 37:4 “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.”
Jesus does not take, He gives abundantly - John 10:10 , 17-18
John 10:10 ESV
The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.
John 10:17–18 ESV
For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.”
Jesus died for thieves like you
Is. 53:12 “he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors.”
Matt 27:38 “Then two robbers were crucified with him, one on the right and one on the left.”
Martin Luther, Though Christ was innocent and sinless - “He bore the person of a sinner and a thief —and not of one but of all sinners and thieves. For we are sinners and thieves, and therefore we are worthy of death and eternal damnation. But Christ took all our sins upon Himself, and for them He died on the cross.”
The thief on the cross - Luke 23:43 “And he said to him, “Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in paradise.””
Christian, know that you are rich
In Christ, God has already blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenlies. (Eph. 1:3)
Closing Hymn: 305 Arise, My Soul, Arise
Benediction: Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places
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