Exodus 20:15
You shall not steal.
Stealing is more than a thrill, a challenge, or an easy way to a difficult end. Stealing is a sin before your holy God. It disgusts Him every time you do it.
Thieves come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. The big and ugly ones are easy to spot. They run off with diamonds, artwork, and vehicles. The small and attractive ones are rarely noticed. Their loot is made of MP3’s, broken hearts, and gullible victims. What type of thief are you? How do you justify your sin? Scripture leaves no room for your justification of stealing. It clearly demands that you abstain from all forms of it, regardless of how innocent they may appear.
Most of the smaller things we steal are seemingly easy to justify. You tell yourself, “One song won’t hurt anyone” and “a little lie is okay if nobody knows.” These all hold up well until you read the Bible. It is here that we find stealing is never an option. In fact, the Hebrew word used in this commandment is the same word we translate as deceive, kidnap, and steal in our English versions of the Old Testament. God could not have made His standard for us any clearer. If you steal or deceive, you are in direct contradiction to God’s spoken word. I pray that you would take some time to reflect on the ways that you have been breaking God’s eighth commandment? More importantly though, and once these are identified, how will you seek to turn from your sins?