Exodus 20:15 - Thou shalt not steal.
This seems like an understood statement that goes without saying because no one likes having something stolen from them, therefore they understand the wrong that is done when something is stolen. Yet, no matter how many times it is repeated throughout the scriptures, people are still stealing – taking what does not belong to them.
According to the Lord God, He said,
My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge
Hosea 4:6
People have to first know something before they can begin to understand it, and when they understand it, then they can apply it, but they have to want to apply it in order for it to make a difference in their lives. These are the Basics of Learning and Application. In many cases, people do not obey this command because they do not understand the gravity of their responsibility before God and the consequence that is sure to follow for not obeying.
Let us examine this command more closely beginning with the Old Testament (the Law given to Moses and the people of Israel) and follow up with what God tells us in the New Testament (from Jesus and the years that followed after His departure into Heaven).
Not only did God give the initial command
Exodus 20:15
Thou shalt not steal.
He later went on to give them instructions for how to deal with thieves in judgment (Exodus 22:1-4, 7-9).
He left them with these very detailed instructions and not only did the elders who would judge hear it, but the people as well so that they would know full well what the penalty would be according to the Law of God.
As it pertained to theft of animals and property, full restitution is to be made plus some. For example:
If a man shall steal an ox, or a sheep, and kill it, or sell it; he shall restore five oxen for an ox, and four sheep for a sheep.
Exodus 22:1
Proverbs 30:5-9
Every word of God is pure: He is a shield unto them that put their trust in Him.
Add thou not unto His words, lest He reprove thee, and thou be found a liar. Two things have I required of thee; deny me them not before I die: Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: Lest I be full, and deny thee, and say, Who is the LORD? or lest I be poor, and steal, and take the name of my God in vain.
In this statement there are a few key points:
Every Word from God the Lord is pure – there is no lie, no deception, no intertwining / mixture of truth and fiction in anything that He says, therefore it is fully reliable, trustworthy.
He is a shield to those who put their trust in Him – Trust in the Lord and He will bring it to pass, He will fulfill all your needs, He will cover you like a hen shields her chicks. He will protect you and take care of you when the times get tough. When we know that every word He says is absolute truth, then we know these facts also are the TRUTH.
The request to God that this man made shows us that if he could only have these two things, he would be satisfied... if only the heart of every human being had this same desire toward God, they also would be satisfied, they also would know the fulfillment that comes from trusting the Lord and their heart would be content.
The two things: Remove from me vanity and lies AND Give me neither poverty nor riches, but feed me with what I need.
The purpose: I do not want to come to the point where I deny my GOD, NOR do I want to steal and thus take the name of my GOD in vain.
By stealing, the name of the Lord is being taken in vain. Why? Think on this... a believer will say the Lord is my Shepherd, my God in whom I trust, and all power belongs to Him both in heaven and on the earth. However, if in their time of need/ poverty, they turn and steal because of their great desperation, then they have not put their trust in the Lord to provide for them, but have gone about to provide for their need their own way. This shows they do not trust in the Lord, but in themselves.
Taking the name of the Lord is saying He is the one I will trust from this point on, but leaning on your own understanding and way of getting things done, shows you do not trust Him but the truth is, you doubt Him, thus taking on His name in vain.
Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding.
In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths.
Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the LORD, and depart from evil.
- Proverbs 3:5-7
To better understand, here is the definition of the word -
Vain: marked by futility or ineffectualness / having no real value : idle, worthless
To trust in the Lord is to trust in His word.
Do not let your trust in God be as though it were worthless.
Even as Paul said, if Christ did not rise from the dead, even our own faith would be in vain. However, Christ did raise from the dead so our faith in Him is not in vain (1 Corinthians 15:17-20).
Everything in God has value even His name – let us value it as He so rightly deserves.
Ephesians 4:28 - Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth.
When we believe on the name of Christ, fully trust in the name of Christ, and put forth the effort to maintain this faith in Him, then we will have this good thing to share with others who need to have faith in Christ.
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Praised be the name of the Lord, who does all things well!!
Let all the people say AMEN!