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Respect Other's
Property - Part One
By: Whit Criswell
If your house is like
the Criswell house it is filled with stuff! And a fact
of life is we don't like it when people mess with our
stuff. Ever had your wallet or purse stolen from you?
Ever had your car stolen? Anybody ever had his or her
house broken into? In order to have an orderly society,
for the well-being of people and for a relationship with
a Holy God, we need to respect and value the possessions
and property of others. So into God's Top Ten list, He
says in Exodus 20:15, "You shall not steal."
What is stealing? It is the illegitimate acquisitions of
property. It is the taking or keeping of anything that
rightfully belongs to another person.
Why is God so concerned?
- It DEVALUES people.
God has given us the right to acquire possessions. It
becomes an inanimate part of the person who owns it.
And God wants us to respect the property of the person
because of the human spirit that owns it. And when
something is taken there is a feeling of being
devalued and being violated that comes all over you.
- It DESTROYS our
character. This is about the heart of a person.
Stealing reveals big time flaws like restlessness,
insecurity, greed, and instant gratification. It
destroys our character. Read Exodus 22:1-4 and Numbers
5:6-7 and you will see some serious penalties for
stealing. But in none of these thefts was the thief
put into prison. Crime did not pay, but the criminal
did! (I wish we had God's penal code instead of the
one we have in this area).
- It DISTRUSTS God. The
thief calls God a liar and says you will not provide
my needs and wants. God says I will meet all your
needs (Philippians 4:19).
How is this command
violated today? We will all agree that a bank robber,
purse-snatcher, car jacker, a home burglar, would all be
breaking this commandment. Right? But some other ways
are employee business theft. Business owners will tell
you that they are more concerned with theft from the
inside, than theft from the outside. It is just as wrong
to steal from a business as it is to break into a home.
One steals from work by turning in non-work lunches,
miles or expenses as if work related, or calling in sick
when you aren't really sick. Shoplifting is epidemic
these days. Two out of three high school students say
they have shoplifted the past year. Did you know the
hotel industry loses 100 million dollars a year in guest
thievery? Guess who pays for this? We do.
Next week we will look at some additional ways that we
violate the principle of respecting the property of
others, and I will suggest four things that you can do
to help assure honesty.
Until next week,
Whit
Criswell is a former banker, coach, and businessman who
understands the stress and pressures of the workplace.
He lives in Lexington, Kentucky, U.S.A. with his wife,
Sandra, teenage son and daughter
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