THEFT AND RESTITUTION

Introduction

We live in a material world. We use goods and services in which to maintain our physical life. This requires that we own property which we call possessions. These belong to us for enjoyment and we can dispose of them as we see fit. If lawfully obtained and used, no one has the right to tell us what we can do with them because we own them, not even the government. There is freedom in owning our own property. We do not have to be dependent upon others when we have our own assets. Theft, however, is symptom of a breakdown in the social order. We live in a day and age when we are never secure in our possessions because of rampant thievery so prevalent in our day and time.

Application

To properly understand the Bible, we need to use what is known as applied theology.

Noah Webster’s 1828 Dictionary renders "theft" as, "The act of stealing. In law, the private, unlawful, felonious taking of another person’s goods or movables, with an intent to steal them. To constitute theft, the taking must be in private or without the owner’s knowledge, and it must be unlawful or felonious, that is, it must be with a design to deprive the owner of his property privately and against his will." The key here is deprivation or use of. It converts property from one person to another without any form of remuneration. It is the unlawful taking of another’s goods. It is performed without the knowledge of the owner. In other words, thieves work undercover. They are sneaks and cheats.

1 Corinthians 6:10 reads, "Nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God." Thieves eternal fate has already been determined by God. They will not inherit the kingdom of God. They do inherit eternal punishment. A thief is present oriented and more concerned with the material world rather than the spiritual. Revelation 9:21 says, "Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts." A thief may so be hardened in his sin that he refuses to repent of his thievery, no matter what kind of judgment the Lord may bring upon him. He does not like to work for a living. In the final analysis, thieves end up spending more energy in stealing and covering up their thefts than if they would do an honest days labor. Their intelligence is negligible.

Once a thief should come to saving knowledge, he will be convicted by the Holy Ghost to make restitution for his thefts. Webster defines "restitution" as, "1. The act of returning or restoring to a person some thing or right of which he has been unjustly deprived...2. The act of making good, or giving an equivalent for any loss, damage, or injury; indemnification. 3. The act of recovering a former state or posture." In other words, a thief will return what he has stolen and ask for forgiveness from the one that was harmed by his actions. Instead of being dishonest, he has now become honest as Ephesians 4:28 expresses, "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." The opposite of stealing is working. To repent is to do the opposite of what you were previously doing. Once a man begins to labor, he will have funds to provide for those who are in need. This is also a form of restitution. Sometimes a thief may have stolen from someone who is dead or cannot be located and thus by supplying the needs of others, he would essentially be making restoration in a different form.

When salvation had come to Zacchaeus’ house, he told the Lord Jesus in Luke 19:8, "And Zacchaeus stood, and said unto the Lord; Behold, Lord, the half of my goods I give to the poor; and if I have taken any thing from any man by false accusation, I restore him fourfold." When a man gets saved, he is willing to make whole those whom he has defrauded from their property. He is even willing to follow the law of restitution by paying the fourfold penalty. King David realized this principle when Nathan the prophet came to him regarding his sin with Bathsheba. In 2 Samuel 12:6, we read, "And he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity." This concept of fourfold repayment comes from the law of God in Exodus 22:1. If someone was caught stealing sheep, he had to repay four sheep for each he had stolen. This made getting caught for stealing an extremely expensive proposition. It had an obvious deterrent effect. The victim was to be given the restitution, not the state.

Conclusion

We live in a day and age when theft is rampant. Thieves are thrown into prison where they cannot make restitution to their victims. They continue their life of thievery by stealing from taxpayers who have to pay for them in prison. God’s law does not recognize the putting of thieves into prison. Rather, they are to labor until they have made the required reparation for their misdeeds. In the process, the thief learns to labor honestly. The victim gets repaid and the thief learns to work. God’s law is what works. Humanism’s policies are always failures. Everyone loses.

EVERY KING NEEDS A QUEEN

Introduction

As many thoughts turn to the birth of Christ, it is important to remember that He was born to be a king and every king needs a queen. Matthew 2:1-2 reads, "Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, 2Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him." Wise men still seek the one that is born King. The queen of this King is the church. To be the queen of King Jesus requires a righteous character.

