Playing By The Rules Part 2

One reason for us to Jesus phone number for you.

Be victorious in life's race. We need to lose the baggage of guilt we caring, large and small.

That's how far we've come in our study of the eighth commandment. On this program some closing thoughts on stealing from the Moody Church in Chicago. This is going to win with Dr. Erwin will serve whose clear teaching helps us make it across the finish line.

Estimates are we're talking about.

Thou shalt not steal, and will be telling us that we can break that commandment. In many ways, Dave. You're absolutely right there many ways that we can break that commandment. But there are also any ways that we can break the other commandments as well.

I'm so glad for the many people who listen to the ministry of running to win. You are our friends and we thank God for every one of you, you know, in order to maintain this ministry. We are so thankful for those of you who have invested in it. Would you consider becoming an endurance partner endurance partners are people who stand with us regularly with their prayers and their gifts. Here's what you can do. Go to RTW offer.com good RTW offer.com. Click on the endurance partner button or if you prefer, call us at 1-888-218-9337 and now let us once again go to the pulpit of Moody church where we hear the word of God from Sinai. You can break it by what you take by what you do by what you win, but also by what you keep by what you keep here I want to speak about three areas in which we may keep money that legitimately belongs to someone else and God would say that is stealing. For example, your relationship to friends money that you borrow from them, but you don't give the money back. The Bible says in Psalm 37 verse 21 the wicked borrows but does not return again. The wicked is the person who says I need the money you give it to them. You lend it to them and even after he has money whereby he could pay the debt he still doesn't do it because he thinks he needs it worse than his neighbor's rent. The Bible says that if you do that you are wicked you are withholding that which belongs to someone else and that is stealing and don't tell me about the fact that it happened 20 years ago. Just because a debt is 20 years old.

That doesn't mean it isn't still a debt.

It doesn't make it right to. Just because a lot of time has passed, and nor does it make it right because the person to whom you owe the money has more than you do. That has absolutely nothing to do with it. The Bible says that thou shalt not steal, and it is the wicked borrow and do not return, so you can keep that which belongs to a friend and that's feeling too. You can keep that which belongs to the government to the government. I guess it's true to say that none of us enjoys paying taxes seen the little sign that says they told me to pay taxes with a smile and I tried it but they wanted my money anyway. Very difficult sometimes said to my wife one time after you fill out your income tax form. You have a good feeling as to what you know then how account must feel after she's been milked and we know that we don't necessarily delight in paying money to our government. But I want to say this to you.

If you are dishonest on your income tax form, you are being dishonest in the presence of God who says thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not steal, and God holds us accountable for our accuracy and our honesty when it comes to the government. If not, were thieves. But you know you can steal from a friend. You can steal from the government but also you can steal from God steal from God turn with me, and Malachi to the book of Malachi. It's easy to find because it's the last book of the Old Testament. Notice what God says here in Malachi chapter 3.

He asks this question. The last book of the Old Testament. So wherever your Bible parts between old and new last page of the Old Testament, Malachi chapter 3 verse eight. Will a man rob God.

I can imagine someone here saying well of worse. I would never rob God, he says, yet you are robbing me but you say how have we robbed the I don't remember breaking into God's vault and taking money answer is in times and contributions, you are cursed with a curse, for you are robbing me. The whole nation of you.

God's. And we here at the Moody church do not lay tithing on people is a requirement. We recognize that giving is a private matter between you and God. But can you imagine God, here it is. It is he that gives us the ability to beget wealth. It is he that gives us the clothes that are on our back. It is he that gives us health and strength and money and he gives all of it to us freely because really it is his and then there are people who are stingy giving God any kind of recognition and what they have received and they hog it all for themselves and they insult to God because the text says they are robbing him. It is actually all his. We do not even really technically possess what we disclaim we own, we are God's stewards we are God's representatives.

He gives it to us and he expects to be remembered and to be worshiped and to be honored by our giving God's as you may not only do people rob God from the standpoint of money but they also robbed him from time he gives this time 168 hours a week and some people don't get gotta time the time of day you want to really insult God how you think you really can insult just ignore ignore. There are many people who who have no recognition of God.

They do not allow God to invade their lives at all. They just simply ignore God and God's as you are robbing me it is.

I have created you, you ought to have an allegiance to me and many people blocked out of their lives, and God says you're breaking the eighth commandment you're stealing. You know what God required in the Old Testament of thieves. He always said that you have to pay back. Not all sins are sins for which restitution can be made.

Stealing is one that can be restitution can be made for stealing.

That's why God in the Old Testament says pay back fourfold and in the New Testament when Zach PS was up in the tree. He was the IRS man of his day. The tax collector who go around and he of course chiseled the accounts in such a way that he got more money than he was supposed to be.

Says if I have defrauded any man.

