Discipleship on STEALING - 2020!

Introduction: It would be difficult to imagine a culture anywhere on earth that treats stealing as acceptable behaviour.

Taking something that does not belong to you is universally considered wrong. Yet it is equally difficult to picture a society in which stealing does not occur. Stealing, from armed robbery to inflated expense accounts, from teenage shoplifting to price fixing on Wall Street, is epidemic.

Questions & Discussions:

1. What is stealing? To steal means to take another person’s property without permission or legal right.

Stealing is the act of a person who steals.

Question: Stealing is obviously wrong. But why do people do it anyway?

Stealing is a symptom of the sinful condition of the heart.Matthew 15:19 . . . From the heart come evil thoughts . . . theft.

2. Are there examples of thieves in the Bible? Yes!

a) Jacob stole his father’s blessing out of a combination of greed, envy, and ambition.Genesis 27:1-40 . . . Take the food to your father; then he can eat it and bless you instead of Esau.

b) Judas Iscariot. “This Judas Iscariot said, not that he cared for the poor; but because he was a thief, and had the bag, and bare what was put therein” (Jn. 10:26).

c) Rachael (Gen. 31:31-36).

d) Greed led Achan to steal that which was not his (Josh. 7:21).

e) Zacchaeus (Lk. 19:1-10).

2. Stealing has become much more sophisticated in this age. With “white-collar” crime and the age of electronic technology, stealing is much more sophisticated than ever before. Does the Bible speak to these issues? A lack of integrity and honesty in business practices is stealing in God’s eyes.

Deuteronomy 25:13-15 . . . You must use accurate scales when you weigh out merchandise, and you must use full and honest measures. 3. What if I have been guilty of stealing in some way, what should I do?a) Stealing is remedied by restoration and forgiveness. Therefore, you should return what you have stolen to the rightful owner, and ask him for forgiveness.

Leviticus 6:1-7 . . . If they have sinned in any of these ways . . . they must give back whatever they have taken by theft.

Luke 19:1-10 . . . If I have overcharged people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much.

4. How can one avoid stealing? You can avoid stealing and dishonesty by learning to love others as God loves you.

Romans 13:9-10 . . . The commandments against adultery and murder and stealing . . . are all summed up in this one commandment: “Love your neighbour as yourself.”

Question: Is there anything in your possession that you obtained by stealing or trick (OBT, yahoo yahoo, pick pocket, 419)?

Recommendation: If you want to enter Heaven, everything in your possession that is not yours must be restored to the rightful owner. For instance, Zacchaeus restored all he stole from people.

Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood there and said to the Lord, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have overcharged people on their taxes (that is stealing, like what happens in the customs today), 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 son of Abraham” (Lk. 19:8-9).

Memory Verse: “Since we were restored to friendship with God the Father by the death of His Son while we were still His enemies, we will certainly be delivered (saved) from eternal punishment by His life” (Rom. 5:10).

Promise from God: “But even more blessed are all who hear the Word of God and put it into practice” (Lk. 11:28).

• Your friend, I. I. MADUBUNYI (Head Pastor) 12.05.2020 @ HQs.