8th Commandment – You shall not steal.
Pastor S. Collins www.LifePointRenton.org
Exodus 20 v 15; Matthew 25 v 14 – 30. Parable of the Talents
Don’t take from others is the obvious message.
Less obvious is this.
Recognize that God owns everything in heaven and earth.
All life is a stewardship – what I have really isn’t mine
The Lord is master and owner. We are stewards.
Question is – Are we stealing what God has entrusted to us and not giving him his due?
You shall not steal because:
1. What I have is not mine. All of it belongs to God. All life is a stewardship.
2. I am given what I can handle. 1 talent was 6,000 days wages (20 years) so 1 talent = $300,000 today; 2 talents = $600,000 and 5 talents = $1,500,000. Each was given according to his ability.
3. We must invest (develop) what we are given. Hiding it safely ( in the ground ) is not what is best. My potential is God’s gift to me. What I am doing with it is my gift back to him. Question is – Am I hiding it or investing it?
4. A day of accountability is coming – Jesus will come back and I will give an accounting of the life he has given me. Am I faithful to what God has given to me or am I wasting his gift?
5. What I do with what I have reveals my view of God. The first two servants used the gifts to produce more and where anxious to tell him what they had done. The 3rd was afraid and didn’t know God. Sow & reap. Step out in faith and trust him to help you.
6. Use what you have or lose it. He doesn’t want lazy. At least the 3rd should have put it in a bank to get interest. Those that used it were given more. The 3rd didn’t and had it taken from him, given to the one with the most talents, then the 3rd went to hell.
7. Stewardship is a direct reflection of my love for God. Those who don’t serve God ~~ religion/system ~~ are worthless servants.
All life is a stewardship. God entrusted me with life. What am I doing with it? Am I stealing the potential or developing it to its fullest?
Be active, sow that I may reap, God loves me and will help me. Develop what I have into something better each day.
Jesus is the man on the journey. I am a servant who he has entrusted with talents. Can God trust me to develop those until he comes back and I have to account for my behavior? Will I be anxious to show him what I have done? Grow it – Don’t Steal it.