Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. – John 14:6

Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free. – John 8:32

Can you be a Christian if you lie, cheat or steal? Absolutely. Can you believe in Jesus and the gospel of our salvation if you lie, cheat or steal? Sure. But will you be living your life like Jesus, in the image of God as He intended you to be? Of course not.

In Exodus 20:2-17 and in Deuteronomy 5:6-21, the Ten Commandments are listed by Moses to instruct people how to live in harmony with God and each other. Even though, having been redeemed by the finished work of the Cross, we no longer need to live under Mosaic law, these Commandments serve as guiding principles for every human being to live in peace. From Exodus 20…

¹⁵ You shall not steal.
¹⁶ You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

Most of us know and live by these principles. But as the apostle Paul wrote…

for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God – Romans 3:23

We have all messed up at times. The beauty of God’s grace is that He still loves us and wants to abide in us. When we fully know this grace and love, Holy Spirit will guide us toward loving others rather than harming them. To steal what doesn’t rightfully belong to us does ultimately harm others, maybe physically, emotionally, or financially. Thankfully, forgiveness and freedom is always available in the heart of Jesus.

I remember as a child how my mother handled the situation when she learned that my brother and sister had stolen candy from a store. They were very young, but they already knew it was wrong to steal. Mom put what was left of the candy in a plastic bag and drove them to that store where they apologized and gave the candy back. I’m sure Mom paid for the candy as well. She was instilling in her children the concept that we don’t take what isn’t ours!

Years ago, when I was dating my husband JC, I witnessed something amazing that added tremendously to the love I’d already felt for him. We were finishing a meal at a restaurant, and JC was checking the hand written numbers on the scrap of paper that was our bill. He asked me to double check for him, and we both found that the math was exactly $10.00 off in our favor. JC waved the manager over and showed her. As she explained how the waiter would have had that $10.00 taken from his pay at the end of the night, JC and I were both glad he spoke up. Everyone loves a bargain, but to have kept silent about the inaccuracy would have been dishonest.

The next evening as I saw JC after work, he told me something amazing that could only be God’s supernatural way of showing us that JC did the right thing. He’d been having a stressful morning when he went into the building and climbed the stairs to his office. Noticing a crumpled scrap of paper in the corner of one step, JC was annoyed that his part time maintenance employee hadn’t done a good job of cleaning the stairwell. He grabbed the scrap, intending to toss it in the trash. But when he opened it, he realized it was money. And I can imagine Papa God smiling and giving a wink as JC saw it was a $10.00 bill!

Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one body. – Ephesians 4:25

Give to everyone what you owe them: If you owe taxes, pay taxes; if revenue, then revenue; if respect, then respect; if honor, then honor. – – Romans 13:7

Laurie E. Hoppe-Ringer