Application

To properly understand the Bible, we need to use what is known as applied theology.

The seventh commandment deals with representation or hierarchy. Image or representation is an inescapable concept. This commandment has to do with marriage or the thought of two becoming one. To prevent the breaking of this commandment the character of the future marriage partner becomes of the utmost importance. It can, in the final analysis determine our eternal future. 2 Corinthians 6:14-15 says, "Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? 15And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel?" Marriage partners are never to be taken from pagans. They have a covenant with death and the Christian has just the opposite. It comes down to dating versus courting. Try and find any Bible verses regarding dating. There are none. Dating is the invention of man and it does not work very well.

Abraham was a righteous man. Notice his attitude toward dating and his son being married to a heathen. Genesis 24:1-5 reads, "And Abraham was old, and well stricken in age: and the LORD had blessed Abraham in all things. 2And Abraham said unto his eldest servant of his house, that ruled over all that he had, Put, I pray thee, thy hand under my thigh: 3And I will make thee swear by the LORD, the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, that thou shalt not take a wife unto my son of the daughters of the Canaanites, among whom I dwell: 4But thou shalt go unto my country, and to my kindred, and take a wife unto my son Isaac." Question, Would parents know better than their children regarding potential marriage partners? Abraham did not ask Isaac’s opinion regarding a wife, but took matters into his own hand. When looking for a husband and wife, marry them only if their character checks out. If they are of Canaan (a type of the world), you know automatically that they do not qualify. It is better to start out right than to have to go back and try to make things work out.

Let us notice some characteristics of Rebekah, Isaac’s chosen bride. Genesis 24:16 says, "And the damsel was very fair to look upon, a virgin, neither had any man known her: and she went down to the well, and filled her pitcher, and came up." She was a pretty young woman (she cared about her outward appearance). A virgin (purity) and one willing to accomplish her assigned tasks (not lazy). These are good qualities when looking for a wife.

Here is the account of Isaac meeting Rebekah for the first time. Genesis 24:62-67 reads, "And Isaac came from the way of the well Lahairoi; for he dwelt in the south country. 63And Isaac went out to meditate in the field at the eventide: and he lifted up his eyes, and saw, and, behold, the camels were coming. 64And Rebekah lifted up her eyes, and when she saw Isaac, she lighted off the camel. 65For she had said unto the servant, What man is this that walketh in the field to meet us? And the servant had said, It is my master: therefore she took a veil, and covered herself. 66And the servant told Isaac all things that he had done. 67And Isaac brought her into his mother Sarah’s tent, and took Rebekah, and she became his wife; and he loved her: and Isaac was comforted after his mother’s death." Isaac was meditating which is an admirable quality for any young man. Notice Rebekah’s response to seeing Isaac. She covered herself with a veil. In other words, she was not forward but rather shamefaced in the presence of men. Another excellent virtue. Husbands are to love their wives as Christ loves His church. This is what Isaac did. Rebekah represents here a type of the bride of Christ, the church. She was a fit queen for a king.

The same could not be said for Esau, Isaac’s son. Genesis 26:34 says, "And Esau was forty years old when he took to wife Judith the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Bashemath the daughter of Elon the Hittite: 35Which were a grief of mind unto Isaac and to Rebekah. He married heathen women. It displeased his parents, but he did it despite them. To get back at his parents regarding the incident with Jacob, Esau purposely violated his father’s command in regard to marriage. Genesis 28:6-9 reads, "When Esau saw that Isaac had blessed Jacob, and sent him away to Padanaram, to take him a wife from thence; and that as he blessed him he gave him a charge, saying, Thou shalt not take a wife of the daughters of Canaan; 7And that Jacob obeyed his father and his mother, and was gone to Padanaram; 8And Esau seeing that the daughters of Canaan pleased not Isaac his father; 9Then went Esau unto Ishmael, and took unto the wives which he had Mahalath the daughter of Ishmael Abraham’s son, the sister of Nebajoth, to be his wife." Esau was a man of weak character and his choice of wives reflects his lawlessness. He was told to stay away from the women of the world, but having no admirable characteristics, he chose those who would lead him astray.

