The Priority of People Over Property - Exodus 22:1-15 - Audio

Chapelwood Baptist Church

A few weeks ago we had a summary overview of the 10 Commandments. We covered them but we didn’t go into great detail. You may remember the 8th commandment, "Thou shalt not steal." We live in a day and time where we have 1000’s of human laws that have been created to try to protect personal possessions and property from those who would seek to take them for themselves. But the intent of God's Eighth Commandment goes deeper. Stealing, larceny, theft can take many forms, including cheating someone or even delaying paying someone what you owe him or her: Leviticus 19:11–13 (ESV) “You shall not steal; you shall not deal falsely; you shall not lie to one another. 12 You shall not swear by my name falsely, and so profane the name of your God: I am the Lord. 13 “You shall not oppress your neighbor or rob him. The wages of a hired worker shall not remain with you all night until the morning. Theft is rampant. It is everywhere. Think about it. Corporations steal from customers through misleading advertising and shoddy products and services. Employees can steal from their company by wasting time or doing personal things on company time. Companies rob their employees of their intellectual property all to make more money without paying or giving credit. For all that we have done wrong, even at time sinning directly against God, He in His great love for us His Creation has put into place guidelines to keep us from running off the road and wrecking our lives. Let's look at what He has handed down to us in the Bible.