988. Stealing, Working, Giving

The book of Ephesians is about revealing a mystery that had been hid in the past but is now unveiled in the present and what is that mystery that God the father is preparing for God the son of bride. This bride or this body called the church is inclusive of believing Jews and Gentiles is brought Jews and Gentiles separate and he has made them more on in a new body, a new humanity that is called the church of Jesus Christ. That's what God is doing in the world and so he writes to these Gentiles. He says and live out this new life that you have that what our theme is all about living that out is Gentiles in the world today so this is the mystery that amazes the Angels.

I wonder how many of them say what today on The Daily Platform. Dr. Steve Pettit, president of Bob Jones University is continuing a study series from Ephesians entitled new life in Christ. Steve has written a study booklet for the series. If you would like to follow along.

You can order a printed copy from the website.

The Daily Platform.com. Today's message is entitled stealing, working and giving from Ephesians 428. Would you please take your Bibles this morning and turn to the book of Ephesians Ephesians chapter 4, back when we began our ministry of evangelism we had bought a trailer that we were getting ready to move all of our belongings out of 1/5 wheel trailer into a new one and so for short period of time. We went on vacation. We came back out our new trailer and then we went to a storage bin that we had rented in Columbia city Indiana and we got our new trailer pulled over and we were going to load everything onto our into our physical trailer and we opened up the storage been to our shock and surprise our storage bin had been ransacked by the and it was one of the weirdest feelings we've ever had to know that that we had had all his stuff people would come in and taken what they wanted left.

What they didn't want to have and we were stuck there sitting there in this particular situation. Being an object of someone else's thievery is always shocking how many of you have ever had anything that was yours stolen from you, would you raise your hand.

Okay, how many of you imagine what you were going to do to the person when you found them who had stolen your stuff, would you raise your hand yet is another sin call thou shall not commit murder, but but being stolen from is a terrible experience this morning. I'd like us to look at Paul's admonition to us as Christians. With regard to stealing working and giving in New Testament times. Many of the Christian converts were slaves, or they were common day laborers for their home life was hard to pay was low. In some cases they receive nothing at all, especially if they were owned by someone else.

So back in ancient times stealing was just normal in a pagan society. People were just trying to live day by day. However, when the gospel came in, it changed everything. Because the old life of sin was put all for conversion and the new life in Christ was received. The change started on the inside, where God re-created you with his own image, which was created in righteousness. Righteousness is obedience to the law and that change in heart soon led to an outward morality, a change of life, a difference therefore ports Christians all to be different because of the new life in Christ and Ephesians 4 in verse 28, Paul deals with one of those put off, put on commands.

This is the third of five that we been looking at this morning. He deals with the theme of stealing, working and giving or possible title.

This is how a kleptomaniacs becomes a philanthropist God literally changes you and let's look at what he says in verse 28 let him that stole steal no more, but rather letting labor, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needed Paul gives really three simple commands here as he has been doing. It's very straightforward and the first command is simply this, where to stop stealing. Let him that stole steal no more. Literally it reads steal or stop stealing that we know the stealing was considered a sin in the Old Testament. Exodus 2015. The law says thou shalt not steal. Leviticus 1911 you shall not steal.

In the New Testament when Jesus comes in the somebody's life we find the stealing starts to go out. For example, you remember the story of Zakia the tax collector who, when he was converted.

His heart was dramatically changed so that he went from being a take her to a giver. Fundamentally, that's what changes in the human heart, because by nature by selfishness.

We are self-centered people and therefore we think of getting. We rarely think of giving and Ephesians, Paul was concerned about the negative impact of stealing because he knew it would affect the unity of the Christian community.

He understood that stealing would destroy trust among believers and truss was fundamental for Christian fellowship. So here's the question I like as is stealing today on own going sin among believers. You think we have stealing Bob Jones University.

