8 Ten Commandments 1

Happy Sunday, and welcome back. We've made it to the eighth commandment. It's found in Exodus 2015: "Thou shalt not steal." In my lifetime, things have changed.

I remember as a child no one locked their house. No one had a security system; you didn't need one. People left their keys in their car, not a good idea today. The milkman from Mathis Dairy would leave milk and dairy products on the front porch, and no one would take them.

Today the term "porch pirates" is a common phrase. Sadly, Amazon packages are disappearing from porches all over this country because of thieves. In the United States, shoplifting exceeds 4 billion a year. Billion. One estimate says that of every 50 customers, one walks away with at least one item.

In the book of John, chapter 12, you find the story of Jesus visiting the home of Lazarus and Mary and Martha. Jesus is on his way to Jerusalem, and he will soon be crucified. Jesus is a wanted man. We're told in John 11 that a bounty is on his head.

I want to read the first three verses from John 12. We're told, "Six days before the Passover Jesus came to Bethany, the home of Lazarus, whom he had raised from the dead. There they gave a dinner for him. Martha served, and Lazarus was one of those at the table with him. Now Mary, she took a pound of costly perfume made of pure nard and anointed Jesus's feet and wiped them with her hair. The house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume."

Now, what's this have to do with stealing, you ask? Be patient; you will see. Mary loved Jesus. He'd raised her brother from the dead. She sat at his feet and listened.

He settled an argument with her and Martha about what's most important. Now, Mary had likely heard that Jesus was headed toward Jerusalem, and she knew that he was in danger. Mary is a giver, and she anoints Jesus before he goes to the cross.

Continuing in John 12, we see into the heart of a thief. Mary had just given so much, and now in John 12 we are told, beginning at verse 4, "But Judas Iscariot, one of his disciples, the one who was about to betray him, said, 'Why was this perfume not sold for 300 to near i and the money given to the poor?' He said this not because he cared about the poor, but because he was a thief. He kept the common purse and used to steal what was put into it."

What a contrast we see in John 12: Mary the giver and Judas the thief. The thieves care for themselves; givers care for others. There is good news: thieves can be changed. Remember when Zacchaeus came to know Jesus? He was, he immediately converted from a thief to a giver.

Ephesians 4:28 tells us that thieves must give up stealing: "Rather let them labor and work honestly with their own hands, so as to have something to share with the needy." Just last month, the gas pipeline was hit by cyber thieves, and Atlanta and many other locations had gas shortages. I thought that those hackers could do good for this world with their skills if they were givers. But their talents are used, sadly, for evil and not good.

As we've looked at the Ten Commandments, we've tried to turn them to the positive. Instead of "Thou shalt not steal," this eighth commandment can become "Thou shalt give." Giving changes this world. And the story we looked at in John 12, I have the best impression of Mary, and Judas makes me sick. That's quite the contrast.

God is the greatest giver. Maybe the first Bible verse you learned as a child was John 3:16: "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, and whoever believes in him shall not perish but have everlasting life." "For God so loved the world that he gave."

God has given us this beautiful world, our lives, our abilities, people love to love and to love us. He's given us every breath, every heartbeat. As John 3:16 reminds us, God has given us his very Son so that we can have eternal life. That's quite the contrast that it, because Satan is a taker. He wants to steal God's place in your life.

Over the years, my life has been so blessed by watching givers change the world. I remember after a tornado hit the area I lived in in Indiana, how the community was flooded with givers. And I pastored a church full of givers. I suppose there were some takers and looters there, but the givers were out in force.

A group from Pennsylvania of strangers we didn't know came and lived at our church for a while. They just came to help rebuild the community. I love givers.

After Hurricane Katrina, I was fortunate enough to be on a team that headed down to the coast to help. The devastation was unbelievable. One thing I remember vividly is the vehicles on the coast. The number one vehicle I saw after Katrina, and this was about a month after, the number one vehicle I saw after Katrina was not a police car or a utility truck. Oh, they were there, and I'm grateful.

The number one vehicle I saw when we were down there was church vans from all over this great country. They were everywhere. I doubt the news showed that. You know, we're not just to give in times of trouble; we're to give daily.

And you may be asking, what can you give? Maybe it's an encouraging word or a note to someone that you know. Maybe it's a neighbor you can help, or shut-in you can visit. Maybe you can repay a kindness extended to you long ago. Maybe because of COVID you've missed church and you're behind on tithing.

Whatever it is, giving changes the world. Bless you as you give. Let's pray.

Father, thank you for those that have given to make our lives better. We put you at the top of our list for giving us life, for giving us Jesus, for now offering us eternal life. We are grateful. And Father, let us be great examples to the world of not being takers, but being like Mary, willing to give of the best that we have. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. God bless.