I will pay him back fourfold. When revival came to Canada in the early 70s. One of the early indications of swept hundreds of churches in Western Canada. One of the clear indications that it was a move of God and was picked up by the secular press that wrote the stories primarily because of the people that were returning things that they had stolen to stores and they were making up for time that they had cheated their employer on they were sending money to the government, you know that the border between Canada and the United States. The officials there knew that there was a revival in progress because many people from Winnipeg and Regina and other cities went to the border officials and they told them I lied.

They said when we crossed the border and we want to make it right. We brought goods over that we didn't declare that's what happens when people really get right with God. I think of a manager try to work for Ford company and he would go to work and take his lunch bucket fill it with lunch.

Of course in the morning and take it to work and eat his lunch and then on his way home he would fill his lunch bucket with tools and pieces of tools and then put them together at home and one day as a Christian man. He began to pray and he really wanted to pray seriously before God. He wanted his children to grow up to love the Lord and was as if God said to him, don't bother bother praying. Why does God tell people not to bother.

What good is praying when you have things in your possession. What good is praying. If in your basement. You have a tool with the Ford insignia on it. Why bother what you have to do is you have to restore. That's what God requires before you as a Christian can be in fellowship with him if there's someone here today was a problem with stealing. I can tell you how to overcome stealing so quickly is just amazing. Here's what you do. First of all, make a list of all of the things that you have stolen in your life and go back and restore all the things that you have taken. That's the first thing the second thing is get a job working with your hands.

That's what it says in Ephesians chapter 5 your member get a job working with your hands and give to them that have need the Texas become very generous.

Give a lot of money away that'll take care of that covetous heart that brought about theft. You know a number of years ago when that revival was there in Canada. My sister-in-law. She had gone through a supermarket and on the bottom of the cart was a $0.99 a bag of potatoes, but the cashier didn't see the potatoes and she perhaps thought to herself well I guess everybody needs a break.

I won't mention it to the cashier so she let that supermarket cart go through with that bag of potatoes on the bottom is an amazing, for years, there was a slight twinge in her conscience that she had taken a $0.99 a bag of potatoes and then when God began to speak very directly to people and when the Holy Spirit began to bring to mind the things that people at even forgot about in their life to make right. She realized that she had to make something right and so she made an appointment with the manager of the store and told him the story how that she owed him some money. Because of that bag of potatoes and he said either something is happening in this town are.

He said it's my lucky day because you're the second person that is come to me today to make something right and she assured him that something was indeed happening in the town and he became visibly shook she said as she told him about the spiritual awakening that was happening.

If you think there are many people out in the world whose closets are filled with all sorts of sin and defrauding and dishonesty. But when they begin to see righteousness.

They get convicted. I think of one man I interviewed in the city of Saskatoon who said to me revival cost me $5000. He said I went to the bank and had to borrow $5000. I said why he said I'm a builder and he said I would build houses and other buildings and I would sometimes put into them in your your quality materials and he said I charge them for the better materials and God made me see that I could never be fully right with him until I went back and I made all those things right because God says that thou shalt not steal, and you can steal in dozens of different ways. One day I was speaking about this in another church and there was a young man sitting there in the audience.

He realized he had stolen something from American airlines that was some actual silverware that they had had most of it today.

I suppose in the planes is plastic, but he had some silverware and he made a trip to O'Hare airport. You know who to give it to didn't know who to see. Don't quite know what to do with a guy like this anywhere you gonna do with somebody was actually getting so conscientious that something this small has to be returned if small but when you're desperate to get right with God, it can become big. I member young men who told me, as a result of hearing you speak on this topic.

He said I was in the Army and it stolen $250 worth of goods from the government that I took it and I returned it because God says thou shalt not steal.

And he takes note of all the thievery that is going on in the whole city of Chicago and throughout Illinois in the whole United States, and he sees it, and he keeps track of it all. Now I want to say a word to those of you who are here today who think that the only kind of fee very, that God is interested in is the external kind I want us to know that when it comes to this commandment as I've already shown actually all of us are guilty and I find it interesting that when Jesus died, he was crucified between two thieves. Turn with me to Luke chapter 23 of the last passage I'll ask you to look at but Jesus was was dying and he was crucified and there between two thieves. The Bible says. Now in the Luke passage my translation says in verse 39 of chapter 23 he was between two criminals, but we know that they were thieves that were dying.

Those days have a penalty for thievery.

I want you to notice it says one of the criminals who was hanging there was hurling abuses at him, saying, are you not the Christ, save yourself and us. But the other answered rebuking them said, do you not even the fear God do since you are under the same a sentence of condemnation, and we indeed justly, for we are receiving what we deserve for our deeds about this man has done nothing wrong and he was saying this is the penitent thief Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom and Jesus said to them, truly I say to you today you shall be with me in paradise.

I look at this passage of Scripture and I find it interesting that both of these thieves were guilty of breaking the eighth commandment, one of them went to hell. The other went to heaven. Jesus you see there was dying on the cross and humanly speaking, he looked no better then either one of these two thieves.

He seemed to be as weak. Blood was running from him was breathing heavily middle of the pain that he was going through. Actually, if you just saw a picture of the three people on the cross.

You wouldn't know that the person in the middle was special.

That's what interests us about this thief because the one thief who looked upon Jesus had enough faith to look beyond the common way in which Jesus was dying and somehow when we don't know how but somehow this thief knew that Jesus Christ was more than a man, because what was happening, which was not visible to the external. I was that Jesus Christ was actually dying for this thief's sin because the Bible teaches. When Jesus Christ died on the cross. His death was a substitutionary death. It was a sacrifice for sin.

He died in our place because none of us is able to keep all of the commandments. None of us is able to come to God on the basis of our own works and be received.

We are all sinners. One of the reasons that the law was given is that we might realize that we are condemned and helpless before God and when we place our confidence in Christ to died for us. We can be cleansed and we can be forgiven, welcomed and received into God's family forever. That's tremendously good news for thieves and other sinners. I want to be very clear in saying nobody ever yet became a Christian by confessing their sins. Some people think that just by going through and mentally confessing their sins that they are receiving Christ as Savior. Not necessarily. It could happen. Not necessarily.

It is not the confession of sins that gives eternal life. It is looking to Jesus who died for us and in our place and putting our confidence in him. That's the way we are forgiven, then for all of our sins. Even the ones that we cannot remember. That is what makes his children of God and makes us welcome into God's family forever. You see, Jesus died for sinners he died for thieves.

He died for adulterers. He died for those that cuppa tea died for liars. As we will see next week Christ death is for sinners and every one of us can be saved if we put our trust in him. I've done it.

I know members of the staff… I know that there are hundreds of you out here today who know what it is to have put your faith and trust in Jesus for the forgiveness of your sins, but there are others of you who have never done that we do that today like this thief who looked at Christ the Christ mind you, who was dying and who appeared weak, but who could see beyond it to know that he was the Christ was the Savior and Jesus said to him today you will be with me in paradise.

What you receive them as yours right now. Let's pray our father, we thank you today, the Jesus died for sinners, we thank you that we can come just as we are.

We pray today for those who do not know him personally. We pray that you might enable them to see that Christ's death was for them may they received what he did on the cross that they might be received into your presence and kingdom and for those of us who know you as Savior we pray dear father that you will keep us from stealing. Help us to be scrupulously honest, that we might be a good witness for Christ and his kingdom. We pray in Jesus name, amen.)

Pastor Luther is wonderful that we have a gospel that saves sinners. Whether you are the thief on the cross or whether you're a person who has violated God's commandments in many different ways we all stand as sinners and we all receive his grace. You know if you have been blessed by the ministry of running to win. It's because other people have invested in this ministry I have in my hands a letter from someone who says you are my pastor away from home when I can't make my own Sunday service. My wife has Alzheimer's disease and we sit together and listen to the program three times a week and that this is very sweet. He says when she listens to these messages. She looks up and says yes Lord is exactly the response. We want people to have when they listen to this ministry and by the way, running to win is now heard in more than 20 countries of the world would you help us. Would you consider becoming an endurance partner endurance partners are people who stand with us regularly with their prayers and their gifts. Find out more information. Here's what you can do. Go to RTW offer.com that's RTW offer.com and click on the endurance partner button it'll give you all the information that you need or if you have questions. And you'd like to have more info. Here's what you do, you can call 1-888-218-9337 that's 1-888-218-9337. Remember that your investment is intended to help people to look up and say yes Lord, it's time once again for you to ask Pastor about certain question about the Bible or the Christian life. Some listeners might be afraid to even ask today's question, but Terry is not and so here we go. Does God disapprove of different races joined in marriage. No, I don't think so. You know in previous generations. It was a great deal of emphasis on keeping the races distinct, but we know, for example from acts chapter 17 that God has made of one blood all the different races of the world. So when it comes to something like marriage. The most important question to ask is whether or not the person whom you are marrying has received Jesus Christ as Savior to marry as Christians. But there's nothing in the Bible that would say that interracial marriage is sin. As a matter fact I've seen some interracial marriages that are very wonderful in terms of showing how diverse cultures can come together now having said that, we need to be very careful because often times within races there are certain values in certain attitudes and certain expectations that are very different so that oftentimes becomes an issue. But if you can work through that issue and if there is harmony of heart and belief in mind. The Bible says nothing against interracial marriage. Thank you Terry for your question.

Thank you Dr. lutes are for the Council. If you'd like to hear your question answered. Go to our website@rtwoffer.com and click on ask Pastor Luther or call us at 1-888-218-9337 that's 1-888-218-9337 you can write to us running to win 1635 N. LaSalle Boulevard Chicago, IL 60614. For some reason we humans make a distinction between good lies in small laws to us telling a little white lie is okay, but it's not okay with God. Believers need to tell the truth if they want to win the race of life violates prime directive number nine in the Bible, and next time I'm running to win, to tell the truth is where were heading. Plan to join us running to win is all about helping you understand God's roadmap for your race of life. Thanks for listening, Dr. Erwin look certain this is Alister running to win is sponsored by the Moody Church