I read this morning the Cleary report, you clearly reported. This is what we turn in to the government of what kind of crimes we have on campus at Bob Jones University so I read the Cleary report this morning. Just make sure I was accurate and I Cleary report they expected 2014 through 16, 17, is being sent in. Now let me be honest with you, Bob Jones University campus is incredibly safe. Almost every every area. There was just zero. Nothing going on except one area is called burglary is the number one crime on the campus of Bob Jones University. We actually have people who pay good money to go here to steal from other people that we don't have many thieves but we do have thieves among us. The Bible says let him that stole steal no more. So how is it that Christians feel when I give you just a few ways. Number one the first one is just basically stealing taking stuff is not yours permanently borrowing somebody else's stuff. Do you remember times in your life when you stolen.

How many of you ever stolen something for Adrian, beyond yeah we all have. I remember when I was 12 years old. I remember it like it was today. I went down to my buddies to Kmart in Columbia South Carolina when I grew up where I grew up I just got a new bicycle.

It was the butterfly handlebar bicycles with the big banana boat seat you where you can pop wheelies and we went to Kmart with the intention of stealing two things.

Number one, we still wanted to steal some gold rings back in those days when I was in elementary school in the sixth grade.

If you like the girl you would give her a a silver what we call friendship rings. If you really liked her you gave her a gold friendship ring and so we went and stole some friendship rings and then we decide to go over to steal some fishing lures and I had them in my pocket and I remember getting out of the store and jumping on my bike and taking off across the parking lot and I thought the CIA, the FBI, the, the National Guard, the SWAT team. The Navy SEALs were all going to come after. I remember that I remember taking those things that stolen feeling so guilty about it.

I threw them out into what was known as Gil's Creek. I was 12 years old, about 16 years later 26 years old I was sitting in my office as a youth pastor in Michigan and God began to convict me of what I'd stole.

When I was 12 years old and I got under such conviction, I sat down and I wrote a letter to Kmart international, apologizing for stealing from them when I was 12 years old and then I wrote a check for what I'd stole and I estimated it and doubled it.

You say, what'd I say to you, I don't know. I never got a letter back with the check cashed stealing.

Then there's another way we still in that's famine. Titus two in verse nine Yana notices first burst into it says exhort service to be obedient unto their own masters and to please them well in all things, not answering again not currently joining the Segway we still is my purloined and now is not a word that we use. You purloined you purloined or what is it mean well it's basically employee theft stealing from work. Do you know that most stores today have more problem with their own employees stealing from them.

The people coming from the outside in and stealing is preaching in a camp a number of years ago, the teenager came forward under conviction because he had stolen over hundred dollars worth of goods from his work as a teenager and he had to go back and turn himself in and asked for forgiveness and pay the money back. I preach to the church in Jefferson City, Missouri, and a lady got saved in the meeting. Three. Four years later I came back to the church and from the time that I was there the first time to the second time I found this out the story about a lady who got saved in a revival meeting.

She worked for Walmart and she had embezzled over $50,000 worth of goods. I mean televisions, in and of pool tables and all that she just stuck them in her house while she turned herself in and she got sent to jail.

She did a year and 1/2 in prison got out because of the way she'd been living and she was now back in this church. I didn't even know what happened between my first and second visit.

What is it mean to purloined it means to set things aside for yourself to skim off the top to misappropriate funds for oneself. This is not exactly purloined, but it is something that God should convict us about when I was in Israel, a number of years ago.

My last day there, I went to the desk in the hotel and I gave them a $50 bill because I wanted change in exchange it for shekels and so they gave me the shekels and I stuck them in my pocket went down into the old city of Jerusalem, I pulled out the shekels to buy some stuff and start looking to the shekels and realize man I have more shekels, and I thought I purchased and it dawned on me that the guy behind the desk gave me twice as many shekels as I should've gotten that $50 now. What would you do that happened to you. Finders keepers losers weepers that what you would. Well, I knew what to do. I went back to the hotel that evening and I went back to the supervisor and I said Sir I believe that I was given to many shekels today when I made an exchange and he looked at me and he smiled and he said thank you so much for coming back because that gentleman who gave you that money at the end of the day.