Conclusion

Making the right choice in marriage will keep us from breaking the seventh commandment and displeasing God. Look for excellence of character when choosing a marriage companion.

THE CONCEPT OF PRIVATE PROPERTY

Introduction

The eighth commandment mirrors the third commandment in regard to the covenant model. They both deal with ethics or law in this conceptual framework. Since God is the Creator of the earth, this means that He is the ultimate owner of all things. Psalm 24:1 declares, "The earth is the LORD’S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein." This means that God has original jurisdiction. Psalm 50:10-11 reads, "For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills.11I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are mine." All animals belong to God. Haggai 2:8 says, "The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the LORD of hosts." Everything ultimately belongs to the Lord. We just borrow the earth’s resources for a time.

Application

To properly understand the Bible, we need to use what is known as applied theology.

Exodus 20:15 four words read, "Thou shalt not steal." Once again, this commandment is straightforward. This is a negative command. On the positive side is the recognition that there is private property. What belongs to me does not belong to you and vice versa. Micah 4:4 says, "But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of the LORD of hosts hath spoken it." Notice here the personal pronouns showing possession. Each man is to have his own possessions. Noah Webster’s 1828 Dictionary’s fourth definition of "property" is "The exclusive right of possessing, enjoying and disposing of a thing; ownership. In the beginning of the world, the Creator gave to man dominion over the earth, over the fish of the sea and the fowls of the air, and over every living thing. This is the foundation of man’s property in the earth and in all its productions...The labor of inventing, making or producing any thing constitutes on of the highest and most indefeasible titles to property. Property is also acquired by inheritance, by gift or by purchase..." In other words, property has to do with ownership. Ownership is a legal concept which ultimately becomes a religious practice.

The eighth commandment is inherently tied to work, productivity, capital, and money. Property is obtained by different methods, but God intends that we obtain the majority of our possession through gainful employment. This leads us to why do men steal? Stealing issues from the heart of man. It ultimately is the desire to get something for nothing or without working for it. Proverbs 20:13 reads, "Love not sleep, lest thou come to poverty; open thine eyes, and thou shalt be satisfied with bread." Laziness is one the main reasons for a person having the desire to take someone else’s property. They do not want to put the effort to get something for themselves through labor, so they decide that they will simply take what someone else has labored for. Another example is found in Proverbs 24:30-34, "I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding; 31And, lo, it was all grown over with thorns, and nettles had covered the face thereof, and the stone wall thereof was broken down. 32Then I saw, and considered it well: I looked upon it, and received instruction. 33Yet a little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to sleep: 34So shall thy poverty come as one that travelleth; and thy want as an armed man." Those who love sleep and are slothful are thieves because they refuse to work to supply the needs of their families. They are stealing from their own family members.

The Proverbs are filled with axioms concerning be diligent in labor and the consequences about being indolent. An example is found in Proverbs 28:19, "He that tilleth his land shall have plenty of bread: but he that followeth after vain persons shall have poverty enough." Here is someone who is diligent in their work and the result is that they have property that will provide for their needs. In fact, they have plenty which gives us the idea of abundance. Hard work produces results and prosperity. Those that follow after worthless people will come to poverty and may in the end of it have to steal.

Proverbs 30:7-9 reads, "Two things have I required of thee; deny me them not before I die: 8Remove far from me vanity and lies: give me neither poverty nor riches; feed me with food convenient for me: 9Lest 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." Here we have the example of the poor being tempted to steal and take the name of the Lord in vain. This is the tie in between the third and eighth commandments of the covenant model being ethics or law. If you steal, you are taking the name of the Lord in vain by saying that God does not bless those who are industrious in their labors. They are saying that the world is governed by chance not providence.

Conclusion

We as Christians are to be obtain property legally. We are not to take something that does not belong to us. In other words, we are to uphold the concept of private property. What someone has legitimately labored for is theirs to enjoy and dispose of as they see fit. If we want something, we are to labor at honest activity providing for our necessities. To not labor is the workshop of the devil. It is theft.