When I was just a teenager, one of my greatest joys in life was listening to music. Sometimes I would go over to my best friend's house, and we'd sit and listen to it for hours. I don't suppose that times have changed that much; young people still sit and listen with their friends. But some things have changed--notably, technology. Where we used to listen to records (and if you don't know what that is, ask your parents), now, there are CDs and MP3s. Something else that has increased as technology increases is the ease with which we can steal things like music CDs. I don't mean shoplifting, or taking things at gunpoint; but technology has increased to the point that we can easily, on our computer, make a perfect copy of an album that we happen to like--or of a video or software program--and give it to a friend. Yet clearly, that kind of behavior is sin! It is against the law, and since Rom 13:1 teaches that we are to obey governmental authority, it is wrong to make a copy for your friend--it is stealing. You are taking income from both the musician and the promoter.
Interestingly, according to a recent poll (Barna Research, April 26, 2004), among teenagers that claim to be Christians, only one in ten believes that music piracy (as it is sometimes called) is morally wrong. Only ten percent believes that it is wrong to copy a CD illegally for friends or to illegally download music from the internet--and that is among Christians! In fact, according to the poll, most teens that do seem to think it is wrong aren't even real sure about it! They think it's wrong, but that's about it!
Now why would that be? Shouldn't they recognize that if an activity is illegal--and in fact, there have been cases in which people have been prosecuted--shouldn't they recognize that it is sin? One reason may be because of the influence--or lack of it--of their parents. According to the poll, only a small fraction of the parents of these young people ever made the effort to talk with them about the morality of their behavior; but even if they did, I'm afraid that what they would have to say would be against scriptural principles.
You see, I'm afraid that in general, we have come to view whether something is stealing or not by how big the item is, or from whom you might be taking it. People take paper or pencils from work for their personal use, thinking that it's just no big deal; they are small items. Someone shopping at a grocery store might give their child a grape or two from the produce section--they will never notice, it's a big store, and it keeps little Billy from throwing a fit. And what happens when the checkout clerk gives you just a little too much change? Most folk would probably say that it would be too much trouble for them to take it back; they would rationalize, saying that it would cost the company more for you to return the money than to keep it. And all the while, our children are watching, and noting our distinct lack of honesty.
It is no wonder that our children act dishonestly if we ourselves set the example of stealing even in little ways. Little things really do mean a lot; with respect to the influence we have on our children, and with respect to God.
Those things that seem too small to be considered dishonest actually imply the kind of character you have overall. If you're willing to be dishonest in very little ways, who can trust you in more important matters? If you knew had an employee that would take fifty cents from the register every once in a while--just when he needed a soda--would you trust him taking the day's returns to the bank? Certainly not! So Jesus said, "He who is faithful in a very little thing is faithful also in much; and he who is unrighteous in a very little thing is unrighteous also in much. Therefore if you have not been faithful in the use of unrighteous wealth, who will entrust the true riches to you? And if you have not been faithful in the use of that which is another's, who will give you that which is your own?" (Lk 16:10-12)
The child of God should be scrupulously honest; even the small things are really not small. We need to be as Daniel was in the long ago, when enemies tried to remove him from his position of authority: they "...began trying to find a ground of accusation against Daniel in regard to government affairs; but they could find no ground of accusation or evidence of corruption, inasmuch as he was faithful, and no negligence or corruption was to be found in him. Then these men said, 'We will not find any ground of accusation against this Daniel unless we find it against him with regard to the law of his God.'" (Dan 6:4,5) Daniel was not sinless, but he was blameless--he did a good job, and was not a man guilty of corruption, including the crime of stealing. These men couldn't find anything to accuse him of, unless they could make worshiping God illegal!
But, it is not only in those little things that men steal from their employers; men steal all the time...by stealing time!
Often, people who would never think of taking something that did not belong to them will do just that by wasting time in which they are supposed to work. Employers pay their employees expecting them to use their time well, so that they can get benefit from their labor. When we are given work to do, but instead we waste our time because we are too lazy to get to work, or because we enjoy talking more than working, because we are surfing the internet, playing computer games, or whatever, it's the same thing as stealing. Paul wrote about work ethics several times, but we will look at just one, in Col 3:22-25. Here, he was particularly dealing with how slaves were to work, but it applies equally well to employees in general.
"Slaves, in all things obey those who are your masters on earth, not with external service, as those who merely please men, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord." We need to work for our employer obediently and doing our best--and not just because we want to look good. Some men only work hard when the boss is around; but for the Christian, it can't be that way. He continues, "Whatever you do, do your work heartily, as for the Lord rather than for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the reward of the inheritance. It is the Lord Christ whom you serve." You see, really, whether or not our employer is around, our real boss is the Lord--and He is always around. That is why Paul finishes by saying, "For he who does wrong will receive the consequences of the wrong which he has done, and that without partiality." Even if our employer does not see that we are stealing from him by misusing our time, God certainly does; and we will receive the proper reward for theft--which is to say, we will be punished!
But not only can we steal from our employers by stealing time; we can also steal time from God!
In the same way that our employer expects us to make good use of our time, God expects us to make wise use of the time He has given us. The truth is that we have very little time here on earth. When I was young, it never occurred to me how quickly time was passing; I just wanted the next year to hurry by so that I could have more responsibility--first so that I could stay up later, then so I could drive, still later to own a car. It just didn't occur to me that each year that passed was a year that could never be retrieved--it was forever gone. Now I know, as I see my own children grow thinking the same things that I did, that life is short--and that, just as Jas 4:14 reads, even at his best, man is "...just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away."
We read, "...be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise, making the most of your time, because the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is." (Eph 5:15-17) Again, God expects us to make wise use of the time that we have here, and that includes coming to understand His will. That means that we are to use some of our time to study the word of God.
Just understanding what God expects of us, though, doesn't mean a thing if we don't implement it. Jesus said, "Therefore be on the alert, for you do not know which day your Lord is coming. But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into. For this reason you also must be ready; for the Son of Man is coming at an hour when you do not think He will." (Mt 24:42-44) God also expects us to use our time to prepare for the coming of Christ; which means that we must be obedient to his will, and now--because we don't know when He will return.
Are you a spiritual thief, wasting the precious time that God has entrusted into your care? There will come a time when He will return, and when He does, you'll have to answer for how you used all those things He's given you--including your time.
We've looked briefly this morning at stealing; perhaps in ways that we might not have before. Stealing is sin; and not just stealing the big things: it is sin to steal the little things as well, and also to steal those things that are harder to see, like time. It is sin to steal our employer's time, and in the same way, it is sin to steal time from God. In Eph 4:28 we read, "He who steals must steal no longer; but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with one who has need." When we steal, we are acting selfishly, taking things from others; and we will never get anything out of it of any lasting value--certainly not any real happiness! Rather, what God wants is for us to work hard, so that we can give unselfishly to others; and if we do, we will reap eternal benefits.