He had to bring up his report and found out that he was short and shekels because he gave them to you and we actually charged him and he had to pay for the shekels, so I handed them the money back for what he had given me too much and that man the next day Shirley remembered who I was. Those of the little things in life when we have to be honest, not stealing third way we steal is by cheating cheating on tasks cheating on taxes and marriage cheating on spouses does that happen within the Christian community. Of course it does in the fourth way we steal is through our time.

The Bible says let him that stole steal no more, but rather letting labor. The idea was that he was not working for what he was to get if we are hired to do a job and we are expected to work hard and to do our best.

How often is time wasted at work.

I'm thankful for Bob Jones University graduates because they have they have a respect level of working hard wherever they go. How much money is being paid to employees for them to spend time on Facebook and Instagram and other social media sites. We all should have a conscience about our work that if we get paid for eight hours we ought to give them eight hours worth of work in the fifth way in which we steal is our failure to tie tithing is giving 10% of your income to the support of God's work in the Old Testament.

Tithing was an expression of one's gratitude to God, it was the belief that what I have is God's ensuing giving that tide on testifying that this is God's. The second reason they type in the Old Testament was to provide for the house of God for the priesthood and for the temple worship and sacrifice. Tithing is a principal that transcends the entire Scripture what you mean by that it means this tithing existed before the law of Moses.

It existed during the law of Moses and it and it operated after the law of Moses and when we read the Bible carefully. If we do a careful look at Scripture, we find that God's people often failed in this matter of tithing and God brought judgment upon his people. Listen to Malachi 3 in verse six, even from the days of your fathers you were gone away from my ordinances and am not Them retire, turn on to me and I will return it to you. Saith the Lord of host but you said, wherein shall we return. Will a man rob God. Yet you have robbed me, but you say, wherein have we robbed the any answers and ties and offerings.

You are cursed with a curse, for you have robbed me even this whole nation.

The Jewish people were put in a place where they were depended on the blessing of God and that blessing of God came to the priesthood in the temple and the sacrifice that temple priest of those sacrifices had to be supported by God's people, and so the temple was depended on the people of God to the people of God were depended on the temple. And that's the way the system worked, and therefore the people had the time if they didn't tithe and the people.

The priest had to go work in the fields and then the house of God would lay waste in the blessing of God would falter and so therefore they had to support the house of God through the tithing that we do not find the strict law in the New Testament to give the time. However, since tithing transcends the whole of Scripture and was used for the support of God's house and knowing today that God's house is the local church, then we should as Christians give serious thought and consideration to our responsibility to support God's work through his church.

If we are not to give a tithe, then what should we give you say were under grace and we should give grace and out of grace and the answer is great, do that, but it could be less than the wall is at less than what we find throughout all of Scripture. I would like to submit to you that many times God's people failed to tie in so doing is robbing the advancement of the church after being in the ministry for 37 years. I realize there two things that that God uses to get his work done.

Number one uses people and number two he uses finances to support them and as children of God we should not the church of its tie, tithing should be a part of what we do on a consistent basis. As a Christian. So number one. He says stop stealing the note number two, he says, work hard, but rather letting labor, working with his hands. That thing which is good. Paul moves from the negative to the positive from the put off to the put out where to put own hard work. Exodus 26 days shalt thou labor and do all thy work in Jewish culture. Parents had three main goals for the children go number one was that they would know God told number two is that they would marry and find a life partner. Number three. They would develop a skill so that they can provide for their financial needs to work. The apostle Paul was a Pharisee and a committed student to the Torah to the law, but he learned to make a living by working with his hands as a tent maker, so wherever Paul went even in the preaching of his gospel. He would often support himself by his own work. So, regarding work, he tells the Ephesians. Two things. Number one he says that we are to labor rather letting labor.

That means hard physical work is the kind of work that you you do when you fall in bed at night, worn out and exhausted throughout Paul's writings, he exhorted Christians to work. He declared that laziness was out of order for Christian society. He writes in second Thessalonians 3. Now we command you, brothers, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ that you keep away from any brother who was walking in idleness, and not in accord with the tradition that you received from us, for you yourselves know how you all to imitate us because we were not idle when we were with you, nor do we eat anyone's bread without paying for it, but with toil and labor.

We worked night and day for even when we were with you, we gave you this command that if any person is not willing to work, let him not.

Hard work is considered a good thing in God's eyes, number one, we are to work hard and the number two he says we are to work with with our hands the thing which is good.

That is were to do good in our work was as what is this me what we choose as a profession should be for the benefit and the blessing of all people.

In other words, not only do we work hard, but we do good work God's people should avoid working for businesses and trades and industries that tear down or destroy the moral fiber of society. We should have a conscience about the kind of work that we do our work should not only be for the good of others, but it is for our own good, because in working hard. We developed character like industry responsibility and diligence and in the end.

Hard work provides for the needs of your life and for your family and you do it in an honest manner so that you can live life with a good conscience, and finally the third command and that is to give generously.

Notice what he says at the end of the verse that he may have to give to him that needed Paul is teaching us the ultimate purpose of work he says in acts 2035. I've showed you all things, how that so laboring you all to support the weak and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he said it is more blessed to give than it is to receive the primary reason believers work is not to get but it is to get to the point where you can give. So two questions does giving here refer to just money.

Can you give can giving mean that there are things like, you can give like your time and your service.

Of course, that's absolutely yes course, you give your time in service, but can you give these things and replace of giving money. I'm asking that question because I was asked this question this week. Can you give your time and replacement to the money and the answer is absolutely not absolutely not. That is not what the Bible is teaching what is he say he says you labor with your hands that you may have to give to him that needed what is it that he has to give. He's working so me, he might have something to give what is it that he has to give its whatever he's made from working with his hands. You work with your hands and you receive so that you can give as a general rule, giving refers to what you make from your work.

Proverbs 39 honor the Lord with your substance and with the firstfruits of all your increase so show your barns be filled with plenty, and I press it shall burst out with new wine. We work and through that working we receive income and with that income.

We support our family, our needs and then we are able to give. So does this giving refer to just money went refers to what ever I get for my work and most of us, we get paid money and secondly and finally, is it wrong for a Christian to want to be rich you know you read your Bible. There a lot of people that were rich. Abraham was rich. Hannah said the Lord makes poor and he makes the rich King Solomon excelled all the kings of the earth and riches.

David said both riches and honor come from God. Even Jesus was rich. Second Corinthians 8, verse nine, though he were rich he became poor.

Is it wrong for a Christian to be rich. The answer is no. Is it wrong for a Christian to want to be rich. I think the answer is yes.

Would you get that first Timothy six verse nine but those who desire to be rich. That is, make riches, a pursuit fall into temptation, into a snare and the many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction riches are deceitful. Is it wrong for you to become wealthy.

Absolutely not. So what you to do. First Timothy 617 charge them that are rich in this world not to be high-minded not to trust in uncertain riches, but in the living God, who gives us richly all things to enjoy, that they may do good, that they may be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate is it wrong for you to make it your life's ambition to get rich, you can answer the question use you answer what God says but God does bless people so that we can give my wife's favorite saying is very simple. We get to give. We have a privilege opportunity. We been blessed enough, by God, so that we can get if we can be able to give what we have. We are blessed people. Secondly, we have a privilege responsibility God is given us the resources for the purpose of giving to others. We get to give. That's the evidence of the working of the new life in a believer father helpless to be generous people. Thank you that we get to give just like you gave of yourself when you became poor, that we might be made rich in Jesus name, amen. You been listening to a sermon from Ephesians chapter 4 the sermon as part of the study series called new life in Christ by Dr. Steve Pettit, president of Bob Jones University. If you would like to follow along in the study booklet